Togo Screening a Success!

There was a sense of peace and calm throughout the stadium all day.

Akpe Dada Ye Dze Ne! (He is worthy of thanks!)

We held the screening at the Kegue stadium in Lomè, Togo, West Africa. 

I was up 3 am to be a driver and help shuttle the crew to the stadium. We left with our first load at 4.30 am and our second around 5.30 am at which time we parked the landrovers for the day at the stadium, but continued to have one shuttle that went back and forth with crew that had to go back to the ship for one reason or another, a variety of items that had to be sent to the lab and for whatever other reasons popped up. I have to admit I think being part of a convoy is a ton of fun (even if we got lost      ), I’d even go as far to say it’s down right exciting!  We started returning crew home about 3.30 pm finishing around 6 pm. It was definitely a long, emotional (sad & happy) and tiring day that everyone gives everything they have physically and emotionally!

My landrover # was 444 the one in front on the motorcycle above and the one on the left below.

During the day I was part of the prayer team. Man, that’s a sure fire way to evoke a gamut of emotions. The prayer team is set-up at the exit gate for people who have been told that Mercy Ships can’t help them, but would like to be prayed with. It is a holistic approach. There were approx. 10 of us. 3 people walked around the stadium throughout the day praying over the different areas: the gates, the police, the command post, the photographic station, the writers, admissions, lab techs, the surgeons, the prospective patients, security,  etc. etc… The rest of us sat with a translator (Togo is a French speaking country, but the local language is Ewe), and prayed over a total of approx. 300 people who were turned away after getting through the first gate and wanted prayer. These people included 2 babies (one who was only a few months, but looked liked a skeleton of a very old man that some said was cursed). Neither child will probably live (it always pulls at ones heart a little harder when it’s a baby). There were many who came from upcountry and used any money they had or could borrow for the chance of getting medical attention (free medical attention), and now had nothing in the way of money or hope…. There were quite a few Muslims who came for prayer as well - it is good to know when you are praying for a Muslim, so the prayer can be respectful and the Holy Spirit can intervene with silent words as well as the choice of words spoken out loud. I really do feel that it is a special privilege to be able to pray with people who are in deep spiritual need! I had two translators who I worked with off and on. The first one whom I spent most of my time with and also translated for the palliative care nurse was Marilyn (I think we will become good friends),  and the second was John.

I have to digress here for a minute. This was definitely one of my most treasured blessings of the day getting to know a couple of our day workers personally. These two wonderful, God fearing Togolese along with Rogue (who helped me with directions back and forth to the ship at the end of the day) are 3 of the 167 day workers we’ve hired to work with us while we are in Togo. Because of the type of work I do, I don’t have a lot of occasions to get to know our day workers personally and I was so blessed to get to know these 3 a little more personally and hear a bit of their stories. I really look forward to getting to know these day workers better throughout these next 4½ months while we are in Togo. (I wish I had pictures, but one of the rules of screening is no one is allowed to bring a camera except Marketing and they really didn’t get any pictures of me, or the prayer station (other than the 1 below), out of respect for the patients who are in mourning for their loss of personal hope to have whatever ailment was bothering them treated. 

We were usually in groups of 4 (prayer person, translator, patient and caregiver) and sat all the way around this tree. It was nice to be in the shade I must say as it was a very hot afternoon. (There was a nice cloud covering in the morning.)

I can share one of my experiences with you that deeply humbles me and reminds me that it’s only by God’s grace that gets us through screenings like this:

A woman named Ruth and her mother came and sat with John and I. Ruth’s legs had many sores, some open some closed; all with bumps which resembled small tumours…they have been spreading. I don’t know why we couldn’t help her or what the sores were or why they were spreading, but she was afraid and desperate. She was young; maybe in her early 20’s. Normally I ask a few questions: how long has she had the ailment, did it start for any reason, how is it affecting her etc. etc and then we pray. We prayed, but her and her mother needed more – they needed to talk, so we talked maybe for 30-40 minutes. John is a wonderful translator and we got quite deep into the spiritual side of things and I spoke truthfully about the blessings Ruth could count like a mother who loved her and was upholding faith for both of them because hers was weak because of her demise; that she was able to walk; that she was beautiful; that she has a Father in heaven who loves her just the way she is, considers her special and has adopted her into HIs kingdom. That whether he heals her of this mutilation or not has no relevance to her being a child of the most high and she has to trust and lean on that fact. I assured her that she will know the reason when she gets home to heaven. I also assured her that our conversation doesn’t mean that God won’t heal her or provide the means to heal her, but her faith cannot rest on that but on the fact that she needs to see her cup half full regardless of whether she’s healed or not, or she can’t live with joy at being alive and a child of God! Blah, blah, blah, we talked a lot, and I shared quite a few pieces of scripture throughout our conversation. I shared some of my life so she knew my words weren’t empty which I never do as there’s usually no need too.  I told her she was my sister in Christ, and although I don’t usually offer to continue praying for people after they leave because obviously I wouldn’t be able to for everyone I would continue to pray for her; for her faith to grow strong so that no matter what would happen in her future that she would have the Lord as the foundation in her life, that her eyes would stay fixed on Jesus and her faith would be strong. The Holy Spirit gave me a confidence and the right words to speak the truth to this girl and her mother! I,nor John had any doubt about that!

Her mother told John that they, the black people (her words), know God and have always known God. They go to church every Sunday, that they know to how to pray, that God hears them if He answers prayer – they know God lives! She went on to say they don’t really try to have a relationship with him, or get to know HIs word so that they have it in times of trouble, and as a result they have an abundance of disease, death, poverty and voodoo. And then she added, you white people come and remind us that it is by faith that we have to live no matter what happens and that we need to be in relationship with Him to live a life that reflects Him and the fact that he is ever-present and for that she thanked us. She reached into her purse and got a pen and paper and I’m thinking yikes someone else who wants me to call and stay in touch and I am going to have to remind her that I don’t speak her language and it would be impossible to stay in touch when we can’t communicate when she hands the piece of paper to me and all she has written on it is ‘Ruth’ in big letters….Wow, am I in awe of this woman’s faith at that moment and the wisdom God has bestowed on her. She wanted nothing more than for me to pray for her daughter by name because earlier I had promised to continue to pray for her. I am humbled yet again as I am on so many occasions in this land where people give me and or Mercy Ships their trust just because! We are not here just for the physical, but also, and most importantly, for the spiritual!

“If you open your heart to the hungry and satisfy the needs of the oppressed, then your light will shine out from the darkness and your night will be as bright as noon. The Lord will guide you continually; he will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land and will restore your strength. You will be like a well-watered garden, like an ever-flowing spring.” Isaiah 58:10-11

More good news:

Here’s some of the stats for the day:

• Around 4000 people showed up at the stadium during the night and early morning on the 1st February
• 1609 passed through the 1st gate (the rest were told shortly after getting in line by 2 nurses with security that we couldn’t help them and sent home. They walked the line all night and early morning, so unqualified patients wouldn’t be waiting in vain)

 

                                    Once through the 1st gate we passed out water (donated by a local company) and sandwiches to all the people waiting to be seen by a surgeon or nurse

• 574 people came through the screening process

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• 475 people are scheduled for more lab tests, and/or x-rays (if a decision couldn’t be made without them), as well as, maxillofacial and plastic surgeries

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All in all it was a good day and we are thankful for how smoothly everything went.

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As you know from my last blog; in addition, to the big screening mentioned above we are doing weekly screenings for Dental and Eyes and are full for VVF patients from our waiting list when we were here in 2010. We are not doing Orthopaedics in this outreach because we are not here long enough for the rehabilitation to take place; however, we are trying to do follow-up on a 190ish ortho patients from our 2010 outreach. So far, the rehabilitation team has called 30 of the 190ish past patients and have only been able to reach 9 because of changed addresses and telephones etc. Please pray with us that God would bring light to these patients to contact us while we are here and/or the information we have to miraculously reach the ones we haven’t called yet so they can come for a follow-up.

I also ask you to pray for this outreach and the patients that we will be providing services for.

We learnt a lot from our tragic experience last year and there are many new processes in place that will benefit all future screenings and many West African people.

“And so I tell you, keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks, receives. Everyone who seeks, finds. And to everyone who knocks, the door will be opened.” Luke 11:9–10.

Please pray for Ruth with me…

Thank you!

Love and hugs,

xx Carol