Dear Friends,
I am Paul, Hospital Chaplains Coordinator, serving for over five years. All of the chaplains are accustomed to getting sick with malaria. Everyone does in Sierra Leone. We pray, rest and recover to return to our jobs. The hospital chaplains modify their schedules to cover for others when they are sick for more than a few days.
But last October I suffered from such severe pain in my left leg that I could not get out of bed, no matter how hard I tried. I fasted and prayed for three days with no change in my situation. My son is an evangelist in Sierra Leone and I finally asked his prayer team (pictured here) to pray for me and I requested the OBI Board to pray for me. Of course, the hospital chaplains were already praying.
Kenneth, one of the chaplains, took over my duties so I could focus on healing. He already manages our meager finances as Finance Officer, Olive Branch Sierra Leone. A month passed with no improvement, so I went to the doctor. He told me my cartilage was injured and the muscles were too weak for the blood to flow to my joints.
I didn’t have the money to pay for the additional medical expenses to treat my condition. Praise God that OBI just instituted a contingency fund for emergencies and could send funds to cover my medical bills of x-ray, scans, medicines and doctors’ bills. It took until February for me to get to 95% of my previous health.
Kenneth visited me often. He is so different from me, an extrovert and always trying to make people smile. His optimistic outlook cheered my spirits and encouraged me during this long battle to regain my health. Kenneth’s ability and willingness to care for me during this time and take on my responsibilities in addition to his hospital chaplain workload was a blessing.
I am so excited about what God has in store for us as we work to build a microenterprise that will bring us financial income but also expand our ministry outside public hospitals. Please consider how you may support us by praying for us but also financially helping. We have more expenses now that we are a recognized organization, but it is opening new doors for service to God.
Blessings,
Paul Affiong with Linda Sheimo