Kids Keep Things Interesting

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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"

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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?"

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

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.