The Baby JJ Ministry is growing!
There are countless babies and mamas going through the haus sik on a daily basis. However, my friend Sesina has encourages me to go to other parts of the haus sik to spread some sunshine too. We go to the children’s ward (ward 4) often. We have taken a guitar and she plays it while we all sing worship songs in Tok Pisin. We have taken fruits, bananas, pineapples, and papaya all cut up and ready for consumption. They love this! It is incredibly messy, ha-ha! It brings some happiness to their long days in a hot and unhappy place. [Above is a photo of Frederick in orthopaedic ward 3]
Lately we have extended our visits to other wards. We went to the orthopedic ward to visit the son of one of our translators. He had fallen from a coconut tree and broken his leg badly. He has had 2 surgeries, and is now discharged. However, while we were passing out color pages, we went to another ward. There were men, probably in their 20’s in this room. We gave them pages and crayons and promised to come back and snap them with their finished product. When I had printed and laminated their pictures, we went back. You might remember part of this story if you and I are Facebook friends. If we aren’t friends yet… look me up, find me, friend me! I often post pictures on there of my adventures here.
Mamis
Mamis and Sesina
So, we met this guy named Mamis (pronounced “Mom-ese”) . When we gave him his laminated picture, he had a hard time holding it because of the condition of his hand. Sesina offered to help him hold his prized possessions.
Apparently, when I had gone to another bed to give out color pages, Sesina invited this boy to church. So one Sunday, I picked up my regular church buddy, Diane, and then 2 of our translators who had agreed to go with us, Martin and John. I felt better having them in the car when we went to get Mamis, because, I don’t know this boy, and I didn’t know if his watch person would be going. I thought “safety first!” So, we got him in the car between John and Martin, and headed for the church. It.was.amazing!
Mamis, John and Martin sat on the left with the men, and Diane and I on the right. I snapped these photos of him standing and worshiping then giving his testimony.
It was one of the most memorable Sundays that I have had in Madang! I learned a most valuable lesson. When Sesina found out that “a knife cut him,” I assumed that he was just another young scrapper. After I heard his account of how he ended up in the hospital with these injuries I wanted to cry. Why do I automatically think that they did something wrong when I see a young man with injuries? A lot of the time, it is due to domestic abuse and senseless fighting. When they fight here, it isn’t with guns, it is likened to hand to hand combat in my mind. It is with machetes. You get close, you get cut. So as I listened to what happened, my heart was saddened by his situation, and convicted all at once. Apparently Mamis is married and has a 2 year old child. He and his wife are separated. He told her that he was going to take their child. She is living with her family and he at their home. That night, he was awakened by “someone” alerting him that there men there to harm him. Before he knew it, 3 men stood outside while 2 others knifed him. They thought he was dead, and they left. His family brought him to Modilon where they stitched him up
Now, I don’t know what the future holds for this boy when he goes back to his village, but I think this guy might really turn the page. I know that it is not up to me, it is up to the Lord and to him truly opening his heart, mind and soul. Would you join us in praying for Mamis?
An update to this is that he showed up again at church the next week too. I have hope…
Please pray:
- Safety as we work and live among the people of Papua New Guinea
- For continued “forward walking and thinking” in each of us in Papua New Guinea – and America, where ever we are
- Healing of my precious haus sik patients, in the way that only God can do
- For conditions of the haus sik to improve and for medicines to arrive in the aid posts stationed in various villages – Mawan being one of them
- For the repairs to continue at the haus sik
- Anything else that the Lord puts on your heart that I need
Praise
- that the Lord is always moving, whether or not we see, or acknowledge it, He is moving!
- He cares!
- He doesn’t want ANY to perish, here, there, anywhere!
