Christmas Rush
I suddenly realised that is is almost two weeks since I posted but like everyone else I'm caught up in the whirlwind of Christmas and all the extra stuff that happens.
There is a lot going on and sometimes it all seems such a hassle and then you get those lovely moments that make it all worth while. Here are just a few.
Dave, a "gentleman of the road" turned up this weekend. He usually does this time of year and has spent a number of Christmas Days with us. The good news is that he won't be with us this year. I am delighted not because he is bad company, (in fact we will miss him) but because he is going to spend Christmas with his Dad. This is fantastic news. Please pray he won't get drunk and blow his chances of repairing this relationship.
Jack, aged 12 and a junior soldier did his first stint of carolling this year, having been learning to play tenor horn for the last 8 weeks. OK so he isn't ready for the ISB but he did really, really well considering how long he has been learning. He stood proudly in his army hoody, refusing to cover it up with his coat and enjoyed himself so much, he can't wait for next year!
There was something quite wonderful about singing "Who is he in yonder stall" on Sunday morning. It was one of those koinonia moments when Jesus really is at the heart of the worship.
Today someone put a donation through our door today. It was for a £1000!!!!
We have had an email from fellow God's Messenger, Major Joan Gibson who is a senior midwife at Howard Hospital, Zimbabwe. The good news is she has got her work permit for another 3 years and her students have done really well but there are lots of challenges. She writes of just a few.
" The hospital continues to be very busy and although the official statistics show that the national HIV rate is down to 18% we are still seeing a lot of people who are postive. At present we have around 600 patients on anti-retro viral treatment and another 300 waiting for drugs. Drugs have been in short supply recently and as a result we have not been able to start any new patients on treatment. The situation changed last week and we have now been informed that we can start 6 new patients per week. The drugs make a huge difference to peoples lives so it great to have them again.
A couple of months ago a the police brought us a little boy who had been delivered down a Blair toilet not far from the hospital. He had been fished our the pit by a man who had been passing by and heard the baby crying. The poor baby was very cold and extremely dirty but the staff cleaned him up and I was able to provide clothes and some powdered milk. We called him Makonborero, (Blessing) and everyone loved him. I was concerned that he might have brain damage from being cold but this did not happen and very quickly all his bruises healed and he started gaining weight. I just hope he is not infected with HIV. He has now gone to a children's home in Harare, where I hope he does well. It was sad to see him go but we couldn't keep him on the labour wared forever.
Inflation is extremely difficult to deal with. Last Friday I bought some groceries and by Tuesday of the following week they had all more than doubled and them by Friday of this week they were up again! When you receive your salary you spend every cent because tomorrow it will not be worth very much. It is extremely difficult for the hospital to survive in this climate with food and cleaning materials rising every day. We spend the whole week phoning round looking for need drugs but they are no where to be found. This week there is no milk."
Think I know where our Carol Service collection might go this year.
God bless
Carol
I suddenly realised that is is almost two weeks since I posted but like everyone else I'm caught up in the whirlwind of Christmas and all the extra stuff that happens.
There is a lot going on and sometimes it all seems such a hassle and then you get those lovely moments that make it all worth while. Here are just a few.
Dave, a "gentleman of the road" turned up this weekend. He usually does this time of year and has spent a number of Christmas Days with us. The good news is that he won't be with us this year. I am delighted not because he is bad company, (in fact we will miss him) but because he is going to spend Christmas with his Dad. This is fantastic news. Please pray he won't get drunk and blow his chances of repairing this relationship.
Jack, aged 12 and a junior soldier did his first stint of carolling this year, having been learning to play tenor horn for the last 8 weeks. OK so he isn't ready for the ISB but he did really, really well considering how long he has been learning. He stood proudly in his army hoody, refusing to cover it up with his coat and enjoyed himself so much, he can't wait for next year!
There was something quite wonderful about singing "Who is he in yonder stall" on Sunday morning. It was one of those koinonia moments when Jesus really is at the heart of the worship.
Today someone put a donation through our door today. It was for a £1000!!!!
We have had an email from fellow God's Messenger, Major Joan Gibson who is a senior midwife at Howard Hospital, Zimbabwe. The good news is she has got her work permit for another 3 years and her students have done really well but there are lots of challenges. She writes of just a few.
" The hospital continues to be very busy and although the official statistics show that the national HIV rate is down to 18% we are still seeing a lot of people who are postive. At present we have around 600 patients on anti-retro viral treatment and another 300 waiting for drugs. Drugs have been in short supply recently and as a result we have not been able to start any new patients on treatment. The situation changed last week and we have now been informed that we can start 6 new patients per week. The drugs make a huge difference to peoples lives so it great to have them again.
A couple of months ago a the police brought us a little boy who had been delivered down a Blair toilet not far from the hospital. He had been fished our the pit by a man who had been passing by and heard the baby crying. The poor baby was very cold and extremely dirty but the staff cleaned him up and I was able to provide clothes and some powdered milk. We called him Makonborero, (Blessing) and everyone loved him. I was concerned that he might have brain damage from being cold but this did not happen and very quickly all his bruises healed and he started gaining weight. I just hope he is not infected with HIV. He has now gone to a children's home in Harare, where I hope he does well. It was sad to see him go but we couldn't keep him on the labour wared forever.
Inflation is extremely difficult to deal with. Last Friday I bought some groceries and by Tuesday of the following week they had all more than doubled and them by Friday of this week they were up again! When you receive your salary you spend every cent because tomorrow it will not be worth very much. It is extremely difficult for the hospital to survive in this climate with food and cleaning materials rising every day. We spend the whole week phoning round looking for need drugs but they are no where to be found. This week there is no milk."
Think I know where our Carol Service collection might go this year.
God bless
Carol
posted by Rehoboth at
8:06 AM
1 Comments:
Thanks for this uplifting and challenging blog Carol - I read it last week but didn't have time to comment! God bless you, Alan and the girls over Christmas and beyond!
A
By
Andrew Bale, at 1:42 PM
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