Advocating for Prayer

Meet Friday. He is three years old and suffering from suspected Burkitt's lymphoma, the most common pediatric cancer in equatorial Africa. The good news: it responds well to chemotherapy. The bad news: the challenges of getting the treatment are many. Friday is from the DRC, the border of which is just a few kilometers from my home here. His parents walked for four hours to reach the border and then took a motorcycle taxi to reach our health center in Nyahuka. They are extremely poor and speak only Lubwisi, the local tribal language. Not only is Friday sick, but is younger sister, Zawadi has sickle cell disease. She is also admitted at the health center with a severe bone infection in her leg (a complication of the sickle cell disease) that has caused the bone to break, oozing pus and exposed.

Both of these children are in serious need of medical attention. They need to go to two different hospitals in Kampala for their specialized care and the parents have never been outside of rural western Uganda. I am thankful for a friend here who is willing to accompany them on their journey to Kampala and make sure they arrive safely without getting lost. And I'm incredibly thankful for another friend who is willing to check on patients at Mulago Hospital everyday after he finishes his classes at a university campus next door.

Friday and Zawadi are only two of eight patients in the referral process currently. Last week I sent another child with lymphoma to Mulago. The week before I sent a trio of babies with hydrocephalus to Kampala and then on to Mbale's CURE hospital to receive neurosurgery. There is a baby that came to us severely malnourished with a partial cleft palate. She went to Kampala with her mother and received corrective surgery, only to return and have it heal improperly. Now they need to return for a second surgery. Each of these children are precious to our Father and while getting them care is challenging and coordinating it from Bundibugyo is frustrating and difficult, I am thankful that I can advocate for them.

But I come to you, my supporters and friends, asking for prayer. Pray for these children as they are seriously ill, in pain, and forced to travel 8-12 hours by public transportation. Pray for their parents as they enter the big city for the first time and try to find medical facilities and people who understand their Lubwisi language. Pray for doctors and social workers to be empathetic and caring and willing to communicate with me. Pray for me, as I try to keep everyone straight and am "on call" all the time. Pray that the gospel would go forth and God would heal these babies. And pray that the medical costs would be provided--I expect to pay nearly $500 for each baby with hydrocephalus to receive life-saving neurosurgery. If you would like to help offset some of these costs, please contact me. Thank you for your prayers for each of these children!