HIV/AIDS Ministry in Congo by Wilma

Sitting in a stuffy cement room with 11 HIV+ people is not something I have done before…let alone at Tandala Hospital in the northern Ubangi Region of Congo.  Sitting around a wooden table on hard wooden chairs, they sat quietly with Pastor Deolo, Rachel Martin, and me while we listened to Pastor Moolado give words of Biblical encouragement from Matthew 26: 36-48.  Christ suffered difficulties just like us.  He prayed for help just like us.  Difficulties need not overwhelm us, including sickness, AIDS and even death. 

Earlier after our introductions, each “Positive Person” shared their name, who in their family besides them was HIV+, and how far they had walked to come for medicine and this special support meeting.  They gave thanks to us for coming to Congo and for our church’s assistance.  I could hear in their voice the intensity of their needs.  For each one I tried to repeat their name and the Lingala words for “hello” and  ‘we will pray for you”.  They smiled as I mispronounced many words, but they appreciated my attempt.

“I have no peace”, one middle aged lady shared as she held her HIV+ baby whose little shoes seemed big compared to the dangling skinny legs that were attached to them.  “I think about this illness all the time and I have no peace all the time.”  We gathered around her and prayed for the peace the passes all understanding that only God can give. 

I shared I Thess 5:9 and we left not only knowing but feeling the encouragement that is ours to freely give abundantly to each other.  Lift up someone today,  Pray that their difficulties will not overwhelm and that they may have peace.

From Congo,

Wilma for the team

Wilma Sykpe-ing with her husband as an audience watches!

After the heat there is mbula (rain)

A refreshing rain falls after a hot day in Tandala. A cool clean breeze blows on my neck. A busy day behind us, this is a welcome change from the humidity and heat.

Wilma spent most of her day meeting with Pastor Deolo and others from the HIV/AIDS ministry. There is so much for her to learn and she is really immersing herself into the ministry. Deolo is regaining his strength after a few weeks of suffering with a severe sinus infection, his timely recovery the day we arrived was nothing short of a miracle. He told us he prayed that if he was supposed to remain sick while we were here, then so be it. He placed his whole recovery in God’s hands, in God’s perfect timing.

Wendy spent all day with Bofio the dentist here. They unpacked trunks, discussed an education program to train others in dentistry and self training methods for himself and ideas for staff support. In other words, she did a lot of talking today and Bofio did a great job with his English.

I kept myself busy in the lab unpacking trunks, maintaining/calibrating analyzers and training lab staff. The lab did very well during my two year hiatus. They have done a wonderful job providing testing for the hospital; it is so encouraging to me.

Today’s rain after a hot day got me thinking of how the rain is like Jesus washing our sin (hot, humid weather) away. It is refreshing, renewing and it changes us in ways we never thought were possible.

storms a brewin in the african jungle...

What a Ride

Traveling in Congo is always interesting, but this truck trip was really unique. Our Saturday journey started out at the riverbank crossing in a dugout canoe equipped with an outboard motor. The ride is rather short but refreshing none the less. Immigration and customs consists of two wooden shacks on the side of the river. The process went smoothly and surprisingly expediently. All of our trunks, bags , backpacks and selves loaded into an open truck to meet our driver and Land Cruiser on the other side of the broken bridge about 40 km away.  What a wild ride that was – 4 mondelas (white people) and a few Africans bouncing down the red clay road - what a site we were indeed.

At the rendez vous point I could immediately see the collapsed bridge which had been destroyed In January by an overloaded truck. Foot traffic, bicycles and motorbikes are the only means of travel over the bridge.  All the cargo was unloaded, reloaded and we were on our way again.  Every inch of space was taken up by people and baggage- we were literally “packed” into this vehicle. Mind you, this is not a smooth ride by any means. The potholes are the size of small craters and crevices comparable to the Grand Canyon (ok not that big – but you get the gist!) Our average speed was around 35 kph topping out at about 60 kph on the good stretches of road. It took us 11 ½ hrs to go approximately 250 kilometers.

Highlight! We stopped on the way to visit briefly with Nzawala my GlobalFingerprints sponsor child. She has grown so much in 2 years and at 14 she is very beautiful. She hopes to go to school in Gemena to further her education.

What a welcome sight the lights of Elikya were. Oh to stand up and stretch!

Thank you Lord, for our safety on the road where so many things could have gone wrong. Thank you for the excellent skills of or driver, Edison and our first driver Bosco. Thank you for the bed, shower and your provisions all around.

open truck ride

In Africa- by Wilma

We’ve made it to Africa!

After 24 hours of travel, we have touched down in Central Republic of Africa.  After a much needed good night’s rest here we are anticipating 14 more hours of travel tomorrow!  We’re a long way from home and are on an adventure beyond description. 

We met in Liberty Bible Church parking lot at 2AM on Thursday, September 15.  Ken and Anna Willard saw the team off with hugs and prayers while Pastor Greg drove us to O’Hare.  Since then we have been on three jets; to Dulles Airport in Washington DC, to Addis Ababa in Ethiopia (a 13 hour marathon ride), and finally to Bangui in Central Republic of Africa (which tried our patience since we were exhausted by then and tried to sleep to the screech of two crying babies at least half the trip – this is not an exaggeration)  But covered in prayer, we are thankful that not only did we arrive here with grace but also with all 12 checked bags and innumerable carry-on bags.  Of interest is that our first clerk at O-Hare let us pass with too heavy luggage.  His name was Jesus.  Seriously. 

At the Ethiopia airport and at the Bangui airport we looked around the tarmac and buildings and spotted guards with big guns standing ready for action if needed.   Wilma put her camera away as to not incite any difficulties! 

The WHO of our team is:  Jeannie Pesut (owner of this blog) who is a lab tech and Ms Short Term Missionary Anywhere in the World.  Jeannie brought lots of lab supplies and will be doing training for Tandala Hospital lab workers.  Wendy Parker, DDS also brought lots of supplies and will be training the nurse who is currently doing dental care there.  Wilma Willard who is a health educator will be understanding the current HIV/AIDS ministry with Pastor Deolo who oversees this for the 900 Evangelical Free Churches and their surrounding communities .  She anticipates a return trip next year for follow-up support that this trip’s analysis will determine.   Joining us from Iowa  is missionary Rachel Martin who lived in this mission field at Tandala for 12 years and is directing some Reach Global projects.  She knows the languages and customs and ropes so if invaluable help along with or fearless leader Jeannie who has been here twice.  With humor and humility and with God’s help, we hope to be His Fantastic Four.

Only minor discomforts thus far:  Wilma’s cut finger that keeps opening back up and bleeding,  Wendy’s swollen feet that won’t fit in her shoes anymore, Jeannie’s sore back and Rachel’s bad knees resulting from all the walking and sitting.  Other than that (and only having erratic sleeping in a hard plane seat) we are just pooped troopers!!!

 So, tomorrow (we are now 6 hours ahead of Chicago time so I believe that will officially be September 17 here) we leave at 7AM to cross the river via dugout canoe, pass customs at “the shack”, and survive our  Land Rover ride to Gemena where the Evangelical Free Church of Congo (CECU) has its headquarters and mission compound.  We anticipate a late evening arrival with more stories and praises and exhaustion to share with you.

God is good – we have arrived in Africa!  Please keep praying for our service here in His name. 

Wilma, for the team

On Our Way

We all met in the church parking lot at 2:30 am. A chilly breeze off Lake Michigan sent us off but I welcomed the cool air since we will be in the hot and humid soon enough.
All the bags  were checked with no problems even a few overweight ones were waved through no charge. Praise!
It always amazes me how God orchestrates things and places the right people in our path when we need it.
Boarding soon - Thanks for the prayers they are working already.

Many Times Blessed

This morning at church our Team Congo had the amazing opportunity to be prayed over in  five services by our congregation. Words can't begin to describe how much each of us felt the love of our brothers and sisters during those prayer times. I cannot stress enough how important it is to be covered in prayer when embarking on a trip such as this. In my past experience on short term teams, I have found that you really feel the prayers. There are moments you just stop what you are doing and feel the power of the prayer that someone has just expressed to the Lord on your behalf. It is a calming peace that suddenly washes over you- it is quite amazing.
We are blessed in so many ways by so many people who touch our lives. This morning was an excellent example of this. Several people came up to us after each service offering an embrace, words of encouragements and promises to pray for each of us.

Team Congo
Wilma     Wendy     Jeannie

What a blessing indeed.

Two weeks to go...

So now I am collecting supplies, finalizing plans, packing, shopping for needed items and trying to not feel overwhelmed. Every time I take a mission trip, I have the same feelings just about two weeks out. Am I prepared?  Is this really going to happen? Will everything fit in 2 checked bags and a carry on? Will the flights be on time so we can make our connections? What if I get sick a day before we leave?  Silly to worry, I know but I can't seem to help it. I usually calm down once all the bags are checked and we are preparing for take off. At least I can check "getting our African visas" off my worry list, those came on Monday. 


Someone asked me the other day "Aren't you afraid to go there?" I quickly answered "No - why should I be?" The phrase "the safest place to be is in the will of God" came to mind and the conversation quickly turned into a witnessing opportunity. I explained that if my time to be called "home" was when I was on the trip , I certainly had no control over it and what better way to go serving Him...right?  And although I do not have a death wish on myself, it is something predestined to happen at some time in my life. This brought a surprised look on the face of the individual and probably got them thinking. 

Grassy plain in Congo

Our time here on earth is but a blink of an eye to God - we need to be obedient to whatever he calls us to. For me it is traveling to hot, humid, remote places in the world to use the gifts and knowledge given to me. For you - it is something completely different and that's OK. We are all not called to do the same thing.
So..two weeks out and my stomach has butterflies, packing needs to commence, house needs to be put in order and worries need to cease.


Thanks for your prayers