Getting Organized

Bear with me people, I am not a blogger.  None the less, I thought it would be a good idea to record some of this for those who are interested - so here goes...

Back in the spring Rebecca found out a friend of hers from when she was at Augustine College in Ottawa was going to Niger. Samaritan's Purse has a Hospital in Galmi Niger run by their medical mission arm World Medical Missions.  Rebecca sent the link along to me.  I had been looking for an opportunity to serve in the mission field for a while, but nothing seemed to fit.  A friend of mine was going to Haiti in November with a group of doctors and nurses, and I was about to sign up for that, when this opportunity came along.  It seemed like God had a better plan, so I am off to Niger.

Interestingly they speak French in Niger, and I speak some french, so that may be helpful.  They have a full time OBGYN there who is originally from Australia.  She is back home visiting the churches that support her, and so they were looking for people to fill in while she was away.  It sounds like there may be work outside of my area that they will want me to do, so I may be stretched when I go there.  God is always trying to make us grow, and forcing us out of our comfort zones, I am sure this will be similar.

So I have visited the Travel doctor a couple of times, I have had my Yellow Fever vaccination (you can't get a visitor's visa until you do).  I mailed off my passport somewhere down in the states to get the visa, and it actually came back without to much trouble.  I have picked up the medicine to take for malaria, and the heavy duty bug spray.  I still have to get a net to sleep under.

I have received a lot of information from Samaritan's purse to help me with my trip.  It is a Muslim country, so there are a lot of customs that I need to be aware of.  You are supposed to use your right hand for everything, your left hand is considered dirty.  You are not supposed to mark up your bible (no underlining or highlighting) because it is a holy book.  There was quite an interesting few paragraphs on what to do when you arrive in the airport - people to say "no" to politely, what to say to explain what you are doing in the country, and the like.

One of the amazing things that happened as I was organizing myself was an unexpected blessing I received from a medical supply company.  The hospital asked about me bringing some equipment along, and I wasn't sure if there was anything that I could get from our hospital.  I happened to be at an event and talked to a representative for a supply company, and they seemed to be very interested.  They started making all sorts of suggestions for other things I could bring along, and how they could supply them for free.  We will see how it all works out, but already I may not have enough room in my suitcase, and if everything turns out as planned, I will need a suitcase just for the equipment I am bringing!

I leave October 30th, so there is still time to get organized.  Pray for me, and for the people I come in contact with.  I don't know how often I will blog, but I will do my best.  Hopefully there will be some pictures as well.

In Him, John.