October 11, 2005

I should never have asked the question, “Lord what will you put before me tomorrow?”  because I soon found out. The new doorbell Sal installed rang at 1:30am….our first emergency call.  The baby, whose delivery we had assisted at on Saturday, was having trouble breathing.  Armed with some equipment in hand and a battery powered lantern, Sal proceeded to walk the fifteen minutes on stony paths to the grass hut.  When he arrived, the baby was definitely having difficulty breathing and muscle tone was deteriorating.  He brought the baby back to the clinic with the family for a better look and a determination of intervention.  After examining her and finding out she had nothing to eat for over 12 hours, Sal syringe fed her ORS (Oral Rehydration Solution).  She perked up, was breathing normally and was resting comfortably.  It was decided that they would stay overnight in the clinic for closer observation.  At 7am, the baby was sleeping soundly with normal respirations, but her color did not look very good. When Sal tried to arouse her, she began to cry and immediately her color improved.  At 7:30am when checking on her again, Sal found her in distress and this time when he picked her up, she stopped breathing and he had to resuscitate.  We decided to take her to the mini hospital in town.  I held the baby in the back seat with the resuscitation equipment in hand just in case as Sal drove the 25 kilometers to Livingstone.  The parents and a female friend came along.  When we got to the mini hospital and the doctor put the baby on the exam table she again stopped breathing….this time however we were not able to get her back.  She died at two days old.  Her mother just sat there, tears silently coming down her cheeks.  The dad carried the baby out and the woman who came with them held the baby in the car on the drive back.  The father and some male friends took the baby that same day to the cemetery and buried her.  We were left with the thoughts of what else could we have done…what if we had the ability to do testing...was it the result of RH factor…..was there HIV….did the mom have malaria during pregnancy???  All questions left unanswered….all we are sure of is that a two day old baby died with a very enlarged liver….it was the mom’s fourth child that she had lost out of six deliveries. 

When the doctor at the mini hospital was showing us how to fill out the death certificate, I noticed the name of one of the babies from the orphanage that Joanne had brought in……I came to find out that little Hilpher also died that morning.  He was the baby we suspected had Cerebral Palsy and he had been sick for about two weeks with fevers that just would not break.  He was being treated by this physician in town who has been taking care of the children and knows their histories.   

            Upon arriving back at the farm still a little numb, we found the outdoor waiting room overflowing with people.  Forty-five patients later, we finished at 8:00pm.  I think God kept our hands and minds busy so as not to dwell on the losses.

            Unfortunately, the story does not end there….at 5pm today, a mother and her neighbor brought a four month old to our door with breathing problems.  We were treating this baby aggressively for malaria and he was improving, but mom said he started having trouble breathing this afternoon.  We took him over to the clinic and as soon as Sal laid him on the exam table, he stopped breathing.  Sal and I tried to resuscitate him with no success while his mother stood there and watched.  Little Andrew died also with a very enlarged liver that hadn’t been there on prior exams.   The baby’s father arrived on a bicycle just in time to see his four month old son’s limp body being wrapped up.  After talking with Sal, he placed his baby’s body on the back of his bicycle and drove off to bury him in his village.  The baby’s mother and her friend walked home empty-handed.

            I cannot even begin to tell you what we are feeling or how much it hurts to be so helpless.  I can only trust that God is in control….and only hope that we were able to show the love of Jesus to people that would otherwise not have had any hope at all.

October 8, 2005

Things are heating up….this is the very HOT time of the year everyone keeps telling us about …until the rains come. Needless to say…my prayer is “Lord, Send Your Rain.”   This dry and thirsty land needs not only physical rain but spiritual rain…the outpouring of the Holy Spirit.  Isaiah 35 is my prayer for this land and these people.

While we wait however, we continue to be faithful in the day to day routine.  We saw 205 patients in the clinic in September and we didn’t start until the 9^th of the month.  This week alone we saw 134 more….word is spreading.  People are coming from the surrounding villages and are walking for hours to get here.  Imagine being sick with a fever and stomach pains and walking two hours in one direction in intense heat on stony dirt roads and paths with flip flops or no shoes just hoping to get medicine.  I continue to marvel at just how blessed we are in America!.....and I understand why the Bible talks about washing feet!!  I think I also have an understanding of why Esther had to go through one year of beauty treatments before she was suitable to be presented to the king…I’ll just let you ponder on that one!!

            With the extended gas tank in the Defender and two containers of Diesel just in case, we set out again for another 5 hour trip to Lusaka with the Jones’.  A very productive 24 hours later, we had our work permit in hand and I am registered for the Nursing test on December 1^st.  In addition, we were able to acquire medications from the distributor in Lusaka at discounted prices.  We also ordered a mosquito net because I found out that you are not safe with just screens….evidently the malaria mosquito is very tiny and gets through the screens!

Upon our return, the second exam room that  had previously been cleaned, grouted, painted and the cement floor polished, was sprayed for ants and then we began moving everything out of the first room so that the same thing could be done to it. We have hired our first worker for the clinic who will start Monday morning.  She is a young woman planning to go to nursing school next June and eager to work in a medical setting.  She was working for Joanne in the orphanage but has been released to work for us.  She will register the patients, set-up and file charts, assist with exams and interpret…and of course the proverbial “other duties as assigned” (like cleaning and teaching us Tonga!) 

            Pastor Jerry and his team are at the farm as I write this….he brought a lot of little goodies for me including more Velcro…yes I’m still working on screens even though they won’t help with the malaria mosquito…they do help with the other thousand varieties of insects!!!  He also brought updated pictures of the grandchildren which is always a joy to see. 

            Of course I saved the best for last….just a few hours ago, Joanne came and got Sal and I out of worship practice at the church because someone was in labor and had sent for Joanne to come to her hut and help.  Joanne delivered a baby last year in the back of the vehicle while Linda was driving to the hospital, so now she is the one to call!!! Well we walked to the woman’s hut on the farm (about 15 minutes) with an OB kit in hand.  When we got to the home site, a woman came out of the hut and said “It is a girl.”

Joanne and I entered the hut and Sal remained outside if needed.  The hut, made of grass, was dark and small with a twin size bed to one side.  The woman was on all fours on the bed and I did not hear any crying nor see a baby.  Upon further inspection, the baby was on the bed between the woman’s knees with the cord still attached.  The baby had just been born yet I heard no screaming or moaning from the mother.  Joanne told me that Zambian women do not utter a sound while in labor or during the birth because they are told it is a sign of weakness. Remember there are no epidurals or drugs here ladies….and no episiotomies!  I assisted Joanne with cutting the cord and with the delivery of the placenta after making sure the baby was alive.  We wrapped up the baby and handed her to Sal outside in the daylight so he could assess her while we continued to clean up inside.  The village woman who was helping had placed some kind of burlap underneath the mother…I came to find out later that was the bag that their mealy-meal grain product comes in. Well, it served its purpose of protecting the bed.  After making sure the afterbirth was complete, we wrapped it all up along with the burlap and placed it in a bag to be buried as is their custom. Mother and baby were doing well when we left….baby was not to be washed until the next day and was not to be put to the breast for a few hours.   Mom was tired but happy.  Where was dad in all this time??  Dad was working but even if they told him, most Zambian men don’t want to be around….It definitely is a woman thing!  We walked back home, took showers and praised the Lord….thankful for all His blessings…..Lord what will you put before me tomorrow????

Another Week 9-25-05

Well, another week has passed and life here in Zambia continues to be challenging.  This week 86 patients came to the clinic for treatment….people that we saw last week returned with whole families all with legitimate complaints.  A man showed up in a dilapidated wheelchair that took three people to push.  After giving him a new one, he smiled, uttered a thank you and said, “Now I will be able to go to church again!”  He rode off with his arms working hard turning the wheels and his congenitally deformed legs tucked up underneath.  Someday I have faith that we will see new legs form, but until then we will do what we can with what we have. 

When we look at the whole vision, it is very overwhelming.  So needless to say we are doing just what God puts in front of us and believe me that is keeping us busy.  Out of necessity we have established clinic hours, even though we didn’t want to until we had our work permit in hand and Sal is primarily seeing the patients.  I just get called in for consultations, especially skin and wound care and whatever else Sal has determined I “specialize” in (like when the older women want to see the madam).  Diesel and Petrol fuel is scarce due to a problem with the one and only refinery in the country so our Lusaka trip is up in the air.  Immigrations in Livingstone has extended our visas until October 24^th so we still have a little bit of time to wait until it becomes crucial.  Pastor Jerry is bringing my required paperwork to give to the Nursing Council, so the timing will probably work out perfectly knowing our God.  Screens are up on the security door and three of the seven windows here in the apartment.  We decided to use the remaining Velcro for screens in the clinic until more can be brought from the states.  There’s nothing worse than cleaning open wounds while trying to keep the flies away.  The second clinic room has been washed down, cracks grouted and is in the process of being painted.  The furniture that we had ordered (2 bookcases, 2 wardrobes and a clinic chair for patients) is ready and we will pick it all up next week.  We are also going to purchase chart supplies and a filing cabinet.  Our satellite TV was turned off due to a mix-up with payment of service.  So needless to say not only did we miss information about the hurricane that hit Mississippi and New Orleans, but we missed the coverage of Hurricane Rita as well.  After a day in this dirt and dust, you have to take a shower at night just to cool off and feel clean, so after a shower and dinner around 6:30pm, Sal and I settle down to a couple shows of the DVD series that we brought “Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman” (appropriate, huh?) and then lights out by 9:30 or 10:00pm.  This past Saturday I was invited to a woman’s meeting at a neighboring farm church.  Joanne and I both went and were asked to speak.  Joanne had a teaching on faith of a mustard seed and I shared about Sarah as a woman of faith out of Hebrews 11.  They asked me to come back Sunday to preach, so having promised God that I would do whatever He put in front of me, I said yes.  After praying, I felt led to share another message on faith and God blessed it.  The Zambian women had stayed overnight and it turned out the whole theme of the weekend was on faith.  Even the Pastor of the church had a message prepared on faith.  God is good. 

Just pondering……….wherever Jesus went, He taught in the synagogues, preached the gospel of the Kingdom and healed the sick….teaching, preaching and healing…..

a threefold ministry…..And all who came to Him were healed.

Walking It Out   

Another week has passed.    I think we saw 37 patients in the clinic, even though we are not yet officially open.  I have no clue what these people do for medical care here….they are really very sick and a lot of them are malnourished on top of it.  It’s hard to tell what came first…are they malnourished because they are sick or are they sick because they are malnourished?  There are children who walk for miles with swollen bellies and bare feet, on stick legs with open sores just to come to school on the farm and yet have blood in their urine and pain when they pass it.  There are women here who are eight months pregnant and have never had any prenatal care…no pelvic exam, no vitamins, no iron, no proper diet.  These same women plan on delivering their baby in their grass hut with the help of the older village women.  Some of them already have a history of losing babies after delivery for unknown reasons.  There are men in their fifties walking around trying to work and provide for their families with wasting diseases like AIDS and TB.  They search from clinic to clinic seeking help and a cure….sometimes going to the “traditional healers” (witchdoctors) for tattooing.  We have seen many with scarring from that procedure which actually involves cutting the skin with a razorblade and placing different herbs and concoctions underneath the skin.  These same patients continue to seek an answer because the tattooing procedure of course doesn’t work. I have to continually remind myself that it’s not about WHAT we know, but it’s WHO we know that is the key.  Jesus is the one with all the answers…He is the Hope of the nations.  With God all things are possible.  The problems here are much bigger than Sal and I could ever hope to solve.  There is nothing in our strength that we can do….it’s all up to God!  God did open a door…One of the teachers here at the school on the farm asked us to teach the fifth and sixth graders a 40 minute class on malnutrition.  Previously feeling stirred to teach at the school, I was excited to have such an opportunity.  Armed with a basketful of different food products found here in Zambia and 30 hard boiled eggs, I first taught proper nutrition.  Preventing malnutrition is much easier than treating it.  I then proceeded to teach about the two leading types of malnutrition ….marasmus and kwashiorkor.   The children were very responsive and enjoyed their protein treat!

We have been given a second room to use for clinic purposes right next to the first one.  Both rooms need to be scrubbed down, cracks grouted, walls painted, windows screened, cement floors sealed and polished, window coverings hung, cabinets purchased and then we can fully unpack, stock shelves and settle in to do business.  The work team that is here will be leaving for home next Wednesday.  After their departure, hopefully our work permit will be ready and we will be able to make another trip to Lusaka to pick it up. We also plan to place an order for medical supplies with the distributor while we are there.  After all those things are accomplished, we will hire an assistant who will be our interpreter, establish regular clinic hours, and meet with the Ministry of Health in Livingstone. 

On a more personal note….life here continues to be a challenge with each day bringing something to overcome.  Sal has now officially driven the Lorry truck into Livingstone to pick up supplies for the work team and I made my first pie crust from scratch!!!   Our next project for the apartment is to screen the windows and security door…that’s done with mesh screening and Velcro (brought form the States).  Sal has begun framing the security door with pieces of wood and a hammer and all the screens need sewed to the Velcro.  Our goal is to have all the windows done before rainy season to help protect against mosquitoes.  Well until next time…

Life in Zambia

Well today is Friday Sept 9th....we are comfortably settled in our apartment for now and so our focus has switched over to the clinic.  We are starting to organize it and have seen patients already.  There are alot of bugs here....spiders, flies that dive bomb you and will not go away trying to get at the water in your eyes and mouth, hornets, crawlers, things with legs, things with hard shells and who knows what else.  The floors everywhere are cement so you just squish them!!!!  We have even had to chase small lizards out of the clinic!!  We are treating one little boy with sores on his legs from malnutrition...he is 13, looks like 9, has sticks for legs and is in the second grade here at the farm.  Sal was really stirred to supplement his diet with a high protein gruel when he comes in for his dressing changes, so he sent for his mother to get permission.  When his mother came, we found out he has two siblings that are twins and are four months old.  The mother is breastfeeding and doesn't have enough milk for both babies, so one baby is doing ok but the other is sickly and smaller.  I can't imagine not being able to feed my babies and having to choose which one I favor.  The missionaries told us we are going to see alot of that especially these next few months.  There has been a drought so crops did not do well and people will soon be hungry.  Linda heads up a feeding program here at the farm and I'm sure we will be a part of it.  Even if we were to give all we have, it would not be enough.  This is too big a problem for us...but not for our very big God.  With God all things are possible and as long as we have Jesus, there is always hope.  We have also seen gonorhea, peptic ulcers, scabies, fever with respiratory problems, gingivitis with hyperplasia, and Schistosomiasis (also known as Bilharziasis).  Things are definitely challenging here.  We weighed, measured and assessed 15 of the orphans today...7 are HIV positive and  on antiviral medications, 1 has CP.

Let me tell you a little about life here....first of all it is very hot and dry right now...your nose always has hard crusty stuff in it.  There's always dirt and dust coming in the house because you have to have the windows open and fans going.  Everything in Africa takes longer than we are used to....It took 10 days and 5 trips to town to get our satelite TV up and operational, 2 trips to town for our phones and e-mail set-up and even now only one computer works with one phone for email.  Cooking is a challenge also because everything is from scratch...there is no box of Bisquick, no cake mixes, no sour cream, etc. Even when you do find something you can use like tomato paste or puree it is not Hunts.  Currency here is Kwatcha and it is interesting to pay at a store and figure out the bills....1 dollar is equal to approximately 4500 kwatcha and the rates change daily.  We purchased an electric stove here for 2.1 million kwatcha!!!   Thank goodness they do not have coins!!  We have been to the bank twice trying to figure out if we should open an account here and what type of account at that....most of the missionaries don't have accounts...there is no federal safety nets like home and frankly people don't trust them.  Our vehicle is a four wheel drive used Land Rover with an extended gas tank....a much needed vehicle because there aren't always "tarmacs" (paved roads).  Driving is a challenge to stay on the left side of the road.  Everything here is metric like kilometers instead of miles, liters instead of gallons (like for gasoline), kilograms instead of pounds, centigrade instead of farenheit (and thats not only body temperature but also the dial on my oven!!!)  

There is a workteam here from North Carolina helping with building projects around the farm....I have been helping with meals. The six of us here at SoT got together for prayer Monday night for the monthly Sons of Thunder prayer meeting and we have been to missionary fellowship last Tues where we met some more missionaries in the area.  We have been invited to another couple's house next week for dinner...that should be nice. Butch, the husband is the golfer and he and Sal have already been talking.  Well I think I have made this long enough....

We Are Here!!!

Well, we have finally arrived.  After warm wishes and hugs and kisses, our plane took off for Zambia on Monday night, the 22nd of August.  We arrived in Livingstone on Wednesday August 24th and were greeted by the Land Rover dealer with our vehicle. It has been a very tiring and eventful first week, but a very satisfying one.  We have found all of our belongings, unpacked, and have set up the apartment that Mike and Linda so diligently got ready for us.  We have been in town setting up our phones, satellite TV and e-mails.  Most things take more than one trip to do because they are either not done right the first time or computers are down or people are out for a two hour lunch, etc.  Linda took me food shopping in Livingstone and I was able to cook our first meal on Sunday. I made penne pasta and meatballs....a little different but not bad.  Sunday service at the farm was good.  The people were glad to see us again and the Pastor welcomed us.  After service he came to the house and asked Sal to lead worship.  We have had a couple opportunities to pray for healing for people but of course have not yet set up the clinic.  We just went to Lusaka for three days...Linda and I stayed in town while Sal and Mike went to Kasama in the Northern Province to check out another ministry opportunity.  It was a 14 hour ride one direction, so the Land Rover really got christened.  Quite an adventure driving on the left side of the road with the steering wheel on the right and the stick shift in the left hand!!!!  We were able to purchase an electric stove since the one that came over on the container was gas and not electric as purchased!!  We are picking up our work permit tomorrow and were able to pick up nursing papers for application for the Zambian nursing exam today. God is good and is opening doors for us to walk through...Acts 9:32 to the end talks of Peter traveling (probably where he felt God was sending him) and as he traveled he encountered ministry opportunities for healing.....and people were healed in the name of Jesus and many were saved.

A Beginning

July 29th proved to be the day our fourth grandchild chose to enter the world!!   "Faith Elisabeth" was born with ease 31 minutes after her mom arrived at the hospital.  As I sat reflecting on the events of the last three years, all four grandchildren came to mind.  Daniel Scott was our first grandchild born on October 9th, 2002.  Next came Brooke Abigail on June 29th, 2004 (Faith's sister).  Daniel's brother Phinehas Luke was born February 10th, 2005.  And now Faith.

As I sat smiling thinking about each one of them, God showed me how they were gifts given to Sal and I.  Daniel means a man of "Vision." Brooke Abigail means a "River of God's Joy." Phinehas means "Zealous for the Lord."  When God called Sal and I, the first thing He gave us was a "Vision" when He gave us Daniel. When God is going to use you, He must first tell you the vision.  Often times it is very big...so big in fact that you have a tendency to just dismiss it.  Mike Jones and Pastor Jerry were told to "Feed Africa."  Sal and I were told to "Feed a nation and start a medical clinic on the farm in Zambia."

Once you have said yes to whatever God is calling you to do, you must have strength for the journey.  It says in God's word that "the joy of the Lord is my strength."  God gave Sal and I a whole "river of joy" when He gave us Brooke Abigail.

In order to continue with radical obedience to whatever the Lord leads you to do, you need a passion, a love, a holy "zeal,"  something God gave Sal and I when He gave us  Phinehas.

Now God is giving Sal and I  "faith"...faith to believe all that He is going to do with and through this ministry to bring glory to the Father.  God says in His Word that He "equips those He calls."  I believe God has been equipping us.  With the arrival of Faith, I believe we are now armed and ready to get on that plane August 22nd......armed with the Vision of the Lord...armed with Strength for the Journey....armed with a Holy Zeal for the will of the Lord...and now armed with the Faith to Believe.  Thank you God....I am sure that you are already there.

The Time Is Now……The season of preparation is over and the time has come to embrace God’s move.  We will be arriving in Zambia on August 24^th with humble hearts and open minds ready and willing to do whatever the Lord commands.   We will be taking with us a supply of donated medications from the King’s Benevolent Fund, a small amount of medical supplies and a large dose of compassion.  When we arrive, our Landrover Defender will be waiting, provided by God and customized for transport.  The first order of business will be to sit at the Lord’s feet and say “We’re here God…now what?”  After that we will do whatever the Lord puts in front of us to do….one step at a time as the Lord lights our path.

            We are not going with our own plan….there is only God’s plan and He hasn’t revealed all the details yet.  All we know is that He wants a medical clinic on the farm and a transport system to the bush.  So, like Abraham, we are going, trusting God that as we go, He will show us more.  We trust the Lord for all the funds and workers and provision to be in place as we need them.  Certainly, we have to get settled into our living quarters and Renee has to study for and take the Zambian Nursing Boards.  We will be keeping a “blog”, hopefully updating it weekly depending on internet access.            

             Historically, every great move of God was bathed in prayer, often from unnamed prayer warriors in the secret place with God in their own homes miles away from the battlefront.  Our greatest need at this time is PRAYER.  Please pray for us: for our health, our safety, our travel, our family, our continued ability to hear God clearly.  Please pray for this medical ministry: for its birthing, for its unfolding as God directs and provides, for its effectiveness in bringing all glory to God through healing and leading souls to Jesus.  Please pray as God leads you.

We’re asking for your prayers ….We covet your prayers….We’re counting on your prayers….

We thank you in advance for your prayers!! May God continue to bless you for your faithfulness. 

The Story

Welcome to the blog site for Sal and Renee Marini of Sons of Thunder Medical Ministries.