Dear Friends and Family,
14When Jesus saw this, he was indignant. He said to them, "Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. Mark 10:14
I said I would send a few pictures of my mom’s 90th birthday in my next email so here are a few + one of the office dedication, mom's birthday gift.
Mom’s entire family. She is in the center wearing a white shawl  |
Lily dancing for her great-grandma with Corrie singing and Brent playing piano & singing  |
Yearly the National Nurses Association of Kenya (NNAK) does an assessment of hospitals. Hospitals must apply to be assessed. There are two awards given for the Best Nursing Care and Cleanliness or Infection Prevention. We applied and were assessed in August. It is a surprise assessment and was done by an officer of NNAK. There are two different groups of hospitals – Government Hospitals an d Private/Mission Hospitals. We do not know everyone who was assessed in our category, Private/Mission Hospitals, but we do know that the runners- up were Nairobi Hospital and Alga Ghan Hospital both large, private hospitals with all services provided and priced much like the US. In the minds of most Kenyan’s they are the top two hospitals in the nation and where the wealthy of the nation receive their health care. Are you sitting down? Yes, Maua Methodist Hospital won the award, (#1) and received a Certificate and 30,000Ksh ($430). We are so thrilled and believe this will really establish Maua Methodist Hospital as a QUALITY hospital! The award was presented at the NNAK Conference in Nairobi during the week long nation al conference. This past Monday the Certificate was given to Sr. Gitari, our Matron, during our morning prayers. (In 2005 we had won second place.)
Also, this past Monday Dr. Inoti, our new Medical Officer In-Charge (MOIC) was introduced. He is a young, bright eye surgeon with so many innovative and exciting ideas. He plans to run an eye clinic and do eye surgery along with being the Medical Officer In-charge. We are all so grateful to God and to you who have been praying as Dr. Inoti is definitely an answer to our prayers. He always has a wonderful smile as well as being an outstanding physician. He and his wife, Florence, 3 year old daughter, Kendi, and twin 3 month old son’s, Lee and Leo, live right in front of us and we are thrilled to have them. It makes missing grandchildren easier!
About 10 days ago we received a server and 50 used computers from Methodist Hospital in Memphis, TN. This was requested by a work team from Germantown, TN and the IT Department and soon the entire hospital will be dancing for joy. God’s goodness does not end.
This Monday through Friday a team of 8 (including myself) will go to Meru and stay in a hotel and finish writing the Strategic Plan for the hospital. Please pray for us – that our plan will enhance God’s will for this hospital and in no way block His will.
So many good things are happening but please know without our loving, gracious and generous God and YOU and your prayers, your gifts, your love, none of this could happen. Our vision statement ends with the words “to the glory of God”; this is how we need to work every day in every situation we face!
A story from our time in the US: The day after we arrived at our daughter’s home, Lily, our five year old grand daughter told me she wanted to give me some money to feed the hungry children in Maua. She told me that her mommy and daddy talked about the children and they prayed about them and she wanted to feed them. She then took my hand and led me into her bedroom and asked me to get down her bank. I did and s he took out almost all of her money, $13.32, and gave it too me. She asked if it would feed all the hungry children in Maua and I tried to explain that it would certainly help but there were so many children. We then had a wonderful discussion about why the children didn’t have any food to eat because she and Ethan always had food.
Two days later she again asked me to come in her bedroom and get her bank down. I did and she shook out all the money and gave me $2.74 and said she had been thinking about it and she didn’t just want to feed all the children in Maua but all the children in Kenya. She told me emphatically, That all children needed food to eat and should have food to eat every day”. She asked me to go to the kitchen and get a zip-lock bag and put all the money in it and th en write her name on a paper and tell the children that she sent the money because no one should be hungry. I was so awed by her determination and passion for the children and her willingness to give up her money. I thanked her and told her that the children also needed her prayers. She smiled and asked me to take out the paper and add that she would be praying for the hungry children.
That Sunday at church there was an insert in the bulletin about Bishop Robert Schnase’s book “Five Practices of Fruitful Congregations”. The five practices are radical hospitality, passionate worship, intentional faith development, risk-taking mission and service and extravagant generosity. He stated that “the five adjectives he used could be easily interchanged without losing any of their power.”
Yesterday I went to visit and sit with Florence Mutiga. She sells lentils at a table on the side of the road. As we talked, it seemed all of Maua passed by; street children and AIDS Orphan’s, old women who have nothing and no one, the poor, and the very poor. One old lady stopped and asked for a ¼ Kg of dengu (a small green lentil). Florence measured out the dengu, added a handful more and GAVE it to the old woman.
Christmas is around the corner, I know because I saw Christmas goodies appear on shelves in all the stores in the US. Many of you have already bought your gifts but if you haven’t, do I have an idea for you. A gift idea for your friends and loved ones or better yet give this gift to yourself. First you need to have the desire and will that my 5 year old grand-daughter has to feed the hungry children in Maua, Kenya or anywhere in the world. People are hungry – people are starving, please, please reach out and feed someone in the name of Jesus Christ. I know everyone is fearful about the economic situation in the world. If you are fearful, think what those who have NOTHING are feeling every day. Who do you think is most hurt in hard financial times? Because the cost of food in Kenya has doubled in the last 6 months, UNICEF has cut the number of children they are feeding in Kenya in half.
As you read this, please remember Mother’s Theresa’s 5 Finger Gospel, “You did it to me.” Yes, when we feed the hungry, we do it to Jesus and please know Jesus is hungry today. I am begging you to spend some money, Christmas or otherwise, feeding someone who is hungry. You don’t have to send the money to Maua***. You can feed someone in your community, your state, the USA, or the world. I will be praying for you.
While at mom’s home I found a sheet of paper with the saying that my dad always used when asking for money for mission at our church. "Don't give until it hurts, but rather give until it warms the heart. This way I know the gift will be much larger, for it takes so little to hurt when given grudgingly and it takes so much more to give until the heart is warmed. And who can measure the good accomplished or the reward that such a gift of love might bring?"
***Just incase you don’t know where to send money to feed the hungry
or you want to send it to Maua you can do it by writing your support check
to your UMC and put it in the collection plate with this note at the bottom:
Advance Special #140161 - AIDS Orphans' Project, Maua Hospital, Kenya
Or
To make a gift by credit card call: (888) 252-6174 or
To make a gift on the internet go to: gbgm-umc.org/advance/donate
In His grip,
Jerri & Bill Savuto
savuto@maf.or.ke
Maua Methodist Hospital
Box 63, Maua 60600
Igembe, Kenya
“ Let us accept whatever God gives and give whatever God takes with a big smile." Mother Teresa of Calcutta