Clinic Day 2 (and some hunting)

Hey Family and Friends! This is Shannon! Thanks so much for following our blog! You have no clue how much it means to us and the encouragement we receive as we hear your comments on the way to clinic each morning!

Isn't it amazing when God decides to use the toughest of circumstances to show just how BIG he is! Today I was present as Dr. Mikola and Jessica shared with a patient that her HIV Test was positive. Wow. Talk about a kairos moment. Our hearts all were heavy and eyes full of tears as we watched this lady in her early 30's process this statement. HIV Positive. I wasn't really sure at first how to handle this life-changing news. I thought numbing and extraxting teeth from a four-year old yesterday was God pushing me to my limit. Boy was I wrong. The patient wanted to know how far advanced she was, if she had fulll-blown AIDS and how long until she would be sick. Her questions were answered as fully as possible and we did the only thing we were certain to do; we prayed! She asked for us to pray for healing. We did just that. We prayed in the name of our Almighty Healer. We prayed that if healing wasn't in his will, that he would protect heart heart, her mind and provide a peace that passes all understanding. We prayed for compliance in taking her medication and she would not be stigmatzied in her community. We prayed that God would shine a light through her in her community despite her circumstance.

We then sat and watched the worry and concern on her face as an interpreter provided HIV counseling. The interpreter expressed that she was really concerned about how her husband would respond to the news. We laid hands on her once again and prayed that God would start preparing her husband's heart for the news and that she would come to understand that God uses all situations for good and his glory. We prayed that she would understand that Christ was her hope.

Right before she walked away, I touched her leg gently and asked the interpreter to please tell her that the prayers for her would not stop today in South Africa, they would be carried back to the States where we would continue to pray for her. She smiled the biggest smile I've ever seen and had tears rolling down her face. In that moment, I saw God's hope written all over her face. We could see his light shining through and covering a dark situation.

As we continue through the week, please pray as God continues to move and we process all that is occurring in beautiful Badplass!

On the Clinic Front - We saw 120 patients today and an additional 30 went through dental! Every single patient was prayed over multiple times throughout clinic!

On another sidenote, our team has been heading to a vast and gorgeous reserve to hunt impala! Thus far, sixteen people have gone! All the meat will be donated to the village which is a blessing since their diets are protein-deficient! We look forward to sharing my "impala reflexive leg" and Elise's "Big Buck" story, among many more, upon our arrival home! :)

And... a little shout out:
***Rather selfishly, I, Garrett would like to wish his wife, Lauren, a tremendously happy 25th birthday today!! I'm the luckiest man in the world to have you as my wife (and future mother of our child) and wish so badly I was there to enjoy this day with you. I love you and can't wait to be back to see you!****