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Our Blog

SUFFERING

     Thousands of miles and a whole continent in between are two women.  They don't know each other, nor will they while on this earth.  Yvonne and I know them both.  Both of them are suffering.

     Several weeks ago Yvonne was coming home after visiting a friend when she came upon Bernadette.  Wrapped in little more than rags, Bernadette was laying outside the doors of local clothing and jewelry stores, barely conscious.

     Though we did not know her name at that time, we've seen Bernadette before along with countless other beggars that roam our neighborhood.  We had never seen her in this condition.  

     Her lips were white, her eyes yellow and her hair speckled with grit from the street.  She sat in a puddle of air conditioning condensation and her own urine.  Without help she couldn't sit up, let alone stand up.  

     Someone nearby had given her a cup of water and a morsel of food, but she was too weak to lift her hand to put them to her mouth.  Two young women had stopped to comfort her, but really did not know what to do.  Mostly, people either just walked by or stood and stared.

     With the help of our translator, Gerand, we were able to extract enough information to know that if we didn't help her she was going to die.  The three of us were eventually able to lift Bernadette into a tuc tuc and transport her to the local hospital.

     Within a day she had regained much of her strength.  Within two days she was able to walk to a bathroom (without her cane) and bathe.  A week later she was able to leave the hospital.

     The curious thing about Bernadette is that she has family not far away.  They have enough to provide their sister food and shelter, but Bernadette prefers wandering the streets and begging.  We have seen her several times in the last week, right where she has been before.

     While it is apparent that Bernadette, who is 60 years old, suffers from some form of dimensia, it is also apparent that she has enough awareness to know she has a place where she could live in a semblance of dignity.  She prefers indignity.  Her family is well aware of her condition, but is unwilling to fight through Bernadette's obstinance to help.

     Back in the states, there is another who is suffering.  She did not grow up in squalor, but in middle class America.  As a young girl she contracted polio.  Now as a 74-year-old woman she is battling cancer.

     What we know about Jeannine is that she is a fighter.  She fought through polio and raised a family without the help of an absentee husband.  She persevered through adversity and was able to provide.  The ultimate fruits of her labor are two children of immense character.  

     Her son and daughter are the picture of what any parent's heart would desire; both accomplished and both with healthy families of their own.  Most importantly, they love their mother deeply.

     When we heard of Jeannine's challenge Yvonne and I really didn't know how to respond.  You see, Jeannine is a friend of ours.  We have shared Christmas and Thanksgiving together, but we did not know how to share in her suffering.  So, we prayed.

     Just recently we exchanged e-mails, and Jeannine said this: "I believe the only way I'll succeed in winning this challenge is with God's help."

     What I see from a distance is the success of Jeannine's suffering.  She has already won.  The rewards are her children and grandchildren, who are now at her side with love and compassion.  In return, Jeannine has persevered with courage and grace.

     No matter how pragmatic or accurate a doctor's prognosis, where there is God there is always hope.  And where there is hope there is love.  The Bible says, "...God is love...Now there abides these three; faith, hope and love.  But the greatest of these is love."

     You see, the difference between Bernadette and Jeannine is love.  Bernadette's family is ambivalent when it comes to her suffering.  There is defeat and separation.  There is no desire to ensure the one who is suffering any sort of comfort and in exchange they receive no comfort.

     On the other hand, Jeannine's family is tied together in love.  They are bound by compassion and mercy.  I suspect that though they might not even recognize it, that their hearts are set on the prospects of justice prevailing - that ultimately their hearts are united in eternity.

    So, one family is divided, the other united.  One is forlorn, the other hopeful. One woman suffers in bitterness, the other in love.

    We are reminded of a Savior, who's birth we are about to celebrate.  He lived, He suffered and He died...for us.  Then He was resurrected...for us.  

     Yvonne and I pray that you would know this love this Christmas.  That it would resurrect purpose in your life.  And once you know it, share it with someone who is suffering.  It is the greatest gift we could possibly give.

Trust and Blessings

Mike Broadhurst

  Mercy Ships will be leaving Madagascar in a little over a month.  Yvonne and I won't be going with them.

     I hope I can explain why we're staying here without sounding overtly religious or even delusional, but no matter how this reads please know that it is very real to Yvonne and me.

     A little less than two years ago I was surfing the Internet and saw a news clip by 60-Minutes on YouTube about a hospital ship serving the poor in Africa.  I rushed into Yvonne to share it with her. Little did we know that the 5-minute video would change the course of our lives.

     I would like to add here that we had always felt as though there was enough service work to be done in our own backyard, even vowing that there was no need to go to the Dominican Republic, let alone Africa or Asia.  But something struck me that night that I would have to describe as inexplicable.  It was relentless, perhaps a little bit scary, but definitely unshakable.

     In the coming months Yvonne and I spent countless hours talking, praying, seeking counsel and researching what it might look like if we gave everything up and left America.

     How would our kids take it?  How would our families respond?  What about our house, which by the way was worth about 75% of what we owed on it?  Or a business that was providing a very good income?

     One by one, excuses for keeping the status quo were methodically removed.  It was about the same time that we were studying the life of Abraham in the book of Genesis and what came across was this nagging question, "Do you trust Me?"

     In the book of Malachi, God challenges the priests of Israel to bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, and then attaches a promise.  It is this, "(And see) if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it."

     As I reflected on this I realized that the whole tithe didn't represent 10% to the Levitical priesthood, but 100% of their inheritance (Numbers 18:21).  For us, God was saying, "Give me everything," and asking, "Do you trust me?"

     Fast forward to June 2015, and there we were on the first leg of a two-year commitment to the Africa Mercy, with the first stop being Madagascar.  If you've read any of our blogs I think it's pretty evident how smitten we've become with the people and the country.

     During the process we've had this growing and overwhelming sense that God is going to do something great in Madagascar.  Not just that, but that we have a small place in His plan.  To list the details would take a lot more time than I have to catalogue (and you probably have the patience to read), but suffice to say the doors that have been opened for Yvonne and me are simply amazing.  

      So, here we sit, making arrangements to stay right here.  Our ministry is to assist the young and not-so-young launch their own businesses (see our last blog) using kingdom of heaven principles as the foundation for success. 

     Yvonne and I would like to close by recognizing that our whole approach to this decision has been somewhat paradoxical.  We are teaching the importance of having a plan, yet at the same time we haven't planned any part of our future.  We just wake up each morning waiting to see what door He will open next.

     What we can say is that it is indescribably exciting and testify that He does indeed "...pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it."

     We so appreciate your prayers, encouragement and financial support.  This is a big step for us and your participation has been, and will continue to be, of paramount importance.

 

Shalom

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