Right now I feel completely sad. We need your prayers, especially for a small boy called Matoch who we are medi-vacing to Kenya. I’m not sure my words can really convey what has happened in the last 9 hours but I’ll do my best to explain it from the beginning. Last weeks cattle raids appeared to die down over the last week but this morning a terrible thing happened. Some raiders from the Tonj side went to the other side and surrounded their cattle camp, opening fire in the early hours of the morning. Sleeping in that cattle camp were women and children. Two children and one lady were instantly killed and others were hit with bullets. This happened about thirty miles from Tonj. The first we realized the cattle raids were still an issue was when a crowd came with a seven year old boy who had been shot in the face with a bullet. Our medical staff called me to the clinic to pray for him and I wasn’t even sure I could stand to look but I knew I needed to go. As they peeled the bandage from his face I held back the tears not wanting him to be more scared than he already was. The entire right cheek from below his eye to his nose and down to his mouth was missing. How can man be so evil?? I prayed and told him he was so brave and everything would be ok. This sweet boy just looked helplessly and frightened at me as I tried to keep his eyes on me and not on the nurse as she cleaned and bandaged the wound. HE was so brave, no tears. I just held his hand wondering how we would ever help him. Immediately we knew we were faced with a dilemma. This boy can not receive the care he needs anywhere in Sudan. Sabet agreed and I begun the process of trying to fly him to Kenya for surgery. Who will go with him? How do we get there? How much will it all cost? So many things buzzed around in my mind but I just knew I needed to help him. What if it was my Hannah lying there, I would move mountains to get her help. No door appeared to open as I made several calls so I sat and asked the Lord to guide me in helping this boy. Right away the phone rang and it was AIM AIR (missionary pilots), they had a flight landing in 10 minutes just south of us. I asked them to send it and we begun the frantic rush to get paperwork ready as the boy and his mother have no passports or birth certificates. We wrote several letters, got all the stamps from the government and I asked Stacie (been here 4 months) to escort them to Nairobi. Ten minutes before the flight was landing in Tonj, Sabet asked me to pray about going with her and taking the kids out. The retaliation for this raid is not going to be pretty and Tonj is now a target. So I agreed to go out with the kids. Not an easy decision with 10 minutes to pack for 4 people (including home school). But we managed and made it to the airstrip. Because of time we are now overnighting in Akot, Sudan at a medical hospital before proceeding to Kenya tomorrow. We need prayers for favor with the Kenya immigration for easy entry for this precious boy and his mother. We also need a way to get him to Kijabe mission hospital (one hour drive from Nairobi) and we pray there is a surgeon there that can help us. I have no idea how this all will work out and what it will cost but we need your prayers please for wisdom and provision. If you would like to help with the financial cost, please email me. Please pray for these people and the deep hatred they have for each other, that God would intervene and help them see the light. Pray for protection for my husband Sabet, our staff and our compound. We are so thankful we are in this together. Thank you for taking a moment to pray. I’ll keep you updated.
