Dan, Heather, Jeremiah, Tory, Emma, Tye, Claire, Levi, Josie, Jane and Ethan

Thursday, July 4, 2019

Endings and New Beginnings

Happy 4th of July from Kenya!
It seems fitting on this cloudy and cold 4thof July in Kenya to reflect on what God has done in the past three years since we made the challenging transition from Tenwek to Kijabe Hospital. So, I’ve built a blazing fire, and I’m sipping a cup of hot chai as I write, all the while wishing we could be in the U.S. for a blazing hot Independence day cookout with burgers, beans and sweet corn followed by fireworks as the sun sets.  

Change is inevitable, and endings and new beginnings are a common part of this walk with Christ as strangers in this world.  We often don’t take the time to grieve the multiple “deaths” that we experience regularly, and as a result, can get stuck in confusion, disillusionment, and stunted growth.  But if we take the time to be honest with ourselves, and God, we can begin to see the new life that springs forth from the ashes (“Unless a grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit. John 12:24)

If we would have been told 4 years ago that we would leave Tenwek (endings) and start again at Kijabe (new beginnings), we would have thought that would be impossible.  We had worked too hard, invested too much, and planned to spend years, if not decades there.  And I admit, we did not grieve well the loses we experienced and spent many months in a fog after first moving to Kijabe. 

But God, in His mercy, began to reveal the bigger picture of his sovereign plan, and one by one, new beginnings unfolded. In December 2016, Emma graduated from Mercy Multiplied in Nashville and returned to Kenya to complete her junior and senior year at RVA. In February 2017, we discovered we were expecting another child, and Ethan Benjamin was born at Kijabe Hospital on October 11, 2017.  Now he is a little toddler, running around the house and trying to compete with his two, very doting older sisters.  


In March 2017, our oldest, Jeremiah, eloped, and although this was a complete surprise to us, we see God’s hand in this new beginning for him and Tory!

Jeremiah and Tory visited us in December 2017 when we found out the news!


In July 2018, I became the first orthopaedic surgeon to complete the American Board of Orthopaedic Surgery certification process overseas in a mission/humanitarian setting.  In January 2019, PAACS Orthopaedics added two new programs (Kijabe and Soddo/CURE) to join Tenwek (which graduated their first two residents) bringing to total number of ortho residents to more than 20 (of which I have the privilege of overseeing as the PAACS Orthopaedics Regional Director). 

Fasto and Victor as the first two graduates from the PAACS Tenwek program.  Victor is working part-time at Tenwek and Fasto is a fellow in paediatric orthopaedics at CURE Kijabe. 

Francis Mbugua and James Kinyua, the program directors at Kijabe. 

PAACS site visit to Soddo Christian Hospital in Ethiopia.
John Weston, recent graduate from the Mayo ortho residency program, visited us twice at Kijabe and had decided to join the team here. However, when Tenwek lost Dr. Kiprono and Dr. Nugent, he and his family changed gears and decided to make Tenwek their place of service.  They plan to arrive in September 2019!

And as of this month, we will have graduated two of our daughters from high school to send off to college (yes more endings/new beginnings).  

Emma is now a Voice Performance Major at Biola in La Mirada, CA
Claire plans to start at Princeton in the fall. 

The orthopaedic work at Kijabe Hospital thrived over the past three years, and I grew tremendously as I was pushed to more challenging cases such as revision total hip arthroplasty and bone transport for huge bony defects. 

22 year old young lady with gaucher's disease.  She required bilateral total hip replacements. 
Pelvic X-ray of above patient. 

14 year old boy with large femoral bone defect requiring "bone transport."
Pins and rail used to "transport" bone over a distance at 1mm per day to fill the defect. 

And as the Head of Orthopaedics, I was challenged to lead in deeper ways, including a book study for the consultants entitled “Emotionally Healthy Leadership” By Pete Scazzero (in which the last chapter is entitled “Endings and new beginnings.”  Yes, you could say this book has had a profound impact on me!) 


Heather and I also experienced a rebirth of regular prayer and a new conviction for sabbath rest.  We, for the first time in our missions career, began to experience the joy of intentionally leading together, in ministry, from our marriage (yep, another chapter in EHL).  Heather was involved with multiple prayer ministry groups around the Kijabe campus, and we met weekly with a group of peers (couples with young kids, most of whom were 10+ years younger than Heather and I!).  

And we were able to really connect with our older kids during this critical time of development in their high school years.  Many painful endings led us to beautiful new beginnings.  

Over the past three years, we have made more pizzas than we can count. 


Each Friday night, we have between 5-12 students with  large appetites!
Levi was baptized in the Indian Ocean in April 2019. 

And now, in two weeks, we will experience yet another ending as we leave this season at Kijabe, and head back to the States to begin a year of Home Ministry Assignment (HMA).  During this time, I will be doing a year-long fellowship at Mayo Arizona in shoulder, hip and knee arthroplasty.  At this point, we are planning to return to Kenya after the fellowship ends in July 2020, but we have learned to hold plans very loosely and are continuing to ask God for discernment of his will (Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect. Rom. 12:2).

We will miss sunsets (daily endings) like this at Kijabe!


We continue to be thankful for each one of you, who have supported us prayerfully and financially over the past 10+ years we have spent in Kenya.  Without your faithful work in our lives, we would not be here!   

10 comments:

Madonaldo said...

are everyone looking for ways online to get help solving their pregnancy and infertility problems when most of every native American is talking online about the help of Dr Mandaker Alamun. I checked him out when my husband who could not get me pregnant for over 9 years of marriage as a result of low sperm count became fertile and now, I am 5 months pregnant and it is this man known as Dr Mandaker who helped my husband solve his problem. My name is Alecia from CA USA. I would advise anyone and everyone who needs the help of any spell caster in love marriage,finance, job promotion,lottery spell,poker spell,golf spell,Law & Court case Spells,money spell,weigh loss spell,diabetic spell,hypertensive spell,high cholesterol spell,Trouble in marriage,Barrenness(need spiritual marriage separation),good Luck, Money Spells,it's all he does or looking for breakthrough in your political career to meet this Dr Mandaker the link to his website copy this link (witch-doctor.page4.me)His email contact witchhealing@outlook.com for He is a Reliable and trustworthy. I and my husband have gone to different hospitals having the thinking that I was at fault for not getting pregnant. But at the Federal hospital, they examined him too and his sperm count was low and unable to get a woman pregnant as a result of male infertility. It was then I sort out,thanks to Dr Mandaker.

clar said...

What a work.good job!
NegosyongPinoy.info

herbalincensekush said...

BUY ORIGINAL NOVELTY ID CARD,DRIVERS LICENSE,PASSPORTS,VISA

Best documentation centre has years of experience producing fake passports,Driving Licenses and other identity documents. We use high quality equipment and materials to produce counterfeit passports. All secret features of real passports are carefully duplicated for our falsified documents. We are the best producer of quality fake documents. With over 30million of out documents circulating over the world. We offer only original high-quality fake money ,passports, driver's licenses, ID cards, stamps and other products for a number of countries like: USA, Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Italia, Finland, France, Germany, Israel, Mexico, Netherlands, South Africa, Spain, United Kingdom. Dubai(the emirates) and many more.


Phone Number: +1(925) 338 9583

Whatsapp == +1(925) 338 9583

Website:BUY ORIGINAL NOVELTY ID CARD,DRIVERS LICENSE,PASSPORTS,VISA


Apply for real register Passport ,Visa,Driving License,ID CARDS,marriage certificates,diplomas etc for sell Guaranteed 24 hour passport,citizenship,Id cards,driver license,diplomas,degrees,certificates service available. Tourist and business visa services available to residents of all 50 states and all nationalities Worldwide. are unique producers of Authentic High Quality passports, Real Genuine Data Base Registered and unregistered Passports and other Citizenship documents.I can guarantee you a new Identity starting from a clean new genuine Birth Certificate, ID card, Drivers License,Passports, Social security card with SSN, credit files, and credit cards, school diplomas, school degrees all in an entirely new name issued and registered in the government database system.. We use high quality equipment and materials to produce authentic and counterfeit documents.All secret features of real passports are carefully duplicated for our Registered and unregistered documents.we are unique producer of quality false and Real documents.We offer only original high-quality Registered and unregistered passports, driver´s licenses, ID cards, stamps, Visa, school Diplomas and other products for a number of countries like:USA, Australia, Belgium,Brazil, Canada, Italian,Finland, France, Germany, Israel, Mexico, Netherlands, South Africa,Spain, United Kingdom

BUY ORIGINAL NOVELTY ID CARD,DRIVERS LICENSE,PASSPORTS,VISA


make novelty driver license,
make Diplomatic passports,
Buy fake Passport ,Visa,Driving License,ID CARDS,marriage
certificates,diplomas etc.

**CONTACT CHANELS**

Phone Number: +1(925) 338 9583

Whatsapp == +1(925) 338 9583

Website:https://majesticpassports.com

Email:.........majesticpassport@zoho.com

sean schinder said...

PLEASE READ PLEASE READ PLEASE READ
Hello everyone, i would like to share my experience on this platform. i have been hearing of Blank Atm for a while and i applied through a few people but i was scammed, not until i found Mr George who saved me from scammers, i got my blank ATM card in 5 days after application and tried the encrypted card in an ATM machine and pos cash store to my greatest surprise i was able to withdraw $3000 and that was the daily rate i applied for. to be honest there is no risk involved the card is not traceable and has an infrared signal that blocks off CCTV during your withdrawals. i just payed my daughters tuition fee and cleared my mortgage debts, i am also richer and started a business that is doing fine. Mr George is really a life saver and he is very genuine. You can contact him with this email address: blankatm402@outlook.com
Best wishes

Swapna madhuri said...

CBD oil China
Rick Simpson oil China
Ricks hemp oil China
Medical cannabis China
Hemp oil China
Where to buy CBD oil
CBD Hemp oil China
Rick Cannabinoild oil China
Cannabidiol China
Rick Cannabinoild China

Swapna madhuri said...

Snowflakes final edit by Allen Steble (Feat Andrej)

Unknown said...

Are you looking for a loan company capable of meeting your financial needs during this Covid 19 times? We offer user friendly services that meet your business and private needs. With just an interest rate of 2% we give you access to different categories of loans, from business loans($50,000 - $100,000) to tuition loans to car loans to mortgage loans($2,000 - $20,000) even up to vacation loans. we provide loans when the bank fail to do so because we care about you Contact us now and get your loan decision within five minutes and loan approval and disbursal of funds within 24 hours. be safe wash your hands regularly and practice social distance in public Email us at smallscaleloans@gmail.com or on whatsapp +447451229283

Fixit said...

Hello all
am looking few years that some guys comes into the market
they called themselves hacker, carder or spammer they rip the
peoples with different ways and it’s a badly impact to real hacker
now situation is that peoples doesn’t believe that real hackers and carder scammer exists.
Anyone want to make deal with me any type am available but first
I‘ll show the proof that am real then make a deal like

Available Services

..Wire Bank Transfer all over the world

..Western Union Transfer all over the world

..Credit Cards (USA, UK, AUS, CAN, NZ)

..School Grade upgrade / remove Records

..Spamming Tool

..keyloggers / rats

..Social Media recovery

.. Teaching Hacking / spamming / carding (1/2 hours course)

discount for re-seller

Contact: 24/7

fixitrogers@gmail.com

Raj Chandrakant said...



Thank you for sharing such uplifting story. I had two miscarriages a year apart. I was told it was nothing to worry about despite having multiple fibroids. The doctors were not concerned about the position of the fibroids. Miraculously, I became pregnant within a month after i order spell and herbs from Priestess Hallifat .i recommend you try her out : lifecentre@live . com

Hip Replacement Community said...

we nice information about the topic. we are also a non profitable organisation offering information about
hip replacement,
hip replacement surgery,
hip replacement cost,
hip replacement community
hip replacement recovery.
Risks of Delaying Hip Replacement Surgery
How Long Does Hip Replacement Surgery Take – A Complete Overview
Understanding Of The Most Common Hip Injuries & Treatment