We’re already celebrated with a few thanksgivings recently as God provided for our needs in the knick of time, again. At breakfast last Tuesday, the directors announced that we were down to our last meal and didn’t have the money to buy food for the week and asked the students to join us in prayer. A few hours later the needed money arrived. Another morning a few months ago the kitchen had served its last when the parents of one of the students showed up unexpectedly with a large donation of food. This week again, the money came just in time. I think God likes testing us. It’s times like these when you wish you were a quick study.
Just as I was getting ready to come to town this morning, Yerco, one of the primary school kids, arrived late to school on his bicycle, sweating and distraught. “Me picó una vibora” he announced, much calmer than one would expect for someone with that kind of news.
“Where? When?” My mind immediately jumped to the worst-case scenario were I imagined us making a bed in the back of the truck, tourniqueting and elevating his leg and force-feeding him charcoal while bouncing to town at full speed…
“Just now in the entrance”
“Where in the entrance?” (It is over a kilometer long)
“At the corner” (Just a few minutes out). “Let me see” I ordered. He lifted his pant leg and pointed to his ankle. “Here?” I asked, pointing to two small red dots that looked like they could be fang marks, although they didn’t seem particularly fresh. He shook his head. “Lower.” I didn’t see anything, but some snakes have very small fangs and their bite marks can be very hard to see, but I was encouraged to see that his ankle wasn’t red or swollen.
“What did the snake look like?”
“It was yellow, and not real big.”
His pulse was normal and he wasn’t abnormally warm or cold, but he was limping and seemed to be in pain. Miss Susie put a charcoal poultice on his ankle and we brought him to the clinic in town just to be on the safe side. After the 40 minutes ride, he still showed no further symptoms, leaving us relieved and praising the Lord for his protection. What a lesson for me too, I couldn't help but think. There are always snakes in the road, trying to bite me and make me fall to my death. But God is good, and if I get up and keep in the road, God will provide my salvation.
At the clinic Yerco’s story was a bit more detailed and colorful. He said the serpent had latched onto his leg and he had fallen over with his bike and kicked it off. It was hard to tell if the story was simply growing with the audience or if he had just recovered from the scare enough to finally give the full version. The doctor wanted to keep him 24 hours for observation, so we went to his family’s house in town to let them know and they took it from there.
My next stop this morning was the immigration office to pick up my passport and carnet (the international ID card that is the last step of becoming a legal Bolivian resident), only to find out that there is a new police chief in Trinidad, and he wants the foreigners to go there in person to pick up our carnets. This wouldn’t be a problem, except that my flight home is the 23rd and if my passport doesn’t get back in time, I’ll have to change my flight again. (Sound familiar?) The lady at immigration said she would call and try to work something out, so I’m going back this afternoon to see what she found out. In the meantime, God is helping me not to worry. I know it’s all in His hands.
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