Charis Around the World

Tidbits From Ebony
by Elizabeth Carmichael

"It is heart breaking to get involved at this level. You know that as soon as they take the baby home, the baby will die."  This comment came from a friend of mine who is a midwife from Europe.  She is conducting an evaluation of a labor and delivery service and is encountering the reality of life for the people of Ebony.  This is what we face as we meet women everyday who are not able to access prenatal care or healthy delivery services, who are not properly nourished or educated and who feel there are no other options outside of "what will be, will be."  Their way of saying "What will be, will be!" is to exclaim, "God is kind!"

When eight of my friends were killed all at once two years ago, one of the things I dreaded most in coming back was the thought of local friends who I knew would be grieving as deeply as I was, yet who still would say "God is kind." in a kind of hopeless surrender to the circumstances.  As I grieved and also worshipped Him, He showed me through the song "Blessed Be Your Name," that THIS was the phrase He has given His people to say in times of tragedy.

It is a powerful thought.

Remember that He also says that He inhabits, dwells in, comes in and among, the praises of His people.

When we praise His name in the midst of suffering, He enters in....He is Immanuel!  This brings me much more comfort than, through gritted teeth, saying, "He is kind." as if He is distant, yet benevolent.

I'm not sure my thoughts are able to fully come across to you unless you speak this language and understand the nuances of the "God is kind." comment. :-)  Forgive me if I've offended in any way.  Just offering my musings....as I usually do.

Another quote I heard from some women in my life this month was "We ALL eat the walls around here!"

I would like to ask you to start praying for the village of "WALLISTAN."

Wallistanians have confessed, after TWO years of training in hygiene and clean birth practices, that their whole village suffers from an urge to eat dirt and even the mud walls of their buildings.  The men of this village recently told me that the women will hide mud and dirt under their burkas and slowly eat away at it.  They even buy it in the bazar, believing the salesmen who claim it is special "mountain dirt" full of minerals that will help them in their pregnancies.  An infestation of worms and other deficiencies could be fueling the vicious cycle of women and children eating the mud.  The men of the village report that some of the women are really very ill, and so are the children.  Some of the children can't stop vomiting and their eyes are turning yellow.  Others will now no longer eat proper food--only mud.

If you believe the bondage of the Enemy of our souls only exists in the spiritual realm, think again.

My heart aches for this village.  Please pray for us and for them as we seek to start a treatment program for them.  Pray that lives will be changed and much more than physical health will be restored to them.

Thank you for walking this crazy journey in Ebony with me.
Many Blessings,
E.C.

Our International Charis Family
Your stories from around the world touch us and we pray for your safety.
Thanks, Love and Blessings to every one of you!

 'Behold, I will bring them from the north country, And gather them from the ends of the earth,
 Among  them the blind and the lame, The woman with child and The one who labors with child,  together,
 A great throng shall return there...And My people shall be satisfied with My goodness, says the LORD.'
 Jeremiah 31:8, 14
~~~
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November 2012