short news

Well, I am headed home on June 4th. I get to spend that night in the airport in Manilla - smile. Then on to Cote d'Ivoire by June 7th ---another day layover in Dubai. Pray that all the flights go well. It will be fun going home.

A bit of refresher - I was in NYC for one month and here in the Philippines for the month of May. The Lord has really been working in my life all along the way. I have been reading great books. The latest is called Your God Is Too Safe by Mark Buchanan. (Thanks Karol for giving it to me.) God wants us to have holy habits - Godly routine, grow, fast - Is Food your Idol? There is no way to summarize the book without starting to "preach." It is very well written and interesting. Get out of the rut of serving Jesus, wait on Him, and live the glorious Christian life. I have had more time to read, meditate, self examine, and grow ---and yes, just time to think - smile. I'm planning to re-read the book to our family - it is really good.

Also God has been working on our marriage. The devil is so out to tear down Christian marriages Let's pray for each other. So, in this trip, Dan and I have been able to communicate a lot again. (You might know that we met in the mail system.) In all the busyness of home life and ministry, we were not communicating like we should.

On top of all of that, I have had a wonderful time with Ruth and Hannah --they are super midwives, calm and competent, and ready for whatever God has in store for them. So, I watched deliveries, helped out where I could, ate out, swam and had fun with them, and basically just enjoyed life here with them.

While I was gone, the church has grown. There is such a better spirit of unity and harmony. A few major problems have been ironed out and the people involved are friends again and smile at each other. Dan and I have had a chance to evaluate a bit and plan to do a few things differently and better. The little village church plant work is also growing, packing out the room, people getting saved and ready to be baptized. That is so exciting to see.

Also on a sad, but good note - Seth was in a motorcycle accident. (I am ready to get rid of that, but it WAS on a dirt road, minor, when a bicycle ran in front of him.) So Seth has an 8 in. gash down his shin ---had to have 15 external stitches and 5 stitches on the inside. I am sad that he had the accident, but I'm sure it could have been way worse. Maybe God was putting a little fear and caution into him. Praise the Lord for His protection.

Thanks for praying for us. Continue praying for our health and safety both at home and abroad. We pray for you.

Love in Christ,
Joan and Dan

Re: Update

I just realized that I sent out the letter, not using the blind carbon copy. Sorry for that!!

Update

Hi everyone!

I am away from Ivory Coast --now you get the benefit of a quick note about a dual ministry --Dan there and Me in NYC.

First, mission accomplished. My niece had a fairly smooth delivery on April 16th (Are any first deliveries very smooth?). Strong labor was about 7 hours during the day --God's timing is so very nice. Jonathan was born at 8 lb. 8 oz. healthy and fine. Both Laurelyn and Jonathan are doing fine. He is cute as you can see --even smiles a lot --how is that for a newborn. I am so happy for them and am glad I was able to be here and help out after the delivery as well. I guess I am the Great Aunt - smile. I've also been able to teach a few times and help with their VBS just a little --it has been fun; along with enjoying free time to read and do Bible study --so good.

Meanwhile, my wonderful husband has been taking care of the house, ministry, baby, 10 kids. He misses me - a good thing, smile. Maybe someday he will give his perspective on the matter of how it feels to be FRIED.

The village ministry is going so good. Seth started going out there by taxi (cost $3.00 for that), preaching in French on Sundays; and they still go together on Fridays. The room has been packed out and we need to take more chairs next time --that is a wonderful problem. Also people have been getting saved and soon we will have a baptism. We love growing pains. Keep praying for GOD to open their understanding and convict of sin to repentance.

Keep praying for my travel. Next week I leave for the Philippines --a month with Ruth and Hannah. Keep praying for Dan and all the kids at home!!! Thanks a lot.

Love,
Joan and Dan

a few pictures

Well, the great trip is about to begin so I wanted to write a quick note before I leave. As Rebekah said, "Calendars sure go by fast." Yes, they surely do. Pray much for all the upcoming travel (America to Manilla to Davao and back, 5 flights to go and 5 flights to come) and for the family still here in Africa. It is nice to have skype to be able to talk frequently.
The latest news is that Seth is now going out to the village on Sunday mornings to preach in French. Then he stays out there to do visitation and comes back later in the afternoon. Pray for God to open their hearts and for Seth to have power as he preaches and witnesses.
Dan is showing films both on Thurs. night and on Friday night --evangelistic films. Pray for open hearts. What a wonderful time to think about heaven - Resurrection Day. I like that better than "Happy Easter." May God bless you as we remember the power of the resurrection!!
We are studying Revelation. It is a sobering book, yet one to motivate us to get out there and witness --and then witness some more; compel them to come in. Do not grow tired. If they die without Christ they will suffer forever. They will cry tears of suffering and regret for all eternity. Keep someone in your prayers and look for opportunities to share Jesus with them. Time seems so short.
Love in Christ,
Dan and Joan
Here are a few pictures by Susanna----us, our kids in order of age, and the some of the zoo - we left off the dogs.

Hannah's news

Dear Friends,
Hello again...
So much happens here I don't know how to keep you all updated on everything that is going on. I'm going to try to touch on the biggest things :).
The biggest thing right now is graduation. I don't know if I've mentioned this before, but this school is kind of like doing college homeschool. It is quite flexible and adapts to each student's learning style and abilities. So if we are stressed or have too much to do, or if people get sick, we can ask for an extension. Well... many of our classmates were sick for much of last year. Thankfully, this year has been a lot better. I thank the Lord for all your prayers; Ruth and I were not sick when all the rest of our classmates were. However, because of all the extensions we had last year, we are quite a bit behind schedule. Normally we need to have everything finished and turned in by May 1st so that we can apply for the NARM (the big midwifery exam that makes us licensed). We have been working away and trying to get things done, as we only have about 4 weeks left. However, there is also a big midwifery conference (the MANA conference) where the NARM exam is offered. Usually it is in November, but this year it is in September. Our class has opted to take the NARM at the MANA conference in September, giving ourselves an extra month to get all our work done and turned in. So we will be staying here for an extra month, which is a blessing because we wanted to stay longer anyway but were having a hard time figuring out if we wanted to stay till November and be out of school for awhile before taking our big exam. So this works perfectly--we get to stay a little longer, but don't have to stay for THAT much longer.

The other big thing that is about to happen is my mom is coming for a visit! We are so excited to get to spend the month of May with her, and for her to get to meet our friends and see a bit of where we've been living these past 2 years. She was planning to come for graduation, but now that we aren't leaving till September, graduation got moved to August... so we're sad that my mom is going to miss graduation, but we are glad that my mom is coming. Also my mom's aunt is coming too, so that will be fun.

Prayer Requests:
That my mom will have a safe trip
Pray that God will watch over the rest of our family in Ivory Coast and continue to keep them healthy
We are going to have to find housing for the month of August because the new students will be coming and we will be moving out of the dorms.
The MANA conference where we will be going to take the NARM is in California, so we will need to find housing there also.
We are so thankful for the health and strength God has given us
Pray for our studies. It's hard to stay motivated as the end draws near and we just want to hang out and have fun... We have 3 assignments left... It was hard for me to keep my motivation when the date first got switched... But I'm still trying to get as much done as I can before my mom gets here in May.

Another thing that we did since I last wrote... in February we went on a 3 day hike up Mount Apo--the tallest mountain in the Philippines. There were 5 of us students and one of our supervisors and her husband and a group from her aunt's work.

Letter from Ruth

Hello again! Some of you have already received this letter from Ruth, but I wouldn't want to miss you if you didn't. Praise the Lord for the training He has given the girls. Have a great day.

African Camping

Some think we are crazy --why would we choose to go off and live without even a hope of electricity or water in the pipes? It was fun. Our destination was a deserted peninsula that separates the ocean from a river. There is an abandoned, stripped hotel there with a sidewalk running parallel to the river --nice for sitting on and setting out meals. It was supposed to be a 3 hour trip.
We left on Sunday after church for Grand Lahou which is on the way to Abidjan --(We needed to go to Abidjan early Monday morning to try to get my visa, sell 2 puppies, pick up Seth from the airport at 11:30 AM and head back to Grand Lahou to meet up with Messers.) We arrived at 9 PM with hungry, tired kids --including us. Things in Africa tend to get worse because of the bad roads and lateness of the hour. There is not 24 hour service for food. About the best you can do fast is French bread --which is very yummy. We got avocado, cucumber, tomato and put that in bread - nice.
Monday we were up at 5 AM to wash the puppies - 3 of them - on to Abidjan. I'll make this short - because of an accident up ahead we didn't get to Abidjan until 9 AM (supposed to be a 2 1/2 hour trip max.) The first couple bought a puppy - on we went for the visa. OH, the MONKEY was with me since we didn't want to leave it in the hotel. The kids stayed in the hotel to sleep a little - it was Dan, Lydia and I. The visa has to wait since it is only good for 3 months. On we went for groceries, (the other people who wanted a puppy wouldn't pick up their phone), picked up Seth who had a great time in Kenya, and back to Grand Lahou.
We were just pulling into GL when Andy called that their car had stopped completely, right on the other side of town --now it was 3:00 PM. On we went to pick up Becky and the kids; the men brought the car in - limping - huge problem - had to be left in GL with a mechanic to find parts in Abidjan and work on it while we were on the camping trip. By the time we were figuring out all this, it was getting late. The older part of the group went ahead to the camping spot ---take them to the dock, get a motor boat to drive up the river to where we wanted to camp - set up camp in the dusk around 5 PM. It gets completely dark by 7 to 7:30.
Meanwhile, I drove our car back to get Andy and the younger part of the group - another load over by 8 PM. We were able to eat sandwiches I had picked up in Abidjan ---all was fine and to bed in our tents we went. Don't forget --2 puppies and a monkey were with us as well. They really were no problem --just added babies along. I think there should be an age limit on camping --5 and up.
We were able to swim in the river every day - float down the river, walk up the beach, ride the canoe ---everyone had a great time. Seth even rigged a swing to swing out over the river.
The main funny story --the first night we weren't well organized. We had a king air mattress (aren't we camping in style?) in our tent. Gideon was on a pillow, then me on the air mattress next to Esther, then Dan and then Rebekah. Now, those two little girls are rollers ---I tell you, we didn't have this thing planned well. During the night I heard Esther go "Ahhhhhh." I told Dan, "Move quick. She is peeing." It was funny and yes she was. We changed the sheets and were fine after that.
The next night a huge storm kicked up. Andy and Becky's tent almost went over ---moored only in the sand. We were up trying to rain-proof the site and praying that it wouldn't hit. It was a big storm - lightning and thunder ---very beautiful. And to think, God is so much more powerful than the storm. He is ALL power!!! lightning and thunder ---very beautiful. And to think, God is so much more powerful than the storm. He is ALL power!!!
Well, God let the storm pass with only a few sprinkles our way.
The rest of the trip was uneventful ---good food and fun. If you want more details or have questions - feel free to ask.
After 3 nights on the beach we went back to the hotel at GL --it even has a pool - $20 a night. We all got washed up and slept WELL.
Andy and Becky's car still wasn't ready on Friday. We stayed with them until 11:30 AM then left to get to our meeting in the village on time. They came later after their car was running. They have more stories about that. Praise the Lord we all made it home safely.
Thanks for all your prayers. This is called - real family time - smile.
Love,
Dan and Joan and Co.

Quick news

you!!!!!  

The girls sent this picture ---as they said, "It wasn't meant to be cute.  We were trying to be warm."  And I don't know how to separate the picture from the "I love you." so there you go.  God is great and takes care of us as always.  Thank you so much for your prayers!!!

Here is what is happening at the moment:  Ruth and Hannah graduate the end of May.  A cheap round-trip ticket came up from here to there for 900 some dollars (a normal ticket is near 2,000 from here - like double to America).  That ticket was a Christmas / New Year special and it was a "decide and buy NOW."  Well, we couldn't decide and buy now and the time went by.  Meanwhile, we got our hopes up and then were a bit disappointed.  I told Ruth and Hannah to pray and if God wanted me to go, He would provide something BETTER.  Nothing had been turning up.
My niece Laurelyn is pregnant and is due in April.  She wants me to come deliver their baby!! Wow.  PRAY a lot for that delivery --her first.   So, they are bringing me to the states, and from the states round-trip to the Philippines is in the 900's again.  
If I had gotten the first ticket I wouldn't have been able to go deliver Laurelyn's baby.  That is not all.
There is a girl who wants to come out for about two months - never traveled overseas before and her father was thinking to accompany her.  Now she is able to try to get her ticket to match mine and come back with me.  That will be nice for both of us.  She sounds like a very nice girl - 18 yo.  Even another thing --she wants to be in the states for June 2 - a graduation, and our ticket won't be until June 6th.  
It is comforting to me to see the hand of God in the details.  I am nervous and praying so much for all my babies that will be here.  It will be good for the older kids to get pushed out of their normal comfort zone for a bit --teach in French, play the piano for church, laundry, cooking, buying groceries to keep up with the menu (I WILL make a menu for them), maybe appreciate Mom a bit?    
So, that is what has been happening around here.  The weeks are full.  Life goes like this - school every day, beach Monday afternoon, Wed. night meetings, Friday to the village to preach and teach, Saturday afternoons - visitation, ladies' class, and everything planned for Sat. afternoon; Sunday 8:30 SS, then Church, then classes - ladies' class, youth class, men's class, membership class.  Normally in the states you could have some of these meetings during the SS hour or during the week.  No one wants to come out at night and they don't show up on time for SS.  After church is the best time to have everyone present.  Tuesday and Thursday afternoons are a bit free --do the shopping, do whatever pops up as an "interruption" during the week, and even practice the piano or guitar if it works out.  We do love life here.
  We so appreciate it and you praying for us.  Please PRAY for all this travel to go smoothly, for the delivery, and for all my family still here at home to be safe and healthy.  Thanks a lot.
Have a great day.
Love in Christ,
Joan

PS.  We just got back from our African camping trip ---yes, I know our whole life is camping in Africa.  Our camping TRIP is to go and spend 3 days and nights ON a deserted beach.  Last time we did the trip it was just our family and we slept on air mattresses and blow up pool toys outside with mosquito nets.  This time Messers went with us and we had tents.  It is a very long story that I can't write up right now ---LONG story - Messers' car had troubles and broke down completely;  going with two puppies and a monkey;  Gideon is 2 years old and was teething - hanging on to me like glue;  going to get Seth at the airport ---he had been on a mission trip to Kenya;  huge rain and wind storm in the night --everyone up trying to rain proof the tents - one of which was about to blow over completely.  I'll write the story after a while.  We got home to no water and lots of wet laundry - it might get moldy, that is why none of our clothes from here are fit to bring to the states.  No, I'll lay them out in the sun to at least dry them a bit.  

Have a Wonderful Christmas

Dan is feeling a bit better. He drove to the big market area a few days ago and figured out he'd pay for that ---not ready for driving yet. So, that leaves me driving to the village - Petite Pedro on Friday night and Gblao on Sat. night for a film. Seth will go and preach Friday night, Dan will go on Sat. night. Also we have all been invited to the ice cream shop on Sat. night ---when can we do that? Sat. night Seth is leading a service and skits in here at Lac. We will see if we can do the ice cream late.
Tues. we / I made and decorated Christmas cookies, brownies, sweet-rolls, and jam bars ---made some platters to pass out ---many unsaved friends and neighbors. Gave a nice card with 5 different tracts. I'm sure they will read them on their spare time. So, Tues. night we went and passed those all out --it has been busy. We usually do Christmas caroling ---but decided to skip that and pass out goodies and tracts instead.
Now I am on sort and clean-up projects for today --made a shell mirror for Nadege with Rebekah ----take a mirror and glue sea shells to the frame --very nice. Today is a breather before the weekend starts. Made a mirror for us --"May the faces I see see Jesus in Me."
I've been able to witness well to Fatiah and Sophia. They now all know, believe they say, no decision yet. No blood on my hands. They are now somewhat friends ---as good a friends as you can have with the unsaved. Susanna and Lydia went to spend the day with Sophia today. We will invite them to the Sat. night time --will be very good and evangelistic. Seth is great for that. I don't know if they will come --they want to come to our church; our church is not geared to the wealthy. We will see. So, we keep praying and witnessing to all the lost that we can.
Lately I've been focusing on prophecy. Since you see all the prophecy coming true --Jesus is coming soon --get saved NOW. In the days of Noah --when the ark was finished - the people should have known the time was near. When they saw the animals getting in the ark --they should have known - something is up, time is running out. That is how it is these days. Time is running out ---get saved now.
Well, off I go. Have a Merry Christmas. Sunday morning we are only doing a breakfast ---boiled eggs, bread and chocolate spread, and popcorn --more simple. -- We are just tired a bit ---want a good time, but focus on the gospel getting out.
Have a happy new year too.
Love,
Joan and Dan
PS. Ruth and Hannah were supposed to have a break in the Philippines ---it was cancelled. They work at the clinic on Sat. night ---they don't mind that and love to catch babies. It is good for them to be busy - -less chance of being homesick.

Have a wonderful Christmas

As the kids move the little angel along the calendar closer and closer to Christmas, I know that if I do not hurry, I will not have time to wish you all a super merry Christmas. You have probably heard ---"He had the birthday, we get the gift." Don't we moms know that? We gave birth, did the labor; and the kids get the gifts for the rest of their lives. How does that work out?? The kids have figured out that our birthday parties are getting boring because I have done about 143 of them. Well, Christmas is never boring and He keeps on giving so many blessings.
As for news ---God has been so great as usual. Dan was in a minor motorcycle accident. The problem was that the other man had a gas bottle (like a propane gas bottle - the size of two basketballs) on the front of his motorcycle, which flew off and hit Dan in the collarbone and ribs thereby fracturing them. From the swelling, discoloration and pain; I figured he had fractured them and since there is no treatment plan (I had already checked to see if things seemed straight) -on we went. He has his arm in a sling and is taking it easy. Meanwhile we have two heads working and only one body - smile. The body needs a rest. Praise God that it wasn't worse.
Meanwhile, Micheline's husband got saved, and Claudia got saved tonight. Wow, she prayed a beautiful prayer all on her own ---the young girl who is staying with us while her mother is trying to find them a place to live --a very long story. I just love it when someone gets saved!! I pray so much for Sophia and her mother to get saved ---we talk with them every weekend; Fatiha seems very close. Pray much and for us to have boldness and a Word from God.
Have a wonderful Christmas vacation ---that is what we like best. Just rescue us from school ---we are ready for a break. In all the activities, remember - He had the birthday ---he suffered and died and rose again, so that we could have the gifts.
With lots of love,
Joan and Dan

HAPPY THANKSGIVING

I would be neglectful if I didn't join in the loud praise and thanksgiving to God for ALL HIS wonderful blessings. Thanks be to God!! And we are headed to Christmas --Thanks be to God for His unspeakable gift!! Amen. We are going to focus on Wise men STILL seek HIM. Yes, we sure do want to be wise. Everyone has a response --accept, reject, tell others, opposition. We want to accept Him and tell others --not just tell them, but compel them to come in. Wow. Though the task is huge, aren't we so happy to know that He is in charge of the harvest?
We love you. THANKS TO GOD for all His Blessings. HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!
Love,
Dan and Joan

Hello From Davao! Hannah this time

You recently heard Ruth's side of life in the Philippines, and Hannah already sent this to some of you; so if you already got this just delete ---did I need to say that? smile. When you hear from midwives they talk about deliveries - that is what we do. It is such an open door to witnessing. I'll save my news for another time.

October letter

I always start letters by being amazed at how fast the time has gone - this is what happens when so much is packed into a little bit of time. I have wanted to run to the computer and write many times, and then the next thing hits and I think, "It is a good thing I did not write yet."

The best thing is the people getting saved and the growth in the churches. One man to whom we have been witnessing and praying for finally "got it." Dan and he were out in a village where there is no electricity or running water, working on a future church site. The man noticed the huge electric towers overhead and commented, "It is a shame that the cable goes right over this town, and yet they are still in darkness." Dan said, "That is just like you. You have been coming to church and hearing the Gospel, and yet you are still on the road to hell." He came and prayed with Dan the next day. Hallelujah! Not only is there rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents - I get excited too. Now we have more who are ready to get baptized. That is always encouraging.

I wrote of deliveries that have come my way - another one came. This time the lady was in early labor, and it was 8:30 p.m. I knew it was going to be a long night, but no one was there with her, so I didn't feel like I could just leave. (Meanwhile, the girls called, saying the cat was having her kittens and what should they do? Watch - smile. Call me if you need anything.) The hours stretched on as I sat in a dark room lit by a kerosene lamp and swatting mosquitoes ---there was to be no relaxing. I asked at one point, "Do you have a dog over there in the corner?" Half the room was taken up by wood, buckets, cement bags, dishes, etc. "No," she said, "that is just the rats." Okay, so now I watched as the mice went back and forth - I had a flashlight. I noticed that they kept their blankets and clothes in a metal drum to keep out the rats. I did use the time to pray for you ALL. I prayed for all our churches, friends, concerns, and anything that came to my mind. So, maybe God was just telling me, "Come over here and talk with Me for a while." Finally a sister-in-law came at 3:30 a.m., so I felt I could leave. I figured the baby was coming the next afternoon. I got to bed by 4:30 and was extra appreciative of my nice, clean house and bed.

It was the woman's second baby, but the first child is 16 years old, so just the same as a first delivery. She had a healthy baby boy that afternoon at 4 p.m. at the hospital. Her house was not suitable for a delivery --lots of traffic during the day; and my house surely has lots of traffic during the day; so I was happy she had a safe delivery and a healthy baby - without me, smile. It was Stephen's birthday, and I already had the day fully filled. God held me up, and I was not even that tired.

On Sunday we were all singing away when some kids in the middle aisle at church noticed a snake above their heads on the crossbeam. We all filed out to let the men kill it - a long green snake. Dan says it was not poisonous - better dead anyway. Then we came back in and finished the service. Dan had just been teaching Sunday school about the devil and his attacks, Eph. 6. Satan is planning an evil day for you. He is smart and is trying to plan your downfall. Anyway, the snake was a good illustration and also woke everyone up for the morning message.

Twice, a pastor from Canada has sent money for some Liberian refugees who are here, and Dan has been willing to receive the money, buy the food, divide it up, and distribute it. That was a huge job, but greatly appreciated. Imagine doing that for 168 families. It was a joy to be of help to such needy people and to be able to encourage them in the Lord in English. Seth has had some of them come to his services recently. There is so much that could be done!! TIME. A ten-year-old girl there at the refugee camp (They are living in tents made of palm branches; you can't even stand up in them.) just drowned last week when she was at the river drawing water. I could send pictures, but it would be too gruesome. They have killed so many snakes, seven in one day last week. A man was also bitten but is doing quite well, and a pregnant woman rolled over on one, but it didn't bite her. We need so much prayer and strength as we live life here.

The next Sunday Andy and Becky's water heater shot out flames while David was trying to light the pilot light. The pilot light was out, but the gas was still on; so when David tried to light it, flames engulfed him. He got 1st and 2nd degree burns on his hands, arms, legs, and feet. His face and hair also were singed. Becky, who was back in the doorway, was even burned on her face, one arm, hand, and foot. They were able to get into cool water right away, and between us we had "good stuff" for burns; a product called "Ice," and the main good thing was egg whites. (Yes, I've told a few people about that, though I never thought we'd have to use it like we did.) The egg whites work really well - coat the skin, seal, and sooth. I pray for discernment and wisdom every day. God has to give wisdom for each step of the way. It has now been a week, and they are healing fairly well. There are quite a few raw patches, swelling, and discoloration, but we are praying that all this will heal quickly and with no complications. (If you want to see pictures, go to Andy Messer's facebook.) Praise the Lord for His mercy ---it could have been a lot worse if their clothes had caught fire. A burn will for sure remind you that you don't want any of your friends to go to hell.

Dan has been able to buy two properties in different villages to start churches. In one of the villages, we already had a group going - preaching done by Pastor Paul, the one who was here at this church while we were in America. Now Paul is back there preaching full time. The other village is a brand new work. Pray that many people will get saved. That is the goal - reach people for Christ and help them grow. We live in exciting times. The more we pray and see Satan kick, the more we know God is blessing. Pray much.

Thanksgiving is almost upon us. Many happy wishes and prayers to you! Giving thanks will surely start the day out right. All of us are well. Here are pictures of Gideon, Esther and Joseph who change the most. We thank God for each of these precious ones He has entrusted to us. We thank God for you, too, and for your prayers, which make it possible for us to be here!

With lots of love,

Dan and Joan

Ruth and Hannah (in the Philippines), Seth, Lydia, Susanna, Isaiah, Stephen, Rebekah, Josiah, Joseph, Esther, and Gideon

Ruth's letter with pictures

Dear Friends,

I guess that this letter isn’t late because it is coming just as frequently as any other letters that we sent. I am very sorry for the lack of correspondence. As you know we are very busy here. It is sort of hard to write letters to you all because of the nature of what we do here. We study textbooks and learn about midwifery – that is not interesting and you don’t want to hear about that; and we work in the clinic and catch/deliver babies – how can I tell about birth? Can’t describe it!

I will just try to describe to you a little chunk of my life that was particularly CRAZY (leaving out any details that would not be appropriate).

It started with night shift. When I arrived at 10 pm I got a patient. She was in strong labor and I stayed up all night with her. I had seen her previously in prenatals and we really had a connection. She did not deliver till 6:54 am. Shift ends at 6 am, but I stayed with my patient because if I didn't she probably would have gotten transported to the hospital because she was exhausted and the midwives coming on shift did not know her story, etc. (and also I liked her). As soon as the new supervisor arrived on shift (she is also one of my favorites) she want to transport. Heather (the supervisor from night shift. An American) stayed over just to be there for my patient. It was special. She helped coach my patient to push. You should have seen her. She was SO exhausted and had NO energy. Her husband was taller than I, and super sweet and supportive of his wife. He did not want to have to go to the hospital. The patient was sobbing because she was so happy after the baby came out. Heather was also teary eyed. The birth affected all of us. It did not seem like the baby would ever come out and when it did we were all soo… It is hard to describe the feelings after a baby is born!

So.... I got home at 10:30 am from staying awake all night. I went straight to bed and got up at 3 pm because I had a postpartum check-up for another one of my patients. After I did two postpartum checks, my continuity (a patient that is my patient from prenatals all the way through) came to the clinic -- that was at 4 pm. I then stayed for all of swing shift and stayed awake all night again. My continuity delivered at 3:19am, plus another of my continuities came in and delivered at 2:12 am. I delivered two babies only 1 hour and 7 minutes apart!! And I delivered 3 babies in 24 hours. I came home and slept from 10am to 7 pm. I was SO tired but very happy that both of the women were able to deliver at our clinic and that I was able to partake in their birth.

The one continuity really has a sad story. She is only 17 years old and was raised by her grandmother. She is not grown up. She really is a baby herself. Labor was very painful for her and, on top of that, it was really long. She would say, "Ruth, help me. Ruth, help me." Then she would have a contraction. She was pleading with me, but there really was nothing I could do. She had to be the one to deliver her baby. Afterwards she said, "I am never having another baby." She had a baby boy that was 8 lb. 4 oz.!!

Yesterday I printed my assignment and cooked dinner for our house. I made chili, cornbread, salad and rice. It was delicious. We have a cook that cooks on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. It is SO great even though it is not exactly what we would like (she uses things like pig fat and corn starch and MSG, but she does not use them all the time). It takes off a large burden to have her come and she is so sweet and really wants to help us. We are still in the adjustment phase, but we would much rather have her than have to do without her. Imagine having a full time job with over time, being in full time school, having to shop and cook for 20 some people, and trying to have relationships and get along with people while maintaining a relationship with God. It is not easy.

We appreciate your prayers for us tremendously. There are times when I can feel like someone must be praying for me. I feel so blessed to be able to serve here and learn to be a midwife and be supported by you.

I know without a doubt that I am so blessed to be able to learn midwifery in a Christian setting on the mission field in a foreign country and have so much clinical experience!! I have done over 300 prenatal check-ups and have caught 45 babies – not to mention the number of births that I have been able to be involved in and observe. I am learning so much!

Midwifery is really one of the best tools to be able to get into a woman’s life (and therefore the life of her family) and transcend any and all barriers to the gospel. When you are a woman’s midwife there are no barriers. For a woman to trust you and allow you to deliver her baby, she really can’t have any barriers, and what kind of gratitude will she feel toward you after you have assisted her in bringing a new life safely into the world and supporting her in her time of need. I have seen it happen, women are so open and accepting to a woman who has gone through something like birth with her.

I am planning (in God’s will) to use my midwifery and whatever training I get, on the mission field. There are so many open doors and so many needs that have presented themselves. There are many missionaries who have specifically asked for a Christian midwife to come and work in their area. As of now, I don’t have a certain place that I feel “called” to, but I really would like to work in the Ivory Coast alongside of my family. Our dreams of what we could do are so many that it would be impossible to do them alone. We have thought of starting a maternity clinic and a girl’s home/center.

Things that it would be wonderful if you would pray with us about:

v God’s leading and direction in what He would have for the future.

v For our health (Of course, this is a constant. Without good health, it is hard to function).

v For relationships with people. God would lead us to give Biblical advice when the situation arises.

v Our schooling/learning. We would be able to keep up with the academics.

There are more things that I could think of, but that is enough for now.

Thank you so much,

Ruth Cuthbertson

“Not that I speak in regard to need for I have learned in whatsoever state I am to be content. I know how to be abased and I know how to abound, everywhere and in all things, I have learned both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need.”

~ Philippians 4:11-12