Medical Missionary Work in the Village

With our last evangelism school session, when they went out to the village to do their effort, our Mr. Bill went with them.  He was right there in the middle of it with them helping with first-aid issues and other things.  We were told that there was a terrible case of bed bugs where they stayed.  Some of our students were "city folk" so the village conditions were a real eye-opener for some of them.   One student said she didn't have a clue that people of her own country lived so close to the edge of survival.
One lady in particular that had some nasty wounds on her legs was helped by Mr. Bill and our students.  Before the end of the meetings she was able to walk again and even walked to the church service.  We are thankful that we can watch God work to help people not only physically but also spiritually.
Here are a few other excerpts from Bills notes on the village effort.

     We were provided with a five room building for all 30 of us, two rooms for the ladies, 3 for the guy's, no kitchen or bathroom of course. The kitchen was a separate little building apart from the main house with a two or three burner stove, depending on how many fires you want to make on the floor. Totally off the grid as you would expect. We did have running water however, would you like to know how far we had to run for it? Only one quarter mile twice a day. We had 5 gallon containers and buckets. The guys would carry these containers, usually by their handles, some on their shoulders, that was my preference, the ladies choose to carry these 70 lb. burdens on their heads. I think it will forever fascinate me to watch them do this. One day while I was getting my bath water at the pump, two little, really little girls, no more than 6, or 7 years old, were also fetching their family's water supply. I pumped the water into their buckets, and with all my strength, lifted each bucket above their heads, until they positioned themselves under their load, relieving me of the weigh that made my arms shake, then in amazement watched them skip away, okay, they didn't skip, but it would not have surprised me if they had.

        What occupied most of our time was walking from home to home visiting, making friends, sharing the gospel as we had opportunity, and having prayer with them. On the first day out, our group of three came to the home of an intoxicated man working his craft of basket weaving, his wife sitting on the ground with their youngest of eight children by her side. All three looking dirty and dejected, the woman especially, with her head hung down, not bothering to even look at perhaps the only visitors they may of had for years. After ten minutes of trying to encourage this family, we started to leave, but by the request of the husband to his wife to show us her lower left leg, we stayed to see a sight that made our stomachs turn. On the front of this leg was a 4 inch gash, very deep and badly infected, due to an injury received by falling two months prior to our visit. The infection surrounding the wound by 3 to 4 inches, wrapping around to the back of the leg. Then were her right leg makes contact with the oozing  fluid of the infection, the infection had spread to that leg as well. Before even considering the implications of the problem, I told the students who were with me that we have to treat this. Fortunately I packed my little first aid kit; a small roll of gauze, some tape, a few band aids, what more do you need to save a leg. In the bush country of Africa you do what you have to do with what ever you have. We returned the next day to start treatments, washing the infected area with warm water and soap. One day we forgot the soap and she didn't have any, so we used a small packet of shampoo I had in my backpack from a hotel. After cleaning the wound and the infected areas we applied a charcoal poultice, prayed, and left. By the third treatment, the oozing had stopped and the infection was in remission. A week and a half later we were able to stop the charcoal treatment and focus on aiding the healing process. For that we applied honey. Toward the end of the 3 weeks of treatments, the women told us how surprised her neighbors were to see her walking again. We didn't realize when we first met her that she wasn't walking.

Bill in Njojo village helping the lady that couldn't walk

         It didn't take long before word got out that we were helping people. We were mostly getting people with infected foot injuries....

       We were taken to the home of a little 7 year old girl who became ill when she was 2 years old. She was hospitalized for a week, recovered from the illness, but was no longer able to walk or talk. Her mother died giving birth to her next sibling so Sara, was given to her grandparents to raise. Tanzania does not have facilities, or homes for the handicapped. This is not an uncommon case, I have seen it twice before. As the child gets older, so do the grandparents, until they are incapable to meet the increasing needs of the child. They usually die at a young age of neglect and starvation. We took a video of her and as much information as we could, and told the father we would try to locate a facility that can give her the care she needs.

     Three days before our effort ended, a mother brought her eight year old daughter to us with a massive infected sore on her neck, under her left ear. My heart sank at the sight of this beautiful child with this nasty infection eating away her flesh. So what can we do? We do the best we can with what we have, and pray! After the third, and last day of treatment with charcoal and honey, the improvement was remarkable. We instructed the mother to continue the treatment until she is completely healed. I hope to go back to that village to check on her.

     Each evening we conducted meetings, mostly on better living habits and health. It amazed me how far people would walk on trails in the dark to attend the meetings. The meetings were conducted in front of the building we were living in. One evening a large black snake was seen coming out of the building. Those who seen, and killed it believe it came out of the room that I and two other men slept in, on the floor.

    After about fifteen nights of being eaten by bed bugs, I finally figured out how to get rid of them. God's natural remedies are truly wonderful. I would take a clove of garlic into my sleeping bag and rub it all over myself, then leave the rest of the garlic in the bag through the night.

Thank you for all the prayers and support.