Love Them Like Jesus

*Warning: What you are about to read is somewhat graphic and may be disturbing

I HATE cases like the one I had last night. It had been a long day. After I got off work at the clinic I walked to visit a friend of mine with AIDS. She has just completed two months of intense treatment for tuberculosis. She is weak and still trying to recover. Her house is a good walk from mine so I was tired by the time I got home. I had invited my friend Adele over for dinner and we were getting ready to have beef burritos.

Just as I was about to pray for the food I got a phone call from the clinic. "Michelle I have a lady who is hemorrhaging from a spontaneous abortion. I need you to find transportation for us to get her to the hospital. And can you come to the clinic to assist?"

It was one of those times when I have to take a big sigh and remind myself that missionaries don't work 9 - 5 jobs. In fact it isn't about a job, it's about ministry. I made some calls and arranged for our ambulance to come and pick her up. Meshak our driver would have to walk about a mile from his home to the ambulance location before driving it to the clinic.

So I grabbed my torch (flashlight) and headed to the clinic. Wow, I hate these cases! But I love that I was there. Not sure if that makes any sense.... By the time I arrived they had stopped the bleeding. The patient, Elizabeth, was laying naked on the table surrounded by bloody rags. The nurse on call and the TBA (traditional birth attendant) who brought her to us were at the bedside. She had undergone an incomplete miscarriage, which meant she would be needing a surgical procedure to remove the rest of the uterine contents (whatever may have been left of baby and placenta).

Elizabeth was shivering and crying when I arrived. She had lost about a liter of blood while she was at the clinic and was bleeding before she arrived. Makan, the nurse, told me that it was an especially sad case. The woman's marriage was on the rocks and she had felt like this baby was going to be the key to saving it. Plus she had had a miscarriage once in the past and had to undergo a D&C at that time. She has terrible memories of that experience and begged us to promise her it wouldn't happen again. I couldn't make that promise. In fact by the time I arrived there was very little that I could do for her medically. I covered her with blankets and began to stroke her forehead and hair. I prayed with her. I prayed for healing of her body and her heart. I prayed that angels would surround her as she traveled to the hospital. I prayed that the Holy Spirit would comfort her. Then I encouraged her to not dwell on what was to come but to just take it one step at a time.

It's really going to take me a while to get used to the fact that I'm working with very little resources. When the TBA pulled out Elizabeth's underwear and skirt I was shocked to see them dressing her in the bloody clothes. But otherwise she would be transported naked. We don't have hospital gowns or extra clothes laying around. What a night!

Sometimes I wonder if I should share stories like this. I'm sure that at times they may be offensive to some. Sometimes they are just downright discouraging. But the fact is that life is not just full of victories and triumphs. There are times for tears as well. And there are times when you can do little more than to sit and cry with a patient. I turned on a Casting Crowns album as I began to write this post. The song "Love Them Like Jesus" came on. It was a huge reminder of why I am here. I'm here to love them like Jesus.