Federal Workplace Charity Fair

Posted on September 24, 2012 by David

Today on the Wycliffe USA’s prayer blog they asked for prayer for Wycliffe representatives that will be working with the Combined Federal Campaign (CFC). This program is very close to my heart. It was the CFC in 2007 that first introduced me to Wycliffe Bible translators when I was sitting at my comfortable desk contently working for Uncle Sam. I was looking through the myriad of nonprofit organizations that I could make a pay roll deduction to and for some reason Wycliffe’s name stood out to me. Wanting to know more I visited their website and learned about the need for Information Technology (IT) missionaries. It was this day that our journey to Cameroon began, I could never imagined all we would see or do.

As we shared our stories in our training camp in July of 2008 I met the woman in Orlando who was responsible for the CFC for Wycliffe USA and she shared with me that she had been praying that someone would join and serve with Wycliffe because of the CFC. Praise the Lord for her prayers and I encourage you to begin to pray today for additional workers and also for the CFC.

For those of you Federal Employees I encourage you to consider donating to Wycliffe CFC #11737.

He told them, “The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.” Luke 10:2 NIV

2008 Kansas City VAMC CFC T-shirt

2008 Kansas City VAMC CFC T-shirt

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Words Disappearing

Posted on September 13, 2012 by David

Since arriving back in the United States we’ve walked by Independence Hall where the founding fathers adopted the Declaration of Independence and yesterday we took a day trip to Washington D.C. and one of our stops was to the National Archives, this building was officially added as a place not to skip after the movie National Treasure. We wanted to see all the cool places they showed in the movie, but the only picture that we were able to take was on the outside of the building. Why in the world did they need that big of a door if they didn’t plan on using it?

I also wanted to see if the gifts shop copy of the Declaration cost as much as what she tried to charge Benjamin Gates, also known as Nicolas Cage. It doesn’t.  I thought about taking in a screwdriver wearing a tuxedo under my clothes but I didn’t, I had the boys with me plus it would be hard to hide a tux under my shorts. I know everyone wants to know what is on the back of the Declaration when it’s put in the oven, I was thinking blog post.

What really shocked me was that on display under an inch of glass, 2 armed guards a few hundred sensors and making sure that the kids don’t lean too close and a few dozen cameras, all like the movie showed, is that the Words of the Declaration of Independence are disappearing; it almost looks like a really big white piece of paper. They blamed it on the Patent Office Building displaying it across from a window with exposure to sunlight for 35 years. I’m thinking someone really tried to squeeze lemons on the back of the Declaration and it bled through.  I could make out the W from When in the course of human events… and the J in John Hancock but even though Timothy Matlack worked so hard to make it fit perfectly onto one big piece of paper I don’t know how much longer this 236 year old document will be readable. Not to worry there are many copies. And is it the paper that makes those words important or the words themselves?

Go now, write it on a tablet for them,
inscribe it on a scroll,
that for the days to come
it may be an everlasting witness. Isaiah 30:8

What are we doing with the Words that God has left for us?

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Bicycles

Posted on September 10, 2012 by David

We purchased two bicycles for the boys at a yard sale.  We wanted the boys to learn to ride a bicycle and knew they wouldn’t have the opportunity to learn in Yaounde.  The price was right – $30 for both bikes.  Since Jonah’s had training wheels on it, he could hop right on and go, but Joshua needed to learn how to ride without training wheels.  He set his mind to it and worked hard until he could also go.  After he thought he had it mastered, he started weaving with the handle bars and quickly felt the pain of a bike crash.  After the pain subsided and his bruised ego was on the mend, he hopped back on.

Jonah was determined that if his brother can ride without training wheels; he can too.  It didn’t take long before he took off on two wheels.

We are so proud of the boys and love seeing the joy and pride on their faces.

Today in Sunday school we talked about how God is always there, regardless if we feel His presence.  I couldn’t help but think of how we, as parents, were always there for the boys in this bike learning.  At first we held on to the back of the bikes to keep it steady while they learned how to balance on the  bike.  We slowly would let go and watch as they started out and eventually let go as they wobbled and learned.  We were still there watching them, but not holding the bike to keep it steady.  We were watching when Joshua crashed and scraped his elbow and hand.  We helped clean him off, but also knew it was part of the learning experience.  It made me think that our heavenly Father is right there, He sees me crash and burn and wants me to run to Him to be cleaned off.  Lately, I’ve felt like I can’t take anymore of these spills, but desperately want Neosporin and a Band Aid, however, I also know that He is always with me.

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Culture Clash

Posted on September 5, 2012 by David

We have been purchasing a few items at a time since we’ve been in the states for things that we can’t get in Cameroon.  I purchased some poster frames so I can decorate our home in Cameroon with the boys art work.  The poster frames are large and I didn’t consider the problem with boxing them to ship.

Today we started boxing up items to be shipped to Cameroon via sea freight.  I went to Staples to purchase boxes.  They didn’t have a box large enough for sale to accommodate the 20″x30″ poster frames, but on the top of the aisle shelving I saw a box that had the four flaps open and it was marked on the side the size 30″ x 24″ and it said that the inside contained the small bags of bubble wrap.  I decided to be more Cameroonian than American.  I approached a sales associate and asked if I could purchase the box from the top of the aisle shelving.  The sales associate told me he couldn’t sell me the box because it originated at UPS, so Staples can’t sell a UPS box.  I asked if I could have the box and he said, “No, because we sell boxes.”  I agreed that Staples does sell boxes, however, not the size I need.  I asked what is done with the boxes they receive shipments in.  He told me the boxes are bound and tossed.  I asked again if I could purchase it and he pockets the money and I get the box.  He wouldn’t go for it.  After I left the store, I did a little dumpster diving and got a box that works for FREE.

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Update on Jonah

Posted on September 1, 2012 by David

Jonah had his follow-up appointment on August 29.  His bandages were removed and we saw for the first time the amputated left ring finger.  The pathology report confirmed that he had a bad bone infection instead of bone death due to lack of blood supply.  The surgeon shared that Jonah’s report also showed germs that the lab at Hershey Medical Center had never seen before, we are calling those Cameroonian cooties.  The surgeon reassured us that we made the right decision based on what he saw when he was operating and what the pathology report revealed. Since he had pins in his finger after his surgery on June 15th and one pin penetrated the remaining bone in the finger, we need to be watchful that the infection didn’t gain a foothold in the pin hole in the remaining bone.  Jonah will go back to the surgeon for a check-up in one month.  In the meantime, he will begin therapy once the stitches are dissolved.

Please pray that all the infection has been removed from his body.  Please pray that the healing of the finger where the stitches are will be quick.  Please pray for the thin skin that covers the tip of the finger to toughen up and become thicker.

We included a photo of Jonah the day of his surgery (August 16), we aren’t in a place yet where we are ready to share photos of his left hand after surgery.

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What things are different or surprising?

Posted on August 31, 2012 by David

We’ve been asked many times since June what we have found different or surprising since we left the USA in 2009.  Below are a few of the things.

The QR Codes are foreign for us to see in advertisements, on billboards, on products, etc….  We’ve been told that people with iphones can take a picture of these blurry, square bar codes and it will take that person to a website.

We were in a drive-thru and were the third car in line.  When we pulled up to the window the person continued to apologize for the long wait (might have been 3 minutes).  We were baffled as to why the person felt the need to apologize.  Nothing happens quickly or conveniently in Yaounde, so we were impressed with the 3 minute wait.  The same day at a clothing store, we were behind a woman disputing her total because she thought her coupon would make the total much lower.  We waited for about 5 minutes and when we were helped, the associate apologized and gave us a discount for our wait and inconvenience.  Again, we were baffled and weren’t upset or impatient at our wait, we were thankful for having the convenience of a store and of a drive-thru available to us.

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Getting gas

Posted on August 28, 2012 by David

We were driving a Saturn Aura the other day to run some errands.  While we were out and about, we noticed the fuel gauge was nearing E, so we decided to stop and put some gas in it.  David pulled up to the pump and looked to his left on the floor for a button to pop the gas cover.  No button.  He looked at the gas cover door and it wasn’t a manual open cover.  He asked me to look in the glove box for a button.  No button.  David looked at all the buttons on the steering wheel, around the dash and the driver’s door.  No button.  We had searched so much that a woman had time to pull up and ask David for directions to a nearby store.  After much searching, David had the idea to push on the gas cover door and sure enough the cover popped open.  We couldn’t contain our laughter and although the car didn’t come out while we were away in Cameroon, it was a cultural shock to have so many troubles figuring out how to open a gas cover door. I guess we got used to someone pumping our gas, in Cameroon there is always someone at the gas pump to pump your gas and figure out how to open up the gas cover door.

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A day in Philly

Posted on August 24, 2012 by David

This week we decided to visit Philadelphia and we decided the best way to tour the city would be in a duck. So we booked our tour on the Ride the Ducks from home since you can save $7 a ticket. I thought the kids would like blowing the duck whistles. But someone who doesn’t like kids blowing annoying duck whistles had complained to the city and they don’t hand out the whistles until you get off the ride. No worries we walked around after the ride and annoyed other visitors with the duck sound. But I did learn why the US flag has 5 pointed stars vs 6 pointed stars, where Will Smith’s dad lives, where MTV filmed one of their reality tv shows and the oldest continual residential houses in the states (300+ years old).

After riding the metro in Paris for a year we decided to compare the Philly subway to the metro and I’m sad to report that the workers in Paris were more willing to help a would be traveler. I also would like to suggest that they install a clock that says how many minutes until the next train. I didn’t see a suggestion box so consider this my formal suggestion. I also couldn’t figure out how much it cost, the more tokens you purchased the less it cost? I also was sad that there were no pocket maps for Joshua to memorize; I think I still have a few of those maps from Paris in my jacket pocket.

But for those of you with children there is a hidden treasure in Philadelphia called Smith. The park is designed for kids 10 and under, it’s in Fairmount Park. The boys had fun playing and climbing the various spider-web like jungle gyms, Jonah wasn’t going to let the bandage on his hand slow him down and Joshua was ready to go down the slide again and again. And best of all this park is FREE!

 

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Miracles do happen

Posted on August 17, 2012 by David

We are currently staying in Harrisburg Pennsylvania, so I get to read the Patriot News newspaper every morning, the physical paper not pennlive.com, the one I used to deliver on my bicycle a few decades ago. Today I was disappointed at a response that Rabbi Marc Gellman gave to the question “Why does God not heal amputees?”

He attempted to rationalize God. While I agree that God works within the laws of the universe that He created; He also created those laws so if He seeks to make a change to the laws He can. He is God. Yes I believe the Bible. I believe when Jesus said in Matthew 17:20 if you had faith even as small as a mustard seed, you could say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it would move. Nothing would be impossible.

NOTHING WOULD BE IMPOSSIBLE.

God is good all the time and all the time God is good. God was good when the basketball rim fell over and crushed Jonah’s finger requiring surgery. God was good yesterday when Jonah had the amputation. It is sad that so many people seek to find rational explanations to how God works. Below are some of the miracles that I’ve seen since May 31st the day of his accident.

  1. There was a surgeon available to treat Jonah at the hospital we went to in Cameroon especially since he only does surgery on Thursday and the accident happened on a Thursday
  2. The Cameroonian surgeon was trained in Germany.
  3. He spoke some English and was able to help calm Jonah down.
  4. The police closed the road back to the hospital right after I drove through the checkpoint.
  5. There was no infection from the surgery in Cameroon.
  6. We were able to see a specialist the day after we arrived in the States and have surgery the next day.
  7. Children’s Mercy Hospital helped us financially.
  8. Two different doctors in different states from different hospitals worked together to determine what would be best for Jonah.
  9. There was no adverse reaction to any of the surgeries.
  10. He has had very little pain.

I could go on but I just want to close with miracles do happen every day and we should be thankful and not try to rationalize what God does. I guess that would make me an Optimistic Jesus Freak and not a religious rationalist. I challenge you to strive for the first over the latter.

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God’s Peace

Posted on August 9, 2012 by David

Many of you read about Jonah’s hospital stay in Cameroon, and many of the visits we have had since the accident on May 31st when a portable basketball goal fell on his hand and caused severe trauma to two of his fingers.

After 2 surgeries one in Cameroon and one in the US and after one finger has healed and the other finger appeared to be healing we received a new update.

Jonah’s ring finger is either infected or the bone is dying. This could be because of many reasons but we were given two choices.

  1. First we could do a biopsy to determine if the bone is infected then we would need to have 6 weeks of antibiotics, then there would be a surgery to graft bone from his hip or wrist to try to reconstruct his finger. But the problem with this is there is probably not a blood supply which is causing the bone to die or infection in the first place and after 6-8 months down the road we would need to proceed with choice number 2.
  2. Partial amputation of the top 2 bones above the knuckle of his ring finger.

After prayer and many tears we have chosen option 2.

When Jonah saw his mother crying he asked her if it was about his finger and he said he would do one more surgery. Then he asked if he would still be able to climb the monkey bars. We asked the OT and the Dr and they both assured him that he would still be able to climb the monkey bars and trees.

I can’t explain the peace that we had yesterday when we were at the doctor’s office and we had to tell the doctor our decision. Neither choice was one I would ever want to have to make. But what I can say is that God is good. God is faithful and He loves us.

Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!  Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:4-7

While it is not always easy to Rejoice in the Lord, I pray that you will rejoice with me today and pray for God’s peace, for the surgery that will be next Thursday morning and for quick complete healing for Jonah.

 

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