Faith Comes By Hearing.....

Highlights of the week- a representative from Faith Comes by Hearing from La Ceiba visited us for the night Thursday, explaining how their ministry works. We have been praying about using their Proclaimers now since September, just never was a time that worked for all of us to do the training necessary in the Garifuna community to get the program launched. Well, this was the week! Rene Ortiz went out to the church area with John early Friday AM and he trained 4 locals to use the Proclaimers, a self-contained audio device that is either handcranked, solar-powered, or electric, with the New Testament in Garifuna. Delia, Emel, and Enilda, along with our pastor Antonio, went thru the training and plan to begin "listening groups" in their homes in this language this coming week! For those for whom this is a heart language, this will be their first hearing of the bible in their language. WOW!

I shared of little Marbeli last week, a child dying of a horrible facial cancer. Well, 2 of our staff went out to begin home visits but only needed to continue it for a week, as the Lord took Marbeli home yesterday and freed her from her painful body. The needs she presented, along with those of some other terminal patients, have made it obvious that a hospice program would be a blessing. Roseanne McKenney has tackled putting a program together and all will participate as they can in making it work.
I made a trip down to the hospital in the dark Thursday PM to get an oxygen concentrator to carry over to where Suyapa, a staff member, very ill at present, was being cared for. As I opened the back door of the hospital, I disturbed a large coral snake that was lounging along the base of the doors. He startled and began to try to climb the door, causing me to wig out and start yelling for the vigilante. (guard). I could hear him in the interior garden/chapel, coming slowly and muttering something about "She's afraid of the sapo!" I reacted to that, as I have no fear of the large frogs that are numerous here, and continued to yell for him to hurry, that it was a snake! He arrived before it had wiggled off, and with lots of slashing of the machete, quickly dispatched it.
Early in the week I greeted an American family in the waiting room, and heard their story. They had brought a 5 year old girl, Carla, in for malnutrition. She would not converse with me, but looked BAD. She became an inpatient for initial treatment and when stable, was transferred to the children's center, where she will be loved and continue getting adequate protein to build her up. Think there are other children in the home who also need care....the mom seemed minimally aware of how severe her daughter was, and less than capable of providing the needed care.

Our Juana, who delivererd #9 girl named Juanita, or little Juana, arrived home safely just 24 hrs after having her baby, and we climbed the hill to visit them before Saturday evening church last weekend. Beautiful baby, and the other girls are fighting over her. The older sister, Griselia, or Gris, leaves Monday for a year long mission to the Moskitia, a swamp far to the east of us accessible only by air. She will be working in an orphanage there, bringing with her the music outreach proram she has learned from dr. Don, our neighbor. She has been working in the Lucinda schools with him, long before I came on board to help. This is REALLY big- a young person steady enough and strong enough in her faith to leave her family and trust the Lord in this way. Pray for Gris!

Well, busy packing for a 2 nighter up the mountain to a village 3 plus hours by horse, to do a Women's Health Clinic, and access local needs. I am going prepared to do the Wordless Book CEF program with kids if the situation allows, and to do a hospital generated census going door to door. Next blog will report on that! Not being horse-back riders, John and I sure don't know what to expect, but trust the Lord will go before us and send his angels to protect and guide us!