From the Field
Updates from Luke Society Ministries
Irian Jaya, Indonesia
Nutrition Taught in Rural Communities
Dr. Julius Surjadi is encouraged by the success of the nutrition program that is up and running in four ministry villages. There are 51 babies, 50 children and their mothers involved in the program. Every two weeks they gather the mothers, babies and children. “The babies and the kids get baby food and milk. We scale their weight and the mothers cook together,” wrote Dr. Julius. “While the mothers are cooking, we give them information about health, diseases, sanitation and nutrition. We also treat the sick babies and kids.” Dr. Julius is hoping to add government vaccinations to the services. This program will run until November, and then it will be evaluated for changes.
Kayes, Mali
New Believer Encourages Ministry Partner
Indielou Dougnon’s medical services are readily welcomed in the small village of Aite, but the fact that he is a follower of Jesus is readily ignored. The nomadic people receive life-saving vaccinations from Indielou, but to convert to Christianity is to lose all association with one’s family. Although the spiritual work is slow, Indielou continues to persevere, and he has good news. An elderly man in the village gave his life to Jesus! “He is old, does not have a wife nor children, he is all alone,” wrote Indielou. “But he has requested new life with the Lord. We give our thanks to the Lord for saving this old man.”
Pucallpa, Peru
New Luke Society Ministry Eager to Begin
Dr. Isaac Silva is a new addition to the Luke Society family! He is quite enthusiastic about starting work in the villages of “Edwing Dias” and “Once de Agosto.” Dr. Isaac has partnered with his church to hold church services in the villages, a combination of community health training and praising God. “We are heightening the awareness of mothers’ training and of acute diarrhea,” Dr. Isaac explains. “We can also share God’s Word among the mothers and children, singing choruses and reading the Bible. It was really wonderful.”
Trujillo, Peru
Ministry Scope Expands
Dr. Felix and Bertha Aldave are excited about a new development that brought area health organizations together for round table discussions. “At the meetings, we have explained not only the plans we have as an organization, but we have also emphasized the plans God has for us individually and as a community,” Bertha wrote. Because of the meetings, the organizations are programming their activities jointly. Dr. Felix and Bertha were elected chairs of the mental health commission including both psychological and spiritual health. “The meetings have been beautiful because the Holy Spirit is working,” Bertha said.
God is also opening doors for ministry to high school students in Trujillo! The Luke Society staff has been cleared to start working in Virgen del Carmen High School, where over 1,300 students attend! Their first task has been to filter through the students, making diagnoses for each student in growth, development and general psychology. They are thankful for help from a group of psychology students from the university and also a social work student from the University of Trujillo.
Corinto, Colombia
Doctor Targets Teenagers
Dr. Jaime Pineda’s work in rural Colombia is one of the newest Luke Society ministries. One of his target groups is the youth. He has started a focus group with 35 teens to discuss their needs and their community’s needs and to motivate them toward growth personally and spiritually. “They are expressing the need to have an authority, someone to submit to,” says Dr. Pineda. “They are very alone because there is not a family element here. The children and youth are very alone.” This breakdown of family is a leading cause in youth selling drugs and girls getting pregnant. “We are very sensitive to them and their situations,” Dr. Pineda says.
Encarnacion, Paraguay
Clinic Expands Community Outreach
In cooperation with a local church, Dr. Jorge Gomez-Frey’s ministry is now reaching into the community of Vertedero. “There are many families living in garbage, and they are very poor,” explains Dr. Gomez-Frey. The church bought a piece of land in the community and built a house there to provide a worship space. “There is running water and a storehouse, and a health team is able to visit them every week,” says Dr. Gomez-Frey. “Also, a new young pastor dedicates practically all of his time with the people of this new church.”
Jinotepe, Nicaragua
A State of Emergency Needs to Be Declared
Drs. Francisco and Reyna Moraga are part of a team asking the government of Nicaragua to declare a state of emergency in the Carazo region. “If the government does not adopt measures, about ten thousand farmers will not have food,” Dr. Reyna Moraga writes.
Officials say nearly 7,800 acres of sorghum, sesame, maize and beans were devestated this year by the lack of rains. When the rains finally arrived, the strong winds completely destroyed what was left of the beans that had survived the drought.
Reports say that if the government does not take action, hunger will effect some 10,000 people in 1,700 families. The situation is especially serious in the communities of Santa Theresa, La Conquista, Dolores and Diriamba, where hungry children are already becoming ill with vomiting and diarrhea because of malnutrition.
The departmental president of the National Union of Farmers and Cattle Raisers, Carlos Useda, has confirmed that there are 72 communities affected and 1,620 families who are completely without production because their crops failed to germinate in the dry soil. Some 10,000 head of cattle are also in danger of death because of lack of pasture. “The most devestating effects will begin to be felt in January, February and March of the coming year,” says Useda.