Thursday, July 1, 2010

I woke up with a sore throat, lamentable yet undeniable evidence I was getting sick—but there was no time to be sick and so much work to be done… We had devotions together about casting our cares upon Jesus; little did I know how much that message would mean to me later. We exercised and had breakfast. Derek said that I would be leaving for another village after breakfast so I packed my suitcase and waited. We were trying to find transportation from Muchinshi to Bukotelo, the number of vehicles on the island was rather limited and procuring one could take time. Derek said that if we could not find a vehicle we would have to bike the 27Km to Bukotelo. I was actually hoping we would get to bike but a vehicle became available.

Michael, Derek, and Chama rode with me across the island. As we bounced over the dirt roads Michael told me a little about team Pentecost in the village of Bukotelo. He explained that it is one of the most remote sites and that the people there rarely see foreigners. It was close to noon when I was dropped off in Bukotelo. I was greeted by Zukiswa and Nelson; all the other missionaries were out in the village. As they cooked lunch Zukiswa told me about the ministry. When the missionaries first arrived in the village the rumor went around that they were Satanists and so ministry had been difficult. I was told that people would run from them and some people even threw rocks at them and chased them with sticks. There were lots of medical needs in that area and the people were expecting a doctor to come. In fact, people were already gathering to see the doctor at the school across from the house where we were staying.

The rest of the team returned from the village and we ate a quick lunch before going to the school. We organized a “health fair” similar to the one in Muchinshi. When they brought me a bag of medications to dispense I was rather startled. They were all medications I had never given before, I recognized some of the names (that was an antibiotic, this was for pain, etc) but I had no idea what would be a standard dose. I decided not to hand out medications. I would pray a lot and use my limited knowledge to do what I could. As I unpacked my Bible, stethoscope, aneriod sphygmomanometer, thermometer, and pen light I wanted to kick myself for not being better prepared.

Panji graciously translated for me, but it was difficult to get a history of present illness. Some people would change their story as I asked questions. Panji would shake his head and say “things are bad!” every time someone changed their story. Everyone seemed to have pain; head pain, back pain, abdominal pain, leg pain… and many people had eye problems. Zukiswa checked people for cataracts and I did basic physical assessments. I recommended diet and lifestyle changes, many people were not drinking enough water or eating a balanced diet. I wrote people notes to take to the nearest medical center for further assessment, diagnosis, and treatment. From 2:00pm until the sun went down around 5:45pm we talked to between 30 and 40 of the people who had come for treatment. As I packed my Bible, stethoscope, aneriod sphygmomanometer, thermometer, and pen light I thanked God for being with me.

Panji and I joined the rest of the missionaries at the crusade site. Children were gathered there and we sang with them and Mirriam told them the story of Jonah before the evangelistic crusade began. David led the song service and I gave an impromptu health talk before Nelson (and Gift) preached (and translated). When the message was over we packed up the equipment and carried it back to the house. We had evening devotional and gave reports about the events of the day. I was surprised when I heard the other missionaries talking about how well the health fair went. We prayed together and then I went outside to pray.

All day I had been holding back tears, tears of frustration with myself and my inadequacy. As I looked up at the stars the tears rolled down my cheeks and I cried to God finally casting on Him the burdens of my heart. I prayed for each person who had come to see me that day. I prayed for His special intervention on their behalf. I prayed that they would experience His blessing as they followed the instructions given. I prayed that they would come to know His love and be drawn to Him. That morning the Lord had reminded me of my need to cast my cares on Him, why I waited so long to do it? With a light heart and peaceful mind I went to sleep.