"Never take on more work than you have time to pray over". This was one of the "Thoughts for 2005" in the Christmas letter of a friend. That struck us both rather powerfully. Like most missionaries and Christian workers, we work a lot, and we like to work. To be honest though, we know that we do not pray enough, excusing ourselves perhaps with the thought that we are very busy people. Is there anyone else out there like that? Could we ask you to pray, that in 2005, we would "continue steadfastly in prayer" (Rom.12:12), and that we would "pray and not lose heart" (Luke 18:1).
Normally two long church services are held at Christmas. On the Sunday after Christmas the choir sing many pieces. On Christmas Day itself the children recite verses and sing. This year around 250 children were involved and it was obvious that we needed a bigger venue than the hospital waiting area where we have the Sunday services. It was decided to use the new (under construction) church building in town, a kilometre or so from the hospital. The roof is already on, and the walls up to at least half-way all around. So on Christmas Day 2004, with much thanksgiving to God, the first service was held in the new church. David was the preacher. He spoke on "The people that walked in darkness have seen a great light" (Isaiah 9:2). He had made a large Christmas card with this text on it, and also words for the children to hold up, explaining the darkness and the light. Some may think that the star the wise men saw is the light, or the glory that shone around the shepherds, but of course it is Jesus who is the true light - the only one who can banish the darkness of ignorance, of sin and of death. The next day was the choir's presentation - also held in the new church. Now we are back meeting in the hospital again while the work on finishing the church goes on.
On December 23rd afternoon, we held the hospital staff Christmas gathering. As it started, storm clouds were building up, and before it finished there was a terrific downpour - the first one of the season, although we had already been having rain for a few days before this. At the same time, Marlis, our Swiss nurse, was in labour at our mission house in town. Since we do not yet have a maternity department, she had decided to deliver there with the help of one of the government midwives. In the providence of God, the baby came some days later than expected. That meant it was during the brief visit of Dorith Liniger, Marlis's friend with whom she grew up in Papua New Guinea. Dorith is currently training as a midwife in S Africa with a view to coming back to work here. A little boy, Mario, was born around 6 o'clock - Jimmy rang to give us the news (we have a radiotelephone link). Then at 7.30 Dorith rang to say there was some bleeding and would David go over to check.
David called Hilde, our Belgian nurse, who collected various supplies and they set off together in the new Land Rover. It was a dark night and still raining heavily. Just before reaching the town, the road crosses a bridge over a small river. In the dry season this dries up completely. After a period of prolonged rain, it can flood across the road and cut us off from town temporarily. However, since this was the first big rain of the year, David was not worried that this might at all be a problem. However, as they came to the river, he suddenly noticed that there was water right across the road. Being dark and raining it was difficult to see properly, and he was sure the water would not be deep, but engaged low ratio and locked the differential on the car as a precaution. They passed two people standing on the bank at the roadside looking down at them in unbelief.
A few seconds later it became completely dark - the headlights were now underwater. The water was a metre or so deep and seemed to be flowing awfully fast. A few seconds later, Hilde asked, in a most anxious tone, "Can you see the bridge?". It seemed a strange question - since neither of them could see anything! What she was really saying was "Aren't you heading for the river?", for if they had missed the bridge they would have plunged several metres into the river itself. It was a moment of earnest prayer. Fortunately David has had a lot of experience of this bit of road on dark rainy nights when going to fetch the theatre team (though not previously in subaqua conditions!). More particularly, the Lord's guiding hand was upon them, and they emerged from the water just in time to drive onto the bridge. Amazingly, the headlights were still shining! It was two rather shaken and bedraggled missionaries who arrived at the house where Marlis was. The front bumper and grill of the car were completely covered in leaves and debris up to the top of the bonnet, but the engine seemed fine.
They found Jimmy gently rocking the baby and floating on a cloud of happiness, as does any father just after the birth of his first child. How grateful we were that Dorith was there just when needed. It was clear that Marlis needed some sewing up - and at that point David and Hilde remembered they had forgotten to bring local anaesthetic! Hilde went off to the government hospital to see what she could beg - and found some, courtesy of the dentist! When it was all finished, prayer was offered, thanking God for His overruling on the birth of little Mario, praying that as he grows up he would follow his parents in the way of the Lord.
David and Hilde did not venture back to the hospital that night, but stayed in town. David was praying that nothing would happen that Adrien could not cope with alone. He knew that no patients would be arriving from the town side during the night with the river in flood - though there was still access from the villages north of the hospital. In the event it was quiet. By the morning the river had gone down and it was no problem to drive back. We later understood what had happened. The river is a dumping ground for rubbish. When the first big rain came, it washed all the rubbish that had accumulated over the dry season into the river. When all the debris hit the bridge it formed a kind of dam, and the river overflowed on to the road. The force of the water eventually pushed the rubbish through, unblocking the dam, and the flood went down. We shall know better next year!
Recently one of our folk heard one of the young women of the church giving a message for children on the radio. He was very impressed with her message and said to her "You must have spent a lot of time preparing that". "Oh no," she replied, "I was using one of Jane's Sunday school lessons." Since then we have found others who do the same thing and the lessons end up being widely used where they were not originally intended. Jane is working hard to complete lessons to cover the period when we shall be away.
With 3 of our 6 doctors away on annual leave over the Christmas period, we were grateful that the hospital was not more busy than usual. We had two Caesarean sections for (undiagnosed) twins. Most of our other emergencies seem to have been related to alcohol consumption during the holidays.
Two men arrived on successive days with hysterical convulsions and "unconsciousness" following fights with their wives (after drinking). These cases cause a lot of consternation to relatives and staff and easily divert attention from the real needs of the "patient" which are not medical but social and spiritual.
Another drunk man arrived in the early hours one night, having had his lower lip largely amputated by the bite of a drinking partner! A doctor out in a village had already sutured it, but the man came here anxious about the end result on his appearance. What would you say to a drunk man concerned about his appearance at 1 o'clock in the morning?
At 10pm on New Year's day, a young man, arrived, having been injured in the abdomen while practising "morengy" (Malagasy traditional wrestling) after having had too much to drink. David thought he may have ruptured his spleen, but with the difficulty of assessing a drunk, he ordered intravenous fluids and observation during the night. The man, however, on being approached by the nurse to put up a drip, promptly ran away. He reappeared 5 days later by which time two and a half litres of blood were floating in his abdomen, and a very ragged spleen was removed. He is now doing well.
Other alcohol-related incidents included men chopped by knives, women beaten by their husbands, and a toddler with diarrhoea following having "accidentally" drunk beer.
Another drunk man vomited profusely at home, forcing intestines into his hernia which then strangulated. As David and Adrien came out of theatre having operated on him they came face to face with the real curse that alcohol is. Waiting on the theatre veranda was the man's wife with a child on the breast and a toddler sat beside her. She looked up and said pitifully to Adrien "Doctor, can you please tell my husband to stop drinking". In all these cases we are conscious that merely patching up the results of their drinking will only keep them alive for another day of drinking. Please pray that they will come to understand the gospel of forgiveness and the power of a new life through Jesus Christ.
In our last letter we mentioned a lady brought in at death's door after severe bleeding following childbirth. She was brought back last week unconscious and frothing at the mouth with severe meningitis. She should be ready to go home again in a few days. Please pray for Deraline, that, after two brushes with death she might seek the Lord.
Our two containers arrived at the port of Mahajanga at the end of November. The first one came from Unimatco in England with the new Land Rover and many other items. The second was from IDA in Holland with our annual drug order. It is 600km from Mahajanga to Mandritsara, and the middle 200km is very bad road. Already it was raining here, and at one place where a bridge was washed away last year in the cyclone, the river was already varying between 60cm and 1m deep. Fortunately when the Land Rover and two trucks arrived there the level had gone down, but they had to wait 8 hours as several other trucks were deeply stuck in the mud and blocking the road.
The Land Rover is great - as we mentioned above! We are grateful to all who contributed to these containers - some of you sent old lawn mowers - they are all now happily clattering around the hospital lawns! Thank you very much!
In our Bible study last week in Genesis 12, looking at the call of Abraham, Adrien pointed out verse 2 where God says to Abram "You will be a blessing". What a promise! Oh that God would so work in us, that we might be a blessing to others in 2005. That we might be a spiritual blessing, and that somehow God might use us to bring the blessing of the knowledge of His love and grace and salvation this year. Thank you, dear friends, for your prayers, support, letters and Christmas cards.
With our love in Him
David and Jane
Gifts for the project should be sent to:
Mr Derek Alcock
Friends of Mandritsara Trust
244 Obelisk Rise
Northampton
NN2 8TW
email: derek@mandritsara.org.uk
Please make out cheques to "Friends of Mandritsara Trust" (F.O.M.T.) Gift Aid forms are available.