Our daily lives and tasks in Kapsowar.

Andre;

Andre's days starts with fellowship with his colleagues ( Psalms ) every morning  8-8.30 except on Wednesdays when all the Hospital staff attend a church service from 7.30 till 8.30 at the Chapel

His working day starts at 9 am and this past week he was assigned to work at the Emergency ward that screen patients for surgery. The hospital is not as busy this time of the year but two of the permanent doctors are on leave and Andre is standing in for them.He has already seen many trauma cases that you will likely never see elsewhere .He loves working in a environment where the common goal is to "Glorify God in everything we do".

Gerda:

My day starts with leading devotionals for the Nursing students at 8 am .I am so struck by the simplicity of their lives and how good their knowledge is of the Bible. This class is not mandatory but there is a full class every morning. All of the students  carry a Bible and when I asked them to quote key verses , they know it by heart. This class is the highlight of my day and they all speak English very well.( likely better than me ) .Kenyan people are very friendly and always tell you that you are   " very welcome " but it takes them a while to show their emotions. We seldom see them cry even in the most devastating circumstances and you wonder if the reason is because they see and experience so much trauma.

At 10 am I do hospital rounds with the two pastors from the Chaplaincy and we pray with the patients and talk with the families ,The young people receive their education in English so they are all fluent in English but most of the older people  only speak their mother language and then the pastors help with the translation. There are 40  different languages and sometimes patients will be from another region that nobody can understand .Because of the privacy of these patients I cannot share their medical details but there is everyday a case that just breaks my heart. It is always so humbling to see how much they want us to pray for them and how much they cling to the hope that Jesus gives ,

I also spend lots of time at the African Inland Church  School that is situated just next to the hospital.
This school has captured my heart and the children are adorable. They range from 3 years to 14 years old with 196 students and 18 teachers. I spend a lot of time taking pictures and notes at this school and will share that when we are home , because our internet in Kapsowar can not load pictures.