Dear friends and family,
I hope these pictures do not take to long for you to load!
I would like to introduce you to Paulo! This little boy is about 8 years old (we are guessing this from the fact that he has his adult front teeth,
and from his head and face), has cerebral palsy, and he weighs just 8 kilos (17.6 pounds)! God is truly rescuing in the desperate children that have no voice.
Paulo is from the same center as Yuran (for those of you who read my last blog). It is a children's center down the road that is in quite a state.
The children are pretty well neglected, and dirty, and smelly. Slowly God has given us a cracked door into that center. We've been visiting every week and bring small gifts like stuffed animals for the kids (about 70 children live there), or sweets. 3 1/2 weeks ago Yuran (age 3) came to us quite sickly. They told us he was paralyzed on his left side and couldn't walk. A few different missionaries have been working very diligently with him, and since he has come, he's put on 4 kilos (about 8 pounds!), and IS walking all on his own! Today in the baby house he stood up and, slowly and wobbly, walked to me to ask for water! I wanted to cry. He's been transformed from a constant blank expression, and cranky personality, to a joyful little boy.
He laughs all the time! He had horrible scabies when he came, and his skin is almost completely cleared up.
Miracle #2 came to us one week later. Feliciano is about 6 years old and suffering very badly from TB, and probably many other conditions. He has gone untreated. We asked if we could take him, and the director of that center said "Yes." So we brought him here and immediately started tests and exams at the hospital, and treatment. He also is walking now, and laughing, and a very happy little boy (which happens to be what his name means! "Feliziano"--Happy little one).
And yesterday the director of our center went to this children's center again to ask for another child that isn't doing well, Paulo. For some reason they really didn't want to let us take him, so Ros asked if we could just bring him for a few hours so he could have a physical exam by our Dr. (we have a registered clinic here on
the base, and a Dr. who comes in 4 afternoons a week). He consented, and she brought him back. I looked after him all afternoon. Fed him, bathed him, and prayed for him. The Dr. said he has a very bad ear infection in both ears (it smells, too). And he has pneumonia, and horrible scabies. When we took him back to the center late in the afternoon, and explained his condition and that it would be easiest if we could treat him at our center, the director consented to letting us take him for a week. Please pray with us that he will let us keep him after the week is up. We also found out he came to that center in March or April 2006, after they found him behind a building across the street in a plastic bag!
Because he is on medicine and high maintenance, I was asked to have him sleep with me and care for him and keep up on his medicines. So I have gained a son for a week! During the day when I have lots of work he can sit in his stroller in the girls area with the dorm mothers. I am giving him all his medicines at the appropriate times, bathing him in the morning and evening with a special antibacterial treatment, and then doing a spray to treat the scabies. Feeding him his meals, changing his diapers, and loving on him! my girls think he is wonderful and all want to push him around in his stroller, and he laughs and smiles while they do! Please pray for healing for him, and for a miracle in his life!
We are amazed at how God has given us these 3 children, and I know you can rejoice with us! I want to ask you to please join with me in warfare for the rest of the children still at that center. Especially the youngest ones. Pray God would open doors to get them out of there and give them a better life! Please think about the many children throughout the world that are neglected, abused, broken, and forgotten. Cry out to God on their behalf. He HEARS the intercession of your heart, and I believe he is already responding.
Thank you all so much for your support and encouragement. You mean so much to me! I so appreciate you sending me out as an extension of the body of Christ, to
care for God's children in Mozambique. I love being here!
May you be blessed richly,
Love in Jesus,
Anna
