The Medicine of Jesus

To be perfectly honest (like I've been anything but honest in this blog- I wrote about my diarrhea 2 blogs ago... for someone who doesn't do “poo talk”, that's some brutal honesty!), our outreach phase of our DTS was not what I expected. In fact, it wasn't even what I wanted. Nor was any of it what I would have chosen. Generally speaking, I hated our outreach. Couldn't wait for it to be over. Longed for the end to come.

But I wouldn't have changed anything about it for the world.

When Sitara told me she was leaving 3 weeks into the outreach, I had this momentary sense of panic and maybe even some slight feelings of abandonment. We weren't great friends, but she was the closest to me on the team in terms of age and culture, so we understood one another, we related to one another and we leaned on one another. The panic and abandonment didn't last long- thank God- because out of that fleeting moment of dread, He put things into perspective for me really quickly:

“Did you come to Fiji for Sitara or for Me?”

Darn, that God is good... fixed me right away. I didn't even have to go back to my first blog to know the answer to this. I came to Fiji for God and for no one else. For my relationship with Him, to help my relationship with others. To be stretched, pushed and challenged. To grow. To be challenged some more. And that's precisely what outreach did to me. I didn't ask for easy and that's not what I got. I may not have always enjoyed it, I may not have always loved the stretching, the pushing (I may have even pushed back a little... you're shocked, I know.) or the challenge, but God took that outreach and made something of it, maybe even made something of me... and for that, I wouldn't have changed our outreach for the world.

And, it wasn't all bad. There were definitely highlights: walking into a shop in Sigatoka and having a frank discussion about Christianity with the devote Muslim shopkeeper. Praying with Farmer Joe and his family as they accepted Jesus as their Saviour. 

Remember Farmer Joe?

Shopping for groceries and watching love come to life through giving (and seeing the true meaning of gratitude from those that received). Watching team members, who I doubted so often, come to life with purpose and love by serving others. And, of course, the biggest and most impacting highlight for me was our medical outreach.

I still remember having a conversation with my sister many years ago about what she was going to do after high school. She told me she was thinking about becoming an Emergency Medical Technician. Truth be told, I had to ask her what that was. When she told me, I literally felt something “click” inside. I knew, without a doubt, that was what I was suppose to be. Now, as a paramedic, I know even more that I am doing what God designed me to do. I love what I do. There has never been a day in my career where I thought, “I need to get a new career”. And, in a sense, that is how I feel when I do a medical outreach. This was my 3^rd medical outreach and I enjoyed every minute of it.

Our large team- 29 people from 12 different countries- provided free medical, dental and optometry services to 2 different communities, Vatakoula and Nadarivatu. Vatakoula is a gold mining town about an hour away from Lautoka. The gold mine has a doctor for the miners and there is a hospital in nearby Tavua. However, there is still a great need in this area with many who have very little and have poor access to transport. Nadarivatu, on the other hand, is a remote village in the mountains that is a 2 hour drive (on bad roads) away from a hospital or a doctor. There is a nursing station in Nadarivatu, but they've been unable to find a doctor for their clinic for a long time, so seeing a doctor is difficult for most people in the area who cannot afford to travel down the mountain. Generally speaking, healthcare in Fiji is light years behind that in first world countries and there is a lack of public health education, making the medical need in Fiji great.

The primary health care area had one doctor and one nurse. Our dental area had 2 dentists. Our optometry area was set up for visual acuity tests, evaluations for cataract surgery (to be done by another team later this year) and reading glasses dispensary. Our team was made up of more non-medical people than medical, but as in all medical outreaches, you learn to do by doing (I just realized that is also the 4H motto- I was a 4Her for many years when I was younger... ). Jobs ranged from eye examiners, sterilizers, educators, translators (thanks Tikiko, you were an awesome help!), registration, pharmacy assistant and, of course, prayer people. I was put in primary health care registry, so every patient for the nurse and the doctor had to go through me or my partner first. To be honest, I was a bit disappointed I wasn't able to help with the actual medicine, but that soon changed as I started registration. I soon found my niche in this outreach as I played “detective” with every patient, trying to get a solid history for the doctor or the nurse. Being a good detective is all a part of being a good paramedic, so I am thankful to say that, even after being away from the job for 4 months, I got back into the groove of things quickly. I also had the opportunity to sit and learn from our doctor, Mispa, after registration closed. Thanks Mispa for all the teaching- it was great!

We saw patients with all kinds of problems- everything from back and knee pain to breathing problems to heart problems to skin problems- in fact, I now think I'm a bit of an expert in spotting scabies and ringworm... I also took some of the highest blood pressures I have ever seen- 260/170 was one of the higher ones that I recall and the patient had no symptoms! Hypertension (fancy word for high blood pressure) is a huge problem in both the Indo-Fijian and Fijian populations- as is medication compliance. Most of our hypertension patients did have some sort of prescription at one time, but once the medication was finished, they assumed the hypertension was gone. Or they could not afford to refill the prescription. Or there is an inability to access a chemist. So many people were literally walking miracles as they had not had a stroke or heart attack yet.

On our last night in Nadarivatu, we even had an emergency case. A man was brought in with severe shortness of breath. Of course, it was late at night and we had already packed up our medications and equipment. Mispa and a couple of others saw him first and I was woken up by Stephanie, a Manitoba girl who was on the New Zealand DTS team. She had run up the hill to where I was staying and breathlessly told me that someone was having a bad asthma attack and Mispa wanted some help. As we made our way down the hill, I did what every paramedic does: start planning for the worst case scenario. Unfortunately, since we were only a primary healthcare clinic, I wasn't even certain if we had the medications and equipment needed for the worst case scenario (and unsure if we could even do a “plan B”). However, when I got to the clinic and saw the patient, my worst case scenario was downgraded. The patient was resting comfortably after Mispa's treatment. An ambulance was on it way up the mountain as there was still concern. We spent the next couple of hours waiting for the ambulance, trying to figure out what could be wrong with this man. I always laugh when people say things like “glad we have a paramedic with us”, because of course, I do not have my meds or equipment with me, so really, all I am is a glorified first aider. This was really apparent as we were trying to figure out this man's condition. There was probably half a dozen test we would have ran, if we had the means. But the nursing station was under-equipped and so were we for emergency patients. Fortunately, this man did well and was transported to the hospital in Tavua.

We spent 6½ days in clinic, a total of 4 days in Vatakoula and 2½ days in Nadarivatu. This is a breakdown of the patients we saw over those 6½ days:

595 Optometry patients:

• 403 reading glasses given away

• 91 sunglasses given away
• 23 people referred for cataract surgery

517 patients seen by the nurse, the doctor or both

• 45 physiotherapy treatments performed
• 257 people received physiotherapy education

365 patients seen by the dentists

• 73 teeth restored (fillings)
• 828 teeth extracted (yes, you read that correctly!!!)
• over 300 people received dental education

As you can see, we all worked hard during our short time in clinic, and everyday I was amazed at the hard work, dedication and extraordinary attitudes of everyone on the team. Despite some long hours, some undesirable tasks and a whole lot of fatigue, our team happily persevered to serve those around us. It really was an inspiration to watch such a large group, from so many cultures and backgrounds, come together in unity to serve others for God in such an impacting way. Our DTS team returned to Vatakoula later on and people were still talking about our medical outreach, the services we provided and the attitudes of love and joy we showed while we were there.

It was an amazing time, with some amazing people- thank you to everyone on our large team for all the fun times and hard work. And, of course, vinaka vaka levu to the communities in Vatakoula and Nadarivatu for hosting us and making us feel so welcome!

Here are a few pictures of all that we did, please check my Facebook album HERE for more pictures.

 The Vatakoula Primary School- our clinic and residence for the week

Our doctor with a patient 

Our pharmacist with one of the cutest patients 

Praying 

Normally this is a classroom, but we turned it into a dental clinic 

Most often seen by our dentists... which explains the high number of extractions 

 The Mercy Truck full of medical equipment, heading up the mountain to Nadarivatu

The Nadarivatu Health Centre 

 Can you read this with your new reading glasses?

 The busy doctor

 Any cavities?

 Physiotherapy class

 Getting the patients registered

Optometry

Thanks for reading,

Christy

The $100 Challenge

Before I left Canada, a friend handed me $100 to take to Fiji (which, given the exchange rate, nearly doubled her money in Fiji dollars) and said, “do something good with this”. Despite the fact that she is a very sweet and thoughtful friend, I was still taken aback by her generosity and not really too sure what I was going to do with her money. Her challenge was wide open and I really had no clue what I was going to do, so I just tucked that money into my brassiere...

I'm totally kidding. I'm not 80 years old. 


At least not yet.

As I was attending DTS, I starting praying about how to use the money. I asked around, trying to find the best way possible to use her money to be a blessing. There were some good suggestions and ideas, but nothing was jumping out at me. I really wanted to find just the right thing, something tangible and meaningful, as well as something that could involve the entire DTS team. Some thing that meant something. Something spectacular. And something that oozed love.

Gotta live a life of love, right?

As we went on outreach, visiting with people in their homes, sharing our stories and the love of Jesus, I kept looking around for that spectacular idea. And one idea kept coming to me over and over and over again. It wasn't spectacular, yet it was everything to them. And it was something that meant everything to Jesus:

“For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me. Then the righteous will answer Him saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?’ And the King will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.’”
(Matthew 25.35-40 ESV)

So this is the story of our $100 Challenge- or, what I referred to as Random Acts of Food. Read on, meet the families, the widows, the sick and the children that we met and gave and loved.

Ben and Kaba (pronounced Kum-ba) helped me do the shopping for our grocery packs, as I had no idea what to buy. It was a bit of a challenge for me, as I had to remember that very few people have refrigerators or freezers, so things like a frozen chicken were out. And although I had already been in Fiji for 3 months, I really still had little idea what foods were staples. Ben and Kaba helped me pick things that were not only needed, but would also last a long time. So, thank you Ben and Kaba for all of your help!

Lotsa flour, milk, sugar, rice, tea, canned meat plus a few treats! 

 Thank you Ben & Kaba for your help!

Let's spend some money!

1. We gave one package to an older widow who is on welfare. The welfare system in Fiji is very new and is honestly hardly any help at all. This woman receives only $50/month for housing and other expenses and $30/month for groceries, which does not even come close to covering her living expenses. She is all alone and no one is helping her, even though she has a son who lives near by. Her eyesight is very poor and she has a really bad cataract in one of her eyes. She really had nothing and is lonely. She was in tears when the team delivered her package.

2. Another package went to a family that we met at one of our medical outreaches. The father had recently had a stroke and was now wheelchair bound in a rural area that definitely was not made for wheelchairs. His son, who had been living on a different island with a good job, moved back to his parents' house to help care for his dad. He and his mother were looking for jobs to support the family, but they haven't been able to find anything yet.

3. We left another parcel with one of the nurses at the nursing station at our second medical outreach in Nadarivatu for a single mom. According to the nurses, this young mom may possibly be slightly mentally challenged and has no source of income. She has been taken advantage of by different men who have left her with children but no support. She comes to the nursing station once a month so the nurses can check on her children and give her milk for her malnourished children.

4. We gave a package to an elderly man who had multiple boils for 2 months. He had come to the village we were in to see the local doctor and was being taken care of by some local women. He died 4 days later.

These are just a few of the stories that were made possible by my friend's $100 challenge. If you'd like to read a bit more and see a few more families whose lives were changed by my friend's $100 challenge, click HERE to see the Facebook album.

And thank you, my Friend, for being a blessing, for blessing our team, blessing these people and giving us this challenge.

Thanks for reading,

Christy

Outreach Week 3: A BAd Week

How's this for honesty: this is going to be a disappointing post about a disappointing week.

According to our team leader, Lusi, weeks 1 & 2 of outreach is the “honeymoon phase” (can't remember the highlights of outreach weeks 1 & 2? Click HERE to read the post or HERE to see the Facebook pics), while week 3 is where it all falls apart. Our group was no exception and it all started and ended in a town called Ba.

Things just went BAd.

BA hum bug.

BAaaaaa.

We were never suppose to go to Ba in Week 3. We were suppose to go to the town of Vatukoula, where we were going to help out the local pastor and advertise for the upcoming free medical clinic. Well, things don't usually go as planned in Fiji, and this outreach location was no exception. Our accommodation fell through, so we were sent to Ba, which is halfway between Lautoka and Vatukoula. We didn't have much of a plan, but we did have a roof over our head and a chicken to shower with.

Yup, that's what I said- a chicken to shower with. This little bird brain made her home in our shower and never, ever left.

And yes, it was creepy. And weird.

Thank you for asking.

We stayed with Pastor Saki, who literally moved into his home that week, and we took over his house- all 10 of us. The week was long (really, it seemed never ending), extremely hot and nothing was going our way. Towards the end of the week we hadn't accomplished much, we still weren't sure if the medical outreach was even going to happen and we were starting to wondering if we were ever going to leave Ba. And then Sitara decided to leave. Yup, only week 3 of outreach and she quit and left. So then we were nine. We made the best of things and, literally the day after Sitara left, things started going our way again and we really got into the swing of things with this outreach. But more of that in an upcoming post (hey, I gotta do something to keep you coming back).

But here's some pictures for you to feast your eyes on...

Loading up the Mercy Truck in Lautoka to go to Ba

Inside Pastor Saki's house

A local church

The oldest bus in the world (well, that's my guess)

For more pics of Ba, go to my Facebook album by clicking HERE.

I hope I didn't disappoint with my disappointing post about a disappointing week.

Thanks for reading,

Christy

Back in the Saddle Again

Wow, it's been nearly 2 months since I've posted for you. I've missed the blog, which kind of surprised me- especially considering how I feel about “journalling”. It's hard to believe that DTS is over already and that I've left Fiji. Our outreach ended on Sunday, May 29 when we returned to Lautoka. I had 4 days there to debrief with the rest of the team, get organized, buy a few souvenirs, say goodbye to some good friends and pack for the next adventure. I also graduated from DTS that week...

Vinaka vaka levu Fiji for the most amazing 5 months... and thank you God for being there with me every step of the way.

Well, I haven't made it home yet. I'm in Ballarat, Australia, a small city about 1½ hours from Melbourne, where I am staying with some old friends- Angela and Leigh. I've known Angela for a long time- we met in church one day and bonded over a mutual annoyance of a certain somebody... and we've been friends ever since. We have had a lot of good times together and, despite the fact that we've spent the majority of our friendship in different cities, provinces and now, in different countries, our friendship continues. Angela went off to do her DTS shortly after we met and ended up as a missionary for YWAM Vancouver... and that is where she met her fabulous hubby, Leigh the Australian.

They're pretty cute, eh?!

They've been in Australia for 3 years now so, when I got to Fiji and finally clued in that I was ¾ of the way to Australia, I jumped at the chance to come and see them. And, now that I am here, I am so thankful to be here- this was the best thing I could have done after DTS. I'm just not ready to go home- at least not now. I've needed some time to process, get myself well (see below), ease myself back into western culture and just relax. As former DTS students and YWAMers, Angela and Leigh knew I was going to need some “decompression” time after DTS before heading back into my real life, so they have welcomed me with open arms. Thank you Angela and Leigh for welcoming me into your home- for making me feel as if I am home- you have been perfect, understanding and gracious hosts.

This is what I had waiting for me in my room when I arrived at Angela & Leigh's- hospitality at its finest!

As I alluded to above, I haven't been feeling 100%. I came back to Lautoka with vomiting, diarrhea and a nasty cough. I actually feel very fortunate because I have heard of many horror stories of traveller sicknesses and this is honestly the first time I've ever experienced anything. In fact, I am usually bragging about how I strong my stomach is... won't be doing that anymore! Truth be told, it hasn't been nearly as bad as some people experience and, even more gratefully, I didn't get sick until the last few days of outreach, so I've always had good “facilities”. However, I have had this cough for nearly 3 weeks now and while the vomiting has ceased, the other “problem” has not. I think it may be time to take advantage of my travellers insurance.

It's winter here in Australia, which means temperatures less than 15 celcius, wind and rain. The leaves have turned colours and are falling off of the trees- by the time I get back to summer in Canada, my body is not going to know what season it is! Needless to say, I arrived with no warm clothes- all I brought to Fiji was hot weather clothes and most of those clothes stayed in Fiji (mostly because there are people there who need them more than I do, but also because I've lost 17 pounds... woot woot! Here's hoping western convenience and my lack of will power will not call those pounds back... ). Angela has lent me a lot of clothes, but she also introduced me to a little department store called Target...

That's me, 100% happy.

... and I am now in love. I've never been to a Target before and I am impressed. And, more importantly, I am warm and stylish (as stylish as I can get, anyway)... especially after my hair cut today! I haven't had my hair cut since I left Canada and it was the longest it has been since I was a kid. And I looked like a mangy mutt...

But now...

cute as a button!

So, I just wanted to write a quick post to say “hi, remember me?” and let you know that I haven't forgotten about you. I've just needed some time to feel better, to process things and to motivate myself. I'm getting there, slowly, so over the next few days you will be seeing more posts and pictures about our outreach and other little thoughts and musings I've been having. And I will do my best to respond to the emails and Facebook messages you've been sending (thank you for your patience). So, keep your eyes open for more on my outreach adventures and more!

Thanks for reading,

Christy

Hey-o!

I am back in civilization, but only for a few days. We came back to Lautoka Saturday afternoon and had a very short day of rest. Yesterday (Sunday) we ran the Easter Sunday service in one of the local churches (which I missed out on because I wasn't feeling too good) and then we had a big meeting with the medical coordinators of the the medical outreach that we are doing at our next location. We also got to meet a DTS team from New Zealand, who are also helping out with the medical outreach. We are in between outreach locations and having a bit of trouble finalizing our accommodations because of the Easter holiday (and because last minute changes is just how Fiji rolls... ). We were suppose to be heading out to Vatakoula this morning (our Monday), but so far, it looks like we won't be leaving today. Instead, we are going to a local church in Lautoka to do kids ministry, which is a favourite among most of the team members. We have a lot of fun with it and the kids are so cute- we teach them songs (mostly songs with silly actions), do puppet shows and little skits for them. The kids love it and so do we.

During the DTS lecture phase, we were required to keep a weekly journal of our feelings and other crap like that. I abhor journaling. I always have and I always will. In a sense it's funny I hate it so much because I am really enjoying writing this blog, which is almost like a journal. During DTS, almost every week, I would write in my journal, “I hate journaling” and I would tell this to Lusi, who was the staff member assigned to meet with me on a weekly basis and read my journal to make sure I wasn't going cuckoo or anything (cuckoo for Jesus is acceptable, but anything beyond that requires help). Lusi is also our team's leader and guess what job she assigned to me during outreach (besides being the Boo-Boo fixer)?! Yup, that's right- I am responsible for journaling our adventures on outreach. I'm pretty sure that either Lusi didn't ever read my journal or she trying to teach me some kind of ridiculous lesson. Or maybe both? Either way, I am stuck journaling. Boo. Anyway, I thought I would share with you the opening page of our team journal and then I'll share what exactly we've been up to...

“On April 10, 2011, 7 students and 3 staff members left “home”- the city of Lautoka, to be exact- and set out on the open road, headed to Sigatoka, the first stop on our 7 week adventure. Our purpose? To go and serve like Jesus did. Our quest? To live like Jesus did- a life of love. Our challenges? I'll leave you to answer that one...

You see, although we all believe that it is no accident or coincidence that each of us is here- we were all chosen specifically by God- we are a group of misfits. A strange mix... mixed nuts, perhaps? One look at us and you'd think that you walked into a bad joke of sorts. You know the kind- “a Fijian, an American, a Kiwi and a Korean walk into a bar... “. We are a kaleidoscope of cultures, ages, personalities, shoe sizes, generations, skin colours, languages... but we do have one thing in common: Jesus Christ is our Saviour. If we become united, if we work together in love and with patience and kindness, it will only be because of Him. What else could possibly explain unity in such a group of misfits? What else could explain why 10 people, from six different countries, would give up their rights, their lives, their comforts, to come together for 5 months, to try to be a team, a family? For most of us, it already seems like a miracle occurred, because very few of us thought any unity among us could be possible. But, here we are, a family of misfits- God's family- traveling throughout Fiji, trying to love one another, love others and expand our Father's house.

If God is for us, who can be against us? - Romans 8:31”

So, this is a snap shot of what we are starting with, but only God knows what we will end up with. And yes, I truly am the whitest person in our group, the whitest person in Fiji, the whitest Canadian ever, even after 4 months in Fiji.

Darn camera flashes.

We had an amazing send off when we left on April 10. Not only did the staff pray for and encourage us, each student had their feet washed by a staff member, just like Jesus did to his disciples in John 13:1-17 before sending them out. Seems like such a silly thing to do, but I was in tears as Lusi washed my feet and prayed over me. We then took communion together and had a yummy lunch of quiche (thanks Thelma for your help!), salad and fruit smoothies (Yong Won makes great smoothies!). We then packed ourselves into a 15 passenger minivan (how we got us and all of our stuff in there had to have been a miracle!) and we left for Sigatoka. Sigatoka is on the Coral Coast and we started the week working with an Indian pastor, Pastor Shalen. Whatever accommodation that had been arranged fell through at the last minute, so Pastor Shalen called one of his church members the night before we arrived and they agreed to take us- all 10 of us- in for the week. Bhalu, his wife Nirmala and their 3 children- Anthony, Jordan and Sanam- welcomed us in with open arms and allowed us to literally take over their entire house. The 3 children (who are 14 years old and older) all gave up their rooms and their beds to the girls on the team. They cooked us meals, did our laundry, drove us around and we were always given the first shower (if the water was on- running water is very sketchy at their house- it only comes on a few, random hours of the day). Compared to most outreach locations, we were living in a palace, in luxury. It was so amazing to be able to come back to a home at the end of each day. I couldn't imagine getting a call from my pastor and agreeing to take 10 strangers in on such short notice, giving up my entire house to them, cooking and cleaning for them. To be honest, I feel like the real “missionaries” in this part of our adventure was not us, but it was this family. I was truly humbled by their amazing generosity and love.

During our time with Pastor Shalen, we worked in 3 different villages around Sigatoka, mostly working with Indo-Fijians. We started our week by going around and visiting church members, visiting and praying for them. We also had 2 home groups throughout the week, where church members got together in the evening to worship God, have someone do a brief teaching and, of course, lots of visiting and eating! I got to do a bit of teaching at the Thursday night home group and I think that my message was received very well. On Friday night, we planned the event for the youth group, which ended up being a lot of fun. We played a couple of ice breaker games, did some singing, gave a short talk and then just visited with the group. And, of course, there was food (are you sensing a pattern here???)!

One of the more challenging things that we did was go door knocking. “What's door knocking?”, you ask? Well, you know when Jehovah's Witnesses come and knock on your door to tell you about their religion, taking you away from writing me an awesome email or letter about how much you miss me? That's door knocking. I know, it totally freaked me out too when I heard we were going to go and do that. When JWs come to my door, I normally just don't answer the door or I am pretty standoffish with them. I can't stand having people I don't know coming to my house unannounced. I'm pretty sure that 98.8% of North Americans would agree with me (which is why I would never do this at home, so just breath that sigh of relief... ).

Fijians and Indo-Fijians, like other people from warm climate cultures, are different. They are relational and will welcome anyone, anytime into their homes, giving only their best to their guest. Behind every door were gracious and inviting people, always offering us to come into their homes, out of the sun, offering delicious juice or tea, sometimes even offering to make us a meal. Over the last 2 weeks, in our 2 outreach locations, we probably visited nearly a hundred homes, visiting with families and telling them about Jesus. We were warmly welcomed into Muslim homes, Hindu homes and homes that had no beliefs. We just talked, shared and loved. We never pushed or imposed. Over the last 2 weeks, about 100 people accepted Jesus Christ as their Saviour and they will all be followed up and invited into the local church for more of Jesus' love. For a girl who has hardly shared her beliefs with her friends and family, this was simply amazing to me.

Last Sunday, after we ran the church service for Pastor Shalen and after we had a kids ministry afternoon, we hopped into the back of a big 2 ton truck (we were literally packed in the box of the truck) and drove about 1 hour inland from Sigatoka to an area that most tourists never see. Honestly, in my opinion, it's one of the most beautiful places in Fiji- lush and green, beautiful rolling hills everywhere. We met Pastor Ronald, his wife Tewa and 7 year old son Junior in the Indian community of Nabitu, where they opened up their church to us as our home for the week. We slept on the floor and had running water and electricity (they just got the electricity the week before). Pastor Ronald left the tourism industry a few years ago to come to Nabitu to start a church. He has had to work hard to get his church up and going- this isolated community has had its fair share of pastors come and go, unable to commit to such a community. He is now a very respected man in the area, as he and his family are obviously here for the long term. He is a passionate man who loves God intensely, living by faith and loving those around him. In this area, there are 2 main communities- Nabitu, the Indian community that hosted us and Vunagawa, a nearby Fijian village. This is farming country, mostly referred to as the “salad bowl” of Fiji. There are papaya trees everywhere you look, along with eggplant, bananas, casava and other fruits and veggies. The people in this area work long and hard to provide for their families- they are definitely some of the hardest working people you will every meet. During our week with Pastor Ronald, we went door knocking, we had prayer meetings at the church (aka, our bedroom) nearly every night and we even got to do kids ministry in the nearby Fijian village. That proved to be a bit of a challenge as it was getting dark out and we had no electricity. As in any event, the entire village gathered to watch us play with the children- all by a couple of kerosene lamps. We had a blast with these outgoing kids and the adults all got a kick out of it too. Then, when we were all done, the most amazing thing happened: the entire village thanked us by singing us a Fijian song of thanks and blessing (which I didn't know was tradition). I don't think that I could possible even try to explain how amazing they sounded, how perfectly in harmony the entire village was. As tears welled up in my eyes, I knew it was the most beautiful thing I have ever heard. I do believe that Heaven will sound this way.

Headed to Nabitu on the truck

Rachel, Tikiko & Sitara

Puppet show for the kids at Nabitu Primary School

The cute kids of the Kindy class 

Pastor Ronald, Tewa & Junior in front of their church- our home for the week

So, this is a quick, brief snapshot of what we've been up to so far. I am really enjoying it, but there are a few things that I am missing. For one, being a part of a team 24/7 is exhausting to me. I am an introvert by nature, so being around people all the time makes me really tired. I have really been craving privacy... just some time alone every now and then to feel refreshed, gather some energy. Privacy is definitely a luxury in outreach.

I am also pumped because my package from Canada has finally arrived- it left Canada Jan 26! It has my sleep mat, among other things. Since sleeping on the floor this past week, my sciatica has been acting up, so I'm hoping my spanky new sleep mat will help with that. I'm also pretty fortunate because I have 2 lovely ladies, Kaba and Rachel, who are excellent, gifted massagers. Thank you Ladies for keeping me from being in pain!

It has also been abnormally hot here... I know, there is probably no sympathy out there for me, especially from my Canadian peeps. It seems that all over the world the weather is behaving strangely, and Fiji is no stranger to that. Everyone here kept telling me that once March/April comes, the cooler “winter” weather would come. Well, that has not happened- in fact, it feels hotter than ever here. And there is definitely no such thing as a/c on outreach! In fact, I am currently sitting in the restaurant of the Lautoka Hotel, the only thing open in Lautoka on this Easter Monday, basking in the comfort of the lovely a/c. I'm not hungry or thirsty, I just wanted some a/c. My tummy does not feel so great after my little snack of Coke and fries (which I only ate/drank half), but the a/c is heavenly.

Most of all, I wish you were here too- I am missing you.

Thanks for reading,

Christy


PS- if you'd like to see a few more photos of this part of our outreach, click HERE for a link to my Facebook album.