Cheryl had her surgery this morning. She was released and is home tonight. The doctor said it did not go as well as planned. The stones didn't break up as expected. We will meet with him next week to determine what to do next with this and with the other kidney. Thanks for your prayers.
I don't believe our consistent close calls with regard to being able to meet financial obligations is a sign of our spirituality. Rather, it is evidence of God's love, mercy, and grace.
I mentioned a couple of days ago that tomorrow, the 30th, we needed $2000 for payroll and other expenses. Actually I was off by a hundred dollars; we actually need $1900. We got a note from Donna Garrett this morning that while she was out of town she had received in the mail $1127 in checks. Also this morning we got a $500 refund from the hospital. Those two amounts plus our current balance brings us to within $130. We still have about 24 hours before we actually have to have the money so we will likely still make it.* Things have been pretty busy with the holidays and with preparing for Cheryl's surgery tomorrow. Please say a prayer for her at 8:30 tomorrow morning. With all that's going on it is tempting to want to put some of the Ministry work on hold until things calm down a little. However, I spent a fair amount of time this morning praying about the matter and I really believe we should take the next step with regard to our project of producing goods for sale. I'm not exactly sure what that would be, but I have asked the Lord and we are prepared to do it. It seems to me the next logical thing would be for Alfredo to begin putting things in order and recruiting students to begin in January. That puts another person on the payroll, which is a challenge, but I think it's probably the right thing to do.
* When I got the mail this evening, among other things there was a check for $125. We are just five dollars short. Praise the Lord for his faithfulness. Today Cheryl and I finished a hard copy newsletter in order to get it out before Christmas. Nicholas wrote today. Dr. Rios will be coming next week Sunday with his five students who will treat patients in the village. Apparently Nicholas is out of money; he told me he didn't have the $45 he needed to pay our courier bill. We don't have much left either ; our current bank balance is $158.21. Tuesday is payday and we will need $2000. We are praying that God will once again provide for this need.
We had a wonderful Thanksgiving day today. Jenny and Marco were here as well as Jeff and two of his friends, Miguel Bustamante from Honduras and Justin, a fellow ORU student from North Carolina. We talked by phone with Michael who was spending the day with the Fields family and other missionaries in Kentucky. Marisa called from New York City and Amy from Los Angeles. Even though we were not all together at least we got talk and share the joy of the special day. I had a note from Nicholas yesterday that Alfredo arrived in San Pedro on schedule, at one o'clock in the morning. Flor and the kids went to the airport with Nicholas and he said they had a happy reunion. Yesterday morning I called Dr. Rios in San Pedro regarding the student dentists he plans to take to the mission center. They will be going either this Sunday or next. This will be a very good thing for everyone.
As we have been walking through department stores gearing up for the holidays this thought came to mind.... Looking at 21st-century America -- such incredible technology for communicating; so incredibly little to say.
Dr. Rios (dentist from Columbia) has asked permission to bring a group of five dental students to the mission center to treatpatients. This is for a social project they are required to do at the end of their dental training. Of course we told him we would be very pleased to have them.
Nicholas wrote yesterday and said that Levi came through the surgery okay, but they were not able to repair the bone structure as they had hoped. They did some work on the tendons so he will have more movement.
Cheryl and I went to see her doctor yesterday and were encouraged to learn that they may possibly be able to accomplish her surgical procedure by a less invasive means. Today we went to St. John Hospital for her preop session. Surgery is scheduled for the 30th at 8 AM. She also went today for prolo therapy on her foot. It's very sore and swollen tonight so she won't be able to do as much cooking for Thanksgiving day as she would like.
Yesterday the missions pastor at Christ Presbyterian Church held a debriefing session for the medical team that visited us the last of October. The meeting was held at Dr. and Mrs. Green's house and I think everyone was there except for Helen Snipes. It was very gratifying to hear each of the team members relate how they were blessed by having had the opportunity to serve the people there in our villages. Last night we were invited to have dinner at the Snipes home in Claremore. Helen is an excellent cook and we were treated to enchiladas, beans, rice, and chocolate cake for dessert. We had a great evening of sharing with the entire Snipes family. The focus, of course, was Helen's recent six-week visit to our mission center in Honduras. We attended church today at Beacon Hill Baptist Church. Pastor Steve and Barbara Johnson are currently in India visiting Jacob and Elizabeth Boss so Doug Johnson preached the sermon -- very good. Afterwards was the annual Thanksgiving dinner. Jeff was here this afternoon; Miguel Bustamante, Jeff's longtime friend from Honduras, comes in tomorrow to spend the week with him. Miguel now attends college at Rutgers University. Tonight Cheryl and I are continuing to hang pictures and unpack boxes.
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