Soaking It All In

Pretend it is Monday, April 9th. Just a few days behind posting this. Today is our last day at kibogora hospital. It has been an amazing experience And we are sad to go, but anxious to return and see all those we miss back home. In this short time, we have built personal an professional relationships with many of the staff here and we hate to leave them. Dr. Ngoy, one of the pediatricians, and Immanuel, one of the scrub techs, welcomed their respective teams into their homes this past weekend. I was lucky to be able to visit immamuel's home, which he just moved into a week ago. He and his family are overjoyed to have their new home, as evidenced by their warm welcome and offering of fanta and coke. We were able to take the family's first photo in front of their new home, which he was thrilled to receive. I will never forget Immanuel, as he was truly dedicated to serving the hospital, the people and patients of Kibogora, and also our team during our short time in his country. Today, we are trying to soak up the views, the people, and the memories of Kibogora before we depart tomorrow. Though anxious to return, I will always remember my time here at Kibogora and the lessons I have learned through God's will for me. William

HAPPY EASTER FROM RWANDA!

Oh death! Where is your sting?

Oh hell! Where is your victory?

Oh Church! Come stand in the light!

Our God is not dead, he's alive! he's alive!

The African Kangaroo Flying Death Rat ATTACKS

Disclaimer – This story is to be read in the reader’s most dramatic and theatrical tone of voice in order for it to be fully appreciated. The authors of this blog would like to state the story that follows is in fact truth, and every event written about did actually occur. Poetic license may have been used by some authors in order to covey to the reading public the fear, anxiety and hilarity of the situation. Thank you. 

Shannon:  As a member of the pediatrics team here, we had been invited to enjoy a traditional Congolese meal with our local pediatrician Dr. Ngoy.  The food was amazing!  I have learned that I have a new love of plantains.  Anyway, after we came back to the house, the evening was dying down so I headed into my room to change into my lounge clothes.  I walk into the closet and turn on the light, after which I heard a pitter-patter of tiny feet above my head.  I look up, assuming that it was a small animal running across the roof.  I quickly realize how wrong my assumption was when I saw two beady little eyes staring down at me.  Not 2 seconds later, a monster rat is leaping towards my face!  My lightning fast reflexes kick in and the rat lands on my right shoulder instead of my face.  It jumps to the floor, and then I chase it around the room, trying to trap it into a corner so I can get it outside.  That rat was a feisty little critter!  I thought I had him cornered when he squished his little body under the door to my room, entering the hallway.  I thrust the door open to see where he is going when I see his little tail scoot under Leanna’s door.  I think for a minute, then realize that I need to tell her there is an invader in her room.  I walk out to the living room and calmly announce to Leanna that there is a rat in her room, after which pandemonium ensues!  I didn’t realize the chaos that I would be starting.  We all run back to Leanna’s room, where the scoundrel is hiding under the bed.  I am stuck in the hall, amidst screaming and shrieking and others chasing the rat with their shoes and other items that might be used to harm our friendly visitor.  The rat finally makes it out of Leanna’s room and makes a break for it down the hall, where Becky Bryars (who admits to having a severe rat phobia) is standing, watching the commotion while holding the butter bowl.  The rat jumps on her foot, she leaps in the air, loses her footing, and she hits the floor and the butter dish goes flying down the hallway and shatters!  The rat is still at large in the living room.  It runs along the wall behind all the furniture.

Elizabeth: First, I heard screams and shouts of confusion.  Did I hear something about a rat? Before I knew it, there were people running down the hallway towards the bedroom across from mine.  I heard Shannon say it had squeezed beneath the closed door.  I found myself screaming along with the others and preparing myself to make it to higher ground.  Little did I know that would not be sufficient… as they opened the door I saw the rat scaling the wall about 2.5 feet and jumping into the air, trying to escape the crowds of people, several with weapons in hand ready to take out the little critter.  “Why am I screaming like a little girl?” yelled a 26-year-old male in pursuit of the invader.  In rapid succession there were more screams, the sound of a dish breaking, and the rat chasers running in the opposite direction down the hall.  I made it down the hallway, past the broken glass, and into the living room, where the chaos continued.  Somehow, the rat made it out the back door.  Will it return? Stay tuned.  Since this magical rat can squeeze into tiny spaces, climb walls, and apparently fly, I could only think "i am safe nowhere!" My mosquito net now serves a dual function: it not only keeps me mosquito free, but also serves as a second barrier to any other rodents who try to make an appearance.

Britni: I was sitting on my bed in the back bedroom that I share with Elizabeth, going through some of the notes I’d taken from our early morning bible study. I heard yelling and high-pitched screaming coming from the room next to mine but didn’t think much of it since our team is mostly composed of boisterous and theatrical persons. There is always someone yelling, singing or running around screaming at the top of his or her lungs in our house. I continued to focus on the task at hand - clipping my toenails – until out of nowhere, I was bowled over backward by a large, grown man who had dive-bombed me on my bed in an attempt to escape the source of all of the commotion: a very large rat. This large man-child had me pinned down on my bed and was yelling into my ear over and over again, “There’s a rat, there’s a rat, there’s a RAT!” I was able to fandangle myself out from under him just in time to see a stampede of people run down the hallway, past the door to my bedroom and into the room across the hall from mine (Leanna’s room). The scene that ensued was reminiscent of the squirrel-in-the-Christmas-tree scene from National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation: it was absolute chaos. There were about ten people in hot pursuit of the rat, most of them carrying weapons of varying caliber – shoes, books, glass butter dishes, pitchforks…you know, the usual. And ALL of them were screaming at the tops of their very large lungs. I jumped from my twin bed to Elizabeth’s, which afforded me a better view of the pandemonium that was ensuing across the hall. I watched the mess for about four minutes without even so much as a glance at the “rat” which had everyone up in arms. Just as I was about to write them all off (they must have overdosed on their Malaria prophylaxis medications) and return to my toenails, I heard a collective gasp and watched as a rat the size of a small house cat hauled arse out of Leanna’s room and booked it down the hallway towards the living room. Once again, I was knocked backwards onto the bed by the same man-child who’d attacked me earlier – he had backpedaled into my room when the rat charged towards the door and tripped backward onto my standing self over the baseboard of the bed. The last thing I recall before being thrown backward onto my butt was Becky’s scream and the sound of glass shattering onto the concrete floor in the hallway…

Melissa:  I was standing in the kitchen washing dishes when I heard a commotion in the living room.  Assuming it was just the group being dramatic about something as usual, I ignored it and went about my business.  A minute later, I hear Mrs. Becky scream, “A RAT?!?!”  As quickly as I could turn around, I notice that she has gone off to see if this story is really true.  As I’m finishing up the dishwashing, I hear a loud bang and the sound of shattering glass.  At this point I decided that maybe the group WASN’T just being dramatic and I should investigate.  As I make my way into the living room I see Bryan, Dr. Albertson, Brannon, and Dr. Peevy sitting on the couches as if nothing is going on.  I can see in the hallway that there is broken glass from the butter dish all over the floor, so everyone else is trapped at the end of the hallway.  Then, very nonchalantly, Bryan (who very slyly picked his feet up off the floor) says, “The rat just ran in here and it’s over in that corner behind the couch.”  There were many thoughts going through my head at this point.  Why are all of the men sitting on the couch as if nothing is going on??  THERE IS A RAT IN THE HOUSE!!  Is there really a rat in the house, or is everybody hallucinating?  What are we going to do to get this mouse out of the house??  Since everyone else was still in the hallway, I decided to be brave and see if I could tease the rat to come out from behind the couch.  He wasn’t behind the curtains, but I couldn’t bring myself to get on the floor to see where he was, but as soon as I looked up I realized Caroline was on the other side of the couch on the floor trying to get the rat to run my direction.  I knew at that moment that I should get out of the way, but alas, I was too late.  In the blink of an eye, I looked back down at the floor and see the MONSTER RAT running straight towards me.  Everything that happened after this is really a blur.  I recall myself running, knees to chest (afraid that the rat would get under my feet), then the last thing I remember is rounding the corner in my socked feet and wiping out on the floor. 

Shannon again:  The next thing I see as I enter the living room is Melissa Moon hitting the deck!  The rat took her down!  So Melissa is on the floor and Francie Albertson is standing on a chair with her hands to the sky, screaming as she watches the rat jump up on the curtains.  Melissa gets up and I hear her say, “I was going to be so brave, until the rat came after me!” This rat is athletic, it banks off the curtains to get to the chairs and avoid us.  Somehow Micki Peevy coerces it out the door, she slams it shut, and we all shout Hallelujah!  No more rat – whew!

This amateur sketch is what many believe the rat to look like.

God's power changes lives

My apologies up front for a very scattered and not well thought out post.

Each day I am becoming more aware of how limited our time at Kibogora is. As Friday comes to a close, I realize we only have one more day of working at the hospital. The thought of leaving is more bitter than sweet. There are still beds filled with hurting people who need help, lives in which we could possibly make a difference.

One life, I believe God has allowed us to impact, is the life of Jacqueline. She is a young lady who has been in the hospital for one year with burns. When we arrived she was without hope of recovery and had no desire to continue living. I have worked with her every day to begin moving her three fingers and thumb on her left had as well as remobilizing her right shoulder. Ultimately I have tried to be her friend, encourage her that there is hope and most importantly pray!

One week ago Thursday, she received skin grafts on her right hand. The following day she was incredibly depressed. As I tried working with her, she pulled away. Jacqueline refused to smile or speak or work with me. I had a nurse tell her that she needed to work with me if she wanted to get better. Jacqueline said she did not care to get better because she only wanted to die. Instead, I sat on her bed and prayed for her. But in my heart I was really discouraged.

Monday, Jacqueline was in good spirits. She worked with me, she ate, she went outside, and she was smiling again. Every day this week has been better than the day before. On Wednesday we happened to be doing rounds as she was drinking hot cereal. Dr. Albertson showed Jacqueline how to hold the bowl herself and she ate more than I have ever seen her eat before.

A few hours later, I came into the women’s ward to work with patients, and Jacqueline was preparing to eat rice and beans. Apparently feeding herself inspired an appetite that she has not had since she was admitted one year ago. She managed to hold the spoon between her thumb and palm and feed herself. Today Jacqueline had the bandages removed for the first time since the skin graft. And she was excited to tell me that it is healing well. I know that this is the power of God.

In the past days I have worked with Jacqueline, and many other patients, I have felt inadequate and under trained. While I have enjoyed being able to spend time with the same people each day and build relationships (as much as is possible when I cannot speak their language), I have been quite unsure of myself.

Because of my felt inadequacies, I have been praying without ceasing. I always need to rely on God, but it is very easy when I feel adequate to think I no longer need him every moment of every day. Additionally, I am able to give glory to God for the work he has done in Jacqueline’s life, and the life of other patients I have worked with. My hope and prayer is that this change will be a lasting change because whether I feel like I need God or not, I do.

“But he said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.” 2 Corinthians 12:9-10

-Leanna

Kibogora Week Three

Week three comments: see http://kjacksonp.blogspot.com

Pictures from week 1 and 2

As the bandwidth of the internet is not very high in SW Rwanda, it is difficult and time consuming to upload photos.  As I've traveled back to the states ahead of the group I've decided to post a portion of the photos on our website for viewing.  It took me 15 minutes to upload these photos, it would have taken the team 15 hours.  Here's the link.  Click the "Launch Photo Gallery" button and choose Rwanda 2012 in the drop-down menu.


I had a great time with the team and was sad to leave.  The Lord is doing some tremendous things in and through the lives of everyone on the team.  They will all have so many stories to share when they get home so please ask them.  It was a privilege to be a part of such a talented group. 


Thank you Cody, William and Britni for taking such great pictures!  The pictures posted are only a 10th of the ones taken.


Enjoy,
Duane

More Than We Can Handle

“God will never give you more than you can handle.” This quote is often repeated whenever we find ourselves in the midst of a trying situation. We’ve all heard it numerous times and it often brings comfort to those who are weary or frustrated. Unfortunately, I don’t necessarily believe that God never gives us more than we can handle. I think that often times He does allow us to be overwhelmed and that He intentionally gives us more than we can handle. I think that He has various reasons for doing so, but I believe that most often God chooses to overwhelm us because it causes us to surrender to Him. And after we’ve surrendered, He takes over and it is then that we are able to see His grace and faithfulness shining through our lives.

These past three weeks, God has overwhelmed most of us on the team and made us to feel as if treating patients in a third-world hospital is too much to handle. He has given us impossible cases to solve, impoverished families to worry over, a ginormous language barrier to fight against and so much more. He has placed numerous patients on our hearts and caused many of us to weep over them as we labor to treat and heal and love them. There have been moments on this trip when, I’m almost ashamed to admit, I’ve thought I’d finally reached my breaking point and I wondered if I could make it to April 14^thhaving “finished the race well”.  

But our God is so faithful and He restores our hope! “I cry out to God Most High, to God, who fulfills His purpose for me…God sends His love and His faithfulness,” Psalm 57:2-3, Amen!! A very wise and godly friend of mine told me a few days ago that missions aren’t always just about the people we’re serving. She told me that sometimes God’s purpose on a mission trip is to refine those who have come to serve. I think that there is much wisdom in that thought. After hearing those insightful words, I began to try to discern what it is that the Lord is trying to refine in me while I’m over here.

Perhaps He is trying to teach me (or all of us) that we should learn to ask for “more than we can handle,” since it’s in those stressful times that God shows Himself victorious. And He reminds us that we were never meant to walk through this life alone. All of this life requires more of Him and less of us. He allows us to feel overwhelmed intentionally and lovingly so that His glory might be displayed through our lives and so that we have no doubt of Who is in control. And I think that as we learn this lesson, He graciously allows us to be filled with much joy and peace – even more joy and peace than we can handle!

I want big things from God. And He wants big things from me.  He wants me to trust Him with my heart and my life. He wants me to lay my weaknesses and fears down at the foot of the cross and to crawl into His arms and rest and draw from His strength. He wants me pour myself out, giving the best that I have to the point of being “poor” for the sake of others. Sometimes it hurts, this loving unconditionally and loving unto the point that I feel ‘poor’ (or spent). But I believe that God does this intentionally and lovingly as well; He saved and sanctified us to exhaust us so that we might come to realize that He is our supply and our strength. “All of my springs are in You,” the Psalmist writes in Psalm 87:7. There is a fountain of grace, purchased by the blood of the beautiful Lamb, and it is available to all of His children, whenever they are in need. And so we learn to pray for “more than we can handle,” expecting that God will meet our poor selves in the midst of the struggle and prove Himself mighty.

Give us more than we can handle today, Lord, so that You might be glorified in us. When we begin to tire or to struggle, please help us to remember that we need only to call upon Your name in order to receive boundless grace for the task at hand. Amen.

 - Britni

Encouragement for the day:

“A saint’s life is in the hands of God like a bow and arrow in the hands of an archer. God is aiming at something the saint cannot see, but our Lord continues to stretch and strain, and every once in a while the saint says, “I can’t take any more.” Yet God pays no attention; He goes on stretching until His purpose is in sight, and then He lets the arrow fly. Entrust yourself to God’s hands. Maintain your intimate relationship with Jesus through the perseverance of faith. Proclaim as Job did, “Though He slay me, yet will I trust Him” (Job 13:15).  God ventured His all in Jesus to save us, and now He wants us to venture our all with total abandoned confidence in Him.” – Oswald Chambers, My Utmost for His Highest

“Now we see things imperfectly as in a poor mirror, but then we will see everything with perfect clarity. All that I know now is partial and incomplete, but then I will know everything completely, just as God knows me now,” 1 Corinthians 13:12. Amen!