Benedicks in Ecuador

Reflections

2011-11-20T20:02:00.000-05:00

This young bald eagle greeted us to the states from a large fir tree outside Kristina's parent's house.

Well, we're back in the US now, enjoying family and getting accustomed to the cold weather. The fall leaves held on just a bit longer than usual this year in Ridgefield, which was a special gift for Kristina from God. We had a safe, uneventful trip back to the US, and the kids were really well-behaved. We've been blessed by family and friends here in Ridgefield, who have welcomed us with open arms. We're especially thankful to Kristina's parents, who've opened up their home to live until we find a place of our own, and we'll be spending most of December enjoying the hospitality of my parents in Idaho.

Stopping outside Papa and Grandma's house to shoot a picture of the fall leaves.

It will take us awhile to fully reflect on our time in Shell. Please be praying for us as we adjust to life back in our home country and look for a place to live. In many ways, it will be very challenging for us to be living in the US. Of course we already miss all of our good friends in Shell. It was a true blessing and honor to live and work with those missionaries for a couple of years.

A couple of weeks ago I blogged about Baby D, a precious little 1-month-old baby who had suffered bleeding in her brain. I wanted to give an update about her status. After spending about a week in intensive care in Quito, she made a full recovery. She was seen by Dr. Tacheny in clinic last weekend and appeared to be completely normal! We thank God for the miracle of this little baby's life. This was an especially critical case, but in our prayer times as a family, we felt a peace, as though God was telling us that she was going to be alright.

We thank God for a great time in Shell, and we're looking forward to this next chapter in our lives. It's scary but exciting, and we're content to be in His will. Thanks go out to all of you who have been alongside us the whole way!

Dan didn't wait 24 hours to go out fishing on the Lewis River and brought home some wonderful chinook salmon for dinner.

Weekend Call and Packing Craziness

2011-11-05T20:53:00.000-05:00

As I pack up the house for our move Dan is busy with his last weekend call that he'll have here. So far it's given him a run for his money as he not only has had clinic on his own this morning but there was a bad car accident in which he's had to admit eight people, four of them going to the operating room for huge fractures. Dan and I are training for a race on Thanksgiving day that will raise money to dig wells in developing countries and have talked about finishing with a kick; I guess that's what he's doing today....Dan just ran into the house to get our pliers. He needs to pull a large fish hook out of a boy's hands and the hospital tools aren't quite cutting it.

I've joked with Dan that this house packing is going to be a lot like packing for a family trip; he gets his own clothes ready, and I pack our luggage for all the rest of us. So far it's been true in that I've packed up almost the entire house without his help, as he's been busy at the hospital. However, I see it as a praise to ways that God has grown us over the last two years. I remember getting ready to move here and being quite stressed about last minute details and bag weights as I took care of Caleb and Jael, even with Dan's help. Now, two years later and one more kid, God's given me lots of peace about enjoying each day as it comes and understanding he's blessed me with the ability to organize well. Instead of being bitter about not having more help I can use my "talents" (or maybe it's my OCD personality :) to help my family get ready for the move, and I'm actually enjoying the process. Now I'm praying that this same personality can be at peace as we "drift" for awhile in the states until finding a home of our own :)

Baby D

2011-10-23T15:46:00.000-05:00

I really enjoyed this young couple during prenatal visits. The mother always had a sweet smile on her face, and the father was always a little nervous like most Dads-to-be. It would be their second baby. As we approached her due date, I examined her and found that her baby was in the transverse position. (It is impossible for a baby to be born in this position). We attempted to move the baby into the head-down position, but with only limited success, and she ended up with a c-section. The surgery went well, and Mother and Baby D both went home without any difficulties. I saw Baby D in follow-up a couple of times, and she was growing and developing perfectly.

Just a few days ago, the father came to me frantically and said that Baby D was in the public hospital and that she had almost died. He said that he would like to bring her to our hospital for us to evaluate. For about a day, she seemed okay. She apparently had had a fever, so we performed a couple of tests to try to rule out big infections. Nevertheless, she was eating like a champ and looked like a pretty normal one-month-old. Then I received a frantic call from the nurses. “Come in now, because the patient in room 10 is bad”. Without further questions, I raced in. Baby D did not look good today. Her tongue and her eyes were moving in a way that made me believe that she was seizing. She was no longer awake, no longer eating. A lumbar puncture showed blood in her spinal fluid—she appeared to be bleeding around her brain. We managed to send her out for a CT scan, and this diagnosis was confirmed. Three medicines were needed to stop her seizing, and by that time we were breathing for her with the mechanical ventilator. Mission Aviation Fellowship flew her to the main pediatric hospital in Quito, where a pediatric ICU and a neurosurgeon will be available.

We haven’t heard yet how Baby D is doing. I think we will know within the next couple of days. In the meantime, we all (including our kids at the supper table) have been praying hard for this little baby and her neat family. We don’t know why she was bleeding around her brain, and it’s likely that we never will. I feel helpless as the doctor in these cases, but I was honored to be able to provide the spiritual and emotional support that this family readily accepted. Though I tend to try to fix everything on my own, I am doing my best to live my life knowing that we have a good God who is in control of everything.

Washington, Here We Come

2011-10-06T18:55:00.000-05:00

Dan and I have spent a lot of time praying about our future move and considering the many details that a move would bring for our family. Dan spent a lot of time traveling around the Northwest for his interviews in Washington and Idaho and although we talked almost everyday while he was gone, we had decided to wait until his return to really discuss our decision. We felt that we would both have singleness of heart with the job and location that would be the best at this point of our lives. There was one job in particular that I had been on my heart often during prayer, and upon his return he shared about each place he was considering. There were many great options in Caldwell and in Washington. When he felt his first choice was the one I'd considered for so long it really became a clear decision. We're so thankful that something that could have been stressful wasn't at all, and we're confident that we're headed in the right direction. All that to say, we will be flying back to that United States on November 14th where we will move to Washington so Dan can begin working at the family medicine residency program in Vancouver. During the time in Ecuador, Dan has really enjoyed being a teacher. He is excited to begin work in Vancouver where he'll be able to continue to teach and mentor resident doctors, to work with a great staff, to maintain his skills in obstetrics and hospital medicine, and to be able to serve many patients who come from difficult socioeconomic backgrounds.

We plan to settle down in Ridgefield where I grew up. We're going to miss our family and friends in Idaho, but should have the opportunity to visit much more often. We are still looking forward to doing foreign mission work in the future, but are excited to be back on the "home field" for awhile.

We'll continue to blog about our work in Ecuador as I know Dan has some new medical stories he'd like to share. Our next big step will be looking for a place to live in Ridgefield; God keeps us depending on Him, no matter where we are.

Jael loves playing with Tori whose father is the ophthalmologist at the hospital.

Caleb celebrated his 5th birthday with some new legos.

Anna loves to help Mommy cook (and lick the spoon).

Holding Down the Fort

2011-09-15T20:43:00.000-05:00

Dan headed to the states on Sunday to interview for possible job opportunities in Idaho and Washington. He'll have a busy schedule as he flies between the two states and visits several different locations. Please pray that he'll make the best choice as he considers many different aspects of each job as well as their different locations. We're excited to see what the Lord has for us next and should know within the next four weeks where we'll be headed.

In the meantime, I'm holding down the fort here in Shell. It was a little harder to say goodbye to him, knowing he'll be in another country and not just at the hospital, but already I've had lots of offers of help with the kids if I need it and invitations to hang out with others. Hopefully this can be two weeks filled with lots of laughter and fun in the house and not frustrations. Dan may get BBQ steaks and corn on the cob in the states but we get to dine on Mac N Cheese, which actually is a treat. We thought about sneaking the kids on the plane with him but decided it wouldn't be too practical.

Anna would have been Dan's checked luggage and Caleb and Jael his carry-ons/

Beautiful Babies and Parasite Paradise

2011-09-03T16:11:00.000-05:00

The last few weeks have been busy at the hospital, as more people have been trying to get in for their regular check-ups before school starts. Many new babies have been brought into the world as well. Dr. Egberth and I performed a c-section on a mom with double-breech twins. Everyone did great, and it was really fun to be involved with this family's excitement (even if she did need her surgery emergently at 3 am). We had another mom who came in with her baby in the transverse position. Working together, we managed to help that baby do several summersaults before she finally settled into a head-down position. At that point, we broke the mom's water and induced the labor, hoping to keep the baby aimed in the right direction. Unfortunately, the rascal switched back to transverse, and we ended up performing a c-section after all.

10.5 pounds of joy

We at Hospital Vozandes aren't the only ones who have been busy lately. Apparently the worms in the jungle are also prospering and expanding their horizons. Last weekend I took care of three babies in room 8 of our hospital. One of the babies had Rotavirus (a virus that makes the patient have bad diarrhea) that had caused dehydration. Another had been sick with a fever for weeks. We ruled out the most common infections (malaria, dengue fever, tuberculosis and leptospirosis) and settled on a diagnosis of "Jungle Fever." Patients like him come to our hospital every now and then, and we usually give them a kaleidoscope of antibiotics to cover oddities like brucellosis and Q fever. The third baby presented with extreme weakness and pallor. His hemoglobin, which is a measure of red blood cells, had dropped to 2 (normal for his age would be about 10-13). He was diagnosed with severe anemia, which had evidently developed over several weeks. Dropping a person's hemoglobin down to 2 acutely would cause shock and death, but the body can often make compensations if it is a gradual process.

The anemic baby was found to have an infestation of hookworms. This parasite can burr through the skin of the feet to enter the bloodstream. It's next stop is the lungs. From the lungs, it climbs up into the throat and jumps down into the esophagus, with the goal of setting up a new home in the duodenum of the small intestine. There, it attaches to the wall and drinks blood to its heart's content. Our anemic baby with the hookworm infection quickly got better with a blood transfusion and anti-parasite drugs. The other babies were also getting better, but their moms were concerned that they had persistently-bloated bellies and poor appetites. We also treated them for parasites, and many interesting things were found in their diapers over the next few days. In the end, all of them got much better and were taken home by their happy mothers.

Looking better after getting rid of Rotavirus and other critters

Addition of blood and subtraction of hookworms equals a fat, happy baby

After successful treatment of "Jungle Fever"

(All pictures taken and posted with permission of the patients and their families)

The Past Few Weeks

2011-08-27T16:33:00.002-05:00

We’ve fallen a little behind on our blogs lately, but we’re alive and well here in Shell.

We attended another very special wedding this past month when one of the couples in our marriage class decided to get married in a civil ceremony. In Ecuador the civil ceremony is the official and legal ceremony, sometimes followed by a church ceremony if it’s affordable. Unfortunately we can’t share our pictures from the wedding since our camera, telephone, and electronic reader were stolen on the bus to Quito one afternoon, but we do have a shot of our latest class.

Celebrating our last marriage class

We were blessed to have our good friends from residency training in Idaho come and visit us last week. Ryan and Alanna were great sports as we showed them around Shell, they played with our kids, and were even (un)fortunate enough to share the flu with the rest of our family one day. We took them for a hike on the military base here (which always feels a little intimidating to leave your passports at the gate as you drive past camouflaged young men with large guns). Currently there is a baby ocelot that was confiscated from a family trying to keep it as a pet and we had the chance to hold the little guy.

Ryan and Alanna in front of the "Shell" sign

Playing with the tiger baby.

One morning while Alanna and I were talking, Caleb calmly walked in and told me there was a snake on the back porch. The kids are always pretending so I told him I’d be out in a minute to “kill” it. When we finally made our way outside we discovered Caleb wasn’t pretending. I put an end to him, though it took me a shovel and machete to do it. Another missionary later told me that it is some kind of blind, snake-like worm that wouldn’t hurt anything….oops. It’s difficult not to be too judgmental when there are slithery creatures near your house.

Our slithery visitor

Dan will soon get another medical blog posted. He's on a seven-day, four-call workweek, but should get a chance soon.

Some First Goodbyes

2011-08-07T16:12:00.000-05:00

Part of the life of a missionary is saying goodbye: goodbye to your homeland and family and friends in the states, but also to friends we get to know in out new "home". Though we don't plan to leave Ecuador for over three more months, today we said our first "official" goodbyes to our good friends the Bartons who will be in the states for the next year. Paul works as an anesthesiologist and Kim is a pediatrician. Their four boys were good friends to our children, especially Josiah, who became Caleb's best buddy here. They will be greatly missed by all of us in the missionary community.

The Barton Family

Caleb and Josaih fighting the "Evil Daddy Dragon" for chocolate eggs.


Jael playing with Isaac. Jael is convinced she's marrying Josiah and told him they were going on a date the other day.

Wedding Weekend

2011-07-27T16:31:00.000-05:00

This weekend we headed up to Quito to celebrate the wedding of our friends, Jen and Harrison, who we met while in language school at the Nazarene seminary. Jael and Caleb had the honor of being the Flower Girl and Bubble Blower (Jen wanted Caleb to be involved too :)


It's hard to believe it's been over nine years for us!

A family pic before the wedding

"No petals! What do I do?"

Notice the concentration.

The kids did a great job, although Jael took quite awhile to proceed as she made sure to drop a petal on each stair she stepped down, and the entire congregation heard her exasperated cry of, “Mommy, I’m out of petals.”

Celebrating after the ceremony

I thought I'd better add a new pic of Anna, too!

We’ve been blessed with many new American and Ecuadorian friends during our almost two years here. As we prepare to head back to the states in November we look forward to reuniting with old friends, but we will have to say goodbye to many amazing people here, too. We're so thankful that God has provided us fellowship not only for us, but for our children as well while we've been here.

Buggin' Out

2011-07-02T16:10:00.000-05:00

A few more bug stories from Ecuador to share with you. Lately we’ve had a large influx of shield bugs on a specific tree near our home. We’ll pass and see many congregated in piles on top of each other. (I think it’s mating season.) Yesterday I heard the kids laughing and yelling about the bugs outside. I went outside to see what Caleb and Jael were up to and was greeting by my children covered in bugs and an awful stench. They had decided it would be cool to see how many bugs they could get in Caleb’s bug box, but in the process were “sprayed” as they attempted to catch them. I stripped the kids clothes and washed them up but couldn’t totally get rid of the smell. A few minutes later we discovered that the spray also left a strange yellow coloring on the kids’ hands. We’ve washed them numerous times, but it seems as though the coloring is just getting darker with time instead of going away. Hopefully it isn’t toxic and the kids will remember to ask before going bug collecting next time.


Caleb with a few of the bugs on his elbow and shirt.

Their collection!

Caleb's hands a day (and many washes) later.

A few hours later the kids were playing outside when we noticed a loud drone and looked up to see a huge swarm of bees. We rushed the kids inside for awhile but didn’t hear anything so thought they had flown away. We looked around and discovered a huge “bee ball” in the tree outside our kitchen window. There was nothing in the middle of them except more bees and they didn’t make a sound as they sat there. Our neighbors had had the same thing occur last week, but their “ball” was larger, the size of a basketball. We found someone who had bug spray (and could run quickly) and got rid of our bee problem.

Our bee ball.

Little Carlos; Kristina's Run

2011-06-30T13:22:00.000-05:00

Carlos is a little 9-month-old who presented to us a few days ago. His mother gave me permission to publish his picture and story on our blog. He had been having fevers, and, as you can see in the picture, a bad infection of some sort that seemed to be eating his nose. Even more worrisome was his extreme malnutrition. This little guy weighed in at about 9 pounds on his admission, which is about half of what he should have weighed. It was difficult and sad to see his tiny little arms and legs, which consisted of nothing but bone covered with a bit of skin.

Carlos had already seen a couple of docs here in Ecuador, but had not gotten any better. We were thinking that his nose problem was a result of a bacterial infection or a parasitic infection called Leishmaniasis. We sent a tiny biopsy to look for the parasite, and in the meantime, his nose did seem to get a little better with antibiotics. He also gained 2 pounds in his first week on a high calorie diet (the picture above is his "after" picture).

Carlos has a few tests pending to help us to know more about his condition. He still has a long way to go before he's out of the woods. In the meantime, he would appreciate your prayers as he tries to gain some weight and fight off this difficult infection.

You may or may not know that Kristina has developed into quite the runner. I have to try to keep running some as well, primarily so that I'll be able to catch my wife. While out on a 4-mile tempo run a couple of days ago, Kristina was met by an unexpected visitor who left a nice souvenir on her calf. As you might have guessed by the picture below, the visitor was a pretty good-sized dog who was surprised at seeing such a fast runner going by.

We washed the fang marks out really well, and Kristina began antibiotics to prevent infection. She's also had to get some shots to make sure that she's properly protected against rabies, though I've not heard of a case of rabies here outside of the deep jungle. Kristina's had a great attitude about the whole thing, but she says that she'll make sure to run on the other side of the road when she passes that house the next time.

We're Still Here

2011-06-17T15:27:00.000-05:00

In the midst of travels and company we’ve gotten quite behind on our blogs lately.

To be with family after my grandma passed away I attempted a trip to the states with the three kids while Dan stayed in Shell to continue working at the hospital. At some points along the way I felt really confident, and then several minutes later I’d be humbled and realize I was out of my mind to attempt such a feat. (Have you ever tried to go to the bathroom in a public place with three kids four and under?) Truthfully, though, the kids did great and we made it safe and sound to Washington.


The kids had a great time on the swing Papa set up in the old barn.

We had lots of help on our return trip with my mom, Aunt Donna, cousin Kaylan, and friend Sam. It is always such a blessing to have visitors and makes the reality of being far from family and living in a different culture easier. A week after their visit Dan’s folks were here to love on us.

Dan and his dad exploring some caves not too far from Shell.

After much prayer and discernment we’ve made the decision to head back to the States after our contract ends in September. We plan to be there sometime mid-November. Thank you to all who prayed and offered words of wisdom as we made this decision. We’ve been blessed during our time in Shell and are confident this is where we were to be for these 2+ years; we’re excited to see where the Lord leads next. We’re still not sure where we’ll be, but we'd like to be close to family in the Northwest. We’re also anxious to get involved in Hispanic ministries wherever we end up.

The kids are getting ever bigger, especially Anna, who has just started solid foods. She’s our little laid back Ecuadorian child and is very content to just sit back and let her big brother and sister entertain her. Caleb is our engineer. He spends lots of his time drawing plans for and then setting up blanket forts and playing with lego sets. Jael is a little firecracker. The other day we were sitting on the couch together as she quietly contemplated something. When I asked her what she was thinking about, she replied, "Boys." I think we're going to be in trouble :)


Caleb has been learning to ride his bike without training wheels and always needs a congratulatory headbutt from Daddy after a good ride.

Playing in the hammock with Grandpa and Grandma.

Anna is quite the "drooler"; she can soak a shirt in a few minutes flat.

Life-Giving Blood

2011-04-17T16:13:00.001-05:00

It was Saturday around noon, and I was busy seeing patients in my AM clinic and juggling some issues from the ER. I received word from the family medicine resident that a patient had arrived who was suffering from an apparent intestinal bleed, with the source likely being in the stomach or the duodenum (the first part of the intestines after the stomach). We started him on some medicine in his IV for a suspected bleeding ulcer and admitted him to a hospital bed. The next step was to perform an upper endoscopy procedure to try to diagnose the cause and severity of the bleeding. However, before doing so, the patient would have to be hemodynamically stable. That’s a fancy way of saying that he would have to have a relatively normal blood pressure and pulse, and that he would appear to have a decent blood supply to all of his vital organs. Unfortunately our patient did not meet these criteria. His pulse was high, his blood pressure was low, and he appeared very sleepy (which was a result of not getting sufficient blood flow to his brain).

How do you “stabilize” a patient who has lost copious amounts of blood? By giving him loads of blood and IV fluid, of course! We began this process. After getting the equivalent of two 2-liter bottles of IV fluid pumped in, he had not stabilized. Simultaneously, he was receiving red blood cells as fast as we could give them (not fast—when they come from the lab they are packed into a very compressed state, and they run into the patient’s veins over a span of about 3 hours). After receiving the only three units of packed red cells that we had in our hospital, plus two units of fresh plasma, he STILL had not stabilized, and his symptoms told us that his intestines were still actively bleeding. There is a Red Cross in the next town over, but our lab informed me that there was no way to contact them during the night. Could we transfer the patient to another province? The patient elected to stay in our hospital, even though two important facts had become clear:
1) We had run out of blood
2) Our patient was bleeding to death.

Now it’s time to crunch the data a bit. These numbers are estimates, but they will give us some ideas of this patient’s condition. A human male about the size of my patient typically has approximately 5 liters of blood volume. We measure red blood cells, the part that carries the oxygen, by “the hemoglobin”. A unit of whole blood contains about 450 milliliters of volume, and is expected to raise the hemoglobin by about 1.5 grams/deciliter. Our patient, before he started bleeding, probably had a hemoglobin value of around 14, which is normal. When he arrived at our hospital, his hemoglobin was 11. The next morning, after receiving the above-mentioned transfusions, his hemoglobin was 4. It was clear that our patient had essentially bled out his entire blood volume, and was now just hanging on for dear life with the little bit of blood that he had received from our lab upon his admission. At that point he looked worse than ever. He was as white as a ghost and barely responsive, and we still had no blood to offer him.

Now it was Sunday morning, and we began to ask everyone, “What can we do!!??” Our lab technician mentioned that if there were people present who wanted to give blood to our patient, the necessary tests could be performed to make that happen. Of course the donor would need to have blood type either O+ or O-, since our patient had O+ blood. The first person to step up and donate was one of our surgeons, Dr. Mattias Egberth. He was followed closely by one of our medical students, David Garcia. At about that time, approximately 20 of the patient’s relatives arrived to visit and to wish him well. They began to ask, “Can we donate as well?” Within just a few hours, we had rounded up SIX units of whole blood, which the patient gladly received. Now he was waking up, and for the first time since his admission, he was hemodynamically stable. We performed the endoscopy procedure and found a large ulcer in his duodenum. It was no longer bleeding! Thank you, God!

In all, we calculated that our patient had lost his entire blood supply and then some. By day number three, essentially none of his circulating blood was his own. He had received three units of packed red cells, six units of whole blood, and five units of fresh plasma, all because of donations by fourteen different people who were willing to give their own blood. The patient and his family were extremely grateful and humbled to know that he was alive through the sacrifice of fourteen other people, many of whom did not even know him.

Blood is an amazing creation of God, and it has long symbolized “sacrifice.” In Moses’ time, the blood of an animal was poured out on an altar in a petition for the forgiveness of sins. This was only a temporary, imperfect solution for man’s sin problem. But God made a perfect way, the only way, to salvation through the sacrificial blood of His perfect Son, Jesus Christ. “He personally carried our sins in his body on the cross so that we can be dead to sin and live for what is right. By his wounds you are healed.” (1 Peter 2:24, New Living Translation) We are alive today, and we can live in Heaven forever, because of the blood of Another, because of the blood of Jesus Christ. And the power of Jesus’ blood does not stop when we pray to accept Him as our Rescuer. Instead, our sinful nature dies, and His perfect, righteous nature goes on living. In the same way that my patient received a completely new supply of circulating blood, we are continually filled with Christ’s perfection.

The patient gladly gave permission to share his picture and story on our blog.

Keep the Door Shut

2011-04-08T15:23:00.000-05:00

Ever since we arrived home from our trip to the states we’ve had a little problem: jungle critters. I’ve always prided myself that our house was pretty cockroach free, but they’ve made a comeback. However, they are the least of our worries. Several nights ago Dan and I were sitting on the couch and in walks a tarantula, even with the screen door closed. He wasn’t too big but several nights later his larger cousin came to join him right in the middle of our marriage class.

An even bigger problem has been Mr. Rat. I’d never had an encounter with one until a few weeks ago. Dan was on call at the hospital and I kept hearing rustling in the laundry room. I called Dan to come home to find the culprit and after investigating he said he couldn’t find anything. As he was walking out of the laundry room he kicked the washer and out ran an enormous rat (well at least I thought it was enormous). I’m usually a pretty calm person when it comes to creepy-crawlies, but I went running for my life . Over the next week and a half the rat became Dan’s biggest nemesis as he tried multiple ways to get rid of it. The first night the rat ate all the poison we left out for him and we thought our troubles were over. However we knew he was back the next night when he go into some “sacred” cereal we’d bought in the states. Now we knew our rat had a strong stomach. Next Dan tried a homemade bucket trap in hopes of drowning the rat, but our visitor was pretty smart and only would eat the food at the front of the plank leading up to the water. After that Dan moved to a spring trap. Dan set it up several nights in a row so sensitive that it took him quite a while to get it to set without snapping back on Dan. Somehow our rat was able to get the food every time without setting it on himself. Now we knew our rat wasn’t just smart, but a genius. After several more days I was preparing lunch and looked over and there sat Mr. Rat in the laundry room right in the middle of the day. Now he’d gotten way too arrogant. I climbed on the counter and told Dan to get over there. Dan grabbed a broom and used his baseball skills to stun him. As Dan brushed him outside to finish him off he kept making these sad little squeaks and we almost felt sorry for him. Maybe he’d visited us so many nights we felt partial to our unwanted pest.
Last night was the scariest of all. As we were sitting in the living room I looked into the kitchen and there was a snake slithering around. His coloring was black, red, and yellow, and both Dan and I thought coral snake. He was a little guy, but our adrenaline was running as Dan brushed him out of the house and killed him with the broom handle. Thankfully we didn’t have Anna on her floor mat. We investigated on the computer and are hopeful his markings tell us it’s a harmless black ground snake, which mimic the coloring of a poisonous coral snake…we sure hope so.
Though it rains almost every day here, it is the rainy season and maybe our unwanted guests are trying to escape the rain. Almost all the critters have come at night when we’ve had the screen doors closed but the main doors open. Hopefully by keeping the doors closed we can keep them away; at least that’s what I keep telling myself.
AUGH…as I write this Jael is yelling that there’s a frog in the house!

Our snake after Dan got through finishing him off.

Run for It!

2011-03-26T15:14:00.000-05:00

It was Fall 1992. I was getting ready to start my freshman year at Vallivue High School. I was a bit too skinny to do well at organized football, and our school didn't have a soccer team. My dad said, "Why don't you give Cross Country a try? You'll be able to get in shape to play baseball." Well, I had no idea what I was getting into, but that's when I visited Coach Gary Ward's office and became a runner for the rest of my life.

I'm pretty sure that the Apostle Paul was also a runner. He had all the characteristics that are needed to be a good runner: discipline, dedication, and lack of fear. He learned to press on whatever the circumstances, and he knew where his strength came from. "I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do all this through him who gives me strength." (Philippians 4:12-13) Whether he was doing a difficult hill workout or witnessing to people in prison, this determined mindset kept Paul going, even when it would have been easier to give up!

When we were in the USA this past month, my family bought me a gift certificate to buy some running gear. Anyone who runs knows that, when you go out, you want to make sure that you only carry exactly what you need. Running companies are always developing shoes, shorts, jackets, etc. that are ounces lighter than the models before. It's also a good idea to minimize the ounces that I'm carrying around my belly by eating a smart diet. The writer of Hebrews knew about getting rid of dead weight. We're not 100% sure about whether or not Paul wrote the book of Hebrews, but I think it must have been either Paul or his running partner. "Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God." (Hebrews 12:1-2) Not only did he cut out all extra weights, the author had his sights set on the Prize!

God has taught me many great lessons through many years of tough running. Every runner who ran cross country while Coach Ward was at the helm knows of the famous Airport Hill workout. Every year, Coach would take his runners there one time for a super-tough workout, the most difficult practice of the season. It's steep, it's dusty, and it's hot. I experienced pure jubilation when I finished that workout during my senior year, knowing that I would never have to torture myself on the hill's ridiculous grade ever again. Thankfully, I had a smart coach who knew better. I couldn't believe it when our bus turned onto the road to Airport Hill again a couple of weeks later in the season for a second workout on the dreaded mountain! What was our coach trying to do to us? Coach knew that the state meet would be held at Farragut State Park, and that it included a gigantic hill in the third mile. The wisdom of our coach was proven a few weeks later when we walked away from the state meet hoisting the championship trophy!

As a doc practicing in a busy rural hospital, I'm constantly faced with grief and loss. Last week we had some tough times. I lost a sick 3-month old to severe pneumonia. One of our Ecuadorian friends' 7-year-old son was playing with dynamite and literally exploded off both of his hands. These events are devastating for the whole community, and we are blessed that we get to pray with the patients and families during the tough times. I tend to be a pretty emotionally involved guy, so these cases are also very difficult for me as the doc. It's time like these that I'm glad to be a runner. I know that with Christ's strength, I can stick with it. God has a bigger purpose, and He will work all things together for good. He's a good God, and we know He will do it. Sometimes we feel like we're approaching "Airport Hill" for another tough workout, but we know that God is the wisest Coach ever. We need to trust that He knows what He's doing, and in that trust, we will live in the peace and strength that only He can give.

Kristina is also a runner. We are sad to report that her grandmother passed away last night. We will surely miss her. At the same time, we rejoice at the wonderful life and example that we've been able to witness and be a part of. Marjorie Mills lived in such a way that she could say, "I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith." (2 Tim. 4:7) We are filled with happiness to know that Marjorie is in Heaven today!

A Visit to the States

2011-03-11T18:48:00.000-05:00

We had a wonderful time visiting family and friends in the United States in February. The trip was much too short and we would have loved to have more quality time with everyone, but we’re thankful for the time we had. Thank you to all who made an effort to see us while we were there. We really appreciated it.

Getting to know the family

Lots of kisses from Grandma

Playing on the farm

Anna was able to meet family she’d never seen and the kids got reacquainted with lots of loved ones. We enjoyed many things we miss here in Ecuador: sermons in English, favorite restaurants (I think we put on the “Furlough Fifteen” kind of like the “Freshman Fifteen” in college), playing in the snow, carpet on the floors, and many more.

The Benedick clan celebrates Christmas (a little late)

Best buds reunited

There were a few times when we knew we weren’t living in the states: when the kids would ask for a drink of water and then questions us, “Is that water clean?” because we’d filled the cup from the tap, or when Jael ran in terror from the vacuum cleaner because she didn’t know what it was.

The cousins were ready to play in the snow

We still are praying about our future plans as to where we’ll be a year from now, but we feel we have a little more direction after our visit home and the time of fellowship we had in the states. Dan is back to work and the kids and I are getting into the routine (boy do I miss the extra hands to help with the kiddos). Thanks to all who help make it a wonderful vacation for us.

The Name Game

2011-01-31T19:57:00.000-05:00

We just went through the process of choosing a name for our little one, Anna. Our other two children have names from the Bible and we appreciate the character of Anna in the Bible, so we stuck with this theme for our newest addition. Unlike in the states where many have a name picked out months ahead, in Ecuador people often don't name their child until several days have the birth. Some say it's bad luck; it may stem from the higher death rate babies had here before good health care. Dan delivered a baby boy the other day, and the parents hadn't yet chosen a name. They must have been pretty impressed with him as a doc since they decided to name their son Benedick. I think the name is great :) but hopefully he'll have a little more luck with having others spell it correctly. The 'ck' at the end instead of a 't' seems to throw almost everyone off on our last name.

New Photos

2011-01-27T20:28:00.000-05:00

We've had several requests for photos of the kids, so are here are a few recent ones.

Our best present of the year.

Celebrating Christmas Day


Caleb had a great time in the fort Papa made for him out of jungle trees and vines.

Tired after a long day.

Yesterday Jael rediscovered the makeup she'd received for Christmas and went a little overboard with it.

Anna has decided she wants to be like her daddy for a little while...she has lost all her red hair in front and only has it in the back and sideburns. You can just see new, blond hair coming in on top.

Who Do You Trust--Really?

2011-01-24T17:38:00.000-05:00

A week ago I had a crazy turn as the hospital doc (we take turns manning the hospital while the others do outpatient clinic). After I'd already admitted two really sick older gentlemen to the hospital we received a phone call that a very sick little girl was also on the way. She had been seen in an outlying clinic and her story was not entirely clear, but from what we could gather, she was nine years old and had been seizing. Her mother had sent her to school earlier that day, apparently normal other than a cough and a sore throat.

At some point in your life, many of you parents may have received a call from the school where you heard, "Come and get Johnny now. He's been in a fight on the playground and he's really in trouble this time!" Well, my patient's mother received a call from school where the teacher told her, "Come and get your daughter now, because she's dying!" Talk about scary.

I examined the little girl in the ER. She was unconscious, responding slightly to pain. She was moving her arm in a strange way that appeared to be what we would call "decerebrate posturing", which means, essentially, that the brain is dying or has died. In spite of the medicine that we gave her to stop the seizures, she seized two more times. We were blessed to have availability of a CT scan from the neighboring town when she arrived, and we were able to rule out bleeding within or around her brain. We performed a lumbar puncture, which looked normal.

Through all of this diagnostic process, the girl's mother began to cry out to God. "Lord," she said, "You know that I only have one daughter. Please spare her! I beg You!" As she prayed, I asked if I could pray along. We prayed together for several minutes, which put all in the room at peace. We asked again and again for the girl's healing and for guidance. Then, we moved her to a hospital bed and really didn't do too much else other than supportive treatment and antibiotics (she had also reportedly been having fevers and we wanted to cover meningitis just in case). We still didn't know what was wrong with her. Infection? Accidental intoxication? Whatever the case was, she didn't seem to be waking up.

About one hour after the girl was placed in a hospital bed, we received a request from the patient's family: "Could we please take her out of the hospital just for an hour or two? We'd like to take her over to the shaman to see if he can heal her." A shaman is a traditional healer. There are many of them around here, and they typically rely upon evil forces in their practice. As a parent, I know that I would do almost anything for my child. However, this patient's parents, after just having prayed to the one true God, were now wanting to turn to Satan for help. This was clearly a double standard.

I entered the girl's room and pleaded with the mother. I asked her, "Who do you trust? Do you trust the power of God or the power of the shaman? I would encourage you to make the right decision." With their child's life on the line, they made the right decision. They stayed in the hospital and maintained their trust in God and in the Christian doctors (who were also confused about the diagnosis and HEAVILY relying on God).

The Lord always answers prayers in the best possible way, though they're not always answered in the way that we think is best. In this case, my sweet little patient was physically healed. Over the next two days she gradually awoke and was completely normal on day number three. We still don't know what was wrong with her. I asked her if I could share a picture of her with my friends on the blog, and she said, "Yes!"

This story makes me think of Mark 10:52 where Jesus heals a blind man then tells him, "Your faith has healed you." God wants to do marvelous things through us on this earth. My patient's family will always have a testimony about how their daughter was healed through God's power because they were willing to put their trust ONLY in Him. If disaster were to strike me or my family today, would I be ready to trust ONLY in God? I hope that I would demonstrate the same faith that this family showed. God is in charge, He knows what's best, and we can trust Him. Praise Him for His healing power.

Ridiculous Love

2011-01-17T21:42:00.000-05:00

I remember first hearing about, and being inspired by, David's Mighty Men during my years at NNU. I preached this message a few weeks ago in our hospital chapel.

2 Samuel 23:8-17: These are the names of David's mighty men: Josheb-Basshebeth, a Tahkemonite, was chief of the Three; he raised his spear against eight hundred men, whom he killed in one encounter. Next to him was Eleazar son of Dodai the Ahohite. As one of the three mighty men, he was with David when they taunted the Philistines gathered [at Pas Dammim] for battle. Then the men of Israel retreated, but he stood his ground and struck down the Philistines till his hand grew tired and froze to the sword. The LORD brought about a great victory that day. The troops returned to Eleazar, but only to strip the dead. Next to him was Shammah son of Agee the Hararite. When the Philistines banded together at a place where there was a field full of lentils, Israel's troops fled from them. But Shammah took his stand in the middle of the field. He defended it and struck the Philistines down, and the LORD brought about a great victory. During harvest time, three of the thirty chief men came down to David at the cave of Adullam, while a band of Philistines was encamped in the Valley of Rephaim. At that time David was in the stronghold, and the Philistine garrison was at Bethlehem. David longed for water and said, "Oh, that someone would get me a drink of water from the well near the gate of Bethlehem!" So the three mighty men broke through the Philistine lines, drew water from the well near the gate of Bethlehem and carried it back to David. But he refused to drink it; instead, he poured it out before the LORD. "Far be it from me, O LORD, to do this!" he said. "Is it not the blood of men who went at the risk of their lives?" And David would not drink it. Such were the exploits of the three mighty men.

When I read this story, I always think to myself, “Man, that water in Bethlehem must have been some good water!” I imagine that the well might have been famous in all of Israel. Perhaps travelers would make a point to stop by the well any time they were near Bethlehem to partake of its refreshing goodness. Each time that King David visited his hometown of Bethlehem, he probably ran right for the well to have a nice swig.

The goodness of the water also reminds me of a story that I heard several years ago from a good friend in California. In order for this story to make sense, I have to tell you a little bit about one of the most beloved restaurants in the state: In-N-Out Burger. The restaurant’s motto is, “Quality you can taste,” and let me tell you, you can taste it! At In-N-Out, the menu is very simple and consists of only hamburgers, fries, soft drinks, and milk shakes. Since the first In-N-Out was opened in 1948, the menu hasn’t really changed. As such, they’ve been spending the past 60 years perfecting those few menu items using only the finest, freshest ingredients. At last count, they are running about 250 restaurants in California. Yes, the In-N-Out hamburger is very good. The hamburger is so good, that some people will go to great lengths to get a burger.

Now I’m going to tell you the story that my friend told me. My friend has some family members who are pilots. They work for a private jet company that flies rich people from one place to the next. On one occasion, the pilot and his rich client found themselves on business in a Latin American country. Although he was surrounded by the finest of foods in a fancy hotel, the rich businessman desired a burger from In-N-Out. In fact, he wanted that burger so badly that he demanded his pilot to fly back to California to buy an In-N-Out burger and bring it back to him!

We could talk for a long time about good water and good food. However, the real theme of this passage in 2 Samuel 23 is not the good water, but the ridiculous act of love that these mighty men showed toward King David. That’s why the title of my talk today is “Ridiculous Love.” So what happened in this story? We have a group of warriors who are extremely tired. They’re tired of fighting and tired of fleeing. Finally, they have found a safe place, and it’s time to rest. But instead of resting, these three mighty men choose to risk their lives by breaking through the enemy lines just to bring their king a drink of water. Wow!

These mighty men had fought alongside King David in many great battles, winning countless victories for the Lord and for Israel. Of course they were dedicated to their country and to their king. However, they were not only dedicated to obey King David. The loved him. They loved him more than a brother. Their love for King David was so strong and so ridiculous that it made history!
I want to focus on three aspects of the ridiculous love that these mighty men had for David:
1. It did not depend on logic
2. It was self-sacrificing
3. It was given even though it was not deserved

The mighty men loved David in a way that did not depend on logic. There was absolutely no sense in their decision to get water from the well in Bethlehem. Before performing any medical procedure, doctors always balance the risks and benefits of the procedure. If the benefits outweigh the risks, we proceed with the procedure. If the risks are too high, we choose an alternative. What were the risks involved with getting a cup of water from Bethlehem? The mighty men would have to come out of hiding and break through the Philistine lines. They could get beaten up, captured, or even killed. Even if they survived, they would miss out on some much-needed rest. And what would be the benefit of getting the water? David would get to drink a cup of tasty water. I’m pretty sure that they did have some water in the stronghold where they were staying. David was not going to die without the water from Bethlehem. Clearly the risks of this action outweigh the benefits. The mighty men chose to get that water only because they loved David so much. God has given us intelligent minds to help us make logical decisions. Sometimes, however, the actions that show love best just don’t make sense. Ridiculous love doesn’t make sense, and it does not depend on logic.

A second aspect of the mighty men’s love was that they loved David even if it meant that they would have to sacrifice themselves. They were ready to sacrifice their very lives to show David love. This is a very difficult part of love. We are all born with an inborn desire to live, to conserve our own life. There are countless stories throughout history where the human desire to live has been demonstrated. One incident that comes to my mind involved the Uruguayan rugby team whose plane crashed in the snowy Andes Mountains in 1972. Starving, cold, and injured, sixteen men from the rugby team managed to survive until their rescue 72 days after the crash. They were able to survive in part because they ate their fellow passengers who had died in the accident. I’m telling you, those men had a strong will to live! All of us have a strong will to live. However, there are things in life that are more important than preserving our own lives. One of these things is love. The mighty men had a ridiculous love. They were ready to give up their very own lives to express their love to David by bringing him a drink of water. That is a history-making love.

A third aspect of the mighty men’s love was that they loved David when he did not deserve it. David was a good king, and one of the greatest leaders in the history of Israel. However, he was not a perfect man. In fact, David performed some famous sins! The most notable sin was against a good soldier named Uriah. David’s armies were out to war when David saw Uriah’s wife, Bathsheba, taking a bath on top of her house. David committed adultery with her and she became pregnant. Trying to cover up the sin, David called to have Uriah brought back to his home in Jerusalem. However, when he wasn’t able to cover up the adultery, he put Uriah on the front line of the battle to be killed. Then, he was able to steal poor Uriah’s wife. We know that David was not perfect, and that he did not deserve such love. However, the mighty men loved their king, and they forgave him for whatever sins that he might have committed. They loved King David, not because he deserved it, but just because they loved him.

Even David himself recognized that he did not deserve this ridiculous love. In verse 17, upon receiving the cup from the mighty men, he says, “Far be it from me, O Lord, to do this! Is it not the blood of men who went at the risk of their lives?” “Que el Senor me libre de beberla! Eso seria como beberme la sangre de hombres que se han jugado la vida!” Feeling unworthy to accept this act of love from his men, he poured the water out before the Lord.

The three mighty men gave us an example of ridiculous love. But do we really need to be that extreme? Yes, we do! In John 13:35 (NLT) Jesus says, “Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples." Love is the mark that we wear on our foreheads that says, “I am a Christian!” If we want people to know that we follow Jesus, we must be good at loving. And if we want non-Christians to be interested in who Jesus is, we must be the best lovers in the world!

How can we give ridiculous love to others? It is unlikely that I will ever have to, for example, risk my life to go to Abuelos and bring back a menestra to my buddy Dr. Kappen. However, I can give ridiculous love to my wife, all my family, my friends, my co-workers, my brothers and sisters at church, and my patients. I can give love that is not logical, even when my scientific brain tells me that the risk outweighs the benefit. I can give love that is self-sacrificing, even when I’m really tired and I want to care for myself. And I can give love to everyone, not just to those who “deserve it”, such as the nice, the good-looking, the popular, or those who love me. When we love like this, we are pleasing the Lord. When we love like this, we’re showing the world that we’re Christians. If we can love like this today, we will, like David’s three mighty men, make an impact on others and on history.

Paperwork in Ecuador

2011-01-08T11:37:00.000-05:00

Though in the states paperwork that has to be done for passports and birth certificates can be a hassle, after going through the process in a foreign country without a car to drive ourselves in to all the locations we have to hit, I think I'll be a little slower to complain about it.

Several weeks before Anna was born we went to the nearby town of Puyo so we'd be sure we knew where to go to get the paperwork we need complete before our visit to the states in February. This includes an Ecuadorian birth certificate, an Ecuadorian cedula (similar to an ID card), an Ecuadorian passport, and an United States passport (which we'll have to make the five hour trip to Quito twice for). We went to Immigration and were told to go to another location of "Gobernacion". They said we would need to go to Civil Registration before we could do anything, so we hailed a taxi and went to the (obscure) location of Civil Registration. The Civil Registration in Puyo told us their was a Civil Registration in our own town of Shell we would need to visit first. When we arrived there, the woman in charge told us we could start the paperwork after Anna was born, but the man who completed birth certificates would only be their Monday and Tuesday mornings from 8-10. The Monday after Anna was born we returned with her and were amazed to actually find our 'birth certificate man' there. He filled out a short form of the birth certificate for us, but the longer form we needed wouldn't be there until the next week since the new year was about to begin and he was awaiting the paperwork from the capital city. With a prayer we returned the next Monday to find the long form had arrived. We then took that form back to Immigration for Anna's cedula and were told to return Wednesday. When we arrived Wednesday they told us to come back Friday because they were also awaiting new paperwork from Quito. Thankfully Dan called before we headed there on Friday and a different man working told us not to come, but to go to the Civil Registration in Puyo for her cedula. We proceeded there, were grateful to get her cedula and then headed again to Gobernacion for the passport. After running twice down the block to get copies (because there is no copy machine at the governmeent building) and spending twenty minutes trying to wake Anna up for an open-eye passport photo, her Ecuadorian passport process has been started. We're praying that it comes as quickly as they say it will and we're able to get her American passport and paperwork all done quickly on our trips to Quito.

God is definitely working on our patience levels as we proceed through all the hoops of Ecuadorian paperwork.

Anna's Passport Photo

Kids Keep Things Interesting

2010-12-29T16:29:00.000-05:00

Of course we have been discussing Christmas a lot lately and the true reason for the season. Caleb has taken these discussions to heart and has posed some difficult questions for me to answer as he wonders about God:

"Mommy, if Jesus is God, how could He be in Heaven and on earth as a baby at the same time?"
We were reading a book about creation and he asked, "How can God speak and it just happens?" This question came after he tried saying, "Make a toy truck!" and it didn't appear in front of him. He was a little disappointed and when he asked why it didn't work I had to inform him He wasn't God.
We were talking about the soon-to-be arrival of baby Anna and told Caleb we might cry when she was born just like we had when he was born, but that they would be tears of joy and not sadness. A few days later we were watching the movie "The Nativity" as a family and trying to explain to the kids everything that was happening in the show. Near the end I looked over at Caleb and saw tears in his eyes. Thinking he was hurt, I quickly asked him what was wrong. "Nothing Mommy," he replied. "I"m crying happy tears because baby Jesus was born."

Today we realized our kids may have a different slant on things after growing up in a foreign country on the edge of the rainforest. Jael and Dan were looking at animal pictures and she was naming them off. She didn't have much trouble with the Macaw parrot, but she couldn't remember what a horse was. (I can't really remember the last time we saw one here.) We took a walk together and Jael started to sing a song she had made up. She often does this, and although all the words may not be intelligible it's cute to hear her little voice. When I asked her the name of her made up song she quickly aswered it was called "I am a Gringo".

Anna Benedick

2010-12-23T13:58:00.002-05:00

Welcome, Anna Benedick!

History was made yesterday at Hospital Vozandes del Oriente, as a bald white head (instead of a head full of black hair) was seen coming through the birth canal. About eight hours before the event, Mommy Kristina began to feel some uncomfortable contractions. She was still able to rest for awhile and breathed through the pains like a champ. Two hours before the birth, Caleb and Jael went to friends’ houses as the pains got stronger. At around 12 noon we headed to the hospital. Just 15 minutes after arriving, Kristina’s water broke during a strong contraction and Anna began to shoot out at the speed of light. There was not even time to change into a hospital gown. We were very proud of Kristina during and after the event. We are thankful to the Lord Jesus for a healthy mom and baby. Thank you to all who were praying for her safe arrival.


Christmas Cookie Fresh Out of the Oven

Beautiful Baby Meets Beautiful Mommy for the First Time

Anna, who "looks like a Benedick"

One Year in Shell

2010-12-21T17:32:00.000-05:00

Today marks our one year anniversary from the day we moved to Shell. We've been in Ecuador for 15 months. It also marks my birthday, and we were hoping it would be our new baby Anna's birthday as well. At least at this point, it looks like she doesn't want to share her birthday with Daddy. Perhaps she'll decide to be born tomorrow so she can share her b-day with Auntie Sydney. I wanted to share about some memorable patients from the hospital that I met this year.

1. Older lady, M. A., who has a disease called antiphospholipid antibody syndrome. It's a relatively rare disease, and I've never been the main doc for a patient with this problem. I had to read up to know what to do to take care of her. This year she's done very well, and because she has to come visit me at least once a month, we've developed a good relationship. I also delivered her granddaughter. This generous woman has made us three really nice sets of sweaters, hats, and booties for our new baby Anna. Pictures will be coming.

2. Ten-year-old girl (her daddy's only princess), who arrived by ambulance on the saddest and most difficult day I've ever had as a doctor. While getting off a bus, she was hit by a speeding pick-up. The driver did not even stop. When the child arrived at our ER it was immediately evident that she had suffered a severe head injury. Although we kept her body alive for about eight hours, we knew that her soul had already left to be with Jesus. As the child's life slipped away we had many prayers with the family. They are a Christian family, and they loved their daughter very much. Thanks be to the Lord, they have been coping better during the past month, but of course there are many things that we won't understand until we all get to Heaven. We trust in a God who is all-powerful, all-knowing, and more loving than we can imagine.

3. Twin babies, born at an outside hospital prematurely. Both came to our hospital at 3 days of age with fevers, jaundice, and dehydration. They were also suffering from a condition called twin-twin transfusion, which occurs when one baby "selfishly" takes more than his share of the blood circulation from the other while they're in the womb (sibling rivalries can begin very early). Thankfully, both twins responded really well to treatments that included prayers, fluids and light therapy. Lights help the body get rid of bilirubin, which is the chemical that causes yellow skin. If the bilirubin level gets too high, it can cause brain damage. Our maintenance crew made a couple of wooden boxes lined with flourescent light bulbs to provide the light therapy.

4. Young gentleman who came to clinic with worries about his health. Many non-specific symptoms riddled his chart, and it was evident that he was suffering from a case of not knowing his eternal destiny. Upon further questioning, I discovered that the Holy Spirit had already been working on his heart. A simple presentation of God's plan for salvation cured this gentleman of his spiritual need. He has accepted Christ and can now look forward, without fear, to eternity in Heaven.

5. Tiny old lady, half my height and one third my weight, who came to clinic with severe pain from arthritis, as well as advanced depression. We've given her steroid injections in her knees and effective anti-depressant medications. Her pain is greatly decreased, and her once stoic face now greets me with smiles and laughter each time I see her.

6. Teenage girl, in the midst of a miscarriage, came to our hospital with severe bleeding, pain, and a big infection of her uterus. At the time we had no surgical backup, which made me very nervous, so we relied even more on the One who's always there to help, the Lord Jesus. The girl bled A LOT, but responded very well to the prayers, dilation and currettage, antibiotics, and blood transfusions. She went home three days later in great condition.

7. A young lady from the US, here to help in a local ministry, who also decided to have her baby in our hospital. Ladies from Ecuador tend to give birth very rapidly and efficiently, and this young lady decided to follow their example, even though it was just her first baby. Here's about how it happened:
3 AM: She walks to our hospital, in pain, but with hardly any opening of her cervix. We decide to let her walk around a bit and see if her labor will pick up.
7 AM: Pains are very strong. She has dilated her cervix to 6 cm. I wake up and brush my teeth.
7:15 AM: I'm shaving. I get a call, "Doc, please come, she's completely dilated." I start washing the cream off my half-shaved face and throw on a shirt.
7:15:30 AM: I get another call, "Doc, we really mean come now!" I think to myself, "Did they want me to come without my shirt on?" I sprint to the hospital.
7:16 AM: Baby born without complications. This is the fastest first-baby labor and birth I've ever seen.

Well, there are hundreds more stories, but if you're still reading, you're beginning to think, "How long is this blog going to be?" I think I'll stop for now. We just want to let you know that we appreciate all your love, prayers, and support. In the past year, many have been healed physically and spiritually in Shell, Ecuador. It's been a tough year at times, but we've grown spiritually, too. We love you all and want to tell you that we couldn't be here without you. Stay tuned for the next blog that will give a run-down of the arrival of Baby Anna!

Morete Cocha

2010-12-07T17:42:00.000-05:00

Last week I took another quick jungle trip, this time to the Quichua community of Morete Cocha. Just a 25-minute flight from Shell (or a two-day walk if you prefer), this community was a bit bigger and a bit more spread out than the others that I have visited. Highlights of the trip included:

1. I was accompanied by one of our family medicine residents, Dr. Edgardo Noriega, who originally came to Ecuador as a missionary as well. He helped to plant a church in the highlands, and has been in Ecuador for about eight years. Edgardo has a passion for preaching the Gospel, and it was great for us to spend time together and be mutually encouraged. Missionaries don't just come from the USA or Europe!

Dr. Noriega with a patient

2. My dad would have been really proud of me, as I drained a dental abscess. Unfortunately I didn't have any equipment for pulling teeth, so perhaps the source of the problem remains. Maybe we can return to that community with my dad the next time!

My happy dental patient

3. We shared several meals with some Bible students from Quito. They were going to spend three weeks in that community, and they've been working in various places in the jungle serving in the name of Jesus.

Amigos working in the Jungle

4. We didn't get bitten by any poisonous snakes!

Waiting to be examined

Jael sends you her love and kisses

The "Fat" Picture

2010-12-06T13:17:00.001-05:00

I've had a lot of people ask to see a picture of my pregnancy. With the other kids I was so good about taking a photo every month for their baby books, but between keeping a house on the mission field and running after two little ones I have totally neglected it this time. So here it is...the one and only picture you will see of me being pregnant. I'll call it the fat picture since Jael said I couldn't play hide-and-seek with them last night because I was too fat :)

The Good News is Preached to the Poor

2010-11-26T22:05:00.000-05:00

If you'd like, kick back, grab a cup of coffee or hot chocolate, and read the English version of a sermon I recently preached to our hospital staff:

Luke 7:14-22: “Then he went up and touched the coffin, and those carrying it stood still. He said, ‘Young man, I say to you, get up!’ The dead man sat up and began to talk, and Jesus gave him back to his mother. They were all filled with awe and praised God. ‘A great prophet has appeared among us,’ they said. ‘God has come to help his people.’ This news about Jesus spread throughout Judea and the surrounding country. John’s disciples told him about all these things. Calling two of them, he sent them to the Lord to ask, ‘Are you the one who was to come, or should we expect someone else?’ When the men came to Jesus, they said, ‘John the Baptist sent us to you to ask, ‘Are you the one who was to come, or should we expect someone else?’ At that very time Jesus cured many who had diseases, sicknesses, and evil spirits, and gave sight to many who were blind. So he replied to the messengers, ‘Go back and report to John what you have seen and heard: The blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cured, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is preached to the poor.”

Many times in our lives we get our own ideas. They seem like good ideas at first, but many of them weren’t God’s ideas, and therefore weren’t the best. For instance, when I was young I had an idea that I was going to become a professional baseball player. I thought I would use my fame as a great player to share about God. As it turned out, I didn’t have nearly enough strength, speed, or coordination to be a professional. Now that I’m a missionary doctor here in Shell, I can see that being a pro ball player wasn’t the best idea. My four-year-old son, Caleb, gets good ideas at times. For instance, he gets the idea that he is Buzz Lightyear. That was a good idea for awhile until he found out how cool Batman was. I think the plans of the roads here in Shell seemed like good ideas at first, but it seems like every few months they have to be torn up for an improvement. Maybe those designs weren’t good ideas after all.

It’s not a big problem to have the wrong ideas about some issues, such as what will I eat for dinner tonight. However, some ideas need to be correct. Who is Jesus the Messiah? What is his purpose? These are the most important questions that we will ever ask ourselves, and this passage of scripture helps us to answer those questions.

God’s people, the Israelites, had their own ideas about what the Messiah would be like when he came. They had waited for hundreds of years for the coming of the Messiah, and most thought that he would come and kick out those who were oppressing them. The Israelites had a long history of being ruled by oppressive people, whether by the Egyptians, the Philistines, the Romans, or others. Hundreds of years earlier, God had raised up Moses to bring them out of slavery and into the promised land. Wouldn’t the coming Messiah do the same? Wouldn’t he be a military leader stronger than any other king? Before Jesus’ time, there weren’t many who understood that the prophecies in the Old Testament were talking about a Messiah who would restore their hearts.

John the Baptist was one of the few people who understood God’s idea of what the Messiah would be. He understood Christ’s purpose. John’s message was, “Repent for the Kingdom of Heaven is near.” Because he understood God’s idea of the Messiah, he spent his time in the wilderness preaching and baptizing, preparing people’s hearts to receive Jesus. In Luke chapter seven, just after bringing a young man back to life from the dead, Jesus is approached by a couple of John the Baptist’s disciples. At that time John the Baptist was in prison, and he wanted to be sure that Jesus was the true Messiah. “Are you the one who was to come, or should we expect someone else?” “Eres tu el que ha de venir, o debemos esperar a otro?” Jesus’ answer is profound. “Go back and report to John what you have seen and heard: The blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cured, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is preached to the poor.” Vayan y cuentenle a Juan lo que han visto y oido: Los ciegos ven, los cojos andan, los que tienen lepra son sanados, los sordos oyen, los muertos resucitan y a los pobres se les anuncian las buenas nuevas.”

By his answer to John’s disciples, Jesus was confirming his identity as the true Messiah. We know that He was claiming to be the Messiah because he was quoting words from the prophet Isaiah that were written approximately 700 years before. In predicting the coming of the Messiah, Isaiah says in chapter 29 verse 18, “In that day the deaf will hear the words of the scroll, and out of gloom and darkness the eyes of the blind will see.” In chapter 35 verse 5-6 he says, “Then will the eyes of the blind be opened and the ears of the deaf unstopped. Then will the lame leap like a deer, and the mute tongue shout for joy.” Jesus was powerful. His miracles fulfilled these prophecies. It was very important that Jesus was able to do these miracles, because the miracles were evidence that He was the Messiah and God’s son.

Bringing the dead back to life? Now that’s MY idea of a Messiah! In the past, as I thought about MY idea of who the Messiah is, I often made the mistake of focusing on Jesus’ power. He’s strong enough to do anything! But to really understand who the Messiah is, I should be sure to read Jesus entire answer, not just the first part that talked about the miracles. Jesus concluded his statement by saying, “The good news is preached to the poor.” ”A los pobres se les anuncian las buenas nuevas.” Again, Jesus is quoting the prophet Isaiah from chapter 61 verse 1: “The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on me, because the Lord has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners.”

Ok let’s review everyone’s ideas about who the Messiah is:
Israel: The messiah will be powerful and will kick out the oppressive Romans.
Dan: The messiah is powerful and can perform great miracles. He can do anything!
Isaiah/JTB/God: The messiah will perform great miracles and preach the good news to the poor.

Remember, it is extremely important that our ideas about Jesus, the Messiah, are correct. Why? Because, as Christians, we are followers of Christ. We need to know in whom we believe. Is Jesus your savior? I hope so. Not only that, as Christians our purpose during our time on earth should reflect His purpose.

What is my purpose on earth? What is my purpose today in Shell? If I read only the first part of this passage, I will be focused only on Jesus’ great miracles. As a follower of Christ, I may get the idea that my mission on this earth consists only of trying to do great things. For example, I may think, “I need to heal every person I lay hands on. I need to plant a new church at least every month and preach to thousands of people at a time.” Perhaps Jesus does want us to do these great things. I’m not saying that He doesn’t. If the Holy Spirit is leading you to preach to thousands or heal someone, you should be obedient and do it! If He wants you to plant a church, do it!

However, if you are like me, you are a follower of Christ but you are not performing great miracles on an everyday basis, and sometimes this leads to discouragement. Don’t get discouraged! We just need to read the whole passage and remember who Jesus the Messiah is. Yes he did great miracles, but preaching the good news to the poor was also an important part, perhaps the MOST IMPORTANT PART, of His mission. As followers of Jesus, we should have the same mission. We should share the good news with the poor.

So, if my idea of the Messiah is the same as God’s idea of the Messiah, if I am truly a Christian, I will have a very strong desire to share the good news with the poor. You know, God has a special place in His heart for the poor and needy. James 1:27 says, “Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.” In Matthew 5:3, Jesus says, “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”

As Christians, we need to look for the poor: those with little money, those with few friends, those who are destitute and depressed, and those are spiritually poor, that is, those who are slaves to sin. The poor are all around us, aren’t they?! We need to share the good news with the poor, the news that Jesus humbled himself and came to our dirty earth as a little baby. He grew up strong, without sin. He lived a life that was perfectly obedient. He performed great miracles. Because He was perfect, and because he is God’s son, He did something that nobody else could do: He paid the full price for our sin by dying on the cross. And He conquered death once and for all by His resurrection from the dead.

I would challenge you to look for a poor person today. If you know Christ Jesus, the Messiah, you have GREAT news to share with the poor. Sharing the good news with the poor was part of Christ’s purpose, and it should be our purpose as well.

We are Thankful

2010-11-25T12:54:00.000-05:00

It's hard to be away from family during the holidays, but we're doing our best to give thanks for all the blessings God has given us this past year: the love of family and friends, new ministries here in Ecuador, health and safety in a foreign place, plus so many more. And all the blessings we have to look forward to: a new baby soon to come, Christmas with my parents here, and God's daily love that we know will sustain us. I can also see the blessings we receive in just a single day as I watched my children play one day this past week...

Caleb discovered a suit that we had been given (thank you to the Velasquez family :) before we came, but he hadn't worn yet. He excitedly put it on and ran over to our next door neighbor, Lilly, and asked her to marry him. I had to take a few pictures of their wedding. We are blessed to have a little boy with so much imagination and good friends living next door to share special moments with.

Jael has quite the collection of stuffed animals she needs to go to sleep every night: Nena, her dolly; Anna, her kitty; a stuffed jaguar that Caleb gave her; a puppy dog; a giraffe that plays music; and her blanket. It can be quite a time putting her to bed if she discovers one is missing, but we're blessed to have a daughter with such a sweet spirit. She blesses us with her little voice evey morning when she arrives in our room and says, "I love you!" (even though it may be a tad early for us).

Though we may be far from many loved ones in the states, we're blessed to have our own family here to share the holidays with and to make new traditions. The kids made their own Pilgrim and Indian hats to wear to our Thanksgiving potluck this year.

Thank you for your prayers for our family as we serve in Ecuador; we are blessed because of you!

Heaven Testimony

2010-11-14T16:29:00.001-05:00

During the month of November, I (Dan) have had/will have the opportunity to share a sermon with the hospital staff on each Monday in the chapel service. This is a new experience for me. Usually when I'm in front of a group I'm discussing a medical topic or sharing pictures and stories from a mission trip. So far it's been a good time of stretching and challenging me to get into the Word. Speaking in Spanish is an added challenge. If you're interested, I'll post an English version of some of the sermons here on the blog. The first is pasted below.

Heaven Testimony

Today I want to share a story about a period of major growth in my life. It was a time when I first began to think about and look forward to Heaven. During my last couple of years of college I reached a point where everything in my life seemed to be going in my favor. You might say that everything I touched at that time turned to gold. I had been a committed Christian for many years and I felt a calling to serve God on the mission field. I had always done well in academics, and I was getting ready to graduate from college with honors, ready to go to medical school. I was athletic and a pretty good baseball player. I was entering the final baseball season as a captain of the team. I had muscles and yes, I even had hair. I had lots of friends who had been close friends for years. My family was loving and supportive. I was in love with Kristina Roth, who was an amazing beautiful girl who would later become my wife.

During the college years we had chapel and worship three-four times each week. One of my favorite worship songs during that time was “I’m Desperate for You.” The song talks about how God is the air we breathe. He’s the bread that we need every day. As I reflected on my life, I wondered, “Am I really desperate for God? Do I really need Him like the air that I breathe?” Things were going so well in my life that is was difficult for me to know the answers to those questions. So, I began to pray, “Lord, make me desperate for you. Help me to see how much I need you.”

The Lord began to answer that prayer within a few months. The first thing that happened was that I did not perform well in my final year of baseball. Something that I had worked so hard for was now in the past, and there would be no more chances to make up for that failure. Soon after that, I began to develop tension headaches as a result of the scoliosis that I have in my back, and I could see that my health wasn’t what it used to be. Even my hair began to fall out. I still had my relationship with God, with my family, and with my girlfriend Kristina, but I began to fear, “What if I lose those things too?”

In the midst of what I would later refer to as “my hard times” I left on a trip that I had planned to Central Africa. There I spent time in the operating room with a missionary surgeon. It was a great experience in medicine and missions. During that time God was digging really deep into my soul, bringing me to grips with some major issues. Daily I saw people just like me, some older, some younger, who had come to the hospital for help. Some of them got better. But many of them died of illnesses like AIDS, malaria, tetanus, and cancer. Not only was there illness, but I was also in the middle of a situation of political unrest. I knew that there were armed soldiers who could be lurking in the shadows. I felt surrounded by death and despair as I realized how short and fragile life really is. Alone in my apartment in the rural mountains of Africa, I was overcome with fear.

Finally, I had reached the point where I was desperate for God. He had answered the prayer that I had prayed a few months earlier in college. Psalm 103 says, “As for man, his days are like grass, he flourishes like a flower of the field; the wind blows over it and it is gone, and its place remembers it no more.” I understood that at some point I could lose my family, friends, and my very life. What would be left then? God had blessed me so much during my life up to that point. Blessings on earth are wonderful. They are special gifts from God. But I realized that I had been enjoying the blessings so much that I needed to re-focus on the One who had given the blessings. Because I was overcome with the fear of losing these blessings, I began to cling to God, who is the only one who will last forever. Yes, I was finally desperate for God.

I began to pay attention to my African brothers and sisters. Less than ten years before my trip there, there had been a massive genocide in that country, as the two main tribes sought to exterminate one another. As a result, there probably was not a single person who had not lost at least one family member or friend to a killing. Several had also lost their homes or their titles. Nevertheless, all the church services that I attended were completely full. The Africans loved to sing and dance for hours. Were they singing about how good life is here on earth? No. After going through such hardships, they were clinging to the hope that they would one day be in heaven with Jesus. Almost every song they sang was about being with Jesus forever in heaven. Jesus was all they had, and they were filled with joy knowing that they had Him. They had lost almost everything, but they knew that they would never lose Jesus.

Have you ever dared to think about your deepest fears? Do you ever worry about losing your life? Do you worry that your father, mother, husband, wife, or child will lose their life? Will you lose your house and your security? Will every blessing on this earth be stripped away at some point? There’s no doubt that God loves to bless us with wonderful things here on earth. I have a wonderful family and friends that I love, and many of you do as well. But the Bible clearly tells us that our focus should not be on the good things that we have in this life. In Luke 14:26 Jesus says, “If anyone comes to me and does not hate his father and mother, his wife and children, his brothers and sisters—yes, even his own life—he cannot be my disciple.” What does Jesus mean by this extremely powerful statement? It means that our love for Him is so strong that every other love pales in comparison. Even though we’re blessed here on earth, we should be longing for the day when we arrive to Heaven and we’ll get to spend forever with Him who we love so much.

How can I be so excited for Heaven if I don’t really know what it’s like? The most popular images of Heaven that I have seen today include lots of clouds and a giant pearly gate. After you have a conversation with St. Peter, you get to go into heaven where you will inherit your wings and halo. You will spend all your days playing music on your harp. Fortunately that’s not a completely true image of Heaven. Talk about boring!

So what is Heaven like? Pastor and author John Piper talks about how each of us has a deep longing for things that are great and beautiful. I’ve been to visit “El Pailón del Diablo” at least four times. The power displayed by the waterfall takes my breath away. I have a picture of Ken Griffey Jr. in my office. He’s one of the greatest baseball players of all time, and I’m proud of the fact that I’ve watched him play in real life. Who here wouldn’t love to sit in the locker room of Spain’s national team after winning the World Cup? That would be a chance to witness greatness. We all love to view original art and listen to beautifully-composed music. Why do we love to surround ourselves with all these great and beautiful things? We’re trying to fill the hole in our soul that longs for greatness. That hole will be ultimately filled when we see Jesus in Heaven. He is the maker of all the great things on earth, and He is more awesome than all of it.

Psalm 18:7-15 gives a description of God’s greatness: “The earth trembled and quaked, and the foundations of the mountains shook; they trembled because he was angry. Smoke rose from his nostrils; consuming fire came from his mouth, burning coals blazed out of it. He parted the heavens and came down; dark clouds were under his feet. He mounted the cherubim and flew; he soared on the wings of the wind. He made darkness his covering, his canopy around him—the dark rain clouds of the sky. Out of the brightness of his presence clouds advanced, with hailstones and bolts of lightning. The Lord thundered from heaven; the voice of the Most High resounded. He shot his arrows and scattered the enemies, great bolts of lightning and routed them. The valleys of the sea were exposed and the foundations of the earth laid bare at your rebuke, O Lord, at the blast of breath from your nostrils.” Now that’s a picture of a great God. When He shows his power like that, I want to be there to witness it.

Heaven is also communion with a loving God without the limitations of our sinful bodies. 1 Corinthians 13 gives us a description of perfect love. Verse 12 says, “Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face.” Because of our human imperfections, we don’t have the capacity to receive God’s love to the fullest. But when we get to Heaven, we’ll finally understand how much He truly loves us. We’ll understand why He gave up His son to die on a cross, for us. We’ll understand that He’s truly forgiven our sins, and that when He looks at us, He sees a perfect child, a perfect creation, an heir of His Kingdom. God wants us to receive His perfect love, and when we get to Heaven, we’ll be able to do just that.

When I traveled to Africa ten years ago, I was faced with my deepest fears. I became desperate for God as I realized how fragile my life on earth was. Then I began to understand what Heaven is like, and I wasn’t afraid anymore. I want to challenge you to examine your life. Are you blessed? Are you afraid of losing the earthly blessings that God has given you? If so, ask God to give you a glimpse of Heaven. Ask Him to help you to think about eternity, not just about this life that will be gone in an instant. Then, as you look forward to perfect communion with God, with His greatness, with his love, you’ll be able to say like Paul in 1 Corinthians 15:55, “Dónde está, O muerte, tu victoria? Dónde está, O muerte, tu aguijón?” “Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?” and you will live today without fear.

Jael's 2nd Birthday

2010-11-09T21:39:00.000-05:00

Jael celebrated her second birthday on October 30th. We decided to have a Strawberry Shortcake theme since she had received a doll from one of her grandmas and this was an easy character for Mommy to draw and make decorations of strawberries. The kids wanted a piñata so we made a pumpkin one a few weeks earlier and then used it for the party. Jael, Caleb, and her close friends Lilly and Violet Kappen had a great time together and she received a special treat when the town let off fireworks in honor of her birthday…well, not really for that reason (we have no idea why they let them off) but it made a great ending to her fiesta.

Wacking her homemade pinata.


Jael was ready for her cake.

An Ecuadorian Census

2010-11-09T21:22:00.000-05:00

We received an email today notifying us about the Ecuadorian census that will take place Nov. 28. Here is what it said:
Just wanted to let you know about the ecuadorian censo that is planned for sunday 28th november(which I think is thanksgiving weekend)... you will be required to stay in your house the whole day ...(7am-5pm) no popping to the shops, no church, no travelling etc. If you are out of town, you have to remain in the place you are staying the whole day. During the day someone will come to fill in a questionaire. If you are a doctor/pilot on call you must fill out a form before leaving for your job that day.
Apparently the country is sending out 400,000+ workers to try and complete the house to house census in one day. Knowing Ecuadorian standards of time, however, I can see them showing up at our doorstep to have us complete the questionnaire at two in the morning :) Dan and I are questioning how they're going to go about getting all the info they want from those living in the jungle.

I don't think I'll be complaining about the form we have to fill out for the US census anymore, and I guess it isn't nearly as bad as a pregnant Mary and Joseph had it when they had to travel to Bethlehem to complete their census (though we wouldn't mind going to our hometown for a visit:)

Longing for Home and Heaven

2010-11-09T12:16:00.002-05:00

With the holidays drawing near, a busy workload for Dan, and being in the midst of fall (which is my favorite season, but doesn’t really exist here in the Ecuadorian jungle) we find ourselves a bit more homesick. One would think after more than a year of living away from family, friends, and “home” we would be more settled in, but we find ourselves often in waves of feeling very settled and then homesick and longing for the more familiar. Of course we miss people we love in the states, but sometimes we find ourselves longing for things we never gave much thought to before they weren’t available. I suppose it’s a little like taking good health for granted until the day you get sick and realize how wonderful it is to be feeling well. We’ve missed World Series games; and cool, crisp autumn mornings; open fields of wheat; orange pumpkins (and all the pumpkin flavored treats: coffee, ice cream, pie). Yesterday one of the teachers at the missionary school who happens to be from Idaho pulled up her screen saver on a projector to get ready to do the morning worship at the school. Her screen saver is a picture her brother sent her a few weeks ago of downtown Boise, Idaho with fall-laden leaves changing color in the foreground and snowcapped mountains in the background. I couldn’t believe how much a longed to be sitting where the picture was taken right then and there.

I don’t think most Americans long for heaven very much. We can get pretty comfortable living life in the states and enjoying what we have here and now. I don’t think there is anything wrong with taking pleasure in the blessings God has given us. Living here, however, has helped me understand a little bit more what it means to long for a “homeland”. Even though none of us have ever been there, I’m beginning to think heaven will be a more familiar place than any other we’ve ever been to or can imagine. All the wonderful factors that make ‘home’ a marvelous place will be compounded and we’ll be more at ease than ever before. So today, as Thanksgiving draws near and you enjoy the blessings God has given you, think about heaven as well, and a future ‘home’ that will be more wonderful than any you could ever go back to.

Creepy Crawlies

2010-11-01T13:32:00.000-05:00

Since it's Halloween in the states we thought we'd add a few pics of more creatures we've discovered around here. They don't celebrate Halloween in Ecuador, though they do have Day of the Dead on November 2nd, but this is more like Memorial Day in the states than Halloween with its ghosts and skeletons.

The first pic is of caterpillars that inundated one specific flower I have growing in front of the house. One morning we woke up to find hundreds of the little crawling around on the plant. Our local friend said these guys would turn into butterflies, but if I allowed them to stay, my plant would definitely die. Caleb had a great time collecting as many as he could in his bug box. He wanted to keep them for butterflies, but I wasn't paying much attention when he went to give them water and unfortunately they're "drink" turned into their death when he drowned them all. (My plant still died, too.)

Like dog, like owner...Dan was in the jungle on his last clinic visit and took off his shoes for several minutes when he used the communities make shift shower. Unfortunately in that short time he contracted a small larva in his foot. Thankfully it wasn't a bott fly like our dog had and this critter was easy to get out with a needle and a little bit of squeezing. Oh the joys of living in the jungle.

On a different note, Dan will be leading chapels at the hospital throught the month of November. Please pray that he can speak the words that are needed and have time to prepare for each service.

Conambo

2010-10-25T16:53:00.000-05:00

My most recent jungle trip was to an Ashuar/Quichua community called Conambo. It was deeper in the jungle than Copataza, almost to the Peruvian border. During the two-day trip we saw about 60 Compassion International kids and a few other sick folks in this community of approximately 400. Highlights of the trip included a deep conversation about the Lord with one of the school teachers there, playing Ecua-volley (like volleyball except that carrying is allowed), and eating wild pig stew.

Alas de Socorro (Mission Aviation Fellowship) plane taking off after dropping us off in Conambo. It's an odd feeling watching the plane leave, knowing that it's your only contact with the outside world.


Classroom/clinic/hotel. Room includes tarantulas, vampire bats and rats (not pictured)

Residents and Their "Goodies"

2010-10-17T14:41:00.000-05:00

We've really enjoyed the opportunity to have the resident Bible study at our house. Every Tuesday the resident doctors that have a rotation in Shell attend a Bible study put on by one of the main doctors here. These residents are usually in Shell for a little over a month before heading back to Quito. Some of the residents are Christians but many are not. Often they have a Catholic background. Please be praying for the doctors here as they lead the Bible studies and for the visiting residents.

We always make some kind of dessert for the residents when we host the Bible study. Anything with chocolate chips is a big hit since they aren't available here. Last week I had made a dessert, but a few of the residents said they wanted to bring a treat too. Apparently the early morning hours of that day had been one of the few a year when the giant ants rise from underground and fly into the sky. The residents had joined hospital patients in collecting these "delicacies" by the bag full. To prepare them the heads and wings are pulled off and then the thorax and abdomen fried. We've eaten 'lemon ants' before in the jungle, but they are very small and you barely taste a sour flavor on your tongue. These ants, however, were ten times as big. I wanted to try their tasty treat and not offend the work they'd put into preparing them. The thorax wasn't so bad as it just tasted fried. When I got to the abdomen, though, I was in for the 'best' part of the ant. It was full of ant oil and grease. I can usually tolerate strange foods pretty well, but I started to gag and had to spit the rest of it out. I guess I'll blame it on the pregnancy and stay away from this tasty treat for awhile.

Caleb wasn't so sure about trying the ants.

Shell Life

2010-10-06T16:03:00.000-05:00

There are many good things about life here in Shell, but sometimes they have a negative side too. For example:
Because of the humidity the kids’ play-do never dries out here, but gum turns to mush in a few days if it’s not in the fridge.

You hardly ever have to worry about being late, since there isn’t much of a concept of time. I’ve always been one to be early so I was pretty proud of myself for arriving at our church for a quincinera at 5:20 instead of 5:00 when the invitation said it begun. Unfortunately “late” is relative and it didn’t really begin until 6:50. I can handle a little late but two hours is pushing it with me, and God has really had to work on my patience level for culture shocks such as these. My two little ones don’t hold out too well waiting either :)

We have pretty nice weather year-round and many sunny days, but sitting on the equator means no seasons, and I so miss fall - no falling leaves, no geese flying overhead, no pumpkins (and this includes no pumpkin flavored ice cream, coffee, or pie…boo-hoo.)

We haven’t had a gas bill for a car in over a year so have saved lots of money this way. I do have to walk a lot, though, and it’s a getting a little more difficult now that I’m in my third trimester. The community of Shell must not have the best planning committee, because almost every road in town is torn up somewhere or another. As I walked Caleb to preschool today we noticed the road they had just relayed the cobblestone blocks on was being torn up again. We’re not quite sure what they’re doing and why they didn’t plan ahead a little more.

We always look forward to mail here, and we never get junk mail in our box. However, we would love to get MORE, so if you’re looking to send an old fashioned letter to someone we’d gladly accept it.

Overall life here in Shell is peaceful and our days are filled with fun. Every town has its own little quirks and God can teach us a lot just through “surviving” day to day life wherever we live if we give our hearts to Him to mold.

Jungle Trip to Copataza

2010-10-03T11:45:00.000-05:00

MAF plane ready to go. Volcano "El Altar" in the background.

The summer, my favorite season, is coming to a close in the USA, and one of the things I missed about being gone this year was camping in the wilderness. Well, I wasn’t in the mountains of Central Idaho, but this past week gave me the opportunity to rough it Ecuador-style. Our hospital, which is run by HCJB, recently came to an agreement with Compassion International that allows us to perform the medical examinations for all their sponsored children in the jungle. In other words, the docs in our hospital will be making approximately 30 flights over the next several months into the deep parts of the Amazon Basin. The flights into most of the jungle communities are less than 60 minutes, but it is like entering a completely different world.

Over the Pastaza River. Our airstrip can be seen in the distance.

Living in the jungle can be a treacherous proposition. As such, all indigenous folks team up with their families and close friends, find an area that has fertile soil, a water supply, and a plentiful supply of animals for hunting, and form a community. These places are mostly isolated from the outside world except for maybe a radio and an airstrip. Depending on the community, little planes may come in and out a few times a week, bringing in essentials such as toilet paper and Coca-cola, and carrying out stalks of bananas or other cargo.
Tuesday was my first turn to head into the jungle. The schedule at Alas de Socorro (the Ecuadorian branch of Mission Aviation Fellowship, or MAF) said that we would be going to an Achuar community called Copataza. Our mission: examine about 60 kids from Copataza and about 20 more from the neighboring community of Chumpi. I would be accompanied by Jonas, a Compassion worker with loads of experience in the jungle (having grown up there as a sponsored child), and Dr. Manuel Catani, one of our own hospital’s family medicine residents who is planning to go back to the jungle to work when he finishes his training.

Beautiful wildlife from deep in the jungle.

We loaded up the little airplane with our tents and some medicines, and we were off. It was a smooth flight of about 25 minutes over the sea of green that is the rainforest canopy. We landed in Copataza to find about 30 curious folks coming over to check us out. From the airstrip, we proceeded immediately to the central shelter in the community for a little 3-hour meeting. The purpose of the meeting was for us to introduce ourselves and our reason for being in the community, as well as to talk a bit about Copataza’s ambitions for the future. During the meeting we were being encouraged to partake of massive quantities of chicha, the ethnic drink that is made by chewing up a potato-like plant (yuca), spitting it into a bowl, and letting it ferment. Refusing to drink the chicha is an insult to the community. By the Lord’s mercy I survived that meeting without getting thoroughly ill, and we proceeded to unpack our bags in the wooden building that would serve as our clinic and home over the next two days.


Dr. Catani loves chicha.

A typical meal of fish and various types of potato-like roots.

The kids in the community were all pretty healthy, except that almost all of them measured a bit below the growth chart. From an early age kids learn to respect authority, and many of the kids practically refused to speak to me. Still, we got through the exams and had lots of fun with the children. The children’s parents were especially appreciative that someone was willing to fly in and show Christ-like compassion to their kids.
Other than the well child visits, we were able to attend to sore knees, sore hips, and sore other parts in many of the adults. Hard work in the jungle translates into arthritis later in life. Also, we had a couple of more emergent consults. On the second morning, an anxious husband knocked on our door and told us that his wife, who was four months-pregnant, had been bleeding. We immediately walked over to her hut to find that, sadly, she had already miscarried. When we asked to examine the baby to confirm that the miscarriage had been complete, grandma grabbed a machete and started digging a big hole in the floor of the hut. I turned to Dr. Catani and asked, “Do they bury all their dead inside the house?” “SÍ,” he replied. During that afternoon we were also called to see a lady who had been bitten by a bug whose name I didn’t recognize. However, she was suffering huge amounts of pain from the sting! It was nice to be able to provide her with medicines for pain and inflammation, and we saw her up and walking around a few hours later.

Kids waiting to be examined.

The highlight of the trip for me happened on the second night of our visit. Pedro, the Compassion International coordinator in Copataza, arranged to have a church service on that night. Pedro would lead the singing and we would deliver the message. So it happened that, with about two hours to prepare, I had my first opportunity to deliver a sermon in Spanish. Dr. Catani would translate from Spanish into the native tongue (this was also a nice way to give me a few seconds to think in between each sentence). Because of Compassion International’s influence in Copataza, most of them already had a pretty firm grasp of the basics of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. So my challenge was to help them to dig a little deeper into a Biblical truth. We talked about Abraham, and how he was declared righteous by faith before God had given him the sign of circumcision. Circumcision was so important because it was one of the major signs that a person was a law-abiding Jew. The conclusion: it is by grace, through faith, that we are saved. We can’t be declared righteous by following a set of rules. Are we listening to God and living by faith, or are we trying to earn righteousness by doing “good works”?


Examining a precious little girl with asthma that is uncontrolled partly due to the fact that a cooking fire burns inside her house 24 hours per day.

On the final day we weren’t sure if we’d make it out of the jungle, as thunder storms began to approach us from the North. But, thankfully, the little MAF plane made it just in time and delivered us back home. I was excited to see my family and to give them big hugs! I was also energized by the opportunity to go deep into the jungle and to serve the poorest people in our region right in their own backyard. The effectiveness of child sponsorship was very evident in Copataza. The people there are constantly being reminded of how much Jesus loves them. Through the cooperation of several missions organizations (Samaritan’s Purse, HCJB, MAF, and Compassion International), I was blessed to be able to go to Copataza to be a part of the ministry. Please keep praying for all of us, as many more of these types of trips are yet to come!


Dr. Catani and Jonas standing outside of our house/clinic for the week

Jonas in front of a typical Ashuar house

"Let the little children come to me..." -Jesus

Caleb's Birthday

2010-09-23T20:38:00.000-05:00

Caleb had a great 4th birthday. He invited several friends over for his “Transformer” birthday party. Since obtaining party decorations is a bit harder here in Ecuador, Caleb and I worked on making them the month before. We improvised on games and had the kids shoot darts from our blowgun at the bad Decepticon and they went on a scavenger hunt. Caleb has been watching many of the missionary kids ride their bikes around the compound, so his big surprise was a bike. It’s still a little big for him, but he’s been very persistent to ride it every day and always picks himself up after a spill. His favorite color used to be red, but after receiving his blue bike, he’s been telling everyone his favorite color is blue.

Caleb and some of his friends showing off the Transformer masks they colored.


Caleb received a great Bat Man costume from his friends Jen and Kim in Quito


Blowing out the candles

Prayers for Nestor

2010-09-18T17:04:00.000-05:00

A couple of weeks ago we had an amazing case in our hospital. A gentleman named Nestor (who gave me permission to share his picture and story) presented for removal of a chronically inflamed and infected gallbladder. With so much inflammation and the presence of multiple other chronic ailments (diabetes, etc), he had a slow recovery from the surgery. In fact, he came back a few days after his first discharge and was found to have a large infected pocket (abscess) under his diaphragm. The abscess was drained surgically, and he seemed to get a little better. However, he took a bad turn for the worse a few days later. He became very anemic and spiked a white blood cell count of 39,000 (very high, especially for an elderly diabetic). According to this information, he was bleeding and had a very bad infection. We gave him several blood transfusions. An imaging study showed fluid in his abdomen, and our surgeons feared that his intestines were so compromised that they were beginning to die (necrotic bowel). Once again, this sick gentleman had to go to the operating room, this time possibly just to confirm the diagnosis of necrotic bowel and try to make him comfortable in his last remaining days of life.

I had become attached to this family, as they had spent much time in our hospital, and I had been Nestor's primary physician for his non-surgical problems. Nestor's wife and daughter were always by his side, and they were often found reading Scripture to him during his illness (even at 5:30 in the morning). Before this third surgery, I decided to go and have a prayer with the family. A chaplain was there as well, and we had a very powerful time of prayer. It was one of those times when you could tell for sure that God's Holy Spirit was in the room. I didn't know how God would choose to answer the prayer, but I knew that we had been heard.

The next day, our surgeon reported that he had opened Nestor's abdomen and had found only fluid. After a thorough search, his intestines appeared to be very healthy, and no other infection, source of bleeding, or otherwise dangerous process was found! Over the next several days, Nestor looked like a new man. He continued to regain his strength and he was sent back to his home. I saw him in follow-up a few days ago and he's looking more spry every day. Did God perform a miracle in this man? I believe that He did! How many miracles does Jesus perform each day? We don't perceive most of them now, but when we get to Heaven we'll have an eternity to praise Him for all the wonderful things that He's done.

Sr. Nestor Silva and his family

Back to School

2010-09-08T15:17:00.001-05:00

Caleb began his first days of Ecuadorian preschool this week at the school our Nazarene church runs. Though everything is taught in Spanish he does have several other 'gringo' neighbors attending with him, so he shouldn't be too lost. So far he's enjoyed his days there and looks forward to going each morning. My friend, Amy, and I had to laugh when we went to the first day's meeting and they stressed that the students had to be there by 8:00am sharp...the main teacher didn't get there until 8:25am that morning and when we arrived at 8:00am for the meeting as we were told to, the church was still locked. That's Ecuador time for you. At least the other mornings someone has been there to greet our children at 8:00.

I also headed back to school this week for a few days. Sadly one our Nate Saint Memorial School teachers was in an accident in the states and hasn't been able to make it back for the first few days of teaching. (Ms. Mueser should make it to Shell on Friday, but please remember her in prayer as she has a broken bone in her neck.) Today was my first day in the classroom after a long time away. I was pretty nervous to get back in and teach again, especially since I don't know Ms. Muesers normal routine, but the Lord helped the day go very smoothly, and I really enjoyed myself. I had the chance to work with all the grades (1st through 8th) and get to know the missionary kids a little better. Thankfully Amy watched my little ones while I was gone. I'm sure she had her hands more full than I did since she had four kids under three years to keep an eye on this morning.

Dan the Doctor, Dan the Vet

2010-08-19T21:58:00.000-05:00

WARNING: This entry is not for the faint of stomach...be ye warned!

The other day we noticed our dog had a knot on the top of her head. At first we thought she had played a little too rough with the other dogs on the compound, but upon closer examination we discovered this was not the case; Lucy had a dreaded bot fly larva . These wonderful little creatures lay an egg under the skin of an unsuspecting host where it hatches, feeds, and grows at a disgusting rate. We knew we had to remove the parasite, so after attempting to squeeze it out (which did nothing but annoy Lucy) Dan went to the hospital for a little advice on how to remove it. We were told to cover the breathing hole where it was with vaseline, gauze, and tape so as to suffocate the critter. A few hours later Dan could hopefully get it out.

LUCY ALL WRAPPED UP

Unfortunately the larva hadn't died after the vaseline trick and Dan had to cut the creature out, but we finally got the bugger with the help of some numbing Lidocaine for Lucy, a scapel, and our friend Matt's big muscles to hold poor Lucy down.

A PICTURE OF LUCY'S BOT FLY LARVA AND A BETTER EXAMPLE (FROM THE INTERNET)

Our poor patient is resting comfortably in the house tonight.

Our Corn Experiment

2010-08-16T19:57:00.000-05:00

Since there is no "real" corn here, also known as the sweet, juicy stuff you get in the states, only hard, bland maiz, Dan's dad brought some corn seeds from the states for us to plant. He and Dan worked hard to plant it and we've been tending it in eager anticipation of eating our favorite summer crop soon. Unfortunately we've discovered the rain forest doesn't get enough continuous sun to provide the light and heat our corn needs. Sitting almost on the equator, we have daylight only from 6 to 6:30 every day, and most days it rains somewhere in there. This is very different from the sunlight hours of 5 to 9 we got in Idaho during the summer.

Today we harvested our first ear of corn, which was pathetically small, but it does look like the real deal and the four of us will relish our one piece for dinner tonight.

Jael in our corn "field"

We've never seen corn ears grow right out of the ground, but the stalks are so short that is what is happening.

Dan with our bumper crop of corn.

Answers to "How Much Does it Cost?"

2010-08-13T11:05:00.000-05:00

Here are the answers to our game. Unfortunately nobody got all the right answers, but the Lindners were the closest.

1 can of Gillette shaving cream: $6.00
A box of generic honey nut Cheerios: $5.30
5 gallons of diesel: $5.15
First time visit to the doctor: $5.00
6 pineapples: $4.80
1 1/2 hour bus ride from Shell to Banos: $2.00
Burger, fries, and drink from the best restuarant in Shell: $1.75

"La Cucaracha"--More Than Just a Song

2010-08-11T15:31:00.000-05:00

Have you ever been riding a bike or walking outside and a bug flies into your mouth, nose, or even worse, your ear? Many of you have had this happen before. I'll bet a few of you have had the misfortune of having the bug decide that it doesn't want to fly out of your ear, at which point you had to turn to your doc. But I'll bet that none of you have had the misfortune that this young guy had: A cockroach in the right ear and in the left, a seed and another cockroach. The roaches were both dead, because the patient's brother had tried to get the bugs out and had split the bodies in half.

After the Extraction

A Bug, a Bug, a Seed, and the Tools Used to Extract Them

You all know what a UFO is. How about a FUO? It means "Fever of Unknown Origin". When a patient presents himself to a doctor practicing in the US, there is a nice specific protocol to follow to find out what is causing the FUO. However, out here in the jungle we have a few more illnesses to worry about, and, even though our lab is pretty well-equipped, less ways of trying to diagnose them. This sweet girl from the deep jungle presented with two weeks of fevers and headaches.

We ruled out all the major sources of infection: meningitis, urinary tract infection, neumonia, osteomyelitis, hepatitis, tuberculosis, and malaria. She still had a fever. A few years ago a study was done in our part of the jungle, trying to find the cause of the FUOs here. The results: many illnesses that I've never seen. They include leptospirosis, brucellosis, Q fever, and various viral encephalitis. The authors of the study recommended that, for patients with FUOs, we give a course of antibiotics that would cover the majority of these illnesses. We did give her a course of antibiotics and she perked right up!

The schedule's been a little more relaxed here lately, as we've had some visitors coming to help out at the hospital. Thank you! We've enjoyed great time with the family and some great times in worship and personal Bible study. I've even played some basketball games with some guys from the church. They've never really been taught how to play defense, so I guess it doesn't really matter that my shot is extremely rusty and I still can't jump. Last week we had a Bible study with the Ecuadorian residents. We've been using a great DVD series put out by Rob Bell. He was talking about how God commanded the Israelites to leave a corner of their crops unharvested during harvest time. This was to provide for the needy people of the land (the widows, orphans, and foreigners). The Israelites were to do this in remembrance of how God had provided for them by rescuing them from slavery in Egypt. Do you have a "corner" of your life that could be used to provide for someone else, or to aleviate their suffering? As representatives of Jesus, it is our job to use what He's given to us to share His love with others. When we do this with a thankful heart, we'll find ourselves truly fulfilled.

Meeting Heroes

2010-07-28T18:29:00.000-05:00

The other day we were walking through town and saw one of the parents of a former patient. This man, named Mincaye, happens to be the grandson of another Mincaye, the famous Waorani who speared Nate Saint and now is a sold out Christian and missionary to other Waorani. Mincaye Jr is writing a book about the Waorani but doesn't have a camera to take pictures for his book. We gladly offered to use our camera, and so on Monday night we had the great privelege of having Mincaye, Dewey, and Kimo, the three surviving killers turned on-fire Christians to our house for dinner. It was amazing to hear about their history and life, to know the number of "kills" they each had before knowing Jesus and how He dramatically changed their lives and way of thinking almost over night.

MINCAYE
Dewey commented how one seed sown by the five martyred missionaries became a huge harvest throughout the Waorani people. The three we had to dinner were convinced that their people would have killed each other off if the missionaries and Rachel Saint hadn't shared the gospel with them.

DEWEY
The men said their greatest struggle now is reaching their youth who are so distracted by outside sources like music, television, and western culture; this sounds too familiar to us and reaching our youth in the states.

KIMO
None of the men know their true age only the season they were born in: "during the time of the mangoes", for example.

It was fun hearing the men's stories told in Waorani (then translated to Spanish for us). Caleb wanted to hear a story about a jungle animal. We were expecting a nice, calm story about a monkey, but Mincaye told us a Waorani legend complete with blood, headless humans, and cannibalism; not quite a three year old bed time story, but the way the Waorani shared their history with each other before they had a written language.

Before the men headed back to Mincaye Jr's house they showed us their blowgun skills by shooting our blowgun at a stuffed monkey. Caleb loved it, but Jael wasn't sure she liked her animal being shot at.

MINCAYE SHOWING CALEB HOW TO LOAD THE BLOWGUN
It's exciting to see how God is working now in the lives of Mincaye Jr. and his family. He is a gifted evangelist and is filled with the Holy Spirit. We would be honored if the Lord would have us be involved in some way with the ministry that is going on among the Waorani people.

Sharing Jesus

2010-07-28T12:02:00.000-05:00

One of the neat things about being a missionary is getting to spend time with all the people who come to visit. We just finished 12 fun days with Sydney (Kristina's sister) and her husband, Chad. Not to brag, but we have an awesome family! The kids had a great time getting to play with their Auntie and Uncle. We couldn't be here without the prayers, support, and love of our friends and family.

Our best buddies from medical school (and now our next-door-neighbors) the Kappens have a visitor spending six weeks with them. His name is Matt, and he's taught us about the importance of words that are in style now in California (including "sick" and "gnarly"). He's also unafraid about sharing Jesus. He's shared his testimony with many patients during his time here so far, reminding all of us that we're here for one reason only: to tell others about God's awesome plan to love us and save us.

Left to Right: Jael, Dan, Matt (visitor), Matt and Amy Kappen

The list of patients coming in with odd or unknown diagnoses grows on a daily basis. This gentleman had some general fatigue and told me that he had had a surgery on his chest several years ago. A new chest x-ray showed the following picture. If you know what it is, drop me an e-mail and let me know!

How Much Does It Cost???

2010-07-11T16:12:00.000-05:00

We have a game for you to play. Below we've listed seven items of differing price that are available here in Shell. We'd like for you to try and put them in the correct order from most expensive to least expensive. We will send a small Ecuadorian prize to the first person that sends us the correct answer through email or on the comments of our blog. (We think there may be a small glitch in our blog comments as we haven't received all the comments we know people have tried to send, so it may be safer to send your answers through an email.)
Good luck!

5 gallons of diesel
1 can of Gillette shaving cream
Burger, fries, and drink at the best restaurant in Shell
1 box of generic brand honey nut Cheerios
First time visit to the doctor
1 1/2 hour bus ride from Shell to Banos
6 pineapples

Fourth of July

2010-07-05T15:26:00.000-05:00

Though we missed the parades and fireworks, we planned a little get together of our own. We sent out an email to the Shell missionary community to see if anyone else would be interested in coming to a potluck BBQ. We received a few replies and thought it would be worth the effort. Much to our surprise and happiness we had a huge crowd show up, many of whom are short termers here and we’d never met. We had a great time fellowshipping, throwing water balloons, and eating much coveted US of A foods that are difficult to get here like pickles, baked beans, and real Heinz ketchup.

Caleb in his homemade 4th of July hat.

Jael enjoying a red, white, and blue cupcake.

A Mother's Take on 1 Corinthians

2010-07-04T19:09:00.000-05:00

It’s been a tough month for us with my “baby sickness” and Dan working every day and on call almost every other day. Sometimes this makes us question exactly why we’re here and what we’re doing. It’s easy to look at others and think they have it a lot simpler. There is a great family that lives on our compound with a husband/dad who is a teacher at the Nate Saint Memorial School. I think, “Why couldn’t Dan be like him?”: home by five every day, no work on the weekend, no night shifts, all holidays off, and an entire summer to spend with the family. But…God didn’t call Dan to be a teacher or me to be the wife of a teacher. Are Dan and I any more holy because he works more hours; no way. Dan and our teacher friend are both being obedient to what God has called them to do. We want to be obedient to what God has called us to be and do right here and now, and we want to do it in love. Remembering to be obedient in love can sure change my attitude when I’m spending another night solo with cranky kids, iffy electricity, and a very queasy stomach.

Kristina’s Take on 1 Corinthians 13:1-7

“If I can speak in baby language and talk all day to a three year with no adult interaction, but have not love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging symbol. If I have the gift to know “who started it” and can fathom all childhood illness mysteries and possess all the answers to a preschoolers many questions, and if I have faith that can move piles of dirty laundry, toys, and food-caked dishes, but have not love, I am nothing. If I give all the energy I possess to doing sticky crafts and building blanket forts, and I surrender my body to stretch marks and morning sickness (24 hours a day) but have not love, I gain nothing.

Love is patient and kind, even at 2:00 in the morning. Love is not jealous of other people’s lives or boastful or proud or rude. It does not demand its own way. It is not irritable, though everything in the day can seem irritating. It keeps not record of being wronged, or messes made, or numbers of hours spent on the floor playing. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects the children God has given me to care for, always trust that God can give me the grace I need for this day, always hopes that tomorrow can be better, always perseveres.”

Caleb's Surgery

2010-06-29T16:48:00.000-05:00

Caleb had to go in for a small surgery Friday morning. He was actually looking forward to it since he knew he’d be getting a new toy after the operation. (I know, I know, you’re not supposed to bribe your children…what’s a mom to do?) He did great and was so proud of himself for not crying, even when they put the IV in. He’s a little sore and walking kind of funny, but we praise God that he came through well.

Would You Want to Know?

2010-06-22T21:53:00.000-05:00

There are many instances of "The Clash of the Cultures" as we go through our days. For instance, the main grocery store in town decides not to open on time, people put mayonaise on pizza, etc. However, at times it becomes more difficult to accept the Ecuadorian way. According to medical ethics that I have learned and practiced over the past eight years, every person has the right to know everything about their own health. This is not exactly true in Ecuador. A few cases in point:

1) A few weeks ago I saw a patient in the hospital who was dying from metastatic stomach cancer. She presented with some horrific symptoms, including a severe build-up of fluid in her abdomen (ascites). The patient's family knew of her diagnosis, but nobody had told her that she was dying of cancer. In this case, I was able to share the news with her. She was extremely grateful for my honesty with her so that she could face her last days without the fear of the unknown.

2) A study done a few years ago in the major cancer hospital in Ecuador (the word "cancer" is in the hospital name) revealed that 40% of patients in the hospital did not know that they were there being treated for cancer.

3) Today we sent home from the hospital an elderly lady who presented three days ago with severe shortness-of-breath and a large mass in her neck. We diagnosed her with terminal thyroid cancer. The family, which consisted of eight children, insisted that we not tell their mother of her diagnosis. According to them, if we were to tell her, she would die of a heart attack on the spot, leaving their other sibling (who was away in France) without the opportunity to visit her mother one last time. The family was very heated in their discussion of this matter. Even though the children admitted that their mother would probably want to know of her own diagnosis, they believed that they could better decide what was in her best interest. After many prayers were lifted up with the family, with the patient, and with other doctors, we decided to tell the patient, "If you have questions about your diagnosis, please ask your children or return to the hospital. We would like you to know as much as you want to know." This decision definitely went against my American ethics.

These differences present some deep challenges, but they offer great opportunities for us to appreciate the diversity of God's people. The tough cases are also opportunities for us to mentor the Ecuadorian medical residents spiritually. I was encouraged today by the spiritual maturity that the resident doctor showed in the treatment of this situation. Be praying for the residents. Many of them are trying to figure out who God is. Others are learning how to introduce their patients to Jesus. One of the main reasons that the Lord led us here is to help them along the right path, no matter where they might be in their spiritual and professional lives.

Thank You, Papa!

2010-06-21T11:13:00.000-05:00

We had a wonderful time during our parents' visits. The kids soaked up grandpa and grandma time and Kristina enjoyed the extra help while she fought with first-trimester sickness. While Papa Roth was here he and Caleb worked on a project for Jael. We had wanted to buy her a kitchen set for Christmas but when we saw the price tag for the imported ones they had in Quito was over $300 we figured it wasn't quite in our missionary budget :) Papa worked longs hours to finish a refridgerator, stove/oven set, and cabinet. The kids have already had hours of fun with it and like to set up "Caleb's Cafe" where Daddy and Mommy can come for a bite to eat.

Centro Yuu

2010-06-07T12:59:00.000-05:00

One of our primary goals in coming to Ecuador was to be able to get involved with the ministries of a local church. One often hears stories of missionaries who come into an area and, in trying to serve others, they promote dependence and helplessness. We’ve been really excited about the church that we attend here because the people there were already actively serving others and telling them about Jesus before we arrived. All we had to do was to join in with the fun.

Centro Yuu is a Shuar community here in Ecuador about 2 hours’ drive away from Shell. People there live in little shacks made with wooden planks thrown together and straw for a roof. They don’t have a clean water supply, and their electricity source is practically a little extension cord spliced into about 50 branches. About five years ago, a medical team first set foot in this community for an outreach. Since then, many people in the community have opened up their hearts to Jesus. They are nearing a number large enough to plant a new church. Our little church in Shell has been working hard to partner with Cento Yuu during this process. Each weekend a couple from our church heads out to the Yuu to help in worship services for young and old.

A couple of weekends ago a group of us got together and brought Samaritan’s Purse Operation Christmas Child gift boxes to the kids in Centro Yuu. It was amazing! During the process, we presented the Gospel to the kids and explained to them that they were being given these gifts to remind them of the gift of Jesus that God has given all of us. We're also planning a medical brigade to Centro Yuu within the next couple of months. Join with us in praying that many people in this community will be thirsty to know more about Jesus' love.

The road to the jungle is only for the strong of heart and for those with a good sense of humor.

The group from our church, including some visitors, was excited to serve. Faces you may recognize include Steve, Lori, and Caleb Patee, Tim Roth, and Matt and Amy Kappen. Pastor Angel is the gentleman in front.

Serving the Lord is a job for young or old, thin or with a bit of baby fat.

These kids aren't going to wait until next Christmas to open their gifts.

Never Seen It Before

2010-05-22T21:31:00.000-05:00

Come to think of it, most of my blogs could have the above title--anyway, we admitted a patient from the jungle to the hospital the other day with a strange story. Her name was Mrs. L. She had developed shingles around her eye, and around the same time had developed increased confusion and difficulty walking. Upon presentation, she knew her own name but didn't know where she was. When asked if she knew the name of the lady with her (her sister), she named a fish. Just having shingles around the eye can be an important problem for sure, and it can be vision-threatening. Fortunately the eye situation seemed to be under control, but we couldn't figure out what was going on with her other symptoms. Mrs. L had some resources and was able to get a CAT scan of her head, which revealed that her brain was small in size. This finding is definitely not normal for a lady in her early 40's. On further questioning, we learned that Mrs. L had actually been pretty confused for several months now, often losing her way in the jungle or forgetting what she set out to do--for example, going to get a machete and bringing back a banana. We decided to withdraw a significant amount of spinal fluid from Mrs. L, and we found that she probably didn't have an infection around her brain (therefore there was probably no link between the shingles and the confusion). However, just pulling out the spinal fluid seemed to make many things better for her within a few hours. Now Mrs. L recognizes her sister, walks almost normally, and knows that she is in the hospital. She appears to be suffering from a condition known as normal pressure hydrocephalus (NPH). I've never seen a patient with this problem before. In NPH, the increased fluid makes it difficult for the brain to function normally. This is normally treated by surgically placing a tube that leads from the brain into the abdominal cavity (a ventriculoperitoneal shunt), and many times the symptoms are greatly improved with treatment. Mrs. L has been sent to Quito for consideration for placement of the shunt. Please be praying that it will go well for this young lady.

A Big Surprise

2010-05-15T10:26:00.000-05:00

Because Kristina was so sick during her pregnancy with Jael, we thought it was unlikely that we'd try to have more children. However, God has different plans in store for us...we are expecting our third child in December! We are excited about the news and are praying for an easier pregnancy this time around. Kristina has been feeling quite sick some days, but thankfully her parents are here right now and have been helping tons with Caleb and Jael. We had plans to come home for Christmas this year, but these plans with have to be changed as our little one is due December 24. We will have to obtain a visa and documents (the baby will have dual citizenship) before we can make our trip to the states. Our news made the decision about Kristina teaching a lot easier; this work will have to wait another year or two. Please pray for the baby, Kristina's health, and how God will use our family here in Ecuador as it grows.

A Priceless Smile

2010-05-07T07:05:00.000-05:00

Yesterday was a really busy day. Since Matt Kappen (my buddy from med school) and I are the only family docs here right now, there's a lot for us to do each day. There was a lady in labor, two admissions to the hospital in the first couple hours of the day, hospitalized patients to see, stuff going on in the ER, I had a full outpatient clinic scheduled, and Matt and I were hanging out in the endoscopy suite for much of the morning as Matt works on honing his endoscopy skills.

Amidst all the craziness, I saw a lady in my clinic who was 75 years old and about 4 foot 3. The nurses got a kick out of seeing us walk side by side because of our height difference. Many of the indigenous folks are pretty short, yet they still like to call me "Doctorcito", which means little doctor. She came into my office and her granddaughter translated for her. The elderly woman did speak a little bit of Spanish, but she was much more comfortable with her native indigenous language.

The ladies were very stoic during the interview, as is the custom of many of the folks from deep in the jungle. They told me about how she was suffering from worsening pain in both knees, her right hip, and her right shoulder. Her knees bothered her more than anything. You could tell by looking that those little joints had done more than their share of manual labor during 75 years of hard life in the rain forest. An exam confirmed that she had horrific osteoarthritis, with not much more than bone-on-bone in her knees. Those little knees sounded like a bowl of Rice Krispies when she bent them.

We talked about treatment options, and she decided to have her knees injected yesterday, and to bring home some Ibuprofen to be used as needed. I got everything ready and she bought the injectable steroids ($2.00). After the injections, the stoic lady from deep in the jungle came down off the exam table. Since an immediate effect is provided by the Lidocaine in the injection, you could tell that she already felt a huge relief. I explained to her that it would take a couple of days for the steroids to kick in, but you could see a huge smile creep across her weathered face. It's not a perfect treatment, but it will give her many days, and hopefully months, of relief from her pain. As they left, I told them, "God bless you". The ladies were so happy at this point that they were practically laughing. "Yes," they answered, "we do trust in the goodness of God!"

Gapito's Heart

2010-04-27T15:42:00.000-05:00

No matter where a Christian lives, there are little opportunities to serve the Lord. We all have gifts that the Lord’s given us, and there are people out there who can benefit if we’ll listen to the Lord’s leading.

I’ve been blessed with a six figure school debt that translates into a little bit of medical knowledge. I’m finding out every day how little my knowledge still is! Back in the States, I often was able to use my education to treat an ear infection or deliver a baby for a fellow church member. Here in Ecuador, there are other opportunities, including the preschool right at our own church. The preschool mainly consists of 4-6 year-olds who come from low-income families. Most of the kids don’t actually attend our church, and many of their parents are not Christians. We view the school as an effective outreach to the community.

The pre-school’s director, Marcela (who is also the pastor’s wife), asked me if I could come take a look at the kids and give them a bit of debugging. It’s the old Albendazole+ Secnidazol one-two worm-killing punch. A few weeks ago I was able to get a few hours off, and I went on over to give them a quick exam. I found some of the things that I had expected to find. A few kids were underweight and malnourished. One girl had impetigo on her nose. A few other kids had fungal rashes on their skin. And one boy, little Gapito, had a heart murmur that was much too loud to ignore.

GAPITO
Another thing that we’ve been blessed with is a group of supporters who have given to us financially to help with special people such as Gapito. Thanks to your support, Gapito got his echocardiogram, and he was diagnosed with stenosis (narrowing) of his aortic valve. He is now in touch with a cardiologist and receiving appropriate follow-up. Perhaps someday he will need surgery to replace or open up the valve.

To thank us for our involvement in the diagnosis and coordination of Gapito’s care, his mom found me in the hospital one day and brought these hand-painted bowls as a gift.

A New Bug Box

2010-04-27T08:37:00.000-05:00

Great Grandma Mills sent the kids a bug box to collect all their live treasures they find near our house. Caleb has had a great time collecting strange looking creatures. The other day, however, Mommmy helped him trap this hairy guy. I'm not sure this is what Grandma had in mind when she sent her gift!

Smiles, Slides, and Spit

2010-04-14T14:35:00.000-05:00

We were blessed to have our first visitors from the states come to visit us in Shell this week. Brian and Hollie Lindner, and their 18 month old son Dalton, made the trip from Nampa, Idaho to share some wonderful memories with us, encourage our work here, and to have some cultural experiences that were new to all of us.

As we don't have a car yet we were planning on making the five hour bus ride to Quito to pick up our friends. I loaded the kids on the bus the day before our scheduled departure to head to the town next to us (Puyo) to pick up the tickets we'd need. We headed back again the next day, but on arrival discovered that the roads were closed due to mudslides. We headed back to Shell to wait for several hours and returned to Puyo where we were told we could take the "back" way to Quito through Tena on a seven hour ride. We wanted to greet our friends so we loaded up on the bus and drove 2 hours (plus the 1/2 hour wait while the driver ate his lunch). Upon arriving at Tena we were told the rode to Quito was indeed open but only through Puyo,the way we had come. We returned through Puyo planning to continue our already 5 hour trip with two hours of backtracking and then five more to Quito. As we passed through Shell, we decided our kids weren't going to make it very well and jumped off the bus at the last minute. Thankfully we had friends "caught" on the Quito side who picked up Brian and Hollie and delivered them to us safe and sound.

Another "cultural" experiences we had occurred on one of our day outings. Upon getting off the bus Jael fell and bumped her head. A women selling candy from her stand rushed to our side and spying our bottled water cried, "Prestame su agua!" (Lend me your water!) We obliged, and then watched as she took a large mouthful, swished it around for several seconds, and blew it directly into Jael's face. We all stood there in shock while the lady said something about not needing to thank her for her help. After quieting our upset baby once again and drying the water off Jael's face (and all of us around that had received some of the "blessing") we took off to enjoy our day. Upon questioning some of our Ecuadorian friends we were told it is the belief that if a baby is startled by a fall it can cause death right then and there. To counteract it water is spit in the child's face to "restartle" them and "wake them up". I don't think this is a custom we'll soon be adopting, but I guess we better have some water handy all the time just in case.

Children from the Quichua village we visited.

Chief of the Quichua village

A Week in Photos

2010-04-04T10:07:00.001-05:00

Here are a few pictures from the last week to show you what we've been up to.

Receiving a package is a big deal. We were very excited to get two in one day; it's a little like Christmas morning for us.

Jael was all ready to start the Easter egg hunt with the other missionary kids.

Some of our Mission Aviation Fellowship and HCJB (hospital) missionary kids ready to start an egg hunt.

Going to Good Friday service was no easy feat when we had to walk there in a downpour.

"Let's go!"

Caleb was very excited to receive two turtles from Christa Fischer, a friend in Quito who will be moving to the United States soon to attend college. He's been doing a good job of keeping their bowl clean and playing with them (although I'm not so sure the turtles like going for airplane rides and playing on his train track, as he insists.)

The eggs are all dyed and ready to hide.

Two cuties on Easter morning.

Easter Eggs

2010-04-02T15:44:00.001-05:00

At Easter time we think about how the egg symbolizes life. According to an ancient Ecuadorian tradition, the egg itself actually has special powers. In the hands of a shaman, an egg has the power to cleanse a person from diseases of the mind or body. During the "egg" ceremony, the healer takes an egg and waves it around in front of the sick person, focusing on the sick parts.

Then, he sets down the egg and repeats the procedure with a live guinea pig.

For extra power, smoke from a cigar is blown into the sick person's face.

Does this ceremony sound stange? Yesterday I was taking care of a hospitalized baby with malnutrition.

Baby's Aunt: "May I take the baby out of the hospital for a few hours to get her cleaned?"

Me: "We have baths right over there."

Baby's Aunt: "Well, I wanted to take her out to be cleaned with an egg."

Me: "Hmm, I'm not sure if that's the best idea. Do you have a faith?"

Baby's Aunt: "Yes, we're Christians."

Me: "Isn't the egg ceremony performed by the shaman? I mean, I think prayer would be more powerful."

Lady in the Room Who's Been Eavesdropping: "He's right, the egg ceremony doesn't work. Only prayer works."

Me: "Would you like me to pray for the baby now instead of doing the egg ceremony?"

Baby's Aunt: "Oh, please do."

Many people in Ecuador have learned about Christ, but they are still wrestling with how the Christian life collides with their cultural beliefs. Those of us from Christian backgrounds still wrestle with the same question: "Upon whom or what are we depending?" When it comes down to it, are we clinging to Jesus as our only hope? We're here in Ecuador to teach the people about the only One who can bring real life, the One who died for us and had the power to rise again. Through that same power, though our bodies waste away, we will never die.

It Sold!

2010-04-02T14:55:00.001-05:00

Praise the Lord! After many prayers, discussions, emails, and paperwork our house in Idaho has sold. Though selling it for half the price we paid wasn't part of our plan, we are confident that God was in control of the whole situation. It caused us to seek Him more in prayer and trust that He would provide. Thank you to all who prayed about our housing situation, to Cindy and Josh Oldenkamp, our diligent realtors, and Dan's parents who took on the responsibilty of overseeing the process while we were out of the country.

Ciudad de los Perros-City of Dogs

2010-04-02T14:53:00.001-05:00

This morning I took a run in Shell for 30 minutes and decided to count all the dogs I saw loose. In this short time I spied 32 different dogs wandering around the streets, not including all those that barked at me from within the confines of gates and fences; that's more than a dog per minute. Most of the dogs are pretty calm, and if they start coming close, all one usually has to do is bend over and pretend to pick up a rock. This will usually make the dog run off. However, it's probably a good idea if we get our rabies shots soon, just in case. We just "dewormed" our family last week, which is something most missionary families do here every six months. With deworming and rabies shots for us I'm beginning to feel like a dog myself.

A Jungle Ant Farm

2010-03-29T15:09:00.000-05:00

Caleb loved the ant farm his Grandpa Benedick helped him put together in Idaho, so we decided to make an ant farm for him here jungle style. Since you can't buy prefabricated ant farm kits here, we just made one out of coke bottles. We had to be a little careful when we collected the ants for fear they may bite us, but we successfully got quite a few in the "farm" and Caleb has had fun watching his little guys at work.

Rayana

2010-03-29T15:03:00.000-05:00

The local orphange here in Shell, Casa de Fe, is a haven for abandoned and special needs children in the heart of the Amazon. Their mission statement: Believing that all children are created in God’s image, and for his perfect purpose, Casa de Fe is a Christ-centered ministry caring for abandoned and special needs children, providing care in a loving and supportive environment until they can be united with their biological or adoptive family. The orphange is currently in the process of contructing a new building to house all these beautiful children.
Patti Sue, who runs the orphanage, is a wonderful lady with a true heart for the children. Occasionally she asks if the mission community here in Shell would like to host children in their homes to work on their developmental skills and love on them. Recently she received a little girl from the jungle named Rayana. She is eight months old but developmentally delayed and cannot see. We've offered to take her into our home every now and then. This was our first weekend to have her with us. Though she's much like a newborn, she has a great smile and a very content demeanor. The kids have really enjoy having her, too. Jael likes to give her kisses, and Caleb doesn't want any of the neighbors holding her too long for fear they'll keep her. We plan to have her come over more often to have her be part of our family.

If you'd like, you can check out the orphanage's website at www.lacasadefe.org

Speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves, for the rights

of all who are destitute. Speak up and judge fairly.

Defend the rights of the poor and needy.

Proverbs 31: 8-9

Operation Christmas Child in March

2010-03-27T12:07:00.001-05:00

We had the opportunity to give out Christmas shoe boxes through Samaritan's Purse at our church this past week. Often children in other countries don't receive their boxes until after the holidays, but local churches are able to put on special presentations for the children before handing out the gifts and can follow up afterward with the kids. If you've ever done shoe boxes in the past, or would like to do them this next year, we'd really encourage you to do so. Besides all the smiles on the kids' faces, many unchurched children and their parents were able to come into the church, get to know the pastor and other church members, and hear the gospel. The fiesta included songs, popcorn, and a puppet show with drama. The story was about a little boy who "was cruisin' for a bruisin'" because he had stolen his mom's money and hit his sister. The little boy decided to ask his mom for forgiveness, and he was surprised when his mom said that she'd throw him a party instead of punishing him! The pastor taught the kids that, though we all deserve to be disciplined for our sins, we can have forgiveness if we'll only accept the free gift of Jesus. That was when the gifts were passed out to bunches of excited kids!

Waiting for the boxes.

Can you spot our little gringo son....

and daughter?

"Can I open it yet?"

Three Year Theology

2010-03-24T15:17:00.000-05:00

It's been quite a blessing to live on a mission compound with other children close to the ages of our own. Three mornings a week Caleb attends preschool at the Nate Saint Memorial School. Since we don't have a car another missionary family picks him up and drives him over. Yesterday Tracy, the mother who often takes him to school, said Caleb and his friend Josiah had an interesting theological discussion about heaven on their way to school.
Caleb, "The cars in heaven will be fast."
Josiah, "Caleb, there aren't cars in heaven."
Caleb, "Yes there are."
Josiah, "How do you know?"
Caleb, "Because the Bible says there are streets of gold."

To a three-year-old mind there have to be cars if there are streets for them to drive on. Why would someone make a street otherwise? I guess we won't really know the answer to this questions until we're rejoicing with Jesus in heaven.

Not Ready for the Promotion

2010-03-21T16:27:00.001-05:00

One of the challenges about living here in Shell is transportation. Thankfully, almost everything is within walking distance: school, work, the main grocery store, and church. However, while buses and taxis abound, many of the locals keep their eyes open for other transportation options. Today we saw about 15 kids piled into the bed of a little pick-up. I will now show you a picture of many people's idea of the family vehicle (the Ecuadorian mini-van, if you will):

That's right folks, this beast has enough room for Dad on the front, Toddler on the handlebars, and Mom in the back with Baby on her lap. It's enough to make my mother-in-law cringe in fear, and for good reason. I saw a girl in the ER the other day who was riding in the family vehicle when they went over a bump and she came tumbling off. Unfortunately, helmets are rarely used here, and this incident was no exception. As we evaluated the ten-year-old with an obvious bump on her head and a confused look on her face, we began to ask her some questions.
              me:                 "Where are you?"
girl:                 "At home."
              me:                 "Who is that lady?" (the patient's mom)
              girl:                 "My aunt."
              me:                 "Who is the president of Ecuador?"
              girl:                 "You."
I often ask those questions and more to find out if a patient is confused, but I had never had THAT answer to the president question. Within an hour, the patient's confusion had disappeared, appropriate tests and observation were performed, and it was time to relax and have a good laugh about her silly response. I told the little girl that I'm definitely not ready to be president of Ecuador. My hands are full enough as it is!

Please be praying for us as we lead the resident Bible study this week. As many of you know, one of our main goals here is to train Ecuadorian residents and medical students in the practice of medicine, but more importantly, to mentor them spiritually. While some of the trainees are Christians, many of them do not have a personal relationship with Jesus. Please ask God to be speaking to their hearts.

A Few New Photos

2010-03-20T15:46:00.002-05:00

I keep telling Dan he needs to remember to take his camera to the hospital, but in his busy days he forgets, so sorry for the lack of hospital pictures, but one day they will come.

To get to Caleb's school we cross the swinging bridge with a 80 foot drop. It's a little precarious when I have both kids by myself. Caleb is looking forward to taking his grandma on it to scare her when she visits.

When we went to Banos several weekends ago, John and Mary Doerfer came with us. They lived in Shell for 11 years as missionaries. Although John is retired in the states he comes back every year for several months to work in the hospital and help relieve some of the family doctors here.

Our strange bugs for the week are:

the big moth we found outside by the playground one night...

and another crazy caterpillar.

The crazy food for the week: cuy...guinea pig. Actually, we still haven't tried it as it's a bit of a delicacy and somewhat expensive compared with other food. We just can't bring ourselves to paying more for food we view as a pet.

Daddy and the kids are getting ready for Easter by going through our Bible story eggs that relay the story of the Resurrection.

Praising in the Mundane

2010-03-15T12:15:00.000-05:00

Dan comes home with exciting stories of patients he’s helped in the hospital: a baby saved from meningitis, a cured snake bite, a life rededicated to God. I love to hear the work he gets to be a part of there, but at times it can be a trial for me. Nobody ever says, “I want to do the mundane and ordinary for God,” instead they say, “I want to do glorious things for the Lord.” God is chiseling away at my heart and mind to be satisfied with the small work of being a mother and wife here on the field, and I’m afraid He’s had to do a little more hammering and it’s been a little more painful than I would like to admit. Since receiving a call to missions when I was 17 I have had a lot of time to contemplate what my service on the field would look (and feel) like. Reading some of the biographies of passionate missionaries from earlier years one’s head can get filled with all kinds of ideas how the field will be. I’m not in any way saying we shouldn’t be filled with hope that hundreds can be reached through the ministry the Lord has placed us in or that we should ever give up on the idea that awesome things can occur on the mission field, but to be here day in and day out cooking, cleaning, and changing diapers it can be a challenge to see things in an eternal perspective. I must be confident of God’s call on my life and rest in his peace that I am here, “For such a time as this,” changing diapers and all. Only God fully knows the sphere of influence I have on those I may interact with and maybe it’s better this way. If we always knew how our Christian, Spirit-filled lives lived out every day in the normal activities of living affected those around us we may take to our own credit the good others saw in us, instead of the glory given to God. “So Lord, help me to praise You as I clean up spilt milk and cookie crumbs, help me to smile at the fruit vendor and say, ”Hi,” to the bread lady. I need your grace to make my tedious, repetitive everyday action a song of praise to You. And help me to trust that You have me here for a reason as I seek to glorify your kingdom.”

“God is not unjust; He will not forget your work or the love you have shown him as you have helped his people and continue to help them. We want each of you to show this same diligence to the very end, in order to make your hope sure. We do not want you to become lazy, but to imitate those who through faith and patience inherit what has been promised.” Hebrews 6:10-12

47 Cents and an Honest Man

2010-03-10T11:19:00.000-05:00

Since Caleb seemed to be doing much better after his "ride in a rocketship" (see previous blog) we decided to proceed with our plans for Dan's four-day weekend. Dan hadn't been far from Shell in over a month so we headed to a town an hour bus ride away called Banos. One nice thing about living in Ecuador is that activites for the family are usually quite inexpensive. We got to visit the zoo there and stayed at an hostel for the night. We decided to take a taxi to the top of the ridge that overlooks the town. Just after arriving Dan realized that his wallet was gone. Since he had purchased breakfast for us just a little earlier and had it at that time we knew it had been stolen within the two blocks we walked to get the taxi. Though a stolen wallet isn't life-or-death it can be quite frustrating, especially in a foreign country. We became a little more anxious when we realized that I had given all my "extra" money to Dan for safe keeping, and that morning he had moved it from his sock to the wallet. Now we had to hope that the cash I was carrying would cover our taxi ride, hostel fee, and bus ride back to Shell, since we had no way to pull out more cash since his credit card and debit card had been in the wallet, as well. We did some quick calculating and knew that if there was any tax on our room or the second taxi driver charged us more we would be stuck in Banos. God provided for us: no over-charged taxi fees and a tax-free hostel stay. We made it home with 47 cents (and when we stopped our cards nothing new had been charged on them).

The next day when Dan returned to work he received $60 unexpectedly. A few weeks ago he had given this amount to a father from the jungle with little money so he could purchase medicine for his son. Upon later discovering that the medicine isn't available at this time in Ecuador the man walked back out of the jungle (not always a small feat) and returned it to Dan at the hospital. In a country where lost money is never returned and the wages are barely sustainable, we were stunned by this man's honesty and integrity. Dan would have never known that the money wasn't used for medicine if the patient's father had chose to keep it. God used money lost and money returend to teach us a lesson in His provisions and gifts.

A Ride in a Rocketship

2010-03-05T13:40:00.004-05:00

After working a full weekend on call, I get rewarded with a 4-day weekend sometime during the month. We've been enjoying that time this weekend. We went to a fun swimming pool that appeared pretty clean, followed by a nature walk through the jungle. In the evening we enjoyed dinner with some friends. Just after dinner, Caleb decided to take a swing in a hammock. Hammocks are super-prevalent here, as many of the indigenous cultures use them every night to sleep. Unfortunately, Caleb was having a little too much fun in the hammock and he fell to the cement three feet below with a crash. Some kisses from mommy were applied, and he seemed to be doing much better.

Cooling off on a hot day.

Caleb's jungle rabbit ears

Unfortunately, after the kisses we started hearing things like, "I'm sick," and "This car makes me feel really tired". Over the next 3-4 hours back at the house, Caleb had SIX! episodes of vomiting, and he seemed much more drowsy than normal. These can be signs of increased pressure inside the head (i.e. bleeding caused by the head trauma). I called up my buddy Joe Martin, one of the other family docs here. When I'm at home I'm "Daddy", and I don't like to be "Doctor" at the same time. Joe was immensely helpful and understanding, and he arranged for us to have a CT scan of Caleb's headl in another town, as there is not one at our hospital. We were thankful to the Lord that this was available, because often the scanner doesn't operate after hours (this was all going on at midnight). We drove Caleb over to the next town, and the poor little guy was dry heaving the whole way. Of course he was taking it all like a trooper. In the scanner, Caleb was pretending like he was riding in a spaceship and he held very still. Pokey, his little rag-doll teddy bear, got to ride too. The head CT didn't show any signs of trauma inside the brain, and little Caleb started to feel better. It looks like he's had his first (and hopefully last) concussion. Caleb slept well from 1:30 am on. We thank Jesus for watching out for our big little astronaut man!

What we lack in choices of pop flavors,

we make up for with choices of pop sizes.

Carnival

2010-02-24T16:05:00.000-05:00

One holiday in many Latin American countries that I had never been aware of is Carnival. It occurs several days before Ash Wednesday and pretty much consists of everyone attempting to get everyone else as wet as possible. Thankfully Shell is a peaceful and friendly town so the people only use water and spray foam with an occasional bag of flour thrown in, unlike more rowdy places where you may have oil-based paint or urine sprayed on you. The kids had a great time joining in the fun with water balloons and readily available foam spray from a nearby store. Poor Jael got the brunt of her brother's attacks but took it with laughter and smiles.

Carry your Sword

2010-02-20T22:36:00.000-05:00

Many times I'm faced with a patient who doesn't make sense. In other words, they haven't read the text book. Something is going on with him or her that doesn't seem to fit the mold of a physical problem. Ms. A was one of those patients. She's currently pregnant with her fourth child, about 22 weeks along. Two weeks ago she presented to the hospital with bleeding. A physical exam and ultrasound had revealed that all was well. A few days ago she presented to my clinic with contraction-like pains. She didn't have a urine infection, and monitoring and exams revealed that she was not in labor. The Holy Spirit prompted me to try to find out the answer to the question, "What is really wrong with Ms. A?". Through a series of questions, we began to talk about the stresses in her life. She related to me that her heart was full of fears regarding the pregnancy.

"There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment." (1 John 4:18)

Ms. A told me that she used to have a right relationship with Jesus, and that she had accepted His free gift of salvation. However, she felt that Jesus was far away during this pregnancy. We talked about how Jesus is the only one who can offer perfect love, and how perfect love is the only thing that can drive out fear. We shared a time of prayer together. She recommitted her life to Jesus, and told me that she is going to start going to church again!

"All scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching the truth, rebuking error, correcting faults, and giving instruction in right living." (2 Tim. 3:16)

Morning of Meningitis

2010-02-16T19:52:00.000-05:00

(The patients and their families described in this blog excitedly gave permission to share their stories and pictures)

About two weeks ago I was having a pretty busy call. I'm starting to earn a reputation as a "mala espalda", which means "bad back". The reason they call me that is because I tend to be working when most of the sick people come in. In the US, instead of a "bad back", I'd be called a "black cloud". Anyway, it was busy, and at 2 am two girls came into the ER. They were from completely different communities. Rashell is 10 years old, and she lives in an indigenous community deep in the jungle. Miley, age 2, is from Puyo, which is a decent-sized town right up the road. They sell pizza and ice cream in Puyo, so that says a little bit about the differences in their backgrounds.

The resident on call told me about Miley first. That day she had visited a health center in Puyo for fevers, followed by a seizure and left sided weakness. A CT of her head had been performed and was found to be normal. Her doctors there were reassured by this information, she had been sent home. It sounded like she could have been having febrile seizures, which are very innocent--but on the other hand, we were pretty concerned by the fact that she was not moving her left side. We performed a lumbar puncture and drew blood cultures and admitted her for administration of high dose IV antibiotics. Studies of the cerebral spinal fluid confirmed what we had been thinking--she had a probable case of bacterial meningitis.

Rashell seemed even sicker than Miley. She also had been having fevers and had suffered a seizure a few hours earlier. Her dark brown eyes were rolled back and lacked the dance of life that eyes usually have. She made insensible groans with painful stimlation (when the IV was started). Flexing her neck forward also seemed to cause lots of discomfort. Because Rashell's mother, who had died several years earlier, had had a bad experience with a lumbar puncture, the family would not give us permission to draw the fluid from Rashell that would confirm our suspicion--another case of meningitis. She, too, was admitted for high dose antibiotics.

High doses of antibiotics are required to penetrate the blood-brain barrier that protects our nervous system. Likewise, we gave these two girls super-high doses of prayer in an effort to fight this potentially deadly disease. Their families were at peace after the prayers, and I went home to rest for a bit.

The next day Miley was doing much better in that the weakness in her left side was resolving. However, she did have another seizure. We began anti-seizure medications and stayed the course. Rashell's status did not change on day 2, and I began to feel less sure that she would ever wake up.

On the following day, Miley's weakness had completely resolved and she was seizure-free! In addition, Rashell was starting to talk, and she even smiled. That dance had returned to her eyes. Praise the Lord! Little by little, they have both recovered completely from their illness, and today is the last day of their high-dose antibiotics.

It is not rare for a person to die from a case of bacterial meningitis. Survivors often suffer consequences such as residual weakness, or even deafness or blindness. I praise the Lord that these two sweet girls have done so well. I thank Him that he gave wisdom to scientists who invented antibiotics. Most of all, I am reassured once again that I can always find peace and hope in the power of prayer to our God Almighty.

Miley and her Mama

Rashell

Avenue of the Volcanoes

2010-02-05T13:53:00.000-05:00

Part of the road from Quito to Shell is known as the Avenue of the Volcanoes. Most of the time we don't get to see many of these mountains from Shell with the cloud cover we get from living in the rainforest. However, the other day I went out for an early weekend morning run. I wasn't so sure I wanted to be up exercising on a Saturday morning when I could be in bed asleep, but it was worth it when I got to see Tungurahua blowing ash and smoke into the air. If you come to visit us you'll drive past the base of this mountain where the town of Banos lies, which had to be evacuated several years ago due to lava flow.

An Early Morning Call

2010-01-26T22:27:00.001-05:00

It was 2:00 o'clock in the morning, I was on-call, and our phone rang. The voice on the other line calmly told me that I should make my way to the hospital. I thought I heard something about "transito," which would indicate a motor vehicle accident (I barely catch a word of Spanish when it's spoken over the phone). Whenever I get called, I just head to the hospital to find out what's going on.

Upon arriving at the ER, I found that we were dealing with a major trauma victim. Several sites where broken and bleeding. We're always taught to go through the ABC's--Airway, Breathing, and Circulation. For the time being, he didn't seem to be having any trouble with the A or B, but his ability to circulate blood effectively was definitely compromised by his many injuries. His heart rate had climbed into the 150s. The long bone in each leg was visibly broken, and the toes on his right foot where extremely pale. An injury to his head was bleeding fairly rapidly, and his level of consciousness was depressed. We had lots of help that night from the residents and medical students who were working. I quickly called in our surgeon, Dr. Graham. It didn't take long before he was there, along with one of our anesthesiologists, Dr. Suarez, and an orthopedic surgeon from a neighboring community who has been helping us out while Dr. Wolff is in Haiti. I didn't even know who had called everyone, but I was just thankful to have them all there! Our medical students maintained traction (pulled) on his legs to reduce the broken legs back into their usual positions. This maneuver thankfully made the color return to his right foot. Apparently a major artery in his leg was being compressed by the fractured bone.

In the midst of our efforts to stabilize the patient, we brought him over to the x-ray department to get some films and we all had a few moments to reflect on what was going on. During these moments, we decided that this gentlemen needed to be transferred to a place with a neurosurgeon and a CT scanner. A glance at the patient's father, who had been staying by the patient's side during the entire process, also made me reflect on the fact that we were dealing with a precious soul--what if that were my son Caleb laying on the table? More prayers were said in my head.

As he was prepared for transfer, his fractures reduced and his head laceration repaired, we placed an endotracheal tube using our GlideScope (thank you Verathon) to ensure that the "A" of the ABC's wouldn't be lost during the long drive. The delivery from our blood bank arrived, and our patient began to receive red blood cells as fast as his IVs could deliver them. We sent him on his way, and we were thankful to find out that he had safely arrived at his destination. In a situation like this one, what a privilege it was to have such a great team of people working together, and an amazing God intervening in all of our lives. My limitations will constantly be stretched during my work at our hospital here in Shell, but it's so comforting to know that I'm not on my own.

Work at the hospital

2010-01-19T20:21:00.000-05:00

Now that we've been in Shell for almost a month, I'm starting to learn the work routine here. There's quite a variety on a daily basis. We always start the morning with a short devotional and prayer. Then we have a sit down meeting with the Ecuadorian residents and medical students who are rotating with us. Every six to eight weeks we have a new set of residents and students. It's been a pleasure working with all of them, and we consider our relationships with them to be a huge part of our ministry here. Many of the residents have a heart to do medical missionary work. We hope to be able to help them mature in their faith as well as their medical abilities, and by so doing, to get to be a special part of the development of a group of Ecuadorian physicians who are serving the Lord and many sick people in Ecuador and surrounding countries.

After we talk about the hospital patients in our morning rounds, we walk over to the wards and examine the patients with the residents. When that is finished, each physician heads to the outpatient area to begin seeing patients there. Each family doctor spends about 1/2 a day every two weeks doing endoscopies instead of clinic. On the days that we're on-call, we don't see clinic patients. The on-call physician supervises the admissions and deliveries and answers any questions from the resident who is running the ER on that particular day.

I've had many great times praying with patients and discussing their relationship with Jesus in the hospital. And, whether a missionary on the field or a faithful Christian back home, our responsibility to represent Jesus doesn't end at work. During our bus trip to Quito last weekend, I had the opportunity to share Christ with two people on the bus. Both had come from a Catholic background but did not profess to have a relationship with Jesus. Like so many folks in any part of the world, many people here are going through the motions of some form of religion without really knowing what it means to know Jesus on a personal level. We all fall into that category at times. My deepest desire is to help the people here understand that they don't have to, and cannot, earn a right relationship with God by doing any number of works. Peace with God can only come through the acceptance of Jesus' sacrifice on the cross. Without a doubt, it is only God who can speak to people's hearts and help them to have a right relationship with Him. Please be praying that He'll be speaking to many hearts, and that we'll be sensitive to His guiding during our conversations with those around us.

Getting Creative

2010-01-14T21:57:00.007-05:00

On the mission field sometimes parents have to be a little more thoughtful to insure that the kids are having fun. There certainly aren't any McDonald's Playlands or tumbling classes in which to enroll the kids. However, with a little creativity, there is a lot of fun to be found.

Caleb really wanted to sleep in a tent like he did with his auntie this summer. We were a little hesitant to allow him to sleep outside with all the creepy, crawlies here (plus, we didn't want to have to join him), so Dan rigged up a blanket tent right in Caleb's own bed.

The kids have done quite a bit of painting in the house, but we needed to get out in the sunlight. We decided to make their bodies the canvas. They had a great time decorating each other, and cleanup was simple since I could just throw them in the tub.

Speaking of being creative...our Nazarene church here in Shell has a real heart for reaching the community and tribes deeper in the jungle. They have begun to reach out with a preschool that ministers to many indigenous children. They also have a dream to create a center for higher education. They have begun construction at the church site and plan to complete four stories for this purpose, but they need help to complete it. If anyone is interested in coming to work with the church and the indigenous tribes they are ministering to, we'd be glad to help you get involved.

A Day in the Life...

2010-01-07T16:42:00.000-05:00

We're well settled into our home in Shell and are establishing our routines. There are new things we're getting used to every day (like the 'pet' tarantula we have outside our bedroom window that makes an appearance every night) and some things that are already seeming part of normal life (like walking to fours different stores to buy: bread, vegetables, meat, and diapers). Caleb loves his new missionary friends....

And the strange bugs we find outside....

And now that Jael is walking she loves to sneak out the screen doors if I don't lock them and pick all the beautiful jungle flowers we have growing in our yard.

I'm learning to live a more quiet life and though at times I wouldn't mind jumping in the car and heading to Target or Costco, God is teaching me to pray in the midst of my day and enjoy the many things that in the states I seemed to rushed to notice... how the birds sing right after a rainstorm...how funny it is when my children are cover in mud (and that it's not just a mess to clean up) ... what fun a swing can be.

Take time to enjoy Him and His creation today.

Tropical Medicine 101

2010-01-01T21:14:00.000-05:00

By the beginning of this week we were pretty much moved in so it was time for me (Dan) to begin my duties in the hospital. While going through medical training it's necessary to work in a huge variety of clinics and hospitals. I think I've worked in at least ten different large centers over the past 7 years. So, I know that it's always a bit of a challenge to get used to a new system and find out where everything is. Pile that on top of learning to speak Spanish in every conversation and note, gaining a grasp of tropical medicine, and taking on a role as a teaching physician, and you've got yourself a nice little challenge. Every medicine, disease, instrument, and body part has a name in Spanish, and many of those words are still unknown to me. When in doubt, you can usually try to say the English word with a bit of a Spanish accent, consider adding an "o" to the end, and just say what comes to mind. I find that that works at least half the time.

It's been a huge blessing being around such supportive people at the hospital to make sure that I'm not drowning in the newness. There aren't too many jobs in the world where you can go to work and be surrounded by committed Christians on every side. And of course, Kristina and the kids have been a huge help around our home, and I look forward to their hugs each day at lunch break and at the end of the day. Kristina has a great heart for encouragement, and she's already been baking for patients and bringing them special treats.

One of the new things that I've had to get used to is the fact that almost everyone has one or many "friends" living in their digestive tract. One of the docs here gave me the advice to just give anti-parasite drugs to anyone who hasn't been treated during the past 6 months. Since almost every stool test I've ordered has come back positive for critters, I think it was good advice.

I've already been involved in a couple of c-sections. I'm finding that I really enjoy getting to do that procedure and help a baby come into the world. Unfortunately, my first c-section patient has had a bear of a time recovering from surgery, as she seems to be suffering from just about every possible post-operative complication. I have to admit it's been humbling for me to have one of my first patients have so much trouble, because, as the new guy, I'd like to show that I know what I'm doing. Alas, God is definitely in control, and it's been a good experience for me to keep my confidence where it should be--in the Lord who created all of us! As Socrates once said, "True wisdom consists of knowing that you know nothing." I'm thankful to God that He will guide me through important decisions with patients, and that I don't have to prove my worth by my knowledge of medicine. I pray that He'll help me to remember that my worth is in Him.

Thank you all for your prayers, support, and interest in what's going on down here at the Equator. Please be praying that I'll be open to the Holy Spirit's leading to know what to say to patients to bring them closer to a relationship with Jesus. Also pray for Kristina, as she is seeking the Lord's will as to which ministries to be involved in.

Spanish Lesson for the Day:
desafio (with an accent on the "i")- challenge

Christmas in the Jungle

2009-12-29T16:17:00.000-05:00

We celebrated our first Christmas in Shell. It's difficult to be away from loved ones this time of year, especially with the kids and a few tears were shed and the thought of home, but we've been blessed to have the missionary family here take us under their wings.

After celebrating with our family in the morning we headed to Steve and Diane's, our new friends, to eat Christmas dinner. With missionaries from different parts of the world we got to sample all kinds of food. Several girls from England wanted to make a traditional Christmas pudding and light it on fire but it didn't quite work out the way they intended (possibly because all of the ingredients aren't available here). We enjoyed getting to hear about their traditions and spending time with others that know the real reason for the season.

Trying to Light the Pudding

After another party at the Nazarene church in town where we sang Christmas carols and shared snacks, the kids (and Lucy) were ready to get cleaned up and go to bed.

Ready for a Bath

We're Here!

2009-12-24T12:01:00.002-05:00

After twelve years of waiting, four years of med school, three years of residency, and three months of language school we've finally arrived in Shell. Praise the Lord. Thank you to all who have prayed for us to reach this point in our lives.

Our moving day was Dan's 31st birthday, so we know we will never forget the exact day we got here. Our new place looked like quite the disaster at first with our boxes and bags scattered everywhere, but we're finally getting settled in and it's beginning to feel like home. Our neighboring missionaries have already made us feel welcome by having us over for dinner, sending Christmas cookies our ways, and inviting us to holiday get-togethers. The kids are really enjoying all the free space to play outside and they have lots of friends to play with on the compound. I'm discovering a few things about keeping a home in the jungle, too 1) My kids will probably never be clean while we live in Shell 2) Ants will have to be my friends (either that, or I'll go insane trying to keep them out of the kitchen).

Dan working at our kitchen table. Thank you to those from Deer

Flat Church who generously gave to help us purchase it.

Our living room.

On top of everything else we decided to throw a puppy into the mix as well. Lucy (whom Caleb named after one of our Spanish professors) is a little golden retriever. She was an early Christmas present for the kids and will be great for keeping the kitchen floor clean under Jael's highchair, and hopefully likes to chase tarantulas away from the house.

Resting after a hard day of play.

Dan will begin working at the hospital December 28th. Please pray for him as he begins interacting with patients.

Dressed up in our Christmas outfits from Grandma.

The Wise Words of a Little One

2009-12-16T16:08:00.000-05:00

If you take time to listen, little ones have many words of wisdom tom share. Last night we asked Caleb what he wanted to be when he grew up. His first response was a doctor like Daddy. After a few seconds, however, he replied, “…Well, actually I’m not sure yet, because Jesus hasn’t told me what He wants me to be.” So many times we have our minds full of what we want to do; we don’t pray and wait to find out what God would have us do or the way in which He would have us go about doing a specific thing. I need to be patient like Caleb and wait on the Lord.

“The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still.” Exodus 14:14

Jael has taken off walking. It’s a lot of fun to watch her totter back and forth with a toothy smile as she heads your way. The church we’ve been attending here in Quito asked us if she could be baby Jesus in their Christmas pageant. She is the blondest, biggest, girliest baby Jesus I’ve ever seen . Since she just started walking I think we’ll have to decline. It would be a little unique to see “baby Jesus” get up out of the manger and walk away.

No More Jumping on the Bed

2009-12-07T21:46:00.000-05:00

We can’t escape common mishaps with kids simply by moving to another country. This afternoon Caleb was supposed to be sleeping but decided to jump on his bed instead. He slipped and hit his tooth on the bed rim, causing it to be loose and make quite a bloody mess. We got a hold of Dan’s dad (a dentist) and he told us to put it back in place, so Dan had to do the difficult work of holding Caleb down and pushing the tooth back into place. We’re not sure if it will live or die, but at least it’s just a baby tooth. Caleb really did great with the whole ordeal and is quite enamored with the fact that he may have a “dead” tooth in his mouth. Currently he has quite the swollen lip and is enjoying plenty of popsicles.

Into the Jungle

2009-12-04T14:16:00.001-05:00

Our official school trip to Shell was this week, so of course we were excited to get to visit our home one more time before we make our move. We were in for quite a few adventures, some of which were wonderful and some of them a little questionable! Below is our list of firsts.

Jungle Hike
We set off with our guide through the rainforest to learn about the plants and animals of the Amazon Basin. Along the way we stopped in a refreshing waterfall to cool off. The sights and sounds surrounding you as you walk through the jungle are enough to keep you refreshed for days. We learned two important things about ants on the trip 1)They bite…poor Caleb was the first to discover this when one crawled up into his rubber boot (which everyone is required to wear) and bit him on the leg. 2) They don’t taste too bad. Our guide had us all grab the squirmy little things (a different type than our larger, biting enemies) and pop them in our mouths. They were a bit tart, with a hint of lemon.

Leaf Cutter Ants Carrying Their Loads Down a Tree

Chicha

After our jungle walk a lunch of freshly caught tilapia we headed to an indigenous village of Quichua Indians. There we tried our skills at hunting with the blow gun and were “welcomed” with the ‘milk of the forest’: chicha. This is a drink made by the roots of a plant that the tribes of Ecuador grow. The women then pick the roots, smash, then chew and spit back into a bowl to create the drink. It is the staple of many communities and is given to all ages and as a sign of welcome when visitors come into a village. While accepting our offering of chicha we tried to think more about the welcome we were receiving than the fact that we were drinking somebody else’s spit. Hospital Vozandes is the closest hospital for these people, so it’s possible that Dan could see some from this village as patients.

Quichua Paint

Blow Gun Practice

Canoe Ride

From the village we took off in dugout canoes down a river for a short ride. The guides assured us that it was perfectly safe, but it was a bit nerve racking when we asked our guide about anacondas and he said only little ones lived in this river. Because of the lack of rain the other canoe did have trouble and the riders ended up stranded mid-river bailing water out of the canoe with their boots. Thankfully all made it safely to shore.

Monkeys

Our professors want to be sure we get the full range of experiences in Ecuador while in school here, so we headed to a monkey sanctuary the next day. When people talk about monkey-business they’re not kidding. These guys were all over us, trying to snatch things from our pockets and swinging from our arms. One gave Dan a wet willy with his tongue and another tried to kiss me. After spending a few minutes with these guys one can see why Curious George’s character is a monkey.

A Visit to the Waorani

We had not expected to be able to make the flight into the jungle to visit a Waorani village because of cost, but since our language school currently only has two traditional students here right now, they graciously offered to let us fly in with them for free. What an experience. We took a Mission Aviation Fellowship (‘Alas de Socorro’/ Wings of Help) flight into the jungle. Several minutes out of Shell all one sees is a sea of green. While landing you feel as if you’re going to hit the treetops. The children presented a special Christmas play in Spanish and then some of the older generation demonstrated several songs in traditional dress. We felt like we were back in time, standing in a grass hut, listening to their ancient language. We brought a gift of bread to them, which is a treat only brought in from the outside world. It’s hard to imagine that the hospital we will be working in and so many missionaries have been built up from the basis of what occurred with this tribe 50 years ago.

Our Landing Strip

Our Waroani Friends

Spiders

After an exciting day of new experiences we were enjoying a cool evening on the veranda of the guest house when I looked up and told Dan, who was holding Jael, he better walk slowly away from the wall. Right over his head were two hand-sized tarantulas. We quickly notified our fellow students and guesthouse residents to come and see. I think all the commotion scared the spiders and one jumped down and landed on another student’s shoe. That was enough tarantula for us for one night and we all headed inside, worried that we would dream about our furry friends.

Mr Tarantula

Dan did rounds several mornings at the hospital and feels that his Spanish has progressed sufficiently to move there soon. We will only have two more weeks of language classes and then be on our way to Shell December 21st.

If ANYONE would like to come and visit us, we can arrange to have you experience any of the above, along with rafting and jungle fishing (well..I can’t guarantee the spiders). There are also many service opportunities to get involved in, too. I’m already signed up to volunteer at the missionary school as soon as we arrive and there is an orphanage in town. There is also work to be done at the hospital and a construction project at the local Nazarene church. We’d love to help you be able to do some short-term work in this country we’re falling in love with.

Sorry for the length of this blog, but there was so much to tell.

Thanksgiving Week in Quito

2009-11-28T11:34:00.002-05:00

We had one more picture of our moms’ visit that we wanted to share. We sure miss our families this time of the year. With the holidays upon us we’re feeling the distance quite a bit more. When we begin to feel sorry for ourselves (as I did on Thanksgiving Day) we’re trying to remember what Jesus had to give up to come to earth. We’re only in Ecuador, a flight or skype call away. I can’t imagine the wonders and closeness that Jesus had to give up with his heavenly Father to come here.

We took a trip to one of our professors house to prepare an American meal for her with the rest of our class. After lunch she wanted us to take home as many avocados as we could carry. Jael loved making little piles with them, and Caleb wanted to be buried in them. Sorry we can’t share some with you at home

The Nazarene missionaries who live in Quito prepared a very USA Thanksgiving feast, complete with turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, and even pumpkin pie (which is hard to make since the filling has to be brought from the states). The turkey was wonderful; which it better have been since a turkey here cost $50. Dan tried to enjoy some American football but all he could find on the missionary’s TV was futbol (soccer). Some of the women worked on scrapbooking and the guys played a card game, with Caleb very intent on learning how to play.

Graduation for the seminary was last night and today they have set up small booths to advertise different aspects of the work they do here. Dan will be fielding questions in Spanish for our language program. Caleb was enjoying one of the display’s animals and wanted to take home a rabbit as a pet. Unfortunately this display presents the food-producing program they have on the seminary and these rabbits will be tomorrow’s lunch.

Still Chugging Along

2009-11-22T15:52:00.001-05:00

Since we will be moving to Shell soon, we wanted to make sure everyone knows our new mailing address:

Dan Benedick
Hospital Vozandes del Oriente
Shell, Pastaza
Ecuador, South America

We love receiving mail : )

It’s amazing to us that our time in language school is winding down! We’ll have three more weeks of intense language study here in Quito, as well as one more quick scouting trip to Shell, prior to moving to the jungle for good on December 21st. Time really flew by during this past week, as we had our moms here visiting. We had a great time! We took them to see all the sights around Quito, and they babysat the kids for us while we were in class. They sniffed out a few good deals while shopping, and Caleb and Jael had tons of fun reconnecting with their grandmas. We had a mini Christmas celebration while they were here so the grandmas could watch them open their presents. Caleb is now ready to join Buzz Lightyear in the battle against the evil emperor Zurg. The only hard part about their visit was having to say good-bye. We feel very loved by all our family and friends!

Thank you to all of you who have been praying for Caleb. He seems to be adjusting better all the time! He’s been interacting more and more with Ecuadorians without bringing out his angry eyes.

Language school is going well. I’m super-impressed by how quickly Kristina has improved. Both of us are getting much better at comprehension as well, and we’re even able to understand most of the sermons that we hear in church (even while juggling a couple of antsy kids). We heard a great sermon last week about our call to go and make disciples. Please be praying that we’ll find people in Shell that we’ll be able to disciple, and others who will come alongside and mentor us.

Pray for Rain

2009-11-08T07:46:00.000-05:00

This is supposed to be the rainy season in Ecuador, but unfortunately, the rain hasn't shown up yet. The entire country of Ecuador receives its power from hydroelectric power from on reservoir. Currently the reservoir has only nine centimeters of water left above the line allowing it to work. If we don't get rain soon, we won't have power. There have been "apagones" (blackouts) lately in random parts of the city in an attempt to try and conserve power. Sometimes the news notifies us, but other times it's a surprise, and unfortunately the power company/government doesn't always let the police know where the power outages will be either, so there have been a lot of traffic problems when the stoplights don't work. At least we have gas run water and a gas stove, so if we were to loose power for a awhile we could still make a hot meal for the kids.

Teaching Endoscopy to Future Missionaries

2009-11-07T21:21:00.000-05:00

We wanted to elaborate a little bit regarding the endoscopic equipment that Olympus has agreed to donate to our hospital in Shell. With the gift that they’ve sent, we’ll be able to view each procedure on a screen (video endoscopy), instead of looking through a little eyepiece on the instrument. If you’ve never been in the driver’s seat during a colonoscopy or EGD, this may not seem like a huge deal; in reality it is enormous! As you may recall, one of the primary goals of our hospital in Shell is to teach and mentor residents who will carry on the work as medical missionaries in other parts of Ecuador and around the world (two of the doctors from Shell are currently on a missions trip to a hospital in the Congo). Trying to teach endoscopic procedures while looking through an old eyepiece, while not impossible, is far from ideal. It would be like trying to whale watch through a high powered telescope while standing on a boat that’s being rocked around by the waves. You may be able to focus on a whale in the distance for a moment, but by the time you hand off the telescope to your friend who wants to see it too, everything has moved. So you can see how nice it will be to be able to point things out on the screen. We are really excited about the teaching/mentoring aspect of our work in Shell. Thank you so much to Olympus for joining with us in this ministry! Thank you again to all our financial supporters—your gifts are being used in part to bring the equipment into the country. Thanks be to the Lord who continues to bless in so many ways!

This is an example of a video endoscopy unit.