Today was our first day of ministry here in Port Shepstone. After getting up this morning we attended church at Norwegian Settlers Church, which is a less than a 5 minute drive from Skogheim, where we are staying. Pastor Trevor really brought God’s Word in an incredible way.
Our afternoon project was to put on a party for the children in the Pediatric ward of the state run Murchison Hospital. These kids were so precious! We sang songs (lots of songs), blew bubbles (lots of bubbles) and passed out some snacks. The kids were very receptive, and even though most only spoke Zulu, love seemed to be an international language.
The story that worked on my heart happened in the last 10 minutes we were there. The Flippos, our missionary partners, got my attention and I followed them to the only private room I had seen in the ward. When I walked in, an infant was in an incubator. The story that followed was near tragic. It seems the infant’s mom had delivered her in a sugar cane field on some blankets. She then took the infant and the blankets and placed her in a duffle bag and placed the duffle bag on the side of the road. Later, someone heard the baby crying in the bag and called 112 (the South African equivalent to 911) and the baby was taken to the emergency room of the hospital we were at. She seems as though she will make it!
The nurses at the hospital get the privilege of naming her. They chose Gift. I could not help but parallel that this baby had received the gift of life, against all odds. As I continued thinking, however, Romans 6:23 came immediately to my mind, “For the wages of sin is death, but the GIFT of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” On our own, we have no reason to live beyond our 70 or so years. Through Jesus, however, we have an incomparable gift. Thank you Lord for your GIFT!
How precious..That is such a wonderful testament to His undying love for each and every one of us, big and small..Glad to see some of your pics..Take care of yourselves..Momma P
ReplyDeleteWe are so glad to hear that you had a great time in worship this morning with Pastor Trevor! Thank you also for sharing with us the amazing job that you are already doing of sharing God's love! We appreciate so much you sharing not only the story about the little baby, but your thoughts, and how it relates to God's plan as well. I have to admit that when I hear about something as tragic as this happening, it leaves me with lots of questions as to how such a thing could ever happen; but I can see that God is using all of you as well as the nurses and staff and our missionary partners working there to do His work, and we are so proud of all of you. Bravo to all of you also for all the happy smiles and memories that I'm sure you gave to all of the children as well as the adults at the party you provided today!!
ReplyDeleteHave a wonderful and blessed day tomorrow and all week! Just to let you know - so many people have written to let us know that they are praying for all of you and for your mission trip!!
Take care, and may God protect and guide you as you continue His work this week!