"The most difficult thing this month was witnessing so many cases of domestic violence. One weekend, we admitted three women who were “chopped” by their husbands. One woman related how her husband took her down to the river to kill her. She escaped with lacerations to the scalp, multiple open fractures of the arm and two amputated fingers. Another woman was chopped in the face - the bush knife (machete) went all the way down to the bone. In a society saturated with violence, my heart aches for these women who are subjected to such physically, emotionally and psychologically scarring abuse. Even after the physical wounds have healed, the social issues remain. Many women don’t press charges because they don’t want the family bread-winner to go to jail. Polygamy is common here and many women are neglected or abandoned when the husband marries a new wife. Due to the local customs, many of the abandoned women have nowhere to go, they are ostracized by their husband’s clan and can’t return to their own clan once the bride price has been paid. In the midst of so much pain and brokenness, I turn to an all-powerful, all-loving God who “heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds” (Psalm 147:3). My hope is that these women will find freedom and complete healing in the arms of the God who loves them more than any person ever could. 
On the positive side, it is exciting to see patients place their hope in Christ. This man came to the hospital with a 1-month history of dysphagia (difficulty swallowing) and weight loss. Work-up revealed un-resectable esophageal cancer. Dr. Ben sat down with him and his family to explain the diagnosis and his poor prognosis. Without chemo or radiation therapy available, we knew his days were numbered. When Ben asked if he was ready to meet God, the man hung his head in shame. He had once followed Christ, but backslid and turned away. Now, he decided, he wanted to change. His prayer of repentance brought tears to my eyes. This is why Kudjip Nazarene Hospital exists: to bring hope to the hopeless in the name of Jesus Christ.
Thank you for your continued prayers for my co-workers and I as we “shine among them like stars in the sky as [we] hold firmly to the word of life.” (Phil 2:15-16)"
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