I read the last blog dated Nov 10. Now we once again are back in the States. We are here to see if the something that showed up on Don's PET scan is a return of the cancer. We went to South Africa to have the scan done. It was a routine checkup and the one thing we had been concerned about from a prior exam, a spot on the right lung, turned out to be just what the U.S. oncologist thought it was, scar tissue. However something unexpected showed on the scan, something on Don's tongue. So here we are again. It is 7:25AM and in three hours we will be in the ENT doctor's office. I don't expect to have an answer today. He will most likely need to biopsy it first. I have been praying of course, and so have so many of you . We have been lifted in prayers for healing since the beginning. What we went through all this year so far is easier than what we go through now. Recurrence is the worst thing that most patients go through. So I have been crying out to God to comfort me, to help me get through this and of course He has. I read Mike Cope's blog on Dec 3 and he talked about Peter walking on the water. He says Jesus never asked Peter to leave the boat and walk on the water. He said Jesus can walk on the water and He is headed for me in the boat. I needed to hear that Jesus wouldn't leave me thru all of this and prove my faith to him but rather just wait for him to come to me in my terrified state. Just like th apostles were terrified in the storm and Jesus was on his way to them, I know Jesus is on his way to me also. It isn't about me but about HIm. Jesus is the focus of my terror not the waves. Thank you God for coming in the spirit of Jesus just because you knew my terror.

Chicken and Shima

We have returned to Namwianga Mission. Finally... Although we have been back here since Oct 18 this is just one of many times I have tried to start this blog. We had to reconnect our internet, it had been turned off while we were gone. Then power has been very erratic. I got the whole thing typed and the power went off. It is early morning here and the sky is cloudy and a cool breeze is blowing. We are at the beginning of the rainy season. It has been very hot and dry and dusty. Everything is brown. The clinic has had many changes since Feb. An organization that is church sponsored here called CHAZ has chosen the clinic to be a site for treatment of HIV patients. They have enrolled 138 people already and the goal is 400. Chaz has provided equipment and people to gather the data they need and it has changed the face of our clinic. Of course we already saw around 2000 to 3000 people each month and now this number will increase. There is a devotional service each AM prior to opening of the clinic for any patients who are here and staff. Different men take turns offering the message. Unlike the U.S. Zambians depend on God first because they have no where else to turn. Don is busy with budgets and audits at the business office. We have already been out on outreaches to the villages with students from George Benson Christian College. They are so much fun. Worship at its best. Enthusiasm and friendliness among the people. Graciously the church provided us the best of what they had to eat, chicken and shima. Fellowship and hospitality of the best kind. I have been working hard on getting the wards ready to open for inpatient. But nothing ever goes easy here . But it is still so worth it. More later
In HIm
Don and Laura

Answered Prayers

Greetings in the Name of the Lord

Much time has gone by since I last wrote anything. SInce that time many hard and hurtful events as well as many blessings have occurred in our lives. Don was diagnosed in Feb with Carcinoma of the right tonsil. We had returned to the US for tests and this was the outcome of those tests. Now 6 months later he has had surgery, chemotherapy and radiation. Also he has had to have 7 teeth pulled to prepare for the radiation and he developed bilateral cataracts. All from the chemo. So he has had both of them removed and can once again see. He had a very hard time with the side effects of the chemo and radiation. He lost weight, developed a terrible rash much like a severe sunburn combined with chicken pox. He got a yeast infection in his mouth and many blisters there also. Swallowing became hard and he became limited at times to yogurt and smoothies. But that was some of the bad stuff. The blessings have been incredible... We had our church here provide us with a home for 2 months and it came stocked with every thing we needed. It became our refuge and haven. Then our friend gave us her home while she was in Zambia and when her family came for the beginning of school another brother and sister in the Body of Christ offered us a place with them. Beyond counting the body of Christ has piled the blessings on us. Car to drive, food, money for expenses and especially prayers. Prayers like you couldn't imagine. Notes, calls and visits all gave us such hope and comfort. Also time for me to have alone and in places of creative beauty so I could have time alone with God. It has been such a healing time for us both. At first when all of this happened we wondered about our purpose at Namwianga since we had to leave for a long time. We had to be reminded that trails come from Satan and he isn't in charge but God is. If the apostle Paul was always in God's will for his life and still he had unbelievable hardships, how much more should we trust that even in the midst of these hard scary times we were still in God's will and now it seems as if we will be able to return to our work for God in Zambia. How precious is the love of God and how grateful we are for his gift of work to us. So now we plan on visiting family and recovering from the treatment and then around the first of October returning to Zambia. One of the thougts I received in this time says it best" Prayer is not getting what we ask for, rather it is being changed in ways that are unimaginable" Kathleen Norris. So this time we pray is God's way of changing us in ways we cannot even imagine.
Don and Laura

Bulls, rain, rain and more rain and watered out

Hi

Greetings from Namwianga, Zambia , Africa. This new year started with a young bull in our yard staring at me and ignoring the barking dog. After much envcouragement from me and the dog he left. At least he didn't get into the garden or try to run us over. I am not sure he understood English but the frantic hand motions seemed universally understood.

We have started this year as we ended the last one, with a deluge of rain. As of today we have only had 2 days that it didn't rain. Some days it is all day long. The Zambians say this type of rain is unusual here for this time of the year. There has been flooding a few hours north of us. Our roads are a mess. They weren't very good to begin with and now it is like driving a bombed out path. Potholes are more like pot canyons and require much thought as to how you will proceed. Outreaches to the villages are on hold as the roads are totally impassable and under water. Even the hospital number has been down. The nurses tell me its because they are all busy planting maize or are unable to get here or both. I have been very busy with the hospital.We are busy building a sluice room( dirty utility room/laundry) in each of the existing ward rooms. Also doing some electrical work on lighting and call lights. We still have the nurse's station to finish and we have built shelves in the supply rooms behind the nurse station. I have been meeting with officials locally and will go to Lusaka next week to meet with some other ones. Many of the difficulties here originate from the fact that all hospitals are government staffed. that means they have to send the person you want to your facility. It takes a lot of time and paperwork to get that done. Because our working staff here at the mission is limited in number we get delayed in finishing work on the clinic because they get pulled to help out with emergencies re: water or damage to the homes or buildings from the rain.

We have been catching rain in buckets for 11 days now because the well caved in.... from all the rain. So I feel like a pioneer because we haul our water from a container they brought over to the clinic and then boil it for cooking and drinking and doing dishes. It is astounding how much water you use in a day. This isn't including water for bathing and washing clothes and flushing the toilet. But we are very grateful we have clean water. So when you are praying today or whenever, remeber for the fixin' of our well and for the new Bible class we start tonight.

We work in Him
Don and Laura