Building Community: Barn-raising

January 20, 2020

Living cross-culturally isn’t always easy. There are many things I don’t understand.  Just when I think I understand someone or something, something happens and I realize how little I understand.  It can be frustrating at times.  On the other hand it is exhilarating when you make a meaningful connection.  It is a process that requires a lot of patience,  flexibility, and understanding.  

One question I continue to have is: “What is meaningful community look like here in Congo?”  What do deep, meaningful relationships look like here? I am not talking about outward friendliness or niceties, I am referring to the Biblical concept of koinonia-of mutual dependence and trust.  I am realizing that koinonia requires people to be vulnerable and to ask for help and advice.  This is a rare thing here.  So how does this deeper level of community develop?  

One definition of community I found said that it “is the condition of sharing or having certain attitudes and interests in common.”  I find this to be true, but lacking in the idea of interdependence.  Community is not always natural and needs to be worked on.  Sometimes it is hard to find agreement and common ground.  Sometimes it is hard to work through differences, ethnic or otherwise.  Building community takes time and intentionality, sweat and tears.  It is true that activities which hold mutual benefit have the ability to build community.  

This past weekend I was blessed to participate in a community building activity.  The Women of CME mudded a barn!   I have never been part of something exactly like this before and it felt like a privilege to take part.  We are preparing to farm about 8 acres together, with the purpose of supporting the malnutrition program and women’s ministry activities.  It was a great opportunity for me to learn

something new and be together with some amazing women, all around something we believe in.  I was struck by many things.  There were over 20 people who participated and everyone was important.  I drove, made multiple trips to the water hole for water to make mud, I mudded a few sections of walls, and I watched the process.  Others cooked, erected door frames, mixed mud, shoveled mud, etc.  What would be heavy work for one or two people is light work for a team.  Even beans and rice tastes amazing after having worked hard together!.  We hope that there will be many more opportunities for these kinds of koinonia activities.  We hope that farming will be an activity that builds trust and deepens relationships between the women.  We hope that we will grow closer to the heart of God.  We hope that we will have opportunities to share our lives and faith with the neighbors and field hands in this area.  We pray that this can be an example for CME to follow.  There should be an almost unnatural unity in the Church because we have Christ in common.  


With many blessings,
Lindsey

Wishing you a Happy New Year

January 1, 2020

Christmas Celebrations & A New Year

Another year has come to a close, just like that.  There is something about opening a new year and marking the year gone past.  We are thankful for friends and family near and far, churches and individuals who support our ministry.  We are truly blessed that you are in our lives.  It seems like 2019 was a time when the Lord was ploughing a new field for us and we are planting some different crops.  Emmanuel is more rooted in his identity as an American kid and what it means to be a valued son.  We enjoyed our time in the Blue Ridge mountains and we are happy to be back in Nyankunde these last months.  We are trying to treasure our days more as gifts from God.  

                                                         It wasn’t a white Christmas here in Congo, rather a

balmy and tropical one.  Our tree is artificial with many handmade ornaments and LED lights. Emmanuel had to be convinced that Christmas would still come even if there wasn’t any snow.  I think he was really worried about it.  I told him that we could read about snow and make snowmen on paper to make up for the lack of snow.  He accepted this.  On Christmas morning he was happy to see his stocking full of treasures and presents under the tree.  He said something

A balloon Christmas tree for a party

Making crown hats

Baking cookies

like, “Mom, Christmas comes even in Congo.”  His favorite present was a camera.  He opened it and said, “Oh wow.  I have been dreaming about this.”  It brings such joy to see someone experience joy!  This year he also said, “Christmas is about Jesus being born, I didn’t know that before.”  It is fun to see his wonder and understanding grow.  Celebrations are more simple here and butter for baking in limited quantities. Advent takes on new meaning, the period of waiting for Christmas to come.

This Christmas I meditated more on the fact that Jesus came to earth as a recognized King.  He was a long anticipated king, but came almost 600 years after the last recognized king of Judah.  He was recognized initially by those from foreign lands, not by his own people.  I love that Jesus was recognized as a King by other Kings who weren’t even a part of Israel. The kings of Persia came specifically to find the “one born king of the Jews.”  I don’t often think of Jesus as King, but it was at the core of his identity. He was a perfect King with the authority to rule and judge, to give pardon, and to lead the direction of a peoples’.  Someone his Kingship became more clear at the end of his life, just as the Magi foretold. It is fascinating that Jesus taught more about a KINGdom than about any other subject.  And Jesus does accept the title of King when questioned by Pilate. ”My kingdom is not of this world. If it were, my servants would fight to prevent my arrest by the Jews.  But now my kingdom is from another place….You are right in saying I am a king. In fact, for this reason I was born, and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth.”  John 18: 36-37

We celebrated on Christmas day with our fellow medical missionaries and Congolese

colleagues. It was a lovely afternoon with fun activities for the kids, complete with making crowns and re-enacting the Christmas story.  And food, there must be food if it is a Congolese Christmas party.  It was lovely watching the children play and enjoy simple joys.  It really felt like “OUR” Christmas party, not just something we hosted, but a Christmas we shared together.  There is a lot of joy in living life together.

New Plants

I am finding simple joys in trying new plants and trees in this environment.  This year I have

Tree seedlings for the hospital

planted a cinnamon bush, lemonbalm, various herbs, and most recently vanilla.  To plant trees, one really has to have the long-term perspective of what it will be like in 10-15years.

An Extended Project 

All of you who know Warren know that he always has a project at hand…a treehouse, a climbing gym, a re-furbished toy, etc.  Ever since returning to Congo he has been working on a rocket stove hot water heater. It has been at least 3 months and there have been multiple iterations of it.  The rocket stove is a very efficient wood burning stove with steady air intake. Add a water jacket, water reservoir, and pressure regulator and whaalaa!  We now have an outdoor shower and bathtub in the garden which receives hot water from the rocket stove.  This is what one does for a good hot shower in a limited resources setting.  I am hoping that we are nearing completion of this water heater.

Medical Work & Hospital Garden

We continue on with medical work and teaching here at CME-Nyankunde.  Warren sees his share of trauma and foreign bodies and difficult surgical cases.  Just offering good medical care in the face of poor medical care is a significant part of our ministry here.  To do our work with integrity and compassion in the name of Christ is a powerful thing. These have been challenging times for our staff who has not received a true salary in the last 3months.  We are a government hospital, receiving support from the European Union.  So we are put in a difficult situation.  

Our pediatric garden is shaping up slowly.  We have a fence in place and now comes the

Beginnings of a pediatric garden

placement of more trees/shrubs/flowers and play equipment.  It will be lovely to have a green place for the hospitalized children to truly play and explore the world.  Stay tuned for more in coming weeks.

Prayer Requests

-Pray for encouragement of our staff in the face of difficult financial times.

-Pray for the initiation of the CME women’s farming project and various other hospital projects.

-Pray that we would have vision for where God is leading in the New Year.

-Pray for more prayer and financial ministry partners

Many blessings,

Lindsey for the Coopers

Warren dressed up as a Gibeonite for a costume party from the book of Joshua

Visiting Emmanuel's friend with a burn injury

Dr. Davin at the Joshua costume party

Preparing for Christmas in Congo

December 16, 2019

Women of Centre Medicale Evangelique (CME) Farming Project

Preparing for Christmas

Wishing you a Happy Advent season!  Time flies by as it often does.  Thanks so much for you’re the Holiday greetings we have received.  Advent is a time of waiting and anticipation, of re-connecting with family and friends.  It is one of my favorite times of the year.  We have been reading from the book of Isaiah this past week which has inspired me.  There are several preceeding chapters in Isaiah which talk about a beloved servant of God being prepared to bring justice to the nations, and good news.  Then this passage gives the promised to restore the tribes of Jacob, and even more to bring salvation to earth:

“And now the Lord says-he who formed me in the womb to be his servant to bring Jacob back to him and gather Israel to himself, for I am honored in the eyes of the LORD and my God has been my strength.  He says: “It is too small a thing for you to be my servant to restore the tribes of Jacob and bring back those of Israel I have kept. I will also make you a light for the Gentiles, that you may ring my salvation to the ends of the earth” Isaiah 49:5-6.

How amazing that there was such a BIG plan for Jesus, by the Prophets.  I think Emmanuel has finally understood what Christmas is all about…he loves birthday parties so it really is the ultimate birthday party!  He is understanding that many other newborns did not survive due to King Herod’s edict.  He is sorting it all out.

School activities-making Christmas trees

Working with Ms. Nancy, our favorite teacher

Sam our favorite goat has fully recovered from his illness

Village Activities

There are many choirs here in the village.  It really is a BIG part of Congolese culture, that of

celebrating/mourning together in song.  It is fun to hear the story of Emmanuel, God with us, in story form in Swahili.  It is like discovering new carols that I have never heard-what richness.  It seems like every moment of the day there is a choir practicing in some empty building, mostly accapella.  It is common to see someone playing guitar while walking down the street on his way to choir practice.

It has also been a time of extreme emotions for many Bira here in the village.  There have been some unknown threats and unexplained deaths in our community.  There is more gold mining in our area which raised tensions between groups  As a result young people take up arms.  It has brought all of us to our knees, and many village meetings have occurred to try to educate the community that violence is never the answer.  These people have experienced so much suffering in their lives, more than anyone ever should.  Have you ever had to leave your former life behind and walk for weeks to safety?  Then if that wasn’t enough, you live in tents and survive from community/NGO support for months and years even.  This is what happened to the Bira living through the war, specifically the conflict here in 2002.  Seventeen years may have passed, but everyone remembers this.

We are hopeful and at the same time prayerful, as people seek reconciliation and discussion.  There will always be a deep wound in this community, and we need to work at reconciliation to not make the same mistakes as the past.

Teaching and Medical Ministry

I, Lindsey, am doing more teaching than I have done in the past.  I have time to prepare talks for the doctors and think about pediatric curriculum.  There is a shortage of teachers at the nursing school to teach pediatrics.  I have been able to fill in some of the teaching gaps on pediatric emergencies and infectious diseases.  

December is a quieter time in the hospital.  There are less consults and surgeries, but Warren manages to stay busy between fixing things at home and doing cases.  In one week there were 3 patients who came in with large sections of necrotic large bowel.  An unusual finding, but often cases come in groups of 3!  

Warren has been figuring out and modifying a walking tractor for use by the hospital.  It

looks like a “souped up” rototiller.  It has been a steep learning curve, but should greatly benefit the hospital. The women of CME will begin farming a large section of land, about 8 acres.  We are busy preparing a farming road, a barn for storage of equipment, and tilling the soil.  It is exciting to see the women excited about this prospect, taking courage to work with their hands together. The benefits will serve our nutrition program as well as women’s ministry and benevolent activities.  I am excited as well to learn more about farming and participate in planting and harvest of essential crops like peanuts, beans, soybeans, corn, etc…We are hopeful that this will open doors for spiritual discussions with the community, and deepen relationships between the women.

Mama Ruth and Esperance and the new pressure cooker

Trip to Uganda and our friends the Spencer's Visit

We recently returned from a trip to Uganda.  We really enjoyed our time together and stayed

in our first Airbnb.  It is nice to eat out in restaurants, swim in pools, and relax…we wish Kampala didn’t have so much traffic though.  Everything takes longer than you think!  We were able to make several purchases for the hospital and our home.  On the way home we camped and explored one of our favorite places-Murchison Falls National Park.  What an amazing view from on top of the LandCruiser of elephant tracks in the sand, troops of giraffe…We are so fortunate to be able to do safari within a days’ drive of our home and use our own vehicle.  One of the great things about living in Africa!

It has been an honor to have our friends, Drs. Bob and Linda Spencer with us for the past

couple of weeks.  Dr. Bob has shown interest in teaching the residents and in seeing cardiology patients alongside them.  It was an encouragement to Warren to have Bob's help on many projects around the house.  Every evening after work they could be found welding or fixing something together.  Bob's advice helped Warren troubleshoot a new rocket stove water heating system.  Warren promises me that it is almost done (after at least 2months of effort)!  We were every encouraged by their visit to us.

Drs. Bob and Linda Spencer

Thanksgiving celebration

Thank you for your friendship.  Ways that you can be praying for us and the Congo:

-Pray for continued regression of the Ebola virus and restoration of security in the epicenter

-Pray for the peace of Christ to reign in our village and for this to characterize this community in this time of seeming uncertainty.

-Pray for on-going projects at the hospital-for successful completion of terrazzo flooring, a children’s garden.

-Pray that Christ would be glorified in and through our relationships and words as we practice medicine.

Blessings,

Lindsey (for the Coopers)

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Terrazzo flooring project in progress

Mama Ezoko, our farming captain

Giving it the good old college try

Emmanuel and Daniel shenanigans

Rain, rain go away!

November 3, 2019

We did it again!  Another 21days…alas we just passed another 21day observation period from another Ebola positive case in our health zone.  He was traveling from another health zone and was sick when he arrived in our health zone. Our community has gone through another vaccine campaign in response to this exposure, as the individual was in the community for a week prior to testing positive.  This was taken very seriously by the community at large and schoolchildren were vaccinated, etc.  Praise the Lord, we made it without any cases of community transmission!  I am proud of our community and hospital.  I believe that it is a testimony to the Lord and His ability to direct and protect our medical teams.  This is my prayer.  We remain vigilant in triage and transferring suspicious cases.  

We are also currently experiencing a measles epidemic (see road sign announcing vaccinations).  There is a spike in measles cases around the world and DRC is leading the charge with countries like Madagascar!  There have been more children who have died of measles than have died of Ebola this last year in DRC.  The recent spike in cases is likely due to widespread displacement and health zones affected by Ebola with delays in measles vaccinations, etc.

Building a Fence

Yesterday I was reminded that “small things really matter.”  Let me illustrate.  We ordered some high quality aluminum fencing materials from the USA for our upcoming pediatric garden.  I also ordered materials for our house…posts, fencing grill, end posts, top bars.  The only thing I didn’t order was the connectors for the fence posts.  It turns out that these pieces are quite important because they tie the top of the fence together.  You also suspend the chain link portion of the fence from this piece.  Seemingly small and important, yet so critical to our being able to put this fence together.  We wait to cement the fence posts in place until we have all the proper pieces. It seems like there is a life lesson here.  Small things matter immensely.  Salt is a small thing, but it can make or break a good soup.  

I think there are many parallels in life, particularly in how we value people.  Often we value people in a differential way.  Some people have more glamorous gifts and abilities to offer others.  Maybe they are gifted musicians or the person who always know the right thing to say or is always right.  Some people just seem more important than others.

I am reminded of many things that Henri Nouwen said about leadership in the Church.  Maybe leaders, missionaries even, are a bit like fence connectors.  He said, “If there is any hope for the Church in the future, it will be hope for a poor Church in which its leaders are willing to be led.”  He describes a leader as someone with outstretched arms, one who chooses a life of downward mobility.  “It is the image of the praying leader, the vulnerable leader, and the trusting leader.”  Not only that, but a leader is one who suffers alongside.  There is a human temptation to be powerful and respected and known. But Jesus says has a different view of someone’s value.  It is about someone who knows their truth worth as beloved by God.  This person seeks to share this love with others. This kind of leader can bring people together in a powerful way because each member knows it unique worth and what they can contribute.  This kind of leader is like the connector on top of the fence post.

Sam the Goat

For the last week we have been nursing our newborn goat, named Sam, back to health.  I have been amused to see that my recent Facebook post about Sam received more “likes” and “loves” than anything else recently.I have become friends with a local veterinarian who is amused by my love for this animal.  I joke about my patient, who just happens to be an animal.  I realize that baby animals usually don’t survive these illnesses here.  It started with rapid breathing, weakness, and inability to stand on his front leg. We have been treating him for tick-borne illness and generalized pneumonia and he seems to be gaining strength with nasogastric feedings.  Now he needs to learn how to eat grass!  It has been fun to learn a few things about animal husbandry.

Homeschooling

I have been homeschooling Emmanuel this last month.  It has been an unexpected blessing to watch him finding joy in learning how to write his first words, to make connections between sounds and letters on a page.  It is fun to watch letters pouring out of him on the page.  Sometimes his name has an extra “M” or an L before a U and I smile.  There are times to correct spelling, but mostly to really encourage listening for understanding…and correction will follow.  We are happy that Emmanuel’s teacher is with us again, so I will once again take a backseat.  But this experience will help me to better assist him at home.  It is fun to see his creativity and facility with shapes/design.  It has been fun looking at things under the microscope and doing little projects together. I want to encourage him and see his giftings develop.  I love that he has the opportunity to do this in Africa!  We can learn about  reptiles and then see a chameleon or monitor lizard and understand things in real life.

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·     Pray for us as we continue to serve in this challenging environment where Ebola remains a risk.  Pray that our presence here will be an encouragement to the Congolese.  

·     Pray for Emmanuel as he continues learning in kindergarten and for a desire to know who God is.

·     Pray for an upcoming trip to Uganda to acquire materials for our home and the hospital.  

·     Pray for a terrazzo flooring project in the ICU/OR as it begins this next week.

    Pray for a Bible study in the book of Joshua, that participants would be hungry to know God in a deeper way and encourage others to do so.

It has been extremely rainy here in Congo and we finally are seeing sunny days which makes life much easier!

Blessings,

Lindsey for the Coopers

Terrazzo flooring

Warren's rocket stove water heater in development

A seedling cinnamon plant (thanks to Ashley Peterson)