Jimmy and Chase Miller- Serving Kenya since 2011

 Now to Him who is able to do above and beyond all that we ask or think according to the power that works in us.  To Him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever!  Amen. Ephesians 3:20 This week has been a week of joy as I witness God touching His people and healing them.  On Tuesday we were able to operate on the large dental cyst depicted in the last blog.  All went well and once the swelling decreases this will be life changing for him. Wednesday we operated until 10:30 pm.  We removed a recurrent cancer of the salivary gland.  This was a very difficult surgery but God graciously revealed the facial nerve and we were able to preserve his facial movement. We also took care of a patient with a large mass deep at the base of skull.  Below is a picture of what we saw when he opened his mouth.  We approached this via the neck and praise God we were able to successfully remove the mass.  He no...

 "Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you.  I do not give to you as the world gives.  Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid" John 14:27 My first week has been full of clinic, emergency room consults and operative cases.  The first 2 days of clinic were chaotic with masses of patients coming in for surgical review.  At 7 pm our first day we realized we would not be able to get through everyone that night.  We had to send them out after waiting all day to find sleeping arrangements in the nearby town.  The next morning we started early and by noon we had seen all of Monday's patients.  We then had all of Tuesday to see that afternoon.  My head was spinning with not only all the advanced diseases but also all the system problems we have to overcome to get someone to the operating theater.  My general surgery resident is a master at working the system thank heavens.  Despite all the issues,  God's peace is wit...

 Praise God we arrived safely to Tenwek Hospital last night!  The trip was uneventful except for customs.  We were pulled over and my medical bag was searched.  I was charged 50% tax but was able to barter with them to 25% total cost.  Considering that we have been traveling since 2011 and this is the first time i have been taxed, I am overall grateful that they did not confiscate any of the equipment or medications. It seems not much has changed since March, our previous trip.  The land is dry, but there is the sense of coming short rains.  The guest house is full of visiting doctors with tales of interesting cases.  I will start with clinic tomorrow.   I will be praying for wisdom in caring for patients, compassion in relating to them, and for God's healing touch. Future blogs to come, chase

Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the Lord his God, the Maker of heaven and earth, the sea, and everything in them- the Lord, who remains faithful forever. He upholds the cause of the oppressed and gives food to the hungry. The Lord sets prisoners free, the Lord gives sight to the blind, the Lord lifts up those who are bowed down, the Lord loves the righteous...Praise the Lord Psalm 146:4-8 Oh, how faithful is our God! He raises up what is low, and brings down the proud. His ways are not our ways. We are blessed to serve the poor, the lowly, and those in need. With healing hands God ministers to His people. The ones He has chosen to know Him. My heart is grateful as I anticipate God’s healing touch on His people of Kenya. His love is beyond understanding as He calls us from a nation 7000 miles away to serve the needy in a land of poverty. Although I know I am not what they need, my confidence is in Him who will be faithful to deliver them. We leave October ...

 We arrived back home safely for Easter!  Thank you for all your prayers.  This trip was a tough one but God proved Himself faithful as always.  God answered prayers in so many ways. 1. He poured forth rain from heaven.  The drought has ended and the people are rejoicing in the plentiful rains on the country. Compare this to week one photo of the waterfall at Tenwek.  The rains have allowed the hydroelectric plant to run again.  The fields are green again! 2. He healed His people physically!  This patient has TB of the spine.  She was paralyzed from the waist down and unable to sit up in bed.  Her arms were weak.  She underwent incision and drainage of a soft tissue abscess and spine stabilization.  I helped with the access in the neck for the neurosurgery team. She is now able to sit up in a wheel chair and strength is returning to her arms.  This is beyond what we could have hoped.  God is working His miracles. 3. H...

 I continue to believe that my work here is just a facade for the gospel message.  Although my surgeries might improve the quality of the Kenyan's lives or save a life here on earth there is no lasting effect.  We will all undergo physical death one day.  The true healing is the spiritual healing that comes from faith in Christ. This patient presented with intermittent nose bleeds and congestion in one of his nostrils.  Exam revealed a mass filling the nasal cavity.  He admitted to sniffing tobacco.  This is a habit of grinding tobacco leaves to a powder and sniffing it.  We talked about the deleterious effects and the risk of cancer from this activity.  He underwent a biopsy of his nasal mass which is very suspicious for a cancer.  We also discussed Christ.  He had heard of Christ and knows there is a church down the road but no one has presented the Gospel to him.  Through the help of an interpreter I was able to present the ...

 I am a bit late in an update as my time here has been so busy.  My ENT colleague has arrived and we have been focusing on ear surgeries for 2 weeks.  While we are doing the regular schedule of ear surgeries the general ENT problems keep coming.   This is the line in the morning to check in for appointments in the clinic where I work.  There seems to be an endless stream of patients.  They wait all day to be seen.  Once we identify patients that need surgery we need to go through endless paper work to apply for insurance coverage. Many can not afford even the 3-5 dollars a month fee for the national insurance. In these cases they need to raise money to pay for hospital fees. These are just some of the masses that I see on a daily basis at Tenwek.  These are now complicated situations as patients seek care so late. This 12 year old boy arrived last week with another case of acute mastoiditis.  This infection had spread to the areas around the ...