Posts
[Sorry about the mass-mailing again; I really won't mind if you just dump the letter in case you didn't want to be on the mailing list. In the same light,feel free to pass it along to those for whom I don't have their email address.]
******************************************
2 December 2002
Dear Brothers & Sisters in Christ:
I'm writing (by hand 1st) to you on the "warp machine"we call an "airplane," the contraption that transports me from one world to another, in this case fromAmsterdam, Holland to Los Angeles, USA. I'd never set foot in Europe before this trip, so I took advantage of the layover in Amsterdam to see what I could in under 3 hours. Unfortunately since I got out to the city about 7AM, not much was open -- indeed the skies were still completely dark.
How strange it was to think that just a few hours earlier, I was standing on Nigerian soil and feeling hot & sticky, and now there I was walking about the wet streets of Amsterdam feeling underdressed in my khaki pants and sweatshirt. First my fingertips went numb, then my ears. I wish I had more time to see things, esp. during normal open hours, but I did have a good time & even walked over to see (the outside of) Anne Frank's (the Jewish girl famous for her diary)old house. What I saw of the city was quite picturesque.
I thought I might write you all again to update you on the rest of my time in Nigeria, but before I go anyfurther, let's continue in the spirit of the last letter as I invite you to take another........
POP QUIZ!!! (true or false)
Since Sid/Steve last wrote about 2 weeks ago, he...
a) treated over 20 victims from the riots over the Miss World Pageant fiasco.
b) took a shower directly from a showerhead/faucetf or the 1st time since coming to Nigeria.
c) repeatedly yelled "REPENT!!" when delivering a sermon at a village church last weekend.
d) ate a delicious turkey dinner on Thanksgiving Day.
e) saw another car crash occur right in front of his eyes.
f) single-handedly provided for the survival of 100'sand their families.
PRAISE THE LORD!
Praise the Lord, for He is good! I'm thankful to Him for the time in Nigeria, not because it was perpetual fun or because I felt I made any huge impact. I'm thankful for the past month b/c I was stretched,l earned a lot of medicine I'd never known, learned a lot about socio-economic dynamics of running a Christian hospital, & learned quite a bit about raising & nurturing a family on the mission field.
Indeed, there is still SO MUCH to learn about everything! To be quite honest, I wondered several times in the last 2 wks (esp after a particularly tiring & depressing call night) whether I'm ready to be a missionary/doctor, which is NOT to say I wonder about my specific calling to missions or to say that I'm puttin off going to the mission field. What I mean is that I've realized that my dependence on our loving Father, & also my surrender to the day-to-day process of His preparing me for my future, have GOT to be SCALED UPWARD. He will be faithful to carry me through His calling for me, & I thank Him for that.
...As I try to formulate my thoughts on paper, I struggle with what stories to share with you. I find myself getting worked up as I think & write about each particular experience, and I find myself starting to include a lot of detail that I feel that I don't have the time (we're to land @ LAX in less than 15 minutes) or energy to give. Perhaps in the next few weeks I'll be better able to organize my thoughts & pass them onto you then. Also, let me know if you'd like to hear such detail.
PRAYER REQUESTS
Until then, may I recruit your continued prayer support for the following concerns?
1) my re-entry. I'm returning to the busy life of a resident on a busy rotation (cardiac care unit). Other responsibilities of life (bills, etc.) are awaiting me, in addition to my desire to spend time with my family, particularly my grandfather who lives in a nearby nursing home. Please pray that I'd re-adjust quickly while remembering all that I've learned in the last month.
2) my long-term plans. This is a repeat-request from the last letter. I need God's wisdom & guidance regarding family issues, mission board selection,f ield selection, and mission team.
3) the hospital @ Ile-Ife. The hospital, as with many Christian mission hospitals around the world, is struggling financially, especially in an age of increasing health costs. Ile-Ife is even finding it difficult to pay its staff a competitive salary in a timely manner. Its role in the town of ~30,000 amidst other hospitals (including a larger, government teaching hospital) is still being worked out, as there has recently been a major shift in its administrative structure. Please pray for wisdom & compassion in their decision making.
4) the students at the SDA School of Nursing @Ile-Ife. I shared with them my own story of how Jesus has changed my life, and about why & how we should share Christ in the medical setting. Several seemedi nterested in the whole idea & process. Please pray that they would follow through in continued study and application of what we discussed.
5) the missionary families @ Ile-Ife. They all work quite hard & long hours (both with the hospital & @church), yet exude a joy about them that is quite beautiful. I know it's a REAL joy, for they have opened their homes to me, & I experienced & absorbed their joy as I spent time with them. There are the Moons, a retired couple from California who recently returned to Nigeria (they were there >30 years ago) to run the School of Nursing; their smiles are quite contagious. Dr. Giebel (a family practicioner who wears a lot of other "hats") & his wife are themselvesf rom long-term missionary families. They have 2 girls, Melissa & Tami, along with Rusty the donkey,P tolemy the chameleon, Chubby the civet (when he doesn't run away), & Slinky the genet. Dr. Saunders (a general surgeon) & his wife (a nutritionist) have 4 children -- Andrew & Seth are the ones still living at home with them. The Saunders just returned from furlough in Oregon. Denise Ellson (a short-termer --~9 months by Jan 2003) is a physiotherapist from Australia who's started a rehab program for those with motor disabilities.
6) your own involvement in missions. As long aswe're talking about it, may I invite you to prayerfully ask yourself the following questions?
-- What about you & your involvement in cross-cultural evangelism & helping the poor?
-- Since God calls all of His people to involvement in missions, how is He specifically calling you?
-- How is God using you now where you are?
-- What new, stretching experiences might God becalling you to? (Ile-Ife can use a physiotherapist, an internist, an obstetrician/gynecologist, & a pediatrician immediately, & I'd be happy to get you connected with them.)
******************************************
3 December 2002
IN A DAZE
Even after a warm reception by family @ the Los Angeles Int'l Airport, a nice Taiwanese meal (& shaved ice dessert, yum-yum), a badly needed haircut, a quick shave (even after a month, most of you apart from my sister & mother prob'ly wouldn't have noticed the mustache), a brief visit to my grandfather, along-&-sorely-needed death-state night's sleep, a pile of (mostly junk) mail, a short jog with Big Daddy (my sister & brother-in-law's dog), a time in prayer & Bible-reading, and a comfortable ride in my luxurious car back to my apartment, I feel like I'm still in a daze. Was I really in Africa just 2 short days ago? What a different world I find myself in!
Perhaps part of my daze is jetlag. Maybe it's partly indigestion. Maybe it's something to do with the Mefloquine I continue to take for prophylaxis against malaria. Or perhaps it's a kind of "homesickness," for when I'm here I feel the hankering to be there (where I'm more needed -- where people need physical help and the hope of Jesus), & when I'm there I feel the hankering to be here. For sure, it's a different world I'm in now; in fact, tomorrow I start largely treating what is primarily a disease of the rich: coronary artery disease. Still though, things will be the same here in that there are still physical needs & the same dire need to hear of the truth & love of our Lord Jesus.
Thankfully, our home is not on this earth @ all, butin heaven. I sure look forward to being there oneday. Thank you so much for your prayers. I hope we can seeeach other soon. Please let me know how I can pray for you, too.
Because of His Love,
Sid
QUIZ KEY
I didn't hear of anyone who got everything right on the last quiz; let's see how you did on this one:
a) FALSE. We were nowhere near the rioting over the Miss World Pageant. In fact, when I got some of your email asking about the riots, I thought to myself, "What riots?" Not until a few days later did I get the scoop from people who read the papers. Thanks foryour concern!
b) FALSE. Actually, I'd taken my 1st of about 5 showers from a showerhead/faucet earlier in Lagos (the city I flew into) when I arrived in Nigeria. All the other showers were with a bucket & my tennis ball can. I think I got down to using less than 4 tennis ballcans per shower!
c) FALSE. It'd be interesting to know which among you thought this was true. Actually, last weekend I DID preach, but I preached on how the church is the body of Christ, regarding the need for continuous fellowship with Christ our Head, & unity with our siblings the other parts of the body.
d) FALSE. I certainly had a delicious Thanksgiving meal, but there was no turkey there, as I ate with vegetarian brothers & sisters. It was very nice to spend time with some other Americans (& some Nigerians & an Australian) to celebrate the holiday over a meal & some games. I had turkey the night before when Henry (a Nigerian resident physician at the hospital) & I went to a local eatery.
e) FALSE. No, we didn't see the accident HAPPEN, just the cloud of dust & shattered vehicle as we were just behind the accident when it happened on our way back from the Thanksgiving meal some way away from Ife. So we again stopped to help out, & we broughtb ack with us 2 men with broken bones. Thankfully there were no life-threatening injuries.
f) This one is TRUE, lest you think I'm just a pack of lies! I single-handedly fed >100 INSECTS(hee-hee!) and their families during this trip (that's a conservative number; on my arms alone I currently have 28 bites). I got at least 20 mosquito bites --some even through my socks! -- in just one night whenwe traveled to a smaller community clinic. Bzzzzz--bzzzzzz---- OUCH!
God bless, all!
Monday, December 02, 2002
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)