Changes...

Clinic is back in progress after Hurricane Matthew passed through over two weeks ago. We still see and hear the affects everyday. As the weeks go by, more and more stories come out. My heart broke as a young girl sat at my desk telling me about her mother and baby sister's death during the hurricane. The mother had been very sick following the birth of her child. I had been following her very closely every 2-4 weeks. The week before the hurricane she had come in and was doing very well. I had told her I don't think she will have to come back many more times. I guess she will never have to come back. 

As I sit and listen to the stories of each one I can't thank God enough for His protection. Yes, people have got hurt. Lives have been lost, this poverty stricken country has had yet another "blow" BUT God is still good! He loves each one and longs to have the hearts of each one. He wants to strengthen the Christian and win the lost. My pray is hearts can be broken so He can use each one. 

Monday we bid good bye to the team who came to help clean up. We felt so blessed to be back in our house before they left. Thanks for coming everyone! 

We also bid goodbye to Hans after two years of service. He was or emergency man and did many behind the scene things for us at clinic. We will miss his help and insight. May God bless you as you adjust to a new normal. Thank you Hans! 

            Ellamae with her patients! 

Continue to pray for Haiti and the many needs! Pray God can work a work through us for Him! 

~ Mis Alyssa 

Hurricane Matthew

"A hurricane is coming! It's name is Matthew!". Such was the neighborhood talk leading up to the storm this week. Everyone wondered if the blans (whites) knew just how bad this one would be and just when it would arrive. Walking to clinic on Monday morning, we wondered what our day was going to be like. We thought either we would have a really big day, or else small. To our delight, it was the latter! We had 13 patients who braved the light rain and wind. By early afternoon the street was quiet. Everyone had gone to their houses to try to stay warm and dry. The Hurricane didn't start with all of its furry until around midnight on Monday night. Around that time, the wind and rain started to really pick up speed. I can't find the words that I want to describe to you what all happened in the next 24 hrs. Alyssa, Rachel and I mopped up water, and more water. The tin on the one corner of the house started to make a rather odd noise, so we alerted the guys and they soon risked the wind and rain to come try to see what was going on. They tried their best to fix the problem and hoped that it wouldn't get any worse. It was around 4 am when a sudden down pour of rain made water come into our living room and it was too much for us girls to keep up with all the mopping so we called for the guys to come help us. Andrew went outside to see if he could create a water way so it wouldn't flood the living room again. Hans told us girls that it wasn't safe for us to even go outside, because of all the flying debris. I wondered really how much more wind our house roof was going to take. If you watched close, it would go up and down with every fresh gust of wind-and it felt like the wind was only getting stronger. We waited for dawn to arrive so we could really see what it looked like outside. The sight that we saw was awful. It looked like a war zone. It looked like someone had taken a shredder or something over the whole valley-stripping it of its beauty. The wind and rain continued to pick up speed, and soon after 8 am the roof on the girls house couldn't take it any longer. The feeling of looking up and seeing the dark sky where there is supposed to be a roof over your head, isn't something I want to experience again. We ran and grabbed as many valuable things as we could, and ran to Donnys house since it was very unsafe for us to stay in the house. The next few hrs felt like 2 days. As the strong wind and rain continued to pound down on the house, we begged God to have mercy on us, and to calm the storm. Finally around 3pm it slowly started to slow down some. We soon ventured out of the house a little to investigate the damage. It was devastating. 

The clinic has been very slow since the Hurricane. Everyone is busy trying to get their places back in order. 

Thank you so much for praying for us, but please don't stop now. We need wisdom and direction on what is the best way to help these dear people.

Mis Ellamae

 Top: After we clean up at Clinic. Bottom left: was Monday morning. Bottom right on Wednesday afternoon.  

Top left: Girls House after the right side of the roof came off. Top right: inside the house. 

Bottom: during the Strom. 

Top left: Girls house. Top right: the coconut tree that fell over on to Donnys house.  Bottom: during the storm. 

The clinic

Bandages, babies, and more

“But, we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the power may be of God, and not of us… We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed; we are perplexed, but not in despair… For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory; While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal.” [excerpts from 2 Corinthians 4]

The above verses have become more meaningful to me in the last couple weeks. It’s so easy to focus on circumstances around us and forget the big picture. Sometimes I feel very much like just a jar of clay but, it’s amazing to know that even though I am just an earthen vessel, I can be filled with the power of God and then it’s His work and not my own. If I step back and look beyond the temporal and gaze into the eternal, it doesn’t really matter if things aren’t easy or if life seems difficult. The tough things are so small and fleeting in light of an eternal glory. 

Here's a picture of the patient we call 'Monkey'... You may remember him from one of my previous posts. He's been one of my faithful bandage ever since I came. His sores had been improving and getting smaller but I was not happy to see that they were looking worse again this week.

I enjoy taking care of my bandage patients and recently there have been a lot of them!! It can be difficult to know how to treat them. Sometimes what works well for one person doesn't work for the next. I was very happy this week when I could tell several of my patients that they were looking good enough that they didn't need to come back. It is such a joy to watch them improve!

Saturday, a week ago, Alyssa and I had a lady in labor at the clinic. Progress was slow... But, when she finally did have her baby we didn't get back down to clinic in time. Baby was laying on the floor patiently waiting for the nurses to arrive. She was an adorable girl with a head full of black hair. 

On Friday she came back to clinic with her mom for a check up. Her mom was delighted to see us and we were happy to see her! Here she is with Alyssa... Six days old! 

Thursday this week is when the dentist is supposed to be arriving. He comes from Germany and is planning to do dental work here for a week and a half or so. It will make us busier but I know the mountain people will be very glad to see him and have their teeth worked on. 

Here's a picture of the guys out making things ready for a big rain. I'm sure many of you have heard of hurricane Matthew. By the looks of it, we'll probably be getting a lot of rain and wind here soon. Please pray for our dear mountain people as this could potentially cause a lot of damage to their houses and make major washouts and landslides.

Thank you to each of you who pray for the work here! We appreciate your prayers very much as we continue to serve our Saviour in the mountains of Haiti! 

 

Just a jar of clay,

Rachel