On the Heels of Rainy Season

February 27, 2024

Balmy Dry Season

Greetings from Nyankunde!  It has been a balmy and windy 90 degree week here in central Africa.  Rain is on the horizon though! We are in the middle of dry season, the days are hot, and deep fissures develop in the earth where crops used to be.  Last week someone lit a fire on the hillside by our house, smoking out our bees and sweeping across a large swath of land.  Fortunately our home was not threatened as the flames leaped from one place to another.  It remains to be seen if our almost 10-year old bee hive survived…

Green Pets

At the moment we have a green lovebird that has a preference for all things green, and a chameleon on the chandelier!  It seems that this species of bird “sees” in shades of green, or fluorescence.  We wonder if he prefers the color green, as it provides camouflage and protection from predators or if it has another function. This is life in Africa somehow a bit closer to nature and the earth.  What a fun life it is for Emmanuel (and for us for that matter) to learn about God’s creatures from caring for them firsthand!

Rural Medicine

It has been a blessing to have our missionary colleagues, the Staffords, at the hospital again.  Dr. Bob Spencer, an American cardiologist, is now here for his fifth visit to provide support the medical work in Nyankunde.  It is always an encouragement to us to have him here.  I am busy seeing babies on maternity and looking at how to improve care of newborns in the region.  We had a set of triplets born this last week who are thriving and returning home tomorrow!  We continue to have challenging cases of tuberculosis, of about 20% of hospitalized children.  It is a very high statistic and a sign of a chronically ill population.  There has been a movement towards traditional healers and so many people are not seen until late in the disease.

I recently heard the statistic that about 40% of Africa now lives in cities.  We definitely see this reality in DRC.  It is true then also that there is a migration of medical professionals to urban areas and away from rural areas.  There is an increasingly growing number of subspecialists here in Congo, but many of them teach and have limited clinical practices.  We are somehow an exception working here in Nyankunde, in that we provide specialty care to a poor, rural population.  We hope that it makes a difference and hope to make these services more available to people who need it.  We also hope and pray that health care will be something that keeps bringing people back for care and to hear the Gospel…like it was from the 1930s and onward.  This is our hope!

Warren uses the tools that God has given him to teach and improve the quality of care in the region.  This last week a little girl came in with respiratory distress, having inhaled a popcorn kernel.  After two attempts the popcorn kernel was successfully removed by bronchoscopy and the child sent home.  There is another child with an airway problem that the bronchoscope has been useful to diagnose.  It is more difficult to treat things in this austere environment, but we do the best we can! Warren continues to share his love for training physicians on the use of ultrasound at our sister hospitals in the region.

A popcorn kernel

Spring is Coming!

We are looking forward to being back in the USA for the springtime!  We will visit family and friends in Switzerland on our way to (and back) from the USA.  Emmanuel will play on the local soccer club team with his friends and finish 3rd grade with his friends.  It has been refreshing for us to have homeschooling support through Grace Academy and for Emmanuel to have a consistent set of peers when we return.  It is a unique life to be a kid in central Africa speaking French/Swahili and then life in small town North Carolina.  We are looking forward to connecting with friends and family in the USA!

Prayer Requests

Pray for the growing security concerns in our neighboring provinces of North and South Kivu around Goma. The area is on the brink of regional war with the rebel group M23 and Congolese security forces.  There have been increasing threats extending over the border from Rwanda.  Goma, the capital of the province, is becoming cut off from rural areas and therefore food is expensive and scarce.  There are over a million refugees from the region flocking to Goma.  This does not directly affect us, but it is of immediate concern and has reverberations throughout DRC.

Pray for our witness for Christ through healthcare…that we would take opportunities to share the hope that we have in Him!

Pray for our preparations to return for a season to the USA.

Pray for health challenges, tropical fevers, and the like.

“And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God.  Not only so but we also rejoice in our sufferings because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope.  And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.”  Romans 5:3-5

Blessings for us,

Lindsey

Year of the Chicken & Rabbit

January 26, 2024

Wow, January has really flown by!  Warren has declared 2024 as the “Year of the Chicken” but thus far it seems to be the “Year of the Rabbit.”  At the moment we have 47 living creatures in our care!  This includes 21 meat chickens, 2 roosters, 6 laying hens, 2 parrots, 2 dogs, 2 cats, and 12 rabbits!  The BIG theme of the month on our little Congolese homestead is that of baby bunnies.  Both of our females had their kits, so presently we have 8 babies.  They are born without any fur and are so tiny (except for their HUGE feet), but they quickly double their size.  It is amazing how much joy these little animals can bring.  It is also good for Emmanuel to have the experience of caring for animals.  We also are waiting on a bunch of chicks which should hatch any day.  

Emmanuel has a green lovebird he affectionately calls Grio.  You know, like Rio the movie with a “G” to indicate that it is a green parrot.  Emmanuel taught Grio how to fly and prefers to ride on his shoulder all the time.  I am realizing that not just everyone has birds that can fly around the house!  So between our African grey parrot and Grio there is a lot of flying around our living room.and we have baby. Rabits from Emmanuel

Hospital News

We are completing a rehabilitation on the Women's Surgery ward which is starting to take shape.   It will be wonderful to have a nice space for women!  This building, built by Richard Dix in the 1970s is still in relatively good shape and we are thankful to have been able to help with needed repairs.

Our hospital numbers have been increasing, as are the numbers of patients coming from outlying areas.  We believe this to be a sign of improved security and dialogue between different tribal communities.  I have had several challenging patients at the moment-one with kidney failure from an unknown protein-losing kidney disease (nephrotic disorder).  I don’t believe I have ever had such a sick child.  It is difficult to provide the true intensive care that she deserves.  I am trying to do the best I can with limited resources, but there is no dialysis, no option for kidney transplant.  

A little boy came to see me this week for a medical follow-up.  We treated him for tuberculosis of the kidney and he had a miraculous turn-around.  I almost didn’t recognize him.  After looking him over, checking his blood pressure, etc, I said “He looks great!  What is the problem?”  They said, “Nothing at all.  We want to know-can he can eat salt again.”  He looked nervous.  But after I said, “Absolutely, yes!”  he gave me the biggest smile I have ever seen.  It was like he had opened a much sought-after gift for Christmas.  Can you imagine feeling joy over something simple like salt?  It is true though that salt brings much flavor to food which brings joy.  This is what Christians are supposed to be like in the world.  We bring joy and meaning to everyday experiences because of the presence of God in us.

We have been seeing a lot of complicated pregnancies and very sick babies.  I happened to be in the operating theater one night to receive a baby after a caesarian section.  The woman had an immediate complication to spinal anesthesia, lost consciousness, and stopped breathing.  Her color changed and I knew she needed immediate attention.  The anesthetist began breathing with a bag, while I grabbed the epinephrine and started chest compressions.  Fortunately she responded well to treatment, her color and vital signs returned, and she started breathing again.  There are many things to learn from this case…but it demonstrates the risks of childbirth in this part of the world.  Each year we follow about 20 orphaned babies with formula, all who lost their mothers due to birth complications.  This is a reality and one that we want to fight hard to change.

Warren has had more complicated orthopedic and general surgery cases again.  We are grateful that his vision appears to have stabilized some, but there will probably always be cases that are difficult for him now. 

Another Family Joins the Work

The Stafford Family moved back to Nyankunde this week and we are so happy that they decided to return. Peter is a general surgeon and Rebekkah is an ob-gyn.  It is a blessing to have missionary colleagues.  Emmanuel is happy that there are 3 other missionary kids to play with that speak English!  We have found that God calls people to certain places at certain times.  We pray for them in their transition and rejoice in God’s faithfulness in their lives.

As we help them with plumbing and various things around the house we remember what it was like for us moving here.  It is a blessing to be surrounded by nature and live close to where we work.  I love being able to have a garden and fresh food and go for evening walks.  We feel blessed again to be able to share our world with missionaries again.

Orphans

On New Years Day there was a special event for orphaned children.  It was a lovely event with 100+ participants, Bible stories, and treats.  It is difficult to think about the reality that these children live with, but God knows each one of these children.  This event was good for me to put faces on the problem.  You can see immediate, obvious effects of armed conflict like displaced peoples, hunger, food insecurity, and injured people.  But then there are even more hidden consequences, such as orphaned children.  We need to be prayerful for these kids and ask God to be intervening in their lives.

Prayer Requests

Thank you for your faithful prayers and communications.  It means a lot to us to hear from you.  We will be back in the USA from mid-March through June this year!  Emmanuel will finish 3rd grade at Grace Academy, so we will be based in North Carolina.  We look forward to this.  It can be hard to leave our life here…but it is important for his education and for us to stay connected to friends and family as we live in a challenging part of the world.

-Pray for visitors through our mission, CHSC, and Samaritan’s Purse who will visit in February/March.  Pray that they would have a good understanding of God’s calling on our lives and that they could be an encouragement in collecting stories and interviews.

-Pray for the many medical needs of rural peoples and that our hospital would be able to provide quality health care.

-Pray for Warren’s eyesight to be stable and even improve.

-Pray for our friends the Staffords as they adapt to living here.

-Pray that we would seek to encourage others and plant seeds of hope in people’s lives.  

-Pray for the many orphaned children in this area.

-Pray for continued improved security of the region.

Blessings,

Lindsey

Christmas is a fulfillment of the promises of God

December 2023

 

Wishing you, our friends and family a Merry Christmas!  It has been a year of travels, all of us growing older (and wiser), dealing with challenges with Warren’s eyesight, and of “staying the course” with burdens that come with being the only medical missionaries at Nyankunde Hospital.  We choose to hang onto hope for eastern Congo and for the Church in this area.  We pray for the Lord to call other people to work in rural parts of DRC.

 

Warren provides much needed surgical services at Nyankunde Hospital.  He always seems to receive very challenging cases and does not give up.  He has initiated an ultrasound learning program between our sister hospitals in eastern DRC.  He dares to dream that bedside ultrasound will become part of daily patient diagnosis and care.  I, Lindsey, continue to serve as a pediatrician, caring for critically ill children often with malnutrition and infectious diseases.  My heart is moved by the needs in surrounding villages and a desire to work boldly across tribal lines. Rural life provides hobbies like processing cocoa beans into chocolate and raising rabbits.  Emmanuel is growing up in Africa in the village where he was born.  He enjoys reading Greek mythology and loves all animals.  Rural life provides hobbies like processing cocoa beans and raising rabbits.  We plan to be in the North Carolina this spring for Emmanuel to complete third grade with his classmates at Grace Academy.  

 

At Christmas we are reminded anew of the promises of God and His incredible love for us, in our broken condition, our broken world.  From the very beginning of time God had a promise to redeem His people from their sin and brokenness by entering into it Himself.  It seems that God wanted us to see all these  promises fulfilled in His Son.  Jesus would be born in Bethlehem of a virgin and would be called Immanuel (Micah 5:2, Isaiah 7:14).  Jesus would be born as a descendent of Abraham, and called out of Egypt (Numbers 24:17; Hosea 11:1).  He would be born into a time with incredible human suffering in Ramah and establish a new kingdom to “reign on David’s throne and over his kingdom, establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness from that time on and forever” (Jeremiah 31:15; Isaiah 9:6-7).  Jesus fulfilled these (and many other) prophesies perfectly and proved His trustworthiness!  We can be assured that His promises for us are good.

 

We appreciate your friendship and support, your prayers for us.  It is a lovely thought that we are never alone, that we are seen and loved by God through each other.  Let us pray for our brothers and sisters in Israel and Gaza, in Ukraine, and all those who need a breakthrough and peace this side of heaven. 

Merry Christmas & Happy New Year!

 

Lindsey, Warren, & Emmanuel Cooper

 

 

-Here is an additional link to Epistle where you can sign up to receive updates by email:  

https://coopers-congo.epistle.org/subscribe

 

 

-To learn more about our ministry with Christian Health Service Corps or join our team:  

https://www.healthservicecorps.org/staff/dr-warren-and-dr-lindsey-cooper/

  

 

Why did God choose lowly shepherds to share the news of Jesus' birth?

December 17, 2023

Shepherds.  This year my mind has been trying to wrap my head around why God revealed the birth of the baby Jesus first to these humble, lowly individuals.  Why not someone more important or influential?  They were nobodies, outcasts of society, although everyone needed the lambs they raised for the sacrifice.  Was it just because they were out in their fields and would have noticed the sky?  Or was there was something in the heart of God, in His nature, that was drawn to share the news of His Son with them?  It was like God Himself wanted to call all His closest friends and tell them about this miracle.  After all Jesus Himself said that He was the good shepherd.  God understands shepherds, their sense of responsibility and watch care over these vulnerable animals, because He Himself is one.  If you were a chef and you came up with the most amazing preparation of lemon meringue pie, wouldn’t you call your likeminded friends to enjoy it with you? 

 

God may have shared the news first with the them because He is a shepherd, but another truth is that God valued leadership of shepherds.  Many of the Old Testament leaders who were shepherds.  Abraham, Moses, Jacob, Elisha, David, and others were shepherds before they were leaders (patriarchs, Prophet, King)!  It was an important and necessary livelihood, but it was not a glamorous one to live with animals.  David was selected as the next king when he was but a small shepherd boy.  Even from a young age David must have learned about being responsible for other living things, to watch out for the weak and to keep the flock together.  The qualities of leadership from being a shepherd are oftentimes overlooked.  He wanted the shepherds to have an important role in sharing this news with people of all societal classes.  If the news came to the shepherds, it must be news for all people.  It seems that God has always had his eyes on these people, beginning with Abraham the Father of many nations.

 

Fulfillment of prophesy is another aspect why God chose shepherds to see the Christ child.  God fulfills His promises to His people-both in small and big things.  Micah 4:8 speaks to shepherds being a “watchtower of the flock, O stronghold of the Daughter of Zion.”  To the shepherds it is promised that “The former dominion will be restored to you, kingship will come to the Daughter of Jerusalem.”  Out of Bethlehem…will come for me one who will be ruler over Israel, whose origins are from old, from ancient times (Micah 5:2).  It is very likely that the angels appeared to not just any shepherd, but Levitical shepherds who watched over animals destined for temple sacrifice.  It is thought that the shepherds in the nativity narrative were watching their flocks on a plain north of Bethlehem in a place called Migdal Eder.  Did they know that they would be part of the fulfillment of this prophesy in Micah?  It is unlikely they would have heard the words of the prophesy read in the temple due to their uncleanliness.  Did they understand what Savior meant?  This might have made sense because they knew their sinfulness and need for an atoning sacrifice.  Imagine the JOY they must have felt to feel valued with such AMAZING NEWS that a Savior was born for them, lowly, lonely shepherds!  God Himself saw them and called them like valued members of a family to see the Christ child.  What a beautiful image!

 

The Savior of the world came in a way we would not expect and to people we would not have chosen.  The shepherds would have understood that all they really had to offer was themselves, not money or status.  They were in a position to humbly receive the Christ child.  We are told that they believed, glorified, and praised God.  That is a testimony that would have been interesting to hear.

 

Christmas in Africa is always more contemplative somehow.  I have never thought very much about these humble characters, the shepherds.  I LOVE that God chose them as worthy to share this news with!  I can imagine their joy to be entrusted with this news.  I hope this will inspire you to consider these humble shepherds and see that the Good News is for all people.

For this is what the Sovereign Lord says: I myself will search for my sheep and look after them. As a shepherd looks after his scattered flock when he is with them, so will I look after my sheep...I will search for the lost and bring back the strays. I will bind up the injured and strengthen the weak, but the sleek and the strong I will destroy. I will shepherd my flock with justice." Ezekiel 34: 11-12; 16.

Blessed Advent!

Lindsey