Aftermath

Indeed Satan was angry that ChaDwee influenced so many people to worship the the true God.It was Sunday, July 22.  NawDahBlet and I had just started up the trail with all the medicine in our backpacks.  We were going to LaGlah village to treat the sick and encourage ChaDwee and his family in the Lord.  We hadn’t gone far when we met DooPoe, ChaDwee’s son-in-law.   He had come to get us to come quickly to help ChaDwee.  Apparently he had suddenly gotten worse.  I thought of all the things that might have gone wrong for him, and immediately we returned home to empty our backpacks of medicine and pack just a few light belongings to travel out to the hospital.  DooPoe was going on to GeGhah village to find a truck that could takes us all the way out to the main road. It took us just about one and a half hours to reach LaGlah village.  As we entered the house I was chiding myself thinking I should have brought IV supplies.  What if he was bleeding and in shock?  What would I do way out here?  How would we manage to get him all the way to the bigger road where the truck would pick him up?  Well these questions were all given to God, who knows we cannot carry one thousand cc bottles of fluid all the way up here.  He is taking care of this man who just had given his heart to Him.To my relief ChaDwee walked out of the back room of his house.  He was not in shock, but after asking questions and checking his stomach, I thought that he might have a blocked bowel on top of his other problem with the mass in his lower abdomen.  This really could be an emergency, but we must wait because the truck would pick us up in the morning.  God has all things under control!  For the next 2 hours we sat and talked with ChaDwee, his wife, and daughter about God, the Bible, how to pray, and why Jesus had to come to this earth and die.  DahBlet interpreted.  I wish you could have been there!  The Holy Spirit was there!  All eyes were riveted on us as they eagerly drank in every word.  They begged us for Bibles, because, even though they could not read, they longed to have God’s powerful Word with them in their home.  I thought about the changes they had made in getting rid of all the spirit worship supplies and the pictures off the walls.  These people really needed something to take the place of these things.  DahBlet and I each loaned them our own small Bibles until we could return with Karen Bibles for them. They were delighted.  DahBlet’s Bible went to another home and my Bible was given a place on the spirit worship shelf where they used to offer food and water to the spirits!  What a wonderful place for my Bible!  Replacing evil with good!We all slept that night in a line.  Four of us slept on one side of the fire, and four on the other side.  There was not room to roll over.  It was indeed a smoky night, but we were warm enough.  In the morning we ate a small breakfast of rice and greens and started up the mountain path at 8:30 a.m.  Surprisingly enough ChaDwee’s condition was unchanged.  How he could get up that mountain was a puzzle to me because it was a grueling 2 hour hike up very steep and slippery paths.  Finally I just took my thongs off because the mud was sucking them down, plus slippery, muddy thongs do not stay on when trying to climb up steep inclines.  We did have salt with us to get rid of the many leeches, but in spite of our routine inspections and salt applications, when we finally emerged out of the jungle and stepped onto the bigger road, our feet looked hairy because of all the small leaches waving up from our skin!After 25 minutes of walking on the bigger road, the truck finally met us.  The patient got inside and we climbed into the back of this muddy, old, Toyota 4X4 pickup truck, clinging to the sides as it vaulted down the rain rutted muddy road.  It was a wild ride to be sure.  Other workmen were in the back, and we barely had a place to grip onto the sides as we sat in slushy mud and heaved back and forth amidst rain and tree branches.The first hospital we went to, told me that my patient had been checked there 3 months ago and they had told him that he had cancer.  I noticed that nothing had been done for him!  I discovered that he did not even know what cancer was.  Now I had to tell him, and explain the surgery ~  that he would need a cholostomy.  He was afraid, but he told me that he wanted to live because he needed to know more about God, and was looking forward to our visits and bringing his family together to hear the words of God. He was admitted, but in the morning when the surgeon came in to see him, he appeared very angry.  He was rude, pushed me out of the way and would not speak to me.  My patient wanted to go home, but I couldn’t let him do that, he would only die.  Providentially, Maria was taking her 2 friends to Bangkok airport that day and we were able to ride with them.  I thought Mission hospital was a perfect solution to our problem.  However by the time we got to Tak, I thought my patient could go no further, so I got out at the Tak hospital.  After being checked over in the Emergency room, they told me they do not do that kind of surgery, they send them to another larger hospital.  I couldn’t do that, so we went on down to Bangkok.  Once at Mission hospital they advised me to take him to Chaing Mai!   They told me his card would not pay here -  I would have to pay approx. 200,000 baht for his tests and surgery.  I could not do that, so I purchased a hospital room for the patient and son-in-law and I stayed in a guest room.  The next day, dear Maria took us to the bus station and we got on a bus for an eleven hour ride to Chiang Mai government hospital.  That night they evaluated my patient and kept him in the out-patient department all night.  The next day he was to see a surgeon, but we waited all day.  Finally the surgeon told me that we needed to go to Omkoi. His card would not pay here.  Omkoi would have to evaluate him and then refer him to the appropriate hospital.  My heart sank.  I prayed prayed prayed.  Then I went to Social Services to ask them if they could help me.  I knew my patient could NOT make it all the way over to Omkoi in a bus and then back to Chiang Mai before anything could be done! It had already been 3 days of agony for him.  I myself could not bear the thought.  Social Service was very upset with me and told me that I couldn't just work out there somewhere and expect to bring patients anywhere I wanted to.  They could not help me.  I waited for my patient to have one more x ray of his abdomen so they could look for an obstruction.  When the surgeon saw it he called in the higher surgeon who took one look and said, “This is an emergency, he must be admitted for surgery right away, he has a bowel obstruction!”  “Thank You, Lord,”  I whispered.  “You always hear and answer our prayers."   Now his card would pay because it was an emergency. The next day, a nursing instructor spoke to me and found out I was a volunteer nurse from America, working in the mountains for the Karen people.  She treated me like royalty and told me I needed to stay in their free housing for Christian women.  She took me to Social Services where those same people were working.  She introduced me like I was a queen and they quickly disappeared to do their work!  I was given a room for free and my new friend would make sure they sent clothes to my patient and his son-in-law. ChaDwee’s surgery was successful.  He was given a colostomy, followed by radiation treatments.  The doctor said he needed 2 months of radiation every day.  I was able returned to BYT at this point and let the son-in-law continue caring for him.  The people at the charity house were going to MaeLaCamp the next day and drove me into MaeSot for free - plus they bought me my food!"Our Lord adapts Himself to our special needs.  He is a shade on our right hand.  He walks close by our side, ready to supply all our necessities.  He comes very near to those who are engaged in willing service for him.  He knows everyone by name.  Oh what assurances we have of the tender love of Christ!"