Why?

Literally thousands of people all over the world were praying for Sofina.............. Then how could something like this happened?

 As I reflect back on how quickly things happened and how everything fell right into place for Sofina I am completely confused at this outcome. Everything was so perfectly planned that even one day different would have prevented her from having this surgery, which by the way was not the cause of her death, and neither was her malnutrition.....It turns out that her intubation tube had become blocked in the middle of the night, and went unnoticed by the nurse taking care of her. Once they realized what happened they replaced the tube, and tried to revive her for 3 hours, but she did not survive.  After all of the miracles that God worked in getting her to Kenya in time, and then being able to get her body strong enough to do surgery, and then one of the largest encephaloceles being removed, and her little face being repaired without any complication. Then why something that could have been prevented be the death of this little girl! I had so many hopes for her, I couldn't wait to see her lift her head, look around, sit up, stand. All of these things that this little girl had never been able to do! I was so excited for what I thought God was working out to be a miracle in this little girl's life. The great news is she is whole, and healed, and in a much better place than I could have dreamed up for her life here on earth! However this is not what I was expecting.

Does my understanding of why things happen change who God is? Absolutely not. Thankfully His ways are not my ways, and what I see to be a really horrible situation, He is working out for good. Even when it doesn't FEEL like it! When I first walked through Sofina's village, and was invited into her hut to talk with her family, I never once thought that I would be looking that grandmother, and that father in the eyes, with the whole village gathered around, and telling them that their child was not coming back. With tears streaming down my face, my heart broken into pieces, and scared to death at the response we were going to receive, we shared this news.  As I looked around at them and watched their eyes fill with tears and without noise fall from their eyes, I knew, even then, that God was working this out for His good. He had gone before me, and prepared this road we are traveling, and this may be one of the most painful roads I travel, but he has given me strength. Lots of times that strength is from those of you who have uttered our names before the Lord in prayer, and the names of those we are here to serve. I still don't know why this little girl's story touched so many people that they prayed faithfully for her daily! I don't know the answer to why this all happened. All I know is that God is good all of the time, and I praise him for all that He did, and is going to do to make himself known to this village, this family, and I ask that you would continue to lift us up to the Lord.

As I write this I am still trying to get Sofina's mom, and Bertrand (the Malagasy doc) back to Madagascar. The funeral for Sofina was suppost to be today, but the Malagasy community wants the body to be returned to Madagascar so they have moved the body to the Malagasy Embassy in Kenya. I believe this issue is rooted in some very dark beliefs about the dead. Please pray that Satan will not have any room for his work in this situation.


I just want to say thank you to all of you who have prayed for us, sent encouraging emails, Scripture, Facebook messages, and who continue to strengthen us when we so desperately need it! I didn't respond to the messages I received, because I didn't want to think about how I could thank you, but to let the words just bring some comfort to my heart! 

With love for you all,
Holly Jones

Update Of Sofina!

 I am truly just in awe of how God has worked in the lives of Sofina, her family, and her village, as you all have joined together in prayer for her. I praise our Father for all that has happened. The way He has led so many of you to pray for her, and the way that he has overcome these huge obstacles that were impossible without Him working a miracle. I have never witnessed Him work like this, I have always believed that He could do these things, but until this point I have only read about these things happening!

Sofina has gained a little weight, and is eating everything that they are putting in front of her! There also happened to be a fellow missionary from Madagascar that I had never met before, but who had heard of Sofina's story, and was in Kenya, who was able to visit Sofina and her mother, and speak Malagasy with them. I am sure this was such a comfort to the mom, since she hasn't likely understood much of what is going on!
 Also Bertrand(the Malagasy Doc) who does not speak English, was able to learn and observe American doctors do surgeries on Monday, and it turns out that the anesthesiologist that was working in the Operating room was from Madagascar, and knew Malagasy, so he was able to communicate everything that he needed to to make it a great learning experience, and to improve his skills for working in Madagascar! I spoke with Bertrand on the phone last night, and he could hardly contain his excitement for all that he was learning, and how amazing and big the hospital was. The training to be a doctor in Madagascar is very different than from the states. He went to 2 years of school after high school, and can't read or write English but all of the medical books he learned from are in English. Now, he does the work of an anesthesiologist, but has very little knowledge or training on what he is doing, but he does the best that can be done considering the training that is available. He had to sacrifice a lot to be able to go to Kenya with this little girl, but he did it all with absolute Joy! He would love to know more about the work that he does, but has never had the opportunity to learn. He told me last night that he hasn't been sleeping so that he can stay up working on his English so he can understand what they are saying in the operating room.  He will have a huge impact on all of the doctors here, and quite possibly be able to improve the care that all of Northeastern Madagascar receives!

Now for the next part of this Journey!

Sofina is still not able to have the Surgery, her little heart is not as strong as a normal heart due to malnutrition, and she is recieving blood again today, in hopes that they will be able to do the surgery on Thursday. Thursday is the last day the surgeons will be there. The risks of complications in this surgery is very high! That is why I am asking you to continue to pray for Sofina! I feel as though this is the toughest part of this journey for her, and her family. I am again begging you to continue with me in prayer for this little girl, and praising God for all that He has already done! I hope that you are able to see that as a result of all the praying that so many of you are doing, things that are impossible are made possible. My heart is full and so grateful to know that you are all praying with me, and God has not just called me to Madagascar and to love the people, but he has also called you to love the Malagasy as well, and you are doing an amazing job of showing the people His love for them!

With Love,
Holly

Made it to Kenya!

Sofina, her parents, and the Anesthesiologist in front of the MAF Plane in Sambava

We both want to thank everyone that has been praying for Sofina, her family, and us. We know very well that what is taking place is an amazing act of God, and a result of prayer.

 Everyone has safely made it to Kenya and arrived at the hospital late last night.  There were some difficulties getting the visa in Kenya because there was nowhere to exchange the Malagasy currency.  Thankfully the Bethany Kids had sent a driver to pick them up and he was able to help them and pay for the visas!  Dr. Albright from Bethany Kids was able to see Sofina this morning and has decided it is best for them to wait a few days to do surgery. She is too malnourished, and anemic to have surgery now. She is going to likely need a blood transfusion, and a nutritionist is going to work with her to help "fatten her up." Sofina is 2 years and 4 months old and weighs approx 10-12 pounds, her body is very frail, but her spirit is strong! Please keep praying for this sweet little girl, and for all of the wonderful doctors that are trying to save this little girl's life!

Witnessing a Miracle!

I just wanted to let you know how things are going with Sofina! We went to her village yesterday to tell her parents about what had been transpiring since the first time I posted about her, asking for prayer. I told them many people all over the world had been praying for them, and asking God to heal their daughter, and now God had made a way for that to happen. They received this news much like I had anticipated, didn't even crack a smile. They were terrified. They didn't appear to be thankful, and it pretty much seemed like there was no way they would do the surgery. We talked and decided it would be better if they thought about it overnight, and then could make a decision in the morning. I was pretty sure they wouldn't do the surgery.

This morning I was greeted with a very smiley father, Sofina's father! He came to our house, and wanted to thank us, and tell us that he was very ready for his daughter to have the surgery that could save her life. He was still terrified, and asked me some pretty tough questions, like " If she dies there will you send her body home." I was surprised at how much fear he had, and then I was amazed at the courage this man showed. He was such a different man from the one I had encountered yesterday!

I know that God has done all of these things for this sweet little girl, and I know that this came to be because of the many of you who prayed for her. Please keep praying, her body is so frail, and there are many obstacles that we still face in getting her to Kenya.

Please Pray for Sofina!

                                                                Meet Sofina!

Sofina was born with a rare and abnormally large Nasal Encephalocele. What that means is that she has a large tumor on her nose that is filled with brain tissue. She is now 2 years and 4months old. This type of tumor is usually removed by very specialized pediatric brain surgeons at a very young age, even shortly after birth. I just met Sofina and her family for the first time a few short weeks ago. At that time I fell in love with her. She has spunk, and she is just like any other little 2 year old girl, she laughs, and smiles, and when you tell her to point to something big she points to her belly and shouts "BIG!(BE)"while she laughs. This is why her story is so heartbreaking, there is no treatment for Sofina in Madagascar. She is slowly dying. Day by day she gets smaller and smaller due to Malnutrition, she is still breastfeeding as her primary source of nutrition, and she is able to eat very soft rice with water 3 times a day. But due to the location of her tumor when she tries to sit up, move her head up, she loses her airway, the tumor smashes down on it, causing her to suffocate. So she remains lying flat or slightly elevated all day. Her mother loves her very much, and is always holding or nearby the child wiping the gunk out of her sweet daughter's eyes. She isn't lacking in love that is for sure!

Now I need to tell you that since I first asked you to pray for this precious little baby, I have heard from a group of Doctors that work in Kenya Africa, they said that they would be able to do the surgery for this little girl, and the cost was extremely reasonable. I believe the air fare will cost more than the surgery. They said that in the next 2 weeks they would like to receive this little girl while they have 2  pediatric nasocranial surgeons willing to do the surgery. When I first heard this news, I was a little bummed, because I know how hard it will be to get a little girl and her mother paperwork/visas/passports in a country where we have no government. However the great reminder that I serve a God who is above all that spurred me to keep asking questions on how to do those things. It turns out there is a doctor that is willing to write up all paperwork, and he thinks that it would be possible to have all those things within 2 weeks.

 Tomorrow I will set out to Sofina's village with all of this wonderful news. This surgery could give Sofina lots of tomorrows, and she could have a normal life. This surgery will save her life.

 Now the hard part........Sofina and her mother will be terrified! They won't likely receive this news with tears of joy, and thanksgiving. They don't come from a world where there is medical care. They are use to death, they are use to losing their children.  They are use to a life of difficulty and suffering.They are NOT use to the "white people" they are NOT use to people wanting to help them. They are NOT use to the Love of God, but are in fear of the power of their dead ancestors and doing something that could anger them. When I go to this village tomorrow, I am aware that I could actually be doing harm to the relationship we have with this village if something goes wrong with the surgery. This is the whole reason I am writing this and begging you in joining me to pray for this Village, AMBIA, and this little girl, and the situation that we find ourselves in. Pray that this Mom will be able to find a way to have courage to leave their village in the middle of the rainforest for the first time ever, and go to a place where they won't be able to understand or communicate a single word. Pray that through this situation this village will come to understand and give their lives to a God who loves them. Pray that this sweet little girl will have a strong enough body to make it through such an intense surgery! Please pray for us, as we speak with this family, trying to communicate all of this in a language that is not our own. Pray against the work of Satan's lies, and that the Truth would be made known. There are a million things that I can think of going wrong, pray that we continue to walk through each detail trusting in the power of God, and following His leading!

Please send this to anyone who will engage in prayer for this little girl!!!!



With Love for All of You,
Holly Jones

The Great Reward!

 
         I am a "Grinch." This will be the first Christmas spent apart from family and friends. I didn't expect it to be this hard that is for sure! I have been avoiding all Christmas songs, and when I see pictures of snow, Christmas trees, family, people having fun, or even smiling on Facebook( OK that is a bit of an exaggeration, but you get the picture) I am sad, and naturally I don't like to be sad, so I start blaming God for bringing me here, and making me unhappy......... Thankfully when I have my little fits, I have the reality to put me back in my place!

Reality comes in the form of God's Truth in the Scriptures!.........And a bit of Shane and Shane:)

Today these are the things that put me back in my place:

A young unmarried girl who became pregnant, seems pretty scary for girls even now, but could you imagine it back then. Unless the father of the child agreed to marry her, and "make things right" she would prob remain unmarried and unloved for the rest of her life. Especially her, I mean who would ever believe that she was made pregnant by the Holy Spirit of God.  People would definitely think she was a crazy mess! But Mary said "May it be as you have said." She didn't know the extent of all that people would come to remember her and know her for, she only knew that God loved her, and was asking her to serve him, and she willingly did. I hope that I can learn from the mother of Jesus, and even when things look absolutely disastrous and stupid, and all the people around me are going to think I am crazy. That I still willingly offer my life to God. I hope I can remember like she did that HE is the reward!

  I have been throwing myself a bit of a pity party, and this is why.......Sometimes I think to myself "I am being obedient, so why aren't things going better?" Apparently, I actually have the nerve to think that I have done something worthy of a reward, and because I did it, I feel like I should get to choose the reward.
When I face inconvenience or discomfort that is beyond what I had previously planned on, I automatically think that either I have misread God's will or that God has some how been unfaithful in fulfilling his promise to me. But as I read about the Story of Mary and Joseph and the birth of Jesus. I am quickly reminded of the Truth! God did not make the road less bumpy for Joseph and Mary, but he strengthened them through it. God did not provide a luxurious inn for Joseph and Mary, but brought their Son into this world in humble surroundings. When I follow God's will for my life, I am not guaranteed comfort and convenience. But I am promised that everything, even the discomfort, and inconvenience has meaning in God's plan. He will guide me and provide for me all that I need. And most importantly HE is the great reward!

May we all rejoice this Christmas Season that we have already received the most prized, and precious gift, Jesus!

Merry Christmas!

Love,
Holly

Who would have thought!

I feel like the song "I have been everywhere Man" By Johnny Cash should be playing in this update, because we have been all over the world this last month...We have traveled from the Island of Madagascar to the United States, to Mexico, Back to the US, and Back to Madagascar! We have been able to stick our feet in the Indian Ocean, the Pacific Ocean, and next week we will add the Mozambique Channel to that list. God has been so good to us in allowing us to safely travel all over the world, and spend some wonderful, and unexpected time with our families. We even got to celebrate a wonderful early Thanksgiving with one of our families:)
What we didn't expect was to be so ready to get back home to Madagascar, apparently while we were away our hearts decided to really declare and reaffirm to us that they belonged home, in Madagascar! I can only realistically accredit this to the many of you who have been faithfully praying for us, and the Malagasy. God has been so faithful and good in calling and sustaining us here!
 Since returning back, Kurtis and I have been able to really jump right back into learning about the culture here, and how desperately the Malagasy are in need of the Hope that is found in Jesus. I was able to attend a Malagasy birth, and saw first hand the differences in what it means to be born in America and what it means to be born into Africa. I had the privilege of being a part of many deliveries in America, and there was always so much hope, excitement,so much promise, and many great opportunities that Lie ahead for that precious little newborn! The birth I attended here was just as miraculous, but for that little newborn, his life promise is very different, one of pain and struggle. Again I was reminded of how blessed we are in America, and how glad I am to be able to have something to offer the Malagasy, something that will last, and something that may or may not change their circumstances, but how they can look at those situations, and set them free from a life of bondage. Through the life of Jesus I can share with them His hope, his plan!

I am thankful for your prayers, and I ask that you would pray for our ability to understand the language and the culture here! That we would understand the underlying issues that are the cause of the deep rooted beliefs and traditions.


Love,
Holly

Turning of the Bones!

Yesterday as it approached evening our neighbors introduced to us our first experience with a "real" Malagasy party! The music and dancing started around 6 pm and went well into the next morning, they finally gave it a rest at 730 this morning!It is the season of" The Turning of The Bones.
 The people here believe that when one of their family members dies they don't really die, but have a different life, a more powerful one. They believe that their dead ancestors come to them in dreams and tell them that they are cold, or need a fresh set of clothes! So when a Malagasy person has a dream about that, they kill all their cows, and throw a big party! They take the dead body of their ancestors out of their tomb, clean the bones or flesh, and re-wrap them with clean cloth. This whole process takes a couple of days, and they dance around with the bones and celebrate. It kind of looks like a big parade as they march on the streets with the corpse, and play lots of music! Often times the Malagasy people will try to convince their dead ancestor to bless them in some way......either give them good health, make them wealthy, or protect them from harm. In order to do this they will try to take part of the flesh that remains on the corpse, or some of the powdery stuff that is in the cloth wrapped around the corpse, and they eat it! They also will take the teeth our of the corpse and place it in their mouth. Hope you all are still hanging in there as you read this:)
We have only been introduced to this by our neighbors, but tomorrow( on Kurtis's 30th Birthday) We will spend the day experiencing first hand the customs of the Turning of the Bones ceremony! I know that the smell of the tomb will be horrendous, and that the food that we will eat tomorrow will be interesting, but we are thankful for opportunities to be able to learn how the people here think and live their lives, so that we can better understand their needs and how to help these people!

From Tears to Rejoicing!

Wishing I could be there for my sister, and this exciting time in her life as she prepares for marriage. How do I join in the celebration of my sister's upcoming wedding from nearly 10,000 miles away?  I  think of all the wonderful memories we have made together over the years, and I am so grateful that God has provided such a crazy, wonderful, fun, loving sister! I rejoice in the wonderful blessing it is to have a sister.

It kills me to know I won't be there to see you try on your dress or walk down the aisle (well in your case the beach)! Instead of letting the tears fall any longer, I decided to rejoice with you from afar.  I have been reminiscing over some fun times with you through pics! Kurtis and I made this little snid-bit for you to know how much we love you, and are thinking and praying for you during this exciting time in your life!  We also enjoyed a good laugh!

Here is to celebrating despite the distance!

Our First Glimpse!

Lots of firsts for us in Madagascar!

 It is winter here, which is the dry season, and the weather is very cold. Our home is concrete, and does not have heat so it is always warmer outside of our home than inside.  We had quite a bit of adjusting to do (especially our stomachs), and some house maintenance to complete before I was able to make myself at home here, but after a good cleaning, fixing some light bulbs, fixing the toilet, fixing the washer, fixing the hot water heater, and buying some blankets we are now feeling quite at home:)
The smells of Madagascar were another thing that I had to get use to! Lets just say there is a mix of many smells, but the strong ones are urine, poop, body odor, smoke, and dust.  The majority of  Malagasy live on less than $1 a day and they have had very little to no education on sanitation! That means it is very common to see people urinating and defecating along side of the road! And they definitely don't use toilet paper! This also leads to the very thing that I have not figured out how to cope with yet, the beggars! They are cute little kids, that come to you in swarms, they surround your car, and they look you in the eye and ask for money! It is sad! I cried more than a few times knowing that I would not be able to change their situations. They are truly in need, many have illnesses, and there is no health care for these people! Their clothes are filthy and torn. Many Malagasy walk the sewage filled roads with no shoes! Life for the Malagasy is very hard!


I know that this post is pretty dreary, and the reality is that life here is going to be filled with these things, and they will only be intensified as we move away from the city after studying the language. However I am very thankful to be able to be here among these people! I am humbled, and encouraged to live my own life without so much greed in my heart! Just the little that I have experienced that, makes my heart full and satisfied! God has truly blessed us! I am so thankful for my family and friends at home. I have received many encouraging words and messages from you and it makes me feel as though you guys are right here with me on this journey!  I can't wait to learn the language fully, and to be able to see some of you serving right along side of us in Madagascar!

 Who wants fish??

 A day in the market!

                                   

 Kids are so cute here!

  We paid only .20 Cents for 2.2 pounds of carrots!

CARE PACKAGES!

Some of you have inquired on how to send us a package and what we need while we are in Madagascar. I understand more fully now after arriving in Madagascar why these packages are so wonderful!

Here are some things to consider if you are thinking about sending a package. The most cost efficient way to send something is by using the flat rate boxes from your local post office.  It is a bit expensive so grab a friend, family member, small group, or church to go in with you, we have been told it is approx $55 to send the large box, and that it takes anywhere from 2-8 weeks to get here. When you are asked to declare the value of items in the package on the customs form, please put Garage sale prices. They determine what we pay to pick up the package off of that number.

Below is a list of things that we thought we would be able to get here, but have not been able to.
(people have asked us for detailed lists, so please know that we would be happy with anything and surprises are great, but we added detail for those who have asked)

Crystal Light
Dental Floss
Shampoo- Any kind is better than what you can get here!
Conditioner- Any kind
Lotion
Vitamins
Body Wash
Chapstick ( Vanilla Mint is Holly's favorite, but I think you can only find it at wal-greens)
Pepto Bismol Tablets
Bug Spray with DEET
Starbursts
Oreos
Beef Jerky
ziplock baggies 
Any kind of baking chips(butterscotch, chocolate, white chocolate)
Velveeta or imitation cheese that comes in the block to melt down( This is obviously a Kurtis Request:)

Our Address Is:
Kurtis & Holly Jones
B.P. 268
110 Antsirabe
Madagascar