The Work of the Lord
Despite my best intentions I have not provided the updates on this website that I was hoping and planning. And so I realize that it’s been almost a year since I’ve provided any update. My goal is to go back and add information that I sent to supporters and prayer partners so that you may have a better idea of what the past year has been like.
Patient praising her Savior
A short summary of the past year? The Lord is working in Northern Togo!! Since the hospital opened on March 2nd, 2015 we have registered over 15,000 patients! That means more than 15,000 people have been exposed to the gospel while seeking physical/medical care. Many of these people heard the gospel for the very first time. As a result of the hospital ministry there are now at least 8 Bible studies that are being held in villages surrounding Mango. There are approximately 4 Bible studies/house groups meeting in Mango! The hospital chaplains sell approximately 10 SD cards each week to patients requesting audio files of the Bible and other evangelistic material. In December, two of our Togolese hospital chaplains were baptized. These are just some of the examples of how the Lord is working here. I know numbers are not the best or only indicator of how the Lord is working but it is encouraging to be able to share these statistics with you. Can you imagine what else the Lord is doing in the hearts of the Togolese that we aren’t even aware of? It is certainly a privilege to be used of the Lord to help bring physical AND spiritual comfort to a hurting people.
Assessing a patient
I have worked as nursing supervisor over the past year alongside an experienced Togolese nurse. Together we have worked to unite an international team of nurses and nurse aides to provide compassionate healthcare to patients who come from Togo, Ghana, Burkina Faso, Benin, Niger, Guinea and the Ivory Coast. One of my main jobs has been doing the scheduling for the nurses and nurse aides…40+ staff members. It has been a challenge but one that I enjoy for the most part! We continue to need staff so if you are a nurse or nurse aide and are interested in serving short-term please let me know! We can use you for as short as 4 weeks or as long as 2 years. Besides actually providing bedside nursing care, my job has also been a catch-all of troubleshooting equipment issues,
Patients often prefer the floor!
ensuring we have supplies, and dealing with personnel issues. Creating an international nursing team has had it’s share of challenges but also rewards as I develop relationships with my Togolese coworkers. Caring for the many, many sick patients has also been a challenge. We routinely turn away over 100 patients at the gate each day who have been triaged and told to return another day as we do not have enough staff to see all of them. In malaria season we were averaging 1 death each day, usually children. This is incredibly difficult for the staff who want to care for patients and see them get well. It is emotionally, physically, mentally and spiritually draining. I am thankful for those miracle stories we do have where we’ve seen the hand of God miraculous heal a patient. It happens!! And most rewarding of all is seeing a patient accept the message of hope and become a child of the King even if on her deathbed.
Living in Togo (specifically Mango) is a challenge itself. Over the past year we’ve faced numerous water, power and internet outages (3 continuous days being the longest we were without water or power), civil unrest and riots, rain/wind/dust storms, and temps in the 120s. I’ve survived the challenge of riding a moto in mud and in sand…it hasn’t been easy! But I love Togo and it’s stark beauty. Living here has given me a better understanding of life in Bible times. I now truly understand the importance and significance of feet washing!!
So the days may be long and I may miss some of the comforts of life in the US. But I know I am where the Lord wants me. Continue praying for me and all of us serving at the Hospital of Hope. We so desperately need your prayers. Be encouraged; the Lord is at work in Mango!!
Thank you for your support!! Merci Beaucoup!!