Moises Update, July 29, 2009

Joy overflowed today.
The special bandage and suction device was taken off today.
Gauze and tape now cover the skin graft area on his abdomen. I didn't get
to see it as I hoped I would but Moises described it in great detail. He is
fascinated by all the medical things that happened to him.
But the really exciting part today was that they capped his IV line and he
was freed to move about without any medical machinery. And Lizzie, his
Child Care Specialist arranged for him to go outside today for over an hour.

As soon as he was disconnected from the medical machinery Moises put on his
new cowboy boots and hat grabbed his scooter and took off down the hall of
the pediatric ward.
I wish I had the capability to send video so you could see his amazing speed
and balance. Next we went to the park and fed the ducks, we played on the
slide at the playground, and we went to a new Mexican ice cream store where
they had lime juice and mango ice cream. The great joy is mixed with a
little sadness because everyone can see his time with us here in the states
is about to come to an end. There is talk about him moving out of the
hospital next week into the Ronald McDonald apartments as they begin the
transition back to normal family life.

Me, no sadness here. I'm about to go down to Belize and maybe be there to
greet them when they get off the plane.
Tomorrow our staff in Belize meet with Moises' father to finalize the plans
for the addition on their home, and then, we jump in and see how far we can
get before they arrive back in Belize.
Another $900 for the house came in today.
A local children's clothing store delivered three new outfits for each
member of the family.
And the local volunteers here prepare to go to Belize on August 9th to help
with construction on the house.
More volunteers are welcome. Give me a call.

Tim Tam

Moises Update

More good news

I am happy to be able to report that Mo

ises is recovering well from the surgery and boy is he hungry!

The doctors say he can eat whatever he wants, though greasy and spicy foods might not agree with him at this time.

During his stay in the hospital he grew tomatoes and strawberries in the hospital courtyard.

Yesterday we went out to check on the tomatoe

s and they went right into his mouth.

His strawberry crop had already come and gone, but one of the hospital staff brought him a box of fresh strawberries and

 he devoured half the box while I stood beside him.

Moises has become a fixture in the pediatric ward.  It still may be a month or two before he

 returns home but the staff are already feeling sad about the thoughts of Moises leaving.  No such thoughts for me though.

  With all the time I spend in Belize I assume our friendship will continue.

Now - Help is Needed

When Moises first cam

e to the states there was an outpouring of generosity far beyond what was needed.

We kept telling

 people all their needs were met, just need prayers.

But now as we begin to think about Magdalena and Moises return there are

 some needs that I would like to share.

Magdalena is expected to give birth to a new baby in November. There are some lab fees from the

 obstetrician we need to take care of ($300).

At some point we will need to purchase plane tickets. And the other thing I have in mind is to surprise Magdalena with an add

ition onto her house.

Housing for the poor is a regular part of our ministry in Belize.  In the past few years we have built nearly 20 houses.  Often times the house's a

re for people we don't even know, they just happen to be the neediest in a given community.  So it seems all the more appropriate for us to help with the housing of 

one we know so well.

Currently the family abides in a space approximately 10 foot by 10 foot.  It is a cemen

t slab with wooden walls and a metal roof.  There is no running water, only a deep well with a ro

pe and bucket.  Of the 9 children, seven sleep on the floor and the two smallest ones in a hammock.  Once Magdalena gives birth to her fourth child in November, together with her husband's six childre

n from a previous marriage, this will mean 12 people total sharing this tiny 10 by 10 living space.

What I am proposing is to begin a fund for this building project.  If we're able to supply the funds for building materials the hou

se can be built with volunteer labor from the local community in Belize and perhaps some

 volunteers from the states as well.

In summary your help is needed for:

       

        1. Obstetrician bill

        2. Plane ticket expense

        3. Donations for building fund

        4. Volunteer labor between August 1-15

        5. Keeping this a secret from Mois

es and Magdalena!

 

Keep in mind for

 any donation you make to The Word at Work.

100% of your gift goes directly t

o the needs expressed.

All donations are tax deductible.

Tim Tam

The Word at Work

1400 Wolflin Ave

Amarillo, Tx 79109

Office: 806-342-3600

Cell: 806-671-9673

Visit website www.twaw.org

A Minor Complication

These three emails came in last night from Tim Tam:

Email#1:
The first was titled "Moises is going back into surgery in 1 hour," and said the following

"Moises has a lot of swelling in his bowels which is not too abnormal after a major surgery.

Unfortunately this has put undo pressure on his lungs and kidneys.

Midday he had to be put on a ventilator to help him breathe.

They are going in to unstitch the stomach muscles to create more room and take the pressure off the other organs.

Instead they will now sew an adjustable mesh, something like Velcro that can be tightened down as the swelling drops over the next few days and eventually they will re-sew the muscles closed again.

This operation should take about an hour.

The doctor sees this as a small setback.

Magdalena keeps hanging in there. Lisa hanging with her."

Email #2:

The second was titled, "Surgery delayed till this moment," and said:

"It wasn’t until just now that an operating room opened to take Moses.

It is a little more complicated than I last reported.

Another part of the cause of his swelling is internal bleeding.

They have given him seven units of blood but very little has come out the drain which they put in during the last surgery.

Add to your prayers that they are able to find the leak and repair it."

Email #3:

Finally around midnight, Tim sent this final email of the evening titled, "cautiously optimistic:"

"Moises is now out of surgery

They found several places where blood was coming from any finished patching him up.

He is in much better shape now.

The doctor says he will be on the ventilator for 3-4 days until swelling drops and abdomen muscles resewn.

Magdalena and the small crowd sitting with her all all relieved now and will be able to sleep.

We spent the last 2 hours looking at photos and videos and retelling the story of Gods miraculous work and how his invisible hands have orchestrated an amazing chain of events that no one else could have planned or even imagined.

A Happy Magdalena sits behind me now giving the good news over the phone to her husband and children who have been keeping watch….waiting for this good word."

Surgery was a success!

The surgery was a complete success.

The surgeon said it went as well or even better than expected.

It lasted less than 6 hours. We couldn’t get mom to walk or eat anything today but after a post-op visit from the surgeon she was smiling again and began to eat the food she had been carrying all day.

Now the intestines are connected, abdomen muscles sewn back, skin remains open till threat of internal infection passes. Over the next 10 days the bowels are expected to become active and then slowly introduced to food again.

From his TV viewing he has already decided on a local Mexican restaurant for his first meal.

In a month or so the skin over the abdomen will be stitched up and perhaps a return trip to Belize can be scheduled.

He will have a couple of rough days now as is normal for post-surgery. His mom has moved from their regular room to a chair beside his bed in the ICU.

She will have a rough night tonight as well but from exhaustion and not fear. Before the surgery Moises saw her sadness and told her not to worry because God was with him.

Thank you all for helping to carry him through this on your prayers.

Back Safely From Galveston

25 FPCA members spent June 7-23 in Galveston working with EFCA Crisis Response to assist those who have been impacted by Hurricane Ike. It was a wonderful week. We divided into four teams. One team's primary responsibility was to put a new roof on a house and gut the inside of a house (so new sheet rock can be put up). Two teams worked on putting up and mudding sheetrock. Our fourth team worked in a house that was almost completed and did a lot of trim work, installed doorknobs, put up sheetrock, and helped get the house ready for the homeowner to move into.

In addition, our Agape singers/ringers performed on three separate occasions (once at a church, and twice at retirement homes). We have quite a few pictures to share, and many stories of how we saw God at work. For now though, we wanted to share three pictures of our team and various times throughout the week.

This is a picture of the majority of our team on Sunday morning (taken just before we loaded into our vans and headed down Galveston).

Wednesday night the Agapes sang/rang at St. Stephen's Presbyterian Church in Houston. The church treated us to a delicious dinner, and it was a wonderful night of fellowship with another church community.

This picture was taken Friday morning, our last day of work in Galveston. We stayed at Galveston Bible Church (the men slept on bunk beds in the Sanctuary and the women slept on bunk beds in the Sunday School class rooms).


It was a wonderful week, we saw God at work in amazing ways, and hopefully we will be able to make additional trips to Galveston in the 2009 year.

Moises Surgery is TODAY!

This email was sent last night from Tim Tam regarding Moises surgery (which is going on this morning!):

Almost 6 months since the accident and tomorrow morning is the big surgery.

Lots of love, prayer, and incredible medical care has brought Moises from the edge of death to this point of health and strength to undergo this major surgery.

Today he received a blood transfusion to further strengthen him and to compensate for any blood loss associated with tomorrows procedure.

This afternoon I went over to play with him and asked if he was nervous about tomorrow. He just laughed. He was disappointed it wasn’t done last week and looks forward to getting it over with and back to his home in Belize.

Though he is still a little jaundiced, he was in great spirits and exploding with energy.

He has a good understanding of what to expect for tomorrow.

It was hysterical listening to his conversation today with one of the doctors.

In one of the attached photos he is instructing the doctor not to use tubes through the nose because they are uncomfortable and will only make it difficult for him to breathe.

We have a date tomorrow before surgery to go for a walk in the hospital courtyard and see how the tomatoes he planted are doing.

Perhaps these will be part of his first real meal after surgery which the doctor says may be 2 weeks after the surgery.

As for mom…………she too is very happy. She says she is without fear. We watched videos of her children and husband that made her cry. She really misses them and her home. Though her new baby isn’t kicking yet, its presence with us is plain to see.

PRAY………….is the reason for this email

Please pray with us through tomorrows surgery.

I will let you know how it goes.

TT

Moises Surgery Update and Galveston Mission Send-off

Moises Update from Tim Tam:

Over the last several weeks we have been privileged to see great improvements in Moises' health, physically and emotionally.   As he approaches the end of this time of preparation for surgery there continues to be great need for prayer.  He has been battling another infection and jaundice.  To deal with the jaundice they had to disconnect the IV line that feeds his body nutrition for a time until he recovers.  

Both he and his mother are wearied from the length of this ordeal.  There is a spiritual phenomena that takes place around Moises.  Even from the time of his struggle for life in the Belize hospital God has used this little guy to inspire others and strengthen their faith.  As we might then expect, there is also a spiritual battle taking place.  Moises and his mother both sense evil poised against them.  They are currently having dreams that depict this battle for Moises.  

For all these reasons I ask you to please be vigilant in your prayer support.  If all goes well, the surgery it tentatively scheduled for June 16. 

Galveston Music and Mission Trip:

This morning a group of 25 youth and adults were commissioned at the early worship service and packed up in vans for a music and mission trip in Galveston, Texas.  The group will spend a week providing Hurricane Ike relief work on a home repair project.  In the evening the Agape Youth Choir will give local musical performances.

Please keep these folks in prayer as they act out God's love by helping our coastal neighbors in need.