Praying for Peace

There has been civil unrest in Jos, Nigeria again and now even in Abuja which is the city where the Anawim Home is located. Christmas Eve bombings occurred in Jos and New Years Eve bombings occurred in Abuja. There have also been subsequent attacks on roads and villages. People do not feel safe anymore. This leads to very serious consequences for HIV patients at Faith Alive Hospital. The following is a prayer request we recently received from Faith Alive.

"Please pray with urgency that Save A Life (a program for HIV) patients will be able to access their lifesaving ARV's (anti-retro viral medications) during this season of political unrest and violence in Jos, Nigeria. It has been and will remain challenging for people to roam freely about the city doing their normal routines like working, banking, shopping, picking up their medications and seeing their doctors. A lapse in getting, and thus taking, their daily ARV's is dangerous because their bodies will most likely develop a resistance to the only type of ARV's that we have available for them. When this happens, their immune systems begin a downward spiral that leads to death. Your prayers for God to remain faithful and intervene are appreciated at least through May, when the next (or existing) Nigerian President is scheduled to be inaugurated and we look forward to a more peaceful atmosphere. The Faith Alive management is making efforts to ease these difficulties and Dr. Chris, his family, patients and Faith Alive staff send their appreciation for your support, concerns and prayers."


"For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." Jeremiah 29:11

Pass It On

The Anawim Home had a wonderful celebration for Christmas. They send their best wishes to all of us. They are grateful for all the support that has been given them and say that they are praying for us. That is Daniel in the picture that Sr. Oresao is holding. He is so happy with his new wheelchair.

Dr. Chris also sends his best to us. He wants us to know he has been able to give his walker to a patient at Faith Alive. He says,"Pictures that are attached are for a patient I visited at home who was sent back from Lagos to Jos to come die but we are currently treating her for TB and will soon commence ARVs. Unable to walk a few weeks ago, she can now attempt walking with the walker God graciously provided for me through all your efforts while receiving treatment in the U.S. She has remarkably improved with some hope of life. I APPRECIATE EVERYONE OF YOU. THANK YOU FOR ALL YOU DO. Wishing you all a blessed 2011. Chris"

It is so wonderful to know how good can be passed on to others. Two small gifts have been able to be passed on that have made life changes for the two recipients. Happy New Year to everyone. May we pass good on in 2011 and may the Anawim Home and the Faith Alive Community have a year full of blessings.

A Catalyst for Hope

I had intended to post another reflection of my trip to Nigeria last week. But my son was very sick. I have had a lot of good intentions of what I wanted to accomplish this Christmas. But some of my good intentions just aren't going to happen. There will be less cards and home made cookies this year but that is okay. I want to be in the moment more and enjoy the holiday with my children. They are growing up so fast! My son Christopher is 13 years old and my daughter Sophia is 12 years old. I miss the time when they were little children. I feel like during that time I took the preciousness of it for granted and had a hard time living in the moment.

I have come to realize how much I love young children. I love the beauty of their innocence. This is what Jesus was explaining when he said, "Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these." Matthew 19:14. I am a leader in a Children's Ministry at my church. It is a ministry for children to have their own age appropriate worship while the adults worship. For our message series in September we encouraged the children in our ministry to help us lead the adult worship by coming on the altar to sing and do hand movements to the ending song of mass. The children enjoyed it so much. I loved their honesty and ability to be free and joyful during the song. It was wonderful to have the children leading the adults!

I also appreciate how Moms are so important to young children. They want to be with us every minute! I remember how difficult this was for me but now I have sweet memories of those times. My strongest memories of Nigeria are of the mothers and children. Moms in Nigeria are with their children every minute. They carry their children on their backs on a sling. At Faith Alive Social Services they have a sewing class. All the moms in the class have their children with them while they take the class. They taught me and other women missionaries how to make the baby sling and carry a baby on our backs. Many moms and their children are alone because of the fathers dying who had AIDS. The men are ashamed to seek medical treatment. There are also many children who are abandoned due to poverty. My missionary team went to visit a state run orphanage and there was not enough help or supplies. There were so many babies just lying in their cribs with no one to hold them. This is why it is so wonderful that Sr. Oresao takes in abandoned orphans and helps young mothers with children. She makes sure they are well taken care of.

The children in Nigeria were very excited to meet us Americans. They would love to just touch us and be with us. They especially loved to touch my blond hair. The children also would raise their hands in the air begging to be picked up. I remember after one support group meeting at Faith Alive how this little boy came running after me putting his arms in the air to be picked up. I picked him up and swirled him around and he was laughing and I remember feeling a special joy of being in the moment. At the support group and prayer meetings at Faith Alive the people worship by raising their hands in the air. I was touched by this because it resembles little children raising their arms up to be held and loved.

All children should be held and loved but this is not how it is in this world, especially where there is much poverty and illness. What the staff told us at Faith Alive is that by Americans helping (either by visiting them or giving donations) we are giving them hope. When they think of how people care enough to be helping all the way across the world it helps them believe God cares, because they believe God is working through us. To them we are catalysts of hope.

Let us pray for children everywhere this Christmas to know they are loved. They ARE all loved by God. The story of Christmas is a beautiful one. Our God loved us so much that he came down to earth to be with us as a vulnerable baby. God's message was hope fulfilled in the birth of Christ and the establishment of his eternal kingdom.

For a child is born to us,
a son is given to us.
The government will rest on his shoulders.
And he will be called:
Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

Isaiah 9:6

All of us at The Hope for West Africa Foundation would like to thank you for your support. We pray for you and for our partners in Nigeria-The Anawim Home and The Faith Alive Hospital and their families to have a Christmas of joy, hope and peace.

A Catalyst For Joy

I hope you will join us for some of my reflections of my visit to Nigeria this Advent. How can I explain the joy I experienced and the joy I saw in others when I went to Nigeria as a missionary? We usually think of joy as "happiness" that comes from external circumstances. For most of the people I met at Faith Alive Hospital and the Anawim Home, external circumstances are very bad. Yet I saw that a lot of the people there were joyful. I remember how surprised I was by this when I attended my first support group meeting of the patients at Faith Alive. The patients shared stories with one another, prayed together, and sang songs of praise to God. I will never forget the woman that stood up and shared her story thanking the Faith Alive staff for helping her. What was most surprising is that she thanked God for her illness because she said through the crisis of her illness she became closer to God.

The Greek word for joy is chara. It means rejoicing, gladness, enjoyment, bliss and to celebrate. This patient was celebrating her illness because now she felt closer to the Lord! To her being close to the Lord was the most important thing. It brought her great gladness. The patients at Faith Alive believe they are privileged just to be alive, receiving God's grace. The Greek word for grace is charis which means unmerited favor. To these people joy was an absolute assumption in grace from God. This joy did not depend on external circumstances.

As all the Christmas hype begins this season here at home, I pray to be joyful like my Nigerian friends. I watch reports on the news of people actually trampling over one another as they wait here in line at stores to buy merchandise for themselves or presents for others. I realize our economy is not good right now and some of the merchandise is on sale, but this makes me sad. Christmas is not supposed to be like this--to be about external things. It is not supposed to be about buying more and more things. We are supposed to be patiently and peacefully waiting during Advent for the arrival of the wonderful day of our Lord's birthday. Luke 2:10 says, "But the angel said to them, Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people."

The discovery of Christ brings joy! Chara is the result which comes from the glorious discovery of our Lord and Savior in every circumstance where we wish to find Him. If we chose to we can see Him all around us this season. But He will be in people not things. Our world is frantically seeking happiness in external circumstances. But this happiness never lasts and can not bring true satisfaction. This season can be crazy. Most people I know are really searching for a joy that comes from inside. But they are exhausted by running around shopping for gifts that others really do not need. They have no time to contemplate the true meaning of this holiday.

I hope that our partners at Faith Alive Hospital and the Anawim Home can continue their good work of not only helping to cure sickness, to feed and clothe the poor, but to also help people know the Lord. They do this by selflessly giving their time and talents out of love. What better gift to give at Christmas then to give of ourselves to the less fortunate.

We can not all be missionaries or to be doing the work that Dr. Chris and Sr. Oresao do. But we can HELP them do what they do, by giving only a small donation. It only takes a little to do so much there. We can choose to celebrate this Christmas in a God honoring way. We can find joy on the inside by giving to those in great need. We can buy just one less present and use that money to give to people who do not even have the necessities of life--medical supplies, clothing and food. We can choose to discover Christ in the eyes of women and children who are homeless and sick, like the Bible states truly ,"the least of the least". Let's choose not only to experience joy this Advent, but to be a catalyst for joy to the less fortunate.

God Is Near

We are entering the holiday season once again. Our church has been discussing our priorities with time and money and examining if they are aligned with God. We will be celebrating Thanksgiving next week. And we do have so much to be thankful for especially compared to other countries. Our tables will be steeped with food. I am having our family Thanksgiving celebration at my home this year. The planning has already started and the guests and menu keeps growing!

As we approach the Thanksgiving celebration this year, let's pray for those who not only do not have the material blessings we have, but who also do not have the freedoms that we enjoy in our country.

We have updates on two of our Nigerian friends, Daniel of the Poorest of the Poor and Little Chris of Faith Alive. Daniel has received the wheelchair that was brought to him by Sr. Oresoa from the Blattners. He is so happy to receive it! Little Chris has returned home with his father Daniel and he is doing great! Our God is an awesome God! He is present in our lives even if we can't see it. He is always near. He longs to be in a relationship with us. It is through us that God wants to change the world. When we let Him work through us, our lives will become a testament to Him.




"Do you believe that God is near? He wants you to. He wants you to know that He is in the midst of your world. Wherever you are as you read these words, He is present. In your car. On your plane. In your office, your bedroom, your den. He is near. And He is more than near. He is active."

Max Lucado

Blessings, Blessings, Blessings

In the past few weeks we have experienced an abundance of blessings in the form of visitors to our area. Joining Dr. Chris at the Blattners’ home are Sr. Oresoa and Sr. Felicia. After a circuitous route from Nigeria to Baltimore, the good Sisters arrived at the Blattners’ home on Tuesday (10/19).
Sr. Oresoa was persistent to start an order of nuns that devoted their time to the poorest of the poor in Africa. Her story is very similar to that of Mother Teresa. Sister came from a fairly well-to-do family (her father was a chief). Her requests to start a new order were declined by the Archdiocese of Nigeria. But then – here is blessing – she had a private audience with Pope John Paul II and he was most impressed with her vision. The Pope said to the Archdiocese, “Support this woman!”. This happened just two weeks before he died.

Sr. Oresoa is the founder of the Anawim Homes (three different locations) which provides help in many forms to the poor , the elderly, the orphans and the homeless in her local community in Nigeria. Sr. Felicia leads one of the Anawim Homes. Both Sisters arrived in New Orleans (with limited funds) for the first stop on their American trip. The limit to the funds was a conscious decision by Sr. Oresoa. Her philosophy is that virtually all of the resources that are made available to her should go to the benefit of her programs at the Anawim Homes. The next stop on the American adventure was Milwaukee, Wisconsin, where Sr. Oresoa attended college.. Consistent with her frugal approach to financial management, the Sisters chose to drive to Milwaukee, a trip of approximately 1,500 miles! As one could imagine, this drive took its toll on the Sisters. While their stay in Milwaukee was most joyful and restful, the prospect of continuing the adventure to Timonium, Maryland by car was most daunting. The budget allowed and remaining funds for this leg of the trip was only a few hundred dollars. A phone call one evening by Sr. Oresoa to a member of one of the missionaries from the Church of the Nativity in 2009 resulted in a pair of complimentary tickets to a flight to Timonium. Another blessing! One catch, the flight was departing from Chicago the next day and another drive of approximately 140 miles was now in order. Well they survived the last drive and arrived in Timonium none the worse for wear.

Having both Sr. Oresoa and Dr. Chris (the HFWA most treasured partners) together is really a cause for celebration! In fact there were a few. At one of the gatherings, it was most inspiring to hear them discuss a partnership between Anawim Home and Faith Alive Hospital to provide medical care for children at the Anawim Home orphanage facilitated through the Faith Alive Children Fund.

One of the children growing up at the Anawim Home is Daniel, a child born with spina bifida and is a paraplegic. As the other children run out to play, he tells Sr. Oresoa, “I am left behind because I have no legs”. Now 5 years old, he has become too heavy for the sisters to carry around. There is a blessing in this case also but the way in which God worked on this one is awesome. You will see in the words of Diane Blattner which follow:
“Saturday morning I drove into the driveway of my home and see my husband Bill lifting a child size wheel chair from the back of the minivan. He found it at the Goodwill for $50! This was the third wheel chair brought home for our son John who is recovering from a long illness and was planning to walk in the Light the Night Lymphoma Leukemia Society fundraising event that evening. The other two chairs loaned to us both had problems. This one was perfect for Daniel and John.! It was "so God working behind the scene" because Bill was unaware of Daniel's need.
John walked nearly a mile at the event and was grateful to rest in Daniel's chair to the finish line. This wonderful chair is now traveling with Sister Oresoa and Sister Felicia to Nigeria to bring joy to a child whose heart's desire is to be with his peers.” Again, a blessing!

While here, Srs. Oresoa and Felicia visited and worshipped at the Church of the Nativity. Sr. Oresoa was happy to see some old friends and meet everyone. After mass, the Sisters joyfully handed out cards about the Anawim Home to all the parishioners. The sisters have now left here to go to other places in the U.S. before returning home to Nigeria. Our partners from Nigeria have generated many blessings while here. It was an honor to spend time with them.


Pictures:

1. Sr. Oresoa, Dr.Chris, Sr. Felicia in front of the Church of the Nativity
2. Sr. Felicia, Brian Crook - the Director of Missions for the Church of the Nativity, Sr. Oresoa

Do Something Before You Die

Erika Nossokoff & Teresa Pompa













Kristin Costanza, Dr. Chris & Brian Crook



While Dr. Chris is in town, he has been coming to worship at the Church of the Nativity (where I am a parishioner)with the Blattners. Our church has a cafe. So after mass, Dr. Chris has been stopping by the cafe to visit with parishioners, Nativity staff and former missionaries who have been to Faith Alive Hospital.

It has been so wonderful to have him in town. Dr. Chris was originally scheduled to visit a church in Colorado, but he was unable to go. So people have come from Colorado to visit with him and have also come to worship at the Church of the Nativity. Erika Nossokoff, the author of Notes From Nigeria blog, Dr. Chris's niece - Naomi (who also served at Faith Alive Hospital) who is going to school in Colorado and others have stopped by. It has been like a family reunion of Faith Alive at the Church of the Nativity lately! Sr. Oresoa has also arrived from the Anawim Home and is joining Dr. Chris at the Blattners. I'll post more on her visit later.

The Church of the Nativity has been an active partner in helping the Faith Alive Hospital and the Anawim Home. For Advent last year, the Church promoted the Advent Conspiracy, where money was raised to provide clean water at both sites. To date, three sites at the Anawim Home have been completed (Anawim Home - well fixed, Anawim Home for Unwed Mothers - borehole drilled, a satellite site in Kaduna for the mentally ill - borehole drilled). The Faith Alive Hospital has two sites completed (the Faith Alive Hospital - well fixed, a satellite clinic in Bakin Kogi - borehole drilled). God has been at work through the Church of the Nativity! The next site to receive a bore hole for clean water is the Hwol Yarje Farm Community, where the Faith Alive Community School is located. See the postings at the Nativity Nigeria blog.

Dr. Chris's visit ends soon (10/18). We will be sad to see him leave. I will remember my time serving in Nigeria for the rest of my life. The HFWA Foundation has now given me an opportunity to further serve the Anawim Home and Faith Alive Hospital. It is a blessing in my life. In a report from the drilling company in Bakin Kogi, for Faith Alive, the consultant tells of meeting a woman nicknamed "Do Something Before You Die". She said she wants to do something that positively touches peoples' lives before she dies. She preaches this philosophy to anyone she meets in life. A pretty good philosophy! I learned so much from the people in Nigeria. These people who have so little in the way of material things, have so much spiritual wealth. When we allow God to shape our hearts, we discover purpose and meaning to our lives. It is a joyful thought to realize we can be a chosen vessel for God.

Farewell dear friend Dr. Chris and give our love to your family and the Faith Alive Community. Let us all pray for him to have safe voyage home.

"For God so loved your broken heart that He died to give a reason for the world. Lift your sorrows to the One. A plan for you has just begun. Rest here in the hands that hold the world". Matthew West.