Week 3:The time is now

My heart is heavy with thoughts as I write to you today. This week was full of so many new things. Although this week has been full of so many joys, fun stories interesting cultural tid-bits and fascinating little anecdotes that I could write about for pages and pages, my heart is set on writing to you only a quick sketch of these so that I might spend the last part of my time with you pouring out my heart and trying to process through all that the Lord has been teaching me, that you also may be blessed by the things happening here in Nigeria.

The week started with really fun things. On Saturday of last week we (Allison, Tim, Dan, Rachel and two of the young singles from another compound Jaime and Joseph, and then our driver, Michael and his family of wife and three kids and then of course, me) took a day to a place called “Yankari Game Resort” which is a place about three hours drive outside of Jos where you can go and take a little safari and swim in the natural springs which is actually clean and void of any nasty living organism, unlike most of the water here in Nigeria. =) We all had a blast relaxing for the day and entertained ourselves (and most of the other Nigerians who were at the springs) with trying to climb up the face of the rock wall that the springs come from.
Another awesome part of our day was the safari. I was blessed with an elephant!! I know this seems like a large and somewhat dangerous blessing, but here is the short story. Because it is rainy season, there is a ton of shrubbery and over-grown trees so it makes it much more difficult to see animals. For some reason though, my heart was set on seeing elephants on the safari; everyone kept telling me we wouldn’t see them and to not get my hopes up. Well, my hopes were already up and so I began praying. I know it seems like a silly prayer, but God takes delights in our pleasures when they are pure, so I figured He might grant me my request. Well, I was so confident that God would not disappointment me, that I began telling everyone to keep a keen eye out for elephants. They were all making fun of me and teasing me, but I told them, “You just wait, God will bring me my elephant, you will see!” SURE ENOUGH, about an hour into our safari there on the road right in front of us stood an elephant!!!! I was so excited! There were also more off to the side of the road, so we got to see a total of about 5 elephants! Everyone was thrilled and even the safari guides were really happy we got to see them and said it was very rare for visitors to see elephants like that on the road this season. Then everyone began asking me to pray that we would see a lion. I had to just laugh and say, “No, no, God brought me my elephant and I am completely satisfied with that.” =)

The next day was church and we went to a traditional Hausa service with one of the SIM drivers. We all wore our traditional Nigerian outfits which was really fun and we felt like we fit in a little better, but I’m pretty sure everyone could have still been able to pick out the visitors even if we weren’t made to sit in the front row. =) The service was awesome. It was so fun to get to watch the people in their familiar tongue and style praise the Lord and listen to His word. The music was AMAZING! The preaching was intense, REALLY loud and emphatic. The tithing was confusing (they take about 5 different offerings and we never knew which was what). And the people were so welcoming. After the service, Audu, the man who took us, walked us over to his house and he encouraged us and thanked us for coming. With a little question asking on our part, we then all sat and listened as he unfolded the testimony of the church and how he had started it and how the Lord was blessing the church. It was an amazing story and I felt so privileged and encouraged to be able to be a part of that body of believers even for a short time.

Monday began with working in ICU. The nurses were really nice to be able to work with and welcomed the help we were offering. Nursing is different here. I have not quite figured out why except that I can only say that the nurse does not interact with the patient and the family as much as one might in the U.S.A. The only really specific thing that I can examine throughout my week is that the nurse here spends most of his or her time caring for the patient physically instead of socially, psychologically or spiritually. However, perhaps because of the ICU setting and the nature of the patient’s conditions the environment simply lent itself to this type of observation. And yet, from all that I have seen so far, and even now having a day in pediatrics, it seems as though nursing is much more to care physically for the patient and to make sure business is in order so that when the Doctor comes, he or she can talk with the patient and the family and have the interaction, the teaching and the relationship.

Regardless, nursing is not that much different when it comes to the physical aspect of patient care. The ICU nurses were very quick and accurate and excellent in their work. They are well equipped with technology that many would be surprised that a hospital in Nigeria would have, and yet there are many things that are lacking or broken that they all wish they had. We took vital signs every 2 hours on the patients because they were stable and measured urine output every hour. Allison and I learned how to document and took over performing this task as well as aiding with the bed baths and the routine care. We also learned their IV bag care and techniques and flow rates. There are 4 beds in ICU and most of the patients that were on the ward were CHI (Closed Head Injuries) and unconscious from RTAs (Road Traffic Accidents). The nurses enjoyed talking with us and asking us about nursing in the U.S. and wanted to know how things were here compared to there. There was also another student nurse in the ICU and it was really fun to get to know her and to talk to her about her training and her life.

We were in the ICU Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday for half a day and then Friday. Wednesday afternoon we went out to a camp called ECWA (Evangelical Church of West Africa) Camp Youth Alive (ECYA) (Everything is abbreviated here if you haven’t noticed yet. =) haha). Allison and I were last-minute asked to be the camp nurses for this ECYA camp that is going to take place the 2nd through the 7th of August. It is a camp for kids 12-15 and the leaders training was from Wednesday of this week to Sunday. WELL, since we had already scheduled to be in ICU at Evangel and it was last minute and we are not going to be counselors, we asked if we could just go out for a night and a day of the staff training, that way we would only miss one day at Evangel. The camp staff training was fun, but it was a little uncomfortable at first because we were not really sure what we were doing and felt like we did not know anything! BUT the Lord helped us work through some of our insecurities and really encouraged us through the relationships we began to build with the staff. They were so fun and so energetic to praise the Lord! Each had such a dear heart for the Lord and it was so neat to get to see brothers and sisters serving the Lord with their talents and their hearts for kids. They also sang beautifully! We would be sitting after dinner and all of a sudden someone would say “Let’s sing a song of praise!” and someone would start singing and they ALL know the song and they ALL sing really loud and really beautifully and start harmonizing and clapping to complex African rhythms. It made my heart so happy, but more importantly I know it made God’s heart happy as He sat and listened to the beautiful music coming from the hearts of His children.

Friday was a difficult day back at ICU. I do not know why it was difficult, either because it should have been or because I am still trying to understand what it is that I think and feel. I sat down Saturday morning to try and sort my thoughts and this is what I wrote:

“As I gently closed the eye lid, I began searching for answers on the man’s still face; hoping, wishing, that somehow his earthly corpse could give me an idea of what his spirit might now be encountering. I stood and watched as the doctor told the daughter and her mother in law that their loved one had passed away and listened to the wailing and the crying. The daughter began to shout to the sky, “Jehovah! Where shall I run? The Lord is my strength, to whom shall I run! I have no mother and now I have no father!”
We had just a half an hour before taken his vital signs and they were relatively normal. But the nurse had noticed his breathing was more like gasping and had asked us to take them again quickly to see if his status had changed. His blood pressure had dropped some, but other than that it was only that he was gasping. Then all of a sudden he went from 24 respirations a minute to gasping for air only every 10 seconds or so. The nurse was trying to get oxygen on him and the doctor who had been called was there as well. We were all running around getting things for the doctor and the other nurse, trying to maintain the oxygen supply for the man who had now stopped breathing. They tried for about 10 minutes everything they could, but it was over.

It was the first patient that I have seen die, but I am sure it will not be the last. I know that the profession I am going into, especially if I would want to work in an ER setting or overseas in this type of setting, requires me to be able to cope with death on a regular basis. I know that the Lord is the giver and taker of life and I am confident that He knew that it was this man’s time to be taken from this world. It does make you think though, “What will my death be like?” and more importantly, “How will I chose to live my life before I get to my death bed?”

I have chosen. I chose to live my life as an offering to Christ Jesus my Lord because He deserves any glory and honor that each breath or each step I take could bring Him. I only pray that my every breath and every step can bring Him enough, for He is a mighty God and deserves so much more than I can bring.”

We went back to the camp to stay one more night and to finish it out with the staff Saturday night because we felt that it would be best and we were asked to do so. I was dreading going back out because I was not sure if I had enough energy to be with so many people, but the Lord is so faithful and knows exactly what we need every day. Saturday night we were greeted by open arms and hugs and the staff saying “OH you are back! WE missed you!” which was so encouraging! I realized that it was exactly what I needed, to build relationships with them and to be lifted up by fellow believers. They were even more open with me when we were there the second time and I got to have really cool conversations and interactions with the girls. (And I have now definitely been asked multiple times if I want to marry a Nigerian man...=) haha...including by a 35 year old man at the hospital... GOSH I need to stop forgetting to wear my fake wedding ring! haha!)

Yesterday was awesome too! We had a Sunday morning service that the camp put on with a pastor they invited (who was actually one of the main chaplains from Evangel). It was SUCH a great sermon! He talked about the theme of the camp “maranatha” and how we should be eagerly awaiting the coming of our Lord Jesus. He said he was not going to debate when or how Christ would come again, but that we should be most focused on the fact that HE IS coming and that we should be living our lives with that promise in mind! It was so convicting! I want to live a life that manifests my eager anticipation for the return of Christ. I LONG for Christ to tell me “Well done good and faithful one” when I meet Him in the clouds! I don’t want to live a life that is complacent and satisfied with politically correct Christianity anymore. I’m convicted that I should not be quiet about the gospel just because I might offend someone. It is ETERNAL life we are talking about!!! My popularity and my own image is worth NOTHING and so why should I care what people think of me!? How convicted I was that I am not bold regarding the gospel of Christ.
In my study of Paul by Beth Moore called “To live is Christ” (Thank you Allison V. for introducing me to the study!!) I have been learning SOOOOOOO much! I have gained so much insight into the background of Paul and the surrounding early church. I read the story of Stephen yesterday and I was completely blown away. I want to be like Stephen; he was so Spirit filled that it was apparent in both his external and internal characteristics. I crave for a life that is so Spirit filled that I would be willing to DIE for the sake of Christ and that I would be even so Christ-focused that I would be able to forgive my murderers with my last breath! How awesome and how pleased was Christ that He even STOOD to welcome Stephen into the kingdom of heaven! It says “But he (Stephen) being full of the Holy Spirit, gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God..” (Acts 7:55). What an honor to get a standing ovation from the Lord Jesus Christ, and when Stephen was stoned to death and he finally entered the presence of the Lord in heaven I can only imagine Christ lifting Stephan up from his knees saying “Well done good and faithful one!!!”

The Lord has been revealing Himself to me in so many ways I am completely overwhelmed. I am so excited and burdened for my own people now. I love the Nigerian people. THEY ARE AMAZING! I would be happy living here the rest of my life and serving along side of them. And yet I know since the Lord is calling me back to the USA, back to California, back to Escondido and then back to school in Azusa, there is a huge ministry THERE for me to serve my own people, to tell my own people about the radical love of our radical Savior.

Time is short, friends. I have seen death as many of you have I’m sure. I went from watching a man breathing to searching for his pulse and finding nothing. I was also reminded that Christ’s return is soon, that it will come like a thief in the night, that it can come at any time. The question I have to continue to ask myself in light of these reflections and reminders is this: What am I doing with this moment that I have been given? and am I choosing to use every moment in order that Jesus Christ might get all the more glory and honor? The pastor that spoke on Sunday encouraged us to leave each other with the phrase “maranatha” which means something like “come, Jesus come!!” to remind ourselves that we are looking eagerly for the glorious return of our Savior and that it is coming soon! So let us not wait, let us be eager to use each moment we are given to glorify the name of Christ. Let us look forward to the promise that Christ WILL return and shall gather us and meet us in the clouds! The disciples lived with this promise in mind and the knowledge that life is but a vapor and it vanishes so quickly. They were BOLD in their talk and unashamed of the gospel of Christ and their numbers multiplied daily. Let us strive for the same boldness and eagerness so that we can have the biggest party in the clouds when Christ returns!

MARANATHA!
Alisha

PRAISES
-I have been healthy and feeling strong this week!!
-We made some really good relationships with the camp staff at camp
-The Lord has been teaching Allison and I so many things and has been so faithful in being our comfort and our strength through difficult times.

PRAYER
-Allison has a cold! I made her stay home from work today so she would feel better and not get the little babies sick... Pray she gets well quickly!
-Pray for the camp coming up: that the kids coming would be ready to hear the word of God and that we would have wisdom in how to treat the kids
-For the poor and sick of this world and specifically those in Nigeria and even more specifically those being served at Evangel.

Allison and I along our safari.. so fun!!The elephant that I prayed for right in front of our car!! (There were better pictures of the actual elephant, but I like this one because it shows how close the elephant really was to our car!) =) Thanks Lord! The water was so nice and clear and beautiful and warm! (The girl on the right is Jaime) =)

Attempting to climb the wall.. and getting shown up oh so badly by the Nigerians! =) My traditional Nigerian outfit that I wore to church!

Audu and the whole group of us in front of the church.

A group of the girls from the camp! They were all such sweet hearts!!

A few of the "Aunties" and an "Uncle" as they call them at camp. Yes, Im Auntie Alisha. =)

Renee (the SIM missionary that asked Allison and I to be the camp nurses) and I infront of our "Hut" at camp. Renee is such a doll!

Allison and I packed in the car with a few of the other staff leaders! At one point there were 18 of us in the van!