Hello Hope...

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.
(Romans 15:13 ESV)



Foma Hope....


Hello Hope...


Where does my help come from... It comes from the King of Kings, the Lord of Lord, the Lord who made heaven and earth....


Foma- (hello) new life, a life in Christ...







Romans
8:1-2 message

The Solution Is Life on God's Terms

With the arrival of Jesus, the Messiah, that fateful dilemma is resolved. Those who enter into Christ's being-here-for-us no longer have to live under a continuous, low-lying black cloud. A new power is in operation. The Spirit of life in Christ, like a strong wind, has magnificently cleared the air, freeing you from a fated lifetime of brutal tyranny at the hands of sin and death.





I don't read the message very often, however this translation of 8:1-2 has had such an impact on my life. For so much of my life I was living in the low-lying black cloud. I love the picture that this verse gives of the freeing power of Christ!






(Colossians 1:11-14 ESV)


[11 ] May you be strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy, [12 ] giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in light. [13 ] He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, [14 ] in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.


When you look at the picture above.. what do you think, does the baby stand out, is it her little hand?, the feet and the markings, or even maybe the cup?



For most of you who know me, you know this picture is dear to my heart, its a picture that has changed my life. The little girl in the photo changed my world. This baby girl is the reason why I am in Davao, why I wanted to be a midwife.



Her name is Hope (the english name in which we gave her.) I don't even know if she is alive today. In the picture she is maybe 1.5kg, and 6-8 weeks old. Her mother died of infection/ PPH - postpartum hemorrhage weeks (3-4 weeks before the picture) before this picture was taken. The last update was the last time I saw her and she was 5 months old. That was right before I got on the plane to fly home in Dec, 2008.

Its a story that happens all the time and yet isn't talked about. It doesn't just happen in Niger. It happens all over the world. Niger has one of the highest infant and maternal mortality rates of any nation. Yet it isn't talked about. It was not until I got back home and I did my own research, and noticed that Hope wasn't a random story, its repeated over and over again.


Will I got back to Niger after my time in Philippines, I don't know, I would love to go visit and maybe deliver a baby in Ly On Kara and spend a few days with my African Family. Lord willing.

As of right now I don't think I will in Niger full time but I pray that I could go to visit or maybe teach or train national health care workers for a while. I will always fill like Ly On Kara is my home away from home.

When i think of the vision that God gave of training nationals in women health care, I will think of Niger, of Hope.... Foma-Hope... the desire to see lives changed, to see a new out pouring of God's Spirit.