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HUMANITARIAN AID SHARING THE LOVE OF CHRIST

THROUGH THE HEALTH PROFESSION

“Nevertheless the foundation of GOD stands sure, having this seal: The LORD knows them that are His, And, Let every one that names the name of CHRIST depart from iniquity.”

2 TIMOTHY 2:19

This has been a busy few months for Ministry of Mercy. We have come along side of the organization Asociacion Desarrollo en Comunidad in Nicaragua (ADC ). One of the reasons for this is so that we can work together in the promotion of our wellness clinic and the promotion of merging health, education, evangelism and awareness to the communities that we serve.

The first thing we are doing together as a group is to promote an awareness of early detection of breast and cervical cancer. We spent the beginning of the year doing a health assessment and analysis and found breast and cervical cancer to have a positive outcome for health if detected early. ADC is the education and awareness organization to provide the early detection program and Mom has the tools and health assessments for the programs. Juan, Marjorie and myself attended the Breast Health Global Initiative Summit in Chicago, June 9-11. We all were impressed at the growing concern and crisis of breast/cervical cancer globally. This summit focused on “optimizing health care delivery in low/middle resource countries,” of which Nicaragua belongs along side of India, Africa, Saudi Arabia, Guatemala, Columbia, Paraguay, Mexico to name a few of the countries represented at this global summit.

Things we learned to implement in Nicaragua:

• Awareness of the concern and crisis of breast/cervical cancer in Nicaragua

• Advocate and present a breast/cervical awareness weekend to promote our breast/cervical cancer early detection program to save lives of women and families in Nicaragua.

• Organize mobile clinics to reach the rural areas of the Carazo region for breast/cervical cancer education, self-breast exams and clinical breast exams, pap smears (to high risk women), by trained professionals. Gather statistical data for demographic, research and the development of cancer registries to be recognized globally. Find women who need further follow-up and treatment and provide this service to the women. Share with women through testimonies of breast cancer survivors, give women a sense of tender loving care through the sharing of bible scripture letting women understand their religion is a relationship with Jesus Christ and how they can have Him as their friend as they go through life and stay consistent with our mission statement: Humanitarian Aid Sharing the Love of CHRIST Through the Health Profession.

• Continue to plan our clinic, warehouse, nutritional center, Church, garden and classrooms on land in the Carazo region of Nicaragua to have a base to continue our wellness and health programs to raise the quality of life for Nicaraguans by improving the standard of health care delivery.

• We learned to use our resources on hand and build from there. One thing pressed upon us by the Susan G. Komen foundation was to build our organization on good financial planning and accounting. Ministry of Mercy and Asociacion Desarrollo en Comunidad have both become NGO’s in Nicaragua and Mom is a 501 3c organization in the USA. This nonprofit status is vital and we have spent much time and money pursuing our nonprofit status. One aspect of an NGO or 501 3c is to allow us to raise monetary support for our projects within the global communities. We are asking for support financially of even $5 or $10 per month to help us participate in the saving of life in Nicaragua and even globally as we have met many people from all over the world doing the same thing. You can donate on line at our web site: www.theminstryofmercy.org, look for the donate button. Your support will help us:

1. Implement our weekend celebration, education, evangelism and awareness of breast/cervical health program set for October and bring our

guest speaker from Ghana: Dr. Beatrice Wiafe, and two speakers

from America.

2. Purchase the materials and gasoline needed for the presentation and allow us to go to the rural areas and share our program in the community to men and women.

3. Purchase equipment, supplies and paint to improve and remodel the current clinic we rent in Jinotepe.

4. Your donation will help towards securing either the baseball stadium or another large facility for the celebration and allow for us to advertise our programs to the communities through media and other types of presentations.

Dates for promotion and implementing our mobile clinics and fixing up the clinic is August 13-31. Anyone wishing to attend can email Mary Nicosia or call if interested in joining the team.

Celebration weekend is scheduled for October 22, 23, 24, 2010.

We are dependent upon everyone’s support and on behalf of all of us involved in Ministry of Mercy and Asociacion Desarrollo en Comunidad thank you, not only for your financial support but also for your prayer support and your support of friendship and concern for the people of Nicaragua.

Jordan

Jordan is now eleven years old and John and I have finished our home study and ready to apply for her adoption. Many of you have been with us through out her last 10 years, praying for her and for us, as we have been given the incredible challenge of loving and caring for a multi handicapped child by permission of her parents. We found Jordan (aka Marbelly) in November 1999, and brought her home to America in May 2000.

It has been a long road to her adoption. From the beginning, our concern was for Jordan’s health and welfare. She was born into a poor family who live on the land in Nicaragua. They are poor farmers who work the land. They own nothing, but work for landowners. I wish I could describe the land around where her family lives. They live on top of a small mountain, with lush and fertile soil around them. What strikes me the most are the flowers surrounding the small charred wooden lean- to they live in. When we found Jordan, she was at her grandmother’s home, struggling to survive, but being left to die in a dark corner. She was seven months old when our health team arrived in her town. Her grandmother’s house was right across from where we were staying. The people in the town knew how ill Jordan was as she came home from the hospital the same day our team showed up in their town. She had been there for over a month, receiving only the medicine for tuberculosis, which is given free, and needing so desperately the medicine that would save her brain and keep her from becoming multi-handicapped. Her mom and dad knew how ill she was, suffering from tuberculosis contracted from her mother. They did not have the money to buy the medicine and unless they could produce the funds, they could only sit and watch their little girl’s brain begin to become damaged beyond repair. How sad to be so close to help and not being able to receive it, because there are absolutely no means available. If only they had the money to pay for the medicine. The doctors wanted to help also and they had the medicine and were ready to give it to her, if the family could come up with the money to pay. How incredible to think money has to stand in the way, in saving a child’s life from a devastating existence. However this is her story and the story of countless other children, who because of the circumstances of poverty, have to live such a miserable existence here on earth.

I cannot think of anytime, I have been without some type of hope.

I do remember being told, my baby inside of me was no longer alive. I can recall the hopelessness and helplessness I felt. I remember I hoped that it was a mistake and when I delivered my son, he would be alive, yet that was not the case. Even though, it seemed hopeless for life to be inside of me, GOD kept me in the palm of His hand, and while things were hopeless on the outside, my heart was kept on the inside by the love of GOD, pouring the oil of His love upon my heart.

I remember the day I saw Jordan. She was struggling to survive. She was seven months old, small, frail, barely alive. Her grandmother brought her to our clinic. She was looking for hope. Jordan’s parents brought her home from the hospital and told by the doctors, her best recourse since they could not pay for the medicine, was to just let her die. The prescription read:

With hold food and water, put in dark corner, away from listening to her cry and moan and in a few hours, she will die. Can you imagine being given this order from a doctor? Her parents went to work and grandma had the duty to follow the plan. Then she heard our team from America had arrived, perhaps they could help. So she brought Jordan to us.

My first impression was my heart melted. I had could only turn away from this “struggling to survive child” and cry tears of despair, anger and pity for this little thing. I remember crying out to GOD, saying have mercy upon her, she is trying so hard and suffering tremendously. GOD, please allow her to suffer no more. I remember the team of people who came with me. None of them had JESUS in their heart. They were of tremendous help. One nurse started an IV on Jordan, because she was obviously dehydrated. The doctor with us knew she suffered from meningitis, just from his skill and expertise. He knew her life was hopeless, yet he did all he could was to find a way to help relieve her immediate suffering. By the grace and mercy of GOD, we were able to bring Jordan home to live with us for six years. These years were hard as our family was not truly prepared to care for a child this ill. GOD knows our needs and HE supplies what we need, even though we are not sure what we need. It is now 10 years later and Jordan is well cared for and lives like a princess in our home we provide in Nicaragua.

Her parents have finally consented to our adopting Jordan. This means that her parents will have to sigh her over to us and abandon her. This was a hard thing for them to understand and has taken a few years to comprehend. Now is the time to finish the adoption and the decision is up to the judge in Nicaragua, we are hoping to have this appointment on our August trip.

People want to know why we have chosen to adopt Jordan, with all her special needs. All we can say is that GOD has asked us to do this and we can only be obedient to do as GOD has asked us to do. And now we must finish the work GOD has given us to do and that is adopt Jordan and bring her home to America. She started out a miserable wretched thing and GOD has given her a beautiful life under the circumstances of poverty, despair, and multi handicaps. People ask why? There is a story in the Bible about a blind man. Jesus went walking one day and saw a man, blind from birth. His disciples asked Him, ‘Master, who did sin, this man, or his parents, that he should be born blind?’ Jesus made an amazing statement. He said ‘neither has it been this man or his parents: But that the works of GOD should be made manifest in him.’ Jesus further stated, ‘I must do the works of Him that sent Me, while it is day: the night comes, when no man can work. As long as I Am in the world, I am the Light of the world.’ People go along their life perfectly well without GOD, and then their very foundation is robbed or becomes unsettled. Where does a person go, when they find out they have cancer, or their child will not be normal, because a disease has destroyed her brain. The world religions say look inside yourself for the answer, only Jordan couldn’t and really can the person with cancer. Jesus says He has come into the world to preach his gospel of love and forgiveness, to heal the broken hearted, to proclaim deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those that are bruised. He again proclaimed at the cause of this man’s blindness, to show the glory of the LORD manifest in Him.

Our predicaments can become a life changing experience for those who want to believe. There is evidence in the Bible and in the signs; who JESUS is and him being the only way to GOD. Unless you believe then you remain in darkness until you ask for the light of Jesus to open your eyes. People don’t want to turn on the light because it is embarrassing to turn on the light and expose the truth of who they are. But we are all blind beggars, who cannot make ourselves see. JESUS comes to expose our blindness, to touch our lives and make us new.

Jordan was dying in a dark corner, where no one would really know, and her secret would be safe from the world outside. Only her grandma would know as she was there in that room waiting and praying for light to come into the dark corner. We came, to her community, a Christian health missionary team, and her grandma had the courage to come and find a way to save her granddaughter. Jordan’s life has been life changing for her as well as her family, as they have considered this a small miracle, that GOD cares so much about Jordan it is evident in her very little existence. She may be blind, handicapped, but she is loved and filled with joy most of the time. She is truly God’ little testimony of the existence and healing power of JESUS. For where ever she goes, she shares the love of CHRIST through her broken life. People are drawn to her for she is a very lovely girl. She may not see you visibly, but she knows you spiritually and she can hear your voice as you speak to her.

GOD moves in a mysterious way, His wonders to perform; He plants His footsteps in the sea, And rides upon the storm.

Deep in unfathomable mines, Of never failing skill, He treasures up His bright designs, And works His sovereign will.

Ye fearful saints, fresh courage take; The clouds ye so much dread, Are big with mercy and shall break, In blessings on your head.

Judge not the Lord by feeble sense, But trust Him for His grace; Behind a frowning providence, He hides a smiling face.

His purposes will ripen fast Unfolding every hour; The bud may have a bitter taste, But sweet will be the flower.

Blind unbelief is sure to err, And scan His work in vain; God is His own interpreter, And He will make it plain..