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August 2, 2000 -- Update from Kim
Greetings from Kenya, life certainly has been different with
two children. Malachi has been a good baby. He has a lot of catching up to do.
He was found abandoned at birth in the garbage dump in Nairobi, spent the next
month in Kenyatta hospital where he received little care (and love). He was
taken to the orphanage, very malnourished. He was there for one week when we saw
him for the first time with our team from Houston. While we were in South Africa
the following week for the World Aids Conference, he had a strangulated inguinal
hernia which required emergent operation. We took him home 1 week post op at 2
months of age and weighs only 3.8 Kg (8.3 lbs). So you see, he had such a rough
beginning!
Our Aids project just got started. We received our first check
from the Elizabeth Glaser Aids Foundation last week which will cover medications
and free HIV test kits for all pregnant women. We are very excited to be able to
make such an impact on a whole new generation of Kenya. The study protocol we
followed was shown to reduce maternal to child transmission of HIV to almost
half. We did have a disappointed incident on Monday night. Our project
coordinator, Lucy Njema, drove the project vehicle which we just purchased, into
a ditch. The vehicle is badly damaged and currently not functional. We don't
know how much it will cost to repair and that we will enough work fund currently
to cover. Satan had used this to discourage me (and Lucy, of course). I have to
look to God for His sovereignty. His hands have been guiding us throughout this
project since the beginning, and I must believe that He will have His purpose in
this.
It did rain here, but for only 2 days. We had been helping
with the famine relief effort for the people who live around Kijabe. All the
crops are destroyed, and this is the 2nd year Kenya had a severe drought. We
continue to pray for rain and for the economy of Kenya.
Prayer items for the Smiths
1. Pray that Malachi continues to grow well
2. Pray for my strength to take care of both kids and still
work fulltime. I am still thinking about cutting back from work some (it had
never worked out in the past!)
3. Pray for the Aids Project and for the vehicle (that we will
be able to have it repaired to working condition again)
4. Pray for rain in Kenya
We appreciate all your prayers and we thank God daily for all
of you who have been such an encouragement for us, during good time and bad
time. May God bless you abundantly.
In Him we serve,
Kim Smith
June 12, 2000
I received this news from Kim and wanted to share it with you. Their
June prayer requests are included at the end of the letter.
Dear Sherry,
Greetings from Kenya. We received our few rainfalls
this weekend. It
is still very dry here in Kenya. My father-in-law went
down to Kijabe
town this weekend and said that all the crops are dried
up. So, I
think we will experience a great famine here in a few
months. We got
the approval for 2 year funding for free HIV testing,
and Nevirapine
(antiretroviral medication) to prevent maternal-fetal
transmission of
HIV. The project is to start July 1. Lucy Njema, our
head nurse from
Wairegi, just accepted the position of project
coordinator. We still
have not received the actual money to the hospital
account, but we
trust that the Lord works in His own timing. Penny is
now 14 months,
has 8 teeth (the 1st molar and incisor are coming). She
runs, climbs
and chippers all day. She keeps me busy. It seems that
she never gets
tired and always is on the move.
We do have some urgent prayer requests for June and I
would appreciate
your prayers. There are several times since we arrived
to Kenya that
things were accomplished only because people prayed.
The Smith's prayer requests for June
1. Pray for our safety in travelling this month.
2. Pray for the team who will come June 24. They
will be involving
with medical works(several team members are doctors,
nurses,
nutritionist) and evangelistic crusade (the others are
pastor, people
who are gifted in evangelism). We just finished finding
all of them
housing. Praise God. Please pray for safety, health and
the Holy
Spirit to prepare them spiritual. Pray that many will
come to know the
Lord personally through this team.
3. Please pray that the funding of this project
will come through
soon so we can start buying the HIV test kits and
medications to be
given to HIV infected mothers. Please also pray that we
will fill the
other two positions of HIV counselor and community
project
coordinator. PLease also pray for the funding for the
vehicle to come
soon since we have to purchase this by July. This
project has truly
been from the Lord since the beginning. He gave us the
grant approval
which we did not think possible. So I am confident that
He will
provide.
4. We will go to the World Aids conference in South
Africa. I am
hoping to take Penny with us (no one to watch her here
while we are
gone--how I do miss grandparents!) We are still waiting
for her Kenyan
passport which are taking forever. They told us it
would be ready 1
month ago and it is not here!
5. Please pray for rain in Kenya. This is the
second year the drought
had hit this land. Many crops are destroyed. If the
rains do not come
soon, we will experience the greatest famine here in
Kenya.
May the Lord continue to bless you and keep you. Many
hugs from Penny.
In Him,
Kim Smith
Please Note...
- Fifty (50) sheets have been donated and will be delivered to Nate's Dad this week for
him to take with him to the hospital in Kapsowar. Thank you to all the people who
prayed and contributed!!!
[Sheets should NOT be sent through the Postal Service. Dr. Smith is planning on taking
them. If you have any questions, please contact Sherry.]
May 16, 1999
Here's a brief update on our first 2 weeks "fulltime" at Kijabe. It
has been hard work and at times very frustrating and discouraging. But
our first day I got to lead one of the newly diagnosed HIV patients to
the Lord. The next day, the other newly diagnosed HIV patient I had
shared with prayed with the hospital chaplain to receive Christ. Last
Tuesday I talked with another newly diagnosed HIV patient about the
Lord, and the next day the chaplain lead him to Christ. Kim led a
Maasai woman to the Lord this past week. The woman spoke very little
Kiswahili, but the next patient over was a Maasai Christian who
translated for her. Praise the Lord for His faithfulness.
I would also like to request special prayer for a missionary colleague
named Bill Jackson. We met Bill and his wife Carol 2 years ago at AIM
orientation school, and they have been here at Kijabe for about a year
now. Friday morning (May 14) he had a "mini-stroke" involving the
right side of his body and the "speech center" of his brain. For an
hour and a half he was unable to speak a single word. Then one of the
Kenyan pastors lead us in prayer for him, and as soon as he said
"amen", Bill began speaking and moving his right arm. I've never seen
anything quite like that before. I transferred Bill to a hospital in
Nairobi, and tonight (May 16) they are flying home to Alabama for
further medical testing. Bill is only 41-years-old and has 2 young
boys. He has been working as a physical therapist with crippled
children here in Kenya and will be sorely missed. Please pray for
complete healing and a quick return for Bill and his family.
In Christ,
Nate & Kim Smith
May 1, 1999
Kim and I are in Kijabe now. We got here 2 weeks ago but do not start
full-time at the hospital until Monday. This has given Kim some time
to settle into the house and me some time to become familiar with the
clinical lab, pharmacy, etc.
The situation here at Kijabe is very different from Kapsowar. Although
primitive by U.S. standards, it is miles ahead of most rural hospitals
in Africa. Also, because there are 2 pediatricians and a number of
other physicians, I am able to focus on internal medicine and
infectious diseases. Also, with a few family practice doctors to share
obstetrical call, Kim is feeling less overwhelmed.
I said we have not started "full-time" yet, but in fact I have
actually been consulted on several patients for infectious diseases.
Kim has been in clinic 2 days a week and done a few operations as
well. We have also had a chance to start teaching medical students and
interns at morning report. They present a case and we discuss it.
Both Kim and I are eager to be more involved in spiritual ministry here. I
know that will come in time. We have started attending the 8:30am
Sunday service at the mission station church, and then going over to
the 10:30am service for patients and staff in the hospital chapel.
Though the rainy season has begun, it is quite beautiful here as well.
From the window by the desk in our bedroom I can see out over the Rift
Valley and Mount Longenot in the distance. When it rains, though, it
gets pretty cold because of the altitude. We usually wear sweaters
around the house, and Kim has been lighting a fire in the fire place
almost every night.
That's all for now. Let's continue lifting each other up before the
Lord in prayer.
Nate
April 27, 1999
We need a 4 wheel drive vehicle for our medical
ministry and outreach. We recently had the vehicle project
approved by Kenya branch office. Checks should be written
to Africa Inland Mission, for Nathaniel Smith-Vehicle project,
fund #5486PA.
Thanks,
Kim
April 25, 1999
Kijabe has 211 beds, 4 operating rooms and about 1800-2000
deliveries a year. We have 3 surgeons, 1 orthopedic surgeon,
2 pediatricians, 1 anesthesiologist, 2 family doctors, me and
Nate as full time. We also are training 2 Kenyan interns and
4 medical students from U.S. and New Zealand at the
moment. We also have 3 midwives from UK and a few Kenyan midwives.
We also have a nursing school, training Kenyan nurses for all the
mission hospitals in Kenya (about 30 per class). Next to Kijabe
hospital is Bethany Cripple Children hospital with 30 beds and full
rehabilitation services.
Items for prayers at this time:
1. We need to buy a vehicle to get to remote villages and church
visitations. Please pray for the right vehicle and funding.
2. Wisdom for both of us as we try to prioritize our medical
ministries. There are so much to be done here and we don't want to
get "burned out".
Thanks,
Kim
April 21 -- an update from Nate.
We're finally at Kijabe. Kim and I decided to take 2 weeks off to
settle into the house and community before getting involved in full
time patient care. Good idea, huh? Well, despite our stated
intentions, Kim has ended up doing the gynecology clinic today and
Thursday (they're a bit short-staffed), and was even called to do a
hysterectomy tomorrow morning (she ended up refusing since it is an
elective procedure and none of the relatives had donated blood in case
of excessive bleeding). For my part, I spent most of the day with the
medical director at a meeting with the District Medical Officer in
Narok. On the way back we stopped at a rural dispensary (nurse-run
missionary clinic) and ended up seeing a couple of patients there.
After getting back, I spent the rest of the afternoon with the
pharmacy staff getting to know the in's and out's there.
The highlight of my week, however, has been meeting with the head of
the hospital chaplaincy program yesterday morning. "Pastor Jack" is a
Kenyan man, probably in his mid to late 30's, who was working as a
school teacher when he got saved. After several years of lay ministry
in his local church, the Lord called him into fulltime ministry. He
went to Scott Theological College to prepare for student ministry, but
the Lord had other plans. He now directs a chaplaincy staff of 3, plus
a Bible College student from Moffat here at Kijabe.
Hospital chaplaincy, you say. Ho hum. NOT!!! This guy is really on
fire for the Lord and has a passion for souls. "Bedside evangelism is
our first priority," he says, so they talk about the Lord individually
with every patient admitted to the hospital. But they don't stop
there. Every morning they preach a 30-minute evangelistic message to
the patients waiting to be seen in clinic, then an hour-long "revival
meeting" at noon in the courtyard for relatives and friends of
patients waiting for visiting hours. In addition, there are Sunday
morning and evening chapel services for hospital staff and patients,
and there is Wednesday morning chapel, morning devotions and a Friday
evening fellowship time for the staff.
But that's not all! Pastor Jack is involved in mobilizing local
churches for evangelistic outreach. He challenges them with the
question, "So you're saved, but why go to heaven alone? Why not take
as many as you can with you?" A "Crusade Committee" was formed at the
hospital to help local churches plan and implement outreach services,
and last weekend 46 people came to know the Lord through one of these
"crusades". According to Pastor Jack, there are several unreached or
"under-reached" areas near Kijabe. One area is Egwaso in the Rift
Valley, Maasai territory. There is no church there for 60km.
Hopefully, outreach activities will begin there soon.
Please pray for the spiritual ministry here. There is so much
potential. The medical aspects are also very promising, but I won't
bore you with the details.
March 20 -- a message from Kim
includes request for bed sheets for maternity ward at Kapsowar. If
you can help, contact Sherry. She is
gathering more specifics and coordinating the effort.
We finally are here practicing medicine. It is good to "play doctor"
again. There are so many cancers here that I found myself praying
with patients and telling them that Jesus loves them quite frequently.
Kapsowar is a rural hospital. The doctors, nurses and midwives here
are just wonderful to work with. They all love the Lord and care
deeply for the patients. They are constantly short of medical
supplies, but managed to be quite good in allocating the resources.
One big need in maternity ward is bed sheets. Sometimes, we are
forced to use the same sheets again for the next patients. I thought
this (making bedsheets) would be a wonderful ministry/project for the
women of our church. The dimensions of the sheets are 60inches x 90
inches and dark colors would be ideal. Please place this request on
our website and let me know if anyone or any churches would be
interested in this. My father-in-law is scheduled to come here to
work in June; so he will be able to take them.
God's Blessings,
Kim Smith
March 20 -- a message from Nate.
Kim and I are now at Kapsowar, a rural mission
hospital in northwest
Kenya. I admitted my first patient yesterday. She was 21-years-old,
had just given birth to her third child a week ago, and she died 6
hours after I first saw her. I did everything I could for her
medically, but she had very advanced tuberculosis with extensive
damage to her lungs. Perhaps if we had an I.C.U. with a ventilator,
she might have made it long enough for the T.B. medications to work.
Earlier that day, Kim counselled a woman with inoperable cervical
cancer. She prayed with her, wept with her, and encouraged her to
trust in Jesus. The woman has an 18-month-old child at home. A few
hours later we heard of an automobile accident, and 6 of the injured
were brought in to the hospital. The woman Kim prayed with was one of
them. She had been on her way home.
This has been a rough introduction to missionary medicine. The
magnitude of human suffering here is incredible, and I say that as one
who has been caring for AIDS patients for the last 4 years. What we
have to offer medically seems so inadequate. Our only hope is in
Jesus and His power to save and comfort and heal. In my devotions
this morning, I read I Thess. 5:13, "Brothers, we do not want you to
be ignorant about those who fall asleep, or to grieve like the rest of
men, who have no hope." Yet, it is hard not to grieve, especially for
those like my patient. Her family says she was a faithful church
attender, but I honestly do not know the condition of her soul.
I am discovering anew that the "victorious Christian life" does not
mean success at every turn. The way of our Lord was the way of the
cross, and in this path we too must follow. Please pray that we would
persevere and not lose heart. The Word of God is true, and in this I
put my hope: "Those who sow in tears will reap with songs of joy"
(Psalm 126:5).
Love,
Nate
Nate and Kim have gotten their E permits and their
shipment (medical equipment, books, etc.) is on its way.
March 9 Update from Nate and Kim
Have you been laughed at? As we are trying to
learn Kiswahili, Nate and I have had to wrestle with the awful feeling of being laughed
at. It's not even behind our backs, but right in front of our faces. How
should we respond to being laughed at? What should we do? Here are three
possible responses borrowed from one of the devotionals in "Our Daily Bread" I
read a while back:
1. Do what Elijah did -- He was so frustrated with his situation that
he journeyed far into the desert, away from people, and wished that he
was dead. Many times we have been tempted to do what Elijah did, to
crawl into our hiding places and wish that we were somewhere else.
2. Do what Elisha did -- As Elisha was walking along the road to
Bethel, he was teased by some youths. "Go on up, you baldhead!" they
shouted at him. How did he react? "He turned around, looked at them
and called down a curse on them in the name of the Lord" (2Kings
2:24). As we seek to form relationships with people, reacting in
anger will not win us friends in the community.
3. Do what Jesus did -- The real reason for our feelings of
insecurity when we are laughed at is that we tend to focus on
ourselves and what others think of us. Jesus, on the other hand,
placed His focus on the needs of others rather than on His own. We
learn from Jesus to be others-centered, not self-centered. We begin
to focus on the people whom God has called us to serve, to enjoy
ourselves, and to laugh with them over our mistakes. We begin to make
friends.
This "final" step in our preparation as missionaries has also been part of our
ongoing process of spiritual development. At this point, both our Kiswahili and our
Christ-likeness have a long way to go, but I'm happy to say we are making incremental
progress. Please keep us in your prayers as you are in ours.
Kim & Nate Smith
Kenya, East Africa
March 7 Update from Nate and Kim
Greetings from the hill country of East Africa.
Time certainly went by fast. We only have 2 more weeks of language school. We
will go first to Kapsowar (6 hours from Nairobi). This is a rural mission hospital
where we'll serve for 3 to 4 weeks. By end of April, we should be in Kijabe. I
can't believe that in 2 more weeks, I will be delivering some babies.
Here are our current prayer requests for the web-site:
- Travel safety when we go to Kapsowar on March 21.
- Pray for our health. So far, we haven't gotten any
serious health problems.
- Pray for our medical ministries at Kapsowar and
Kijabe. Sometimes we are wondering if we have become too specialized. I had a
chance to visit Maternity unit at Kijabe yesterday.
- Praise God that he recently provided the hospital with
a very good ultrasound machine (I even used it yesterday, scanning a pregnant patient).
- We are praying for wisdom in regarding the purchase of
a vehicle--brand, type (we will probably need a four- wheel drive to go to remote areas),
when to buy, cost.
- Praise God for our time here for language learning.
Both of us are making good progress. We feel comfortable in small conversations but
still need to learn medical questions and how to pray in Swahili.
Thank you for all your help and prayers for us.
Please let us know of
your prayer needs so we can be praying for you all.
In His Service,
Kim Smith
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