I go through fazes where I miss home, my family & my friends more keenly then other times. Lately I have been a bit more homesick than normal. It is during these times that I start to ask God more often, what in the world I am doing.
My friend Kim Davey still works in the Didinga Hills of S. Sudan where I lived, served, and feel in love with the land and the people. Didinga continues to be a hard place to work with lots of spiritual warfare and challenges. This past week Kim wrote me an email about a birth she had witnessed. This is a bit of the story:
"A pregnant woman had been taken down to Chukudum (a 12 mile hike) because she was bleeding, to the point of death. There were no doctors at the clinic there and the bleeding had seemed to stop so her family brought her back up the mountain.
I Found her at the clinic a week later, bleeding, with her placenta half out. She had been bleeding for a week and was quite anemic.
Her mother, aunts and the local midwife worked hard, broke her water and pulled the woman's daughter from her. The baby had been dead for a while.
It was hard to see, hard to hold her down, see her pass in and out of conscienceless, see her pain, hear her say she was dying and ask if her baby was dead...
It was a miracle that God spared her life. I am thankful. Medicine says she should have died, but she lives."
That is why God has called me to become a midwife, so that these hands of mine can show His love to women like this young woman. While I know that I will probably still see women with empty arms or babies with no breast to feed them. I also know that with my training and God's help, when I return I will be able to help keep women's arms full. It is not an easy calling and often I am afraid of what the future will hold. Yet, God is faithful, He will carry, guide and help me.
* Please pray for the Didinga people. Pray that they would turn and follow Christ
* Pray for Kim and the other missionaries as they work & live to share Christ in this difficult place
* Pray for me, that I would learn, learn, learn all that I can while in school, so that I will be well prepared to return to S. Sudan to serve the Lord there.
* Pray that I would not grow weary in doing good.
* Pray that I would keep my eyes on Christ and find my hope, peace, and joy in Him alone
My friend Kim Davey still works in the Didinga Hills of S. Sudan where I lived, served, and feel in love with the land and the people. Didinga continues to be a hard place to work with lots of spiritual warfare and challenges. This past week Kim wrote me an email about a birth she had witnessed. This is a bit of the story:
"A pregnant woman had been taken down to Chukudum (a 12 mile hike) because she was bleeding, to the point of death. There were no doctors at the clinic there and the bleeding had seemed to stop so her family brought her back up the mountain.
I Found her at the clinic a week later, bleeding, with her placenta half out. She had been bleeding for a week and was quite anemic.
Her mother, aunts and the local midwife worked hard, broke her water and pulled the woman's daughter from her. The baby had been dead for a while.
It was hard to see, hard to hold her down, see her pass in and out of conscienceless, see her pain, hear her say she was dying and ask if her baby was dead...
It was a miracle that God spared her life. I am thankful. Medicine says she should have died, but she lives."
That is why God has called me to become a midwife, so that these hands of mine can show His love to women like this young woman. While I know that I will probably still see women with empty arms or babies with no breast to feed them. I also know that with my training and God's help, when I return I will be able to help keep women's arms full. It is not an easy calling and often I am afraid of what the future will hold. Yet, God is faithful, He will carry, guide and help me.
* Please pray for the Didinga people. Pray that they would turn and follow Christ
* Pray for Kim and the other missionaries as they work & live to share Christ in this difficult place
* Pray for me, that I would learn, learn, learn all that I can while in school, so that I will be well prepared to return to S. Sudan to serve the Lord there.
* Pray that I would not grow weary in doing good.
* Pray that I would keep my eyes on Christ and find my hope, peace, and joy in Him alone
Even though I live in a place where this type of thing could easily happen, it is still amazing to hear stories like this where people literally have no hope and no help. It is awesome that you have a calling to go and help these people! You will have so many stories to tell after you're there, hopefully with happier endings. Thank you for continuing to renew my vision for missions through sharing your heart! Bless you!
ReplyDeleteThank you Laurel. You encourage me too :)
DeleteThe previous comment says it all Tianne.I've stuck by you as a friend for forever it seems like now and I've watched you go from such a shy person before Didinga to a superwoman who can with others and God's help save the world.You'll be able to have so many success stories in the future when you get done with your training.Everyone is so proud of what you're doing at the maternity clinic.We're all working hard to support you and keep in contact with you.Miss you <3 Shanna
ReplyDeleteThanks Shanna! You sound more like an older friend in this post than a younger one :) I could say the same about you, growing from shy girl to a confident young woman. Thank you for your friendship. Love, Tianne
DeleteThanks for sharing your heart, Tianne. I am so very confident that God will work in and through you for His glory. Praying for you, for your schoolwork, clinical work, and that God would be your very present help and comfort and your constant source of strength. Love and miss ya!
ReplyDelete