It started when Kevin was burning garbage in our yard. The previous owner had left a lot of junk and we were trying to clean up. Kevin accidently got burning plastic on his large toe and in the few minutes it took to remove the plastic, his toe got a good burn.
After the initial pain, Kevin really didn’t feel anything. So we waited a few days and finally he decided to check out the local midwife, the only person who had any medical knowledge in Mizque. So after having a concoction of capers put on his toe, he waited the four days directed and returned back to the midwife. There she did the process again, but we knew something was wrong due to the fact that his toe looked worse.
When we arrived in Cochabamba to submit paperwork for our next visa, we went to a doctor on our way out of town. We were expecting to leave directly from the doctors and head back out to Mizque, we were already packed and ready to go. Then we heard the shocking news. Kevin had a third degree burn which went all the way to the bone. He needed surgery in order to remove the dead skin and would remain in the hospital for four to five days. Luckily he was released after only three days and was able to return back to the hospital every two days for more minor surgeries. As long as Lisa administered the shots he needed every 10 hours. He is now finished with the surgeries after being put under anesthesia six times. He has now had a skin graft taken from his thigh and we are currently waiting for another appointment to see if the skin took. If not, he will have to have another skin graft and start the healing process over.
Overall this has been a good experience and a lesson in patience. We have been so excited about all the contacts we have made in Mizque and are anxious to return. We are ready to go, but right now we are waiting for the healing to take place. Please pray as we continue to wait for an ok to return home to Mizque.
Monday, February 15, 2010
24 Hour Confirmation
We have to tell you about our 24 hour confirmation that we had a few weeks back. It started on Saturday night when Kevin was able to preach at the local Mizque Baptist church. It was a great experience to see the youth and church members connect with the message, laugh at the jokes, and be engaged. The next day, Sunday after church, Kevin was asked to go and visit an eighteen year old who is dying of stomach cancer. Here he was asked to share the word of God with the family, all of whom are recent followers of Christ, and also pray over the young man. After praying over the young man, he was taken up to a small village called Tukma Baja, four miles away from Mizque. Here he was asked to visit with a man who is interested in learning more about the Bible. The man has asked us to go back and share more of the Bible with him and his wife. As soon as Kevin’s foot is well enough to hike, we will be heading back up in order to share more of the gospel with this couple. While Kevin was in the village, he was also asked to start a class on how to interpret the Bible accurately. We look forward to starting these classes as we team teach starting in the next few weeks.
This one day span gave us the confirmation that we are exactly where God wants us to be. We are excited to roll up our sleeves and get to work.
This one day span gave us the confirmation that we are exactly where God wants us to be. We are excited to roll up our sleeves and get to work.
News Travels Fast
We live in a village without a post office, newspaper, or computers in the homes. We do have a radio stations that comes in, but it plays the same station on every channel. What amazes us about this town though, is how quickly news seems to travel. We knew that being the only Americans living in Mizque would cause a great deal of discussion. What wasn’t expected was just how quickly every action we do seems to get around.
There is a lady in Mizque we have run into several times. On one of these occasions she was carrying a watermelon. Kevin offered to help carry her watermelon to her home which at the time he really didn’t think anything of. The next day, we were visited by the landlord who told us she had heard Kevin had carried a watermelon for a lady. When we seemed shocked that she knew, she kindly told us that the entire town knew Kevin carried that watermelon. She went on to say that “everything you do, good or bad, the whole town will know by tomorrow.” This is a blessing as long as we are living as Christ did and would. We are thankful for the fishbowl we live in since it will provide experiences for people to trust us, doors to be opened and so we can share the light that Christ has given us.
There is a lady in Mizque we have run into several times. On one of these occasions she was carrying a watermelon. Kevin offered to help carry her watermelon to her home which at the time he really didn’t think anything of. The next day, we were visited by the landlord who told us she had heard Kevin had carried a watermelon for a lady. When we seemed shocked that she knew, she kindly told us that the entire town knew Kevin carried that watermelon. She went on to say that “everything you do, good or bad, the whole town will know by tomorrow.” This is a blessing as long as we are living as Christ did and would. We are thankful for the fishbowl we live in since it will provide experiences for people to trust us, doors to be opened and so we can share the light that Christ has given us.
A Positive Perspective
Life is always about perspective. We can try to find the meaning of life, happiness, and every good thing, but in the end it always revolves around perspective. We realized just how important perspective can be shortly after arriving here in Mizque, Bolivia. As we were sitting outside eating dinner one night Lisa said to me, “This spot is very romantic.” At that point the reality of Lisa’s comment hit us and we began to laugh. What struck us as comical was the ironic placement of such a comment. We were sitting at a concrete slab located under a tree surrounded by garbage left by the previous renters. There were dirty diapers, chicken parts and feathers, pop bottles, broken wine glasses, knives, rakes and of course several miscellaneous bicycle pieces. Not 20 feet away from our romantic spot sat our only bathroom and shower located 50 ft. away from our home.
On top of all the garbage outside, we remembered the complete disaster on the inside. When we would open a door a few dozen cockroaches would crawl out. Then if we tapped the table in the kitchen, more than fifty cockroaches would fall onto the floor. We had spent the first three days killing and cleaning up thousands of cockroaches and mosquitoes (no exaggeration) as well as paint every soiled wall in our new home. Lisa had amazingly managed to forget her immediate surroundings and think of the potential one spot might have in the future.
A good perspective, like Lisa had, requires an attitude of seeing the possibilities and understanding how to achieve them. Two weeks after moving into our home we had painted the walls, cleaned the yard, and made it feel like home. We still average a dozen cockroaches a day, but these serve as a great distractions for our new puppy. If you were to ask one of us today about the home, we can tell you that God has blessed us with a beautiful place that He is going to use for His purposes. Reality is, without a positive perspective prior to the house being clean, the end result wouldn’t be what it is today.
This principal has Biblical implications. As it says in Romans 5:8 “God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” While we were still bathed in sin and filth in His eyes, Christ came and died because He knew what the end result would be. As we look at the issues that are rampant in our village here, we realize this same perspective is the only way we will make it here in Mizque. One neighbor is a physically abusive alcoholic who we often hear screaming at his wife and three kids (mud walls do not stop much). Another neighbor is a doctor who calls upon spirits for healing and across the street is a shrine to the local idol, Senor de Burgos. God has a lot of cleaning up to do in Mizque, and we are thrilled He has called both you in prayer and us through being here to roll up our sleeves and believe.
On top of all the garbage outside, we remembered the complete disaster on the inside. When we would open a door a few dozen cockroaches would crawl out. Then if we tapped the table in the kitchen, more than fifty cockroaches would fall onto the floor. We had spent the first three days killing and cleaning up thousands of cockroaches and mosquitoes (no exaggeration) as well as paint every soiled wall in our new home. Lisa had amazingly managed to forget her immediate surroundings and think of the potential one spot might have in the future.
A good perspective, like Lisa had, requires an attitude of seeing the possibilities and understanding how to achieve them. Two weeks after moving into our home we had painted the walls, cleaned the yard, and made it feel like home. We still average a dozen cockroaches a day, but these serve as a great distractions for our new puppy. If you were to ask one of us today about the home, we can tell you that God has blessed us with a beautiful place that He is going to use for His purposes. Reality is, without a positive perspective prior to the house being clean, the end result wouldn’t be what it is today.
This principal has Biblical implications. As it says in Romans 5:8 “God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” While we were still bathed in sin and filth in His eyes, Christ came and died because He knew what the end result would be. As we look at the issues that are rampant in our village here, we realize this same perspective is the only way we will make it here in Mizque. One neighbor is a physically abusive alcoholic who we often hear screaming at his wife and three kids (mud walls do not stop much). Another neighbor is a doctor who calls upon spirits for healing and across the street is a shrine to the local idol, Senor de Burgos. God has a lot of cleaning up to do in Mizque, and we are thrilled He has called both you in prayer and us through being here to roll up our sleeves and believe.
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