TABUK October 13-31 2008

Ahhhhh, Tabuk! It is there that I fell deeper in love with midwifery, the Filipino people and my Savior.
Tami and I flew to Manila, bussed 12 hours through the night and then got off into the rain and dark and honking tricicabs……at the wrong stop!

Georgia Macad is a Canadian from the lower mainland who began the Abundant Grace of God Maternity Clinic in October 2006. Her ministry there is astounding and far-reaching and it was such a blessing and honor to join her for 3 weeks. We lived at the clinic with Georgia, her tribal husband, Achao, their baby, Emmaus, two young Filipino midwives, some Filipino students and countless others coming and going. Pregnant woman would come from the surrounding villages and stay in georgia's house/clinic for a week before and after giving birth. It gave me a whole newperspective on the relational blessings of midwifery. Georgia’s hospitality, generosity and heart for the women was so inspiring and I learnt so much from her about what it means to be a missionary midwife. Cathy had her baby the first night we were there, it was pretty intense because she had a shoulder dystocia!

One of my highlights was going on day trips to the nearby villages where I led devotion and we gave the women a health teaching, a prenatal check-up and then stayed to eat and fellowship with them afterwards.

And of course, tons of babies!!!!

Early morning we were roused out of bed for a 17 yr old labor, Marziza, the morning was beautiful!

Mariza delivered at 10:31am that morning

Me, Mariza, her baby boy and Belyn- the primary midwife for her birth

Late one night as we were up with a beautiful young labor named Alma God worked a miracle. The minutes were intense, the umbilical cord was wrapped four times around the baby’s neck, the shoulders were stuck, the baby’s face turned blue but God intervened and she gave birth to a miracle baby boy. Praise God.
I am left…..speechless.

His still small voice

Oh the joy of being a midwife in the Philippines; Brand new babies, beaming mothers, long exhausting labors, sleepless nights, tribal villages, waterbuffalo, traditional dancing, rice four times a day, robberies, death, devastating fires, muggings and lots and lots of prayer.

“Turn your eyes upon Jesus, look full in his wonderful face and the things of earth will grow strangely dim in the light of his glory and grace.”

If I were to write about all of the babies from October, I think I could write a book, so instead, here is a glimpse of one of the most precious moments. A very pregnant first time mom had come to Mercy that morning for a prenatal but then had been rushed down to the birth room because her baby’s heart tones were dangerously low and her blood pressure was very high. She had been lying on the bed with her IV for a couple of hours when I heard God whisper for me to go and check on her. She wasn’t my patient but I opened the curtain, crouched by her bed, looked into her eyes and asked her how she was doing.

Bethany inserted her very first IV into my hand......and I turned pastey white!