July 2016 Newsletter

July 26, 2016 Tyler Paulson 3 Comments

Sabet’s Back!

After nine months of separation our family is happy to have Sabet back. We recognize the challenges our family face after such a long time apart and have prioritized spending quality time doing activities that will help us adjust quickly. Thank you for your prayers. We have a busy summer planned and we’re excited we’ll be together travelling and serving.

Our first really fun event was visiting our friends, the Alligood’s, in Orlando where we spent four days relaxing and catching up after 9 years. They kindly arranged for us to go to Universal Studios for free!

Sabet just returned from 9 days in California where he attended the Calvary Chapel Pastor’s Conference. He visited our sending church, Horizon Christian Fellowship in Rancho Santa Fe. Pastor Bob encouraged him and introduced him to Will Graham, the grandson of Billy Graham, what a blessing! The pastor’s conference was a time to sit, be spiritually fed and refreshed in the Lord. Sabet travelled with one of our board members, Dr. David Pierce. A BIG thank you to those who hosted Sabet and David. They enjoyed times of fellowship and meals with many of you, thank you!!

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” – Matthew 11:28-30

Measles and More!

June and July are our toughest months in the medical clinic in Tonj. Many contributing factors cause this particular season to be more challenging but it’s mostly due to the clinic being understaffed while our team rotate to take rest. Another factor is the high number of patients seen can jump from 100 to over 200 people every day. This is mainly due to increased malaria cases in the rainy season. This year we have the added challenges of displaced people, lack of food and a measles outbreak. Despite this we have only lost one patient to measles and God has expanded our team and provided cover for our team rotation.

Ajak is one of our patients with measles

Please pray for God’s hand on our team, each patient we treat, for His healing power, love, mercy and grace to be poured out in abundance over every day we serve and that our team would be effective in communicating His love and grace through good deeds and sharing the truth of the gospel.

Church Plants!

Before leaving South Sudan, Sabet was able to meet with the pastors and elders of four churches we planted in villages near to Tonj. He got to hear the awesome work God is doing among these faithful servants and through their churches. They shared about the tough times they were going through, how they are hated and persecuted for their faith but this makes them more determined to faithfully continue in worship and service to God in their villages. The testimonies they came with were really encouraging and evidence of the fruit that comes from a Spirit led church. Please visit our blog at blog.indeedandtruth.org to read a full testimony of these stories.

Please pray for Calvary Chapel Tonj and for the churches and pastors in and around our area. God is doing an amazing work and we are excited to see Him moving in the hearts of His Saints. Pray the message of Agape love would fill hearts and replace the hate and retaliation that Dinka’s have towards each other.

Macleod Newsletter

Macleod Newsletter June 2016

July 6, 2016 Tyler Paulson

Döör kek wek raan ëbën

Where to start?? So much has happened since we arrived back in Tonj just over 2 months ago. We arrived back refreshed from a wonderful break in New Zealand – thank you to everyone who made our visit special!- with a sense of both anticipation and trepidation… and were pleased to find that we feel more at home in Tonj than ever before. Not least due to having a lovely house to live in, but also in a deeper way, with a growing sense of belonging and peace.

We are enjoying our home, our vegetable garden, our chickens, our friends, our work, having Anthony here, and the green grass and cool air that the wet season brings.

Our world before and after the beginning of the rains in Tonj

Unfortunately, along with the green-ness, this rainy season has come with malaria, malnutrition (it is almost a year since the last harvest time), and a measles epidemic. Our clinic is bursting at the seams, and we are daily amazed by the numbers of sick women and children that our small but committed team see, treat and share the love of God with. Because of this, we have rolled up our sleeves and got stuck in to the clinic, and not much else! Here are just a couple of stories from among the many incredible recoveries we have watched happen before our eyes over the last 2 months.

Jonathan treating a patient

Rapid malaria tests – an essential tool in our work

Achol & Abuk

Abuk & Achol

When we met Achol last month she was little more than a skeleton, weighing only 13kg (about the same as Ellisha) at the age of 7. Her sister Abuk was 2 years old and for the past month had been unable to open her eyes. Both girls were sick with measles. They were both starving because the family’s food and money had both run out. The family stayed at our clinic for some days, sleeping on our balcony (AKA isolation unit). The whole IDAT team laid hands on Abuk one morning and prayed for her vision to come back, as blindness is a daunting prospect for a 2 year old in a country with no welfare. Achol’s mother has since joined our church, and a few weeks ago we celebrated the restoration of Abuk’s eye sight (though not yet complete). Meanwhile, Achol visits us often and warms our hearts with her big grin.

Abuk#2

Abuk, whom everyone here at IDAT has come to love

One night I got a knock at our window at 2am, calling me to see young girl who was in a terrible state. Her muscles were so stiff she couldn’t eat, speak or even more her arms and legs. She was suffering from painful muscle spasms that had prevented her from sleeping for weeks. And more worrying, she was struggling to breathe, which is a poor prognostic factor in tetanus. She’d been taken from witchdoctor to witchdoctor with no improvement, and as a ‘last resort’ they’d been told to try the Christians at IDAT. The father later told us he thought his daughter was as good as dead. Well, we laid hands on Abuk and prayed for her several times each day while giving medical treatment, and rapidly her muscles relaxed, she was able to eat, talk and walk again. The family were amazed at the power of God and want us to go and share Jesus with their community, where it turns out her father is a chief

Newsletters

May / June 2016 Newsletter

June 10, 2016 Tyler Paulson 2 Comments

We Made It!

We have been back a month from our trip to South Sudan and many of you know Mama Sabet went to be with the Lord. She was an amazing lady who had battled with cancer for the past year. Our family are so blessed and comforted by many of you sending us encouraging words and messages. God’s timing was so perfect for Suzy, Hannah and Rosa to visit, with Mama passing away the day before they left Africa.

Mama’s new beginning meant a new beginning for our family as we fulfilled our promise to her to love and care for her 14 grandchildren by stepping up our support for them. It is so comforting to be part of God’s family, I feel safe, secure, loved, accepted and provided for. Mama was really asking us to do that for these precious ones. So our goal is to find sponsors for all of them so we can provide a safe and loving home, send them to school and meet their basic needs for food and clothing. Thank you for standing with us to meet this need. We have half the kids sponsored already.

Photograhy of Hannah with her cousins

Here is Hannah with her 14 cousins (and a few extra’s who couldn’t miss a chance to pose with Hannah). All the children have a very special place in our hearts. For information on sponsorship, email Rosa at info@indeedandtruth.org.

“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His abundant mercy has begotten us again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled and that does not fade away, reserved in heaven for you, who are kept by the power of God through faith for salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.” – 1 Peter 1:3-5

CHE!

art of CHE (Community Health Evangelism) is teaching the Word in the villages using a method of bible storying called ‘Simply the Story’ (STS). An area we outreach to, called Pagol, recently received its third STS training with 28 people, representing five churches, in attendance. Our pastors spent 3 days strengthening and encouraging these church leaders who are using STS in their programs.

Pastor Santino shared a testimony of a lady who attended this workshop. Since her previous training, Sarah Alual memorized the story of Jesus and the storm while being on the boat. Sarah then went from home to home in her neighborhood and told the story to her neighbor and as a crowd gathered to listen to her, five people came forward to receive the Lord as Savior as a result. That’s what you call transformational ministry! This is our heart and so exciting to witness South Sudanese being used by God to minister His love to their own people.

God is Faithful!

We have seen a few IDP’s (internally displaced people) in Tonj and one family got our attention. The seven year old daughter was severely malnourished and her 2 year old sister was refusing to open her eyes, possibly as a result of measles.

We sent out an email prayer request and Dr. Jono shared in devotion about the power of God to heal. Our entire clinic staff laid hands on Abuk and finally, after 1 month she is opening her eyes and seeing. Her family were so excited to show us God answered our prayers and our South Sudanese staff were so blessed to witness the power of our healing God first hand.

We are blessed to be a part of a power and a work that is greater than us, it’s about Jesus only. Please pray as Sabet returns to USA this month. Pray for our family as we transition back into life together after 9 months of separation. Pray for Dr. Tom as he leaves for 2 months to cover our team while they rotate for their break. Pray for the Wilson’s as they travel to Europe to attend a family wedding and for the Macleod family as they hold the fort during this challenging rainy season. We are already experiencing high patient numbers due to malaria.

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I NEED A CUP OF WATER by Simon Kirui, CO

June 4, 2016 Suzy Kuj 2 Comments

This is Achol Bak she comes from Tonj East, she was in coma for three straight days and having convulsions five times a day. It was very sad for me, because on the 2nd day of coma I found her mother and some other relatives crying outside the clinic. Later her grandmother told me that she wanted me to allow them take the child for burial. Back in the village they have seen people going to that state and not coming back to life. I told her that by God all things are possible. One of our clinic chaplains, Pastor Santino, continued to visit and encourage them.

Achol was seriously in need of prayer and our team prayed for her last week asking God to intervene. The day after we prayed I went for ward rounds and her mother told me that Achol woke up at midnight and asked for a cup of water. We praise God for this breakthrough and testimony that He heals for the glory and honor of His name.

Since Thursday, Achol was able to sit while supported, then gradually improved and could sit by herself and now she is finally walking. Achol’s father is a soldier and had to leave three years ago. With no one to grow food in the home we decided to buy seeds for the family because this is the season for cultivation. Pastor Santino kindly delivered the seeds on our behalf. Please continue to pray for Achol. The family were eager to know our God who answers prayer!

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Maternal Mortality – the greatest danger to South Sudan Women

June 2, 2016 Suzy Kuj 2 Comments

One of the biggest challenges working in South Sudan is maternal mortality, which we still have the highest rate reported in the world. Our clinic focuses on pregnant mothers and at risk children, usually age 5 and under. Our Kenyan midwife, Annie shared this beautiful testimony of one ladies experience in our clinic.

“Ayen Makol Bol is a young mother from a village called Modol. She has been attending our clinic since September last year and all through her visits the baby presented breech. I encouraged her every visit and we prayed together for a safe delivery. She delivered yesterday though breech, we were able to conduct a safe delivery and welcomed her baby girl, Aluong Makor Manhiem, into the world.

IMG_20160601_102809 — Ayen (left) with Midwife Annie (right)

This is the second successful breech birth for Ayen delivered in our clinic. She is a very happy mother and her faith in God has been strengthened. I told her it is God using His people in amazing ways to help her.”

If Ayen had birthed at home she would likely have died. The answer to South Sudan’s maternal mortality is qualified midwives who can prevent 90% of maternal deaths. We thank God for Annie and the rest of our IDAT clinic team, who depend on God for guidance and save lives like Ayen’s every day!

In Deed And Truth Ministries