[Guyana-Mission-Report] More Opposition...Please Keep praying!

Hello Everyone, James took those nets out to Shea yesterday. I expect him tonight. He was going to continue work on the screen project and do some mosquito habitat spraying. Please keep praying. The Ministry of Health found out we are distributing nets and called the hospital here to find out about it. Apparently, the opposition to what we are doing has spread or the troubler is just widening his net. The devil doesn't waste time. James hasn't even returned yet. However, the thing to remember is that God has the power. Perhaps this attack will actually backfire and turn out to be a lot of positive PR for the Lord. Have a wonderful day filled with blessings, Joy James & Joy Ash 121 Durban Backlands Georgetown, Guyana 011-592-227-2184 http://www.guyanaaviationevangelism.org/ James & Joy Ash Gospel Ministries International Project Name: Guyana Aviation Evangelism 874 South McDonald SW McDonald, TN 37353 1 (423) 473-1841 or 1 (423) 473-1842

[Guyana-Mission-Report] More News

Hi Everybody,   I hope you are well. I really want to say how much I really appreciated all of the prayers and concern for James last week when he wasn't feeling well. He was still trying to function even though he felt rotten. I begged him to stay in bed. God is the great healer and so James fine now. It did delay our plans and he couldn't get out of Georgetown until Friday.   We are staying with the Bible Worker at the TV station. He has been very kind and helpful in letting us stay with him and helping us learn how to get around here in Lethem. I never thought we would have the TV on in our house for 10 hours a day, so that is a new experience. :) They broadcast 3ABN, so it's really nice programming.   Today, we were able to meet with the regional health officer (RHO) at his home. He is in charge of health for the entire region. We had a very nice visit. We were able to discuss our plans to help Shea and the region as a whole. He told us he could use someone to do continuing education for nurses. That would be great since I enjoy teaching. He also needs someone to help with transporting supplies, personnel to do immunizations, and so on. He is a really nice Christian man with three children.   Sunday, James was disappointed. Because of the opposition to our coming that was started from a key person in another village, he decided to not go to Shea that day as planned, but to wait and talk to the RHO first. Well, the Lord, brought a blessing out of that. When we talked to the RHO today, he told us that he and his wife are trained to treat bed nets. Tomorrow he is going to show James how to treat all these nets James purchased last week. That should be interesting. They are going to suit up with personnel protective equipment. This substance is supposedly not harmful to humans. It makes a person wonder.   We tried to buy chemicals for net treatment in Georgetown before we left, but they were out throughout the city. The next order was due in one month. Even Ministry of Health didn't have any. Well, this RHO helped us find a place here to buy some. James is going to fly these nets to Shea as soon as they are finished.   We have a couple more hoops to jump through before the RHO can grant me final permission to work out in Shea. We are hoping the process won't take too long. Please pray for the barriers to be removed in this situation. God can work miracles and his timing is impeccable so we're counting on Him.   The captain of Shea Village, Larry, called this morning. He is very anxious that we come. He is wondering why the delay, since the village wants us to come so badly. He told us that the malaria problem is still an issue. It's a little hard to explain about why it takes so much time to go through the proper channels. Hopefully, our presence here in Lethem will help speed things up.   A 1 inch long unidentifiable creature just scuttled under my feet and a lizard just dropped something on my hand from his perch above. I think that's a sign I need to go to bed while I'm ahead. The eves are open on this house and surprisingly I haven't seen one bat. It's weird.   Thank you again for your prayers. They mean a lot!   Joy James & Joy Ash 121 Durban Backlands Georgetown, Guyana 011-592-227-2184 www.guyanaaviationevangelism.org James & Joy Ash Gospel Ministries International Project Name: Guyana Aviation Evangelism 874 South McDonald SW McDonald, TN 37353 1 (423) 473-1841 or 1 (423) 473-1842

[Guyana-Mission-Report] Moved South...

We finally made the move!!! We'd been delayed and delayed with our move to Shea, but finally Thursday evening we decided to go for broke and get off before the weekend. Joy and I stayed up till 1:30am packing up our stuff. The next morning we both felt like we'd been run over by a mack truck, but we were determined to press on and leave for Lethem by the end of the day. The hardest part was getting off by 3:30pm so we get down to Lethem by sunset! I don't think we could have fit more than a shoebox into that airplane. It was so full that when I opened my door after landing in Lethem, a couple items fell out! We've had a wonderful weekend in Lethem worshiping with the believers there. Right now I'm getting ready to go to Shea to finish up some stuff before Joy and Jenna come to join me. I just got an email from our bible worker in Aishalton that says that the Medex in Aishalton (who oversees medical work in Shea as well) is very upset that we're moving into town. He's trying to oppose us and create predjudice against us. We've been working hard to work through the right channels to make sure that no one gets their feelings hurt, but I guess we've offended the old devil, because he's trying very hard to stop this move. I'm flying out to Shea today to meet with the Captain and talk about these issues. I'll deliver our mosquito nets and finish caulking the house to make it mosquito proof. Please, please keep us in your prayers. This is a critical juncture in the move and right now we're in no-mans land. James James & Joy Ash 121 Durban Backlands Georgetown, Guyana 011-592-227-2184 http://www.guyanaaviationevangelism.org/ James & Joy Ash Gospel Ministries International Project Name: Guyana Aviation Evangelism 874 South McDonald SW McDonald, TN 37353 1 (423) 473-1841 or 1 (423) 473-1842

[Guyana-Mission-Report] Prayer for James

Dear Family and Friends,   This is just a short not to let you know that James, who is almost never ill, isn't feeling well at all.  It's not malaria.  Special prayer for him tonight would be much appreciated.  Thank you so much.   Joy James & Joy Ash 121 Durban Backlands Georgetown, Guyana 011-592-227-2184 www.guyanaaviationevangelism.org James & Joy Ash Gospel Ministries International Project Name: Guyana Aviation Evangelism 874 South McDonald SW McDonald, TN 37353 1 (423) 473-1841 or 1 (423) 473-1842

[Guyana-Mission-Report] A Fire and a Miracle or Two

Hi everybody, James flew the airplane out to the international airport tonight and Jenna is in bed. Since I have a little free time, I thought I would take this opportunity to write about the latest miracle we've experienced today. I've been trying for sometime to get a permanent nursing license here in Guyana. Things have been moving very very very slowly. Lately, we had some original documents hand carried to Guyana. Our GAMAS representative here who deals with these issues took my documents down to the Nursing Council at Ministry of Health, July 16, to present them. The person who was dealing with the matter tried very hard to get our representative to give her the original documents. Our representative refused to let her have the documents and insisted that she have her secretary make copies, since we had had them sent all the way from the United States. The rest of the story is that the next morning at 3 AM the entire Ministry of Health Building burned. That department keeps paper records, so everything went up in smoke. We have really been blessed because it would have been a potentially expensive, time consuming, headache to replace all of those documents. However, we were not only blessed once on July 16, but twice. When our representative visited the Nursing Council Office he was given a receipt by the department for the application fees paid, which states that I am an "Approved, trained RN". For whatever reason, they hand wrote that in even though there wasn't a blank for it on the form. I've been informed that although my application has been destroyed, this receipt document will pass as a Guyana nursing license until the paperwork can be resolved and I am issued a formal license. I actually applied the first time for this license before I came to Guyana 3 1/2 years ago and was told one year later that more documents were needed. So, you can see why we are so happy. God is ultimately in control. He has worked so many miracles for us thus far. I'm sure the next miracle is just around the corner. Thank you for your prayers, Joy James & Joy Ash 121 Durban Backlands Georgetown, Guyana 011-592-227-2184 http://www.guyanaaviationevangelism.org/ James & Joy Ash Gospel Ministries International Project Name: Guyana Aviation Evangelism 874 South McDonald SW McDonald, TN 37353 1 (423) 473-1841 or 1 (423) 473-1842

Malaria Outbreak!

There has been a severe outbreak of malaria in Shea Village. Last Wednesday my father in law and I flew down to Region 9 to install screens on the doors and windows of the Shea Health Clinic. Three weeks ago when I visited Shea, there was a small outbreak of Malaria, but I assumed that everything was under control.

I assumed wrong…

When we arrived, the captain of the village met us at the airstrip with the grim news that the confirmed cases had ballooned from 34 to 84 in our absence. That is almost a quarter of Shea’s entire population! The captain said that this kind of outbreak is very unusual. In a normal year a couple people will catch the disease, but it never reaches epidemic levels.

The government has sent a microscopist to the village, and he is presently treating the infected villagers with medications. But he spends most of his day laying around the clinic waiting for people to show up.

Fewer than 10% of the villagers have mosquito nets for their hammocks. Some of the nets really need to be replaced since they have gaping holes in them. But the worst part of the crisis is that nothing is being done to control the mosquitoes and their breading environments!

So, what can be done?

First thing tomorrow morning, I’m going to call around to see if there is a fogger we can borrow. The chemicals are pretty cheap, but the foggers are expensive. In the mean time, while we are waiting to find out about the fogger I'm going to get a pump action sprayer and see if I can do some manual spraying with that. I won't be able to cover as much area as with a fogger, but at least we have to try. This would eliminate most of the adult mosquitos.

Second, I’m hoping to get some mosquito nets for the infected, this is going to be a little challenging since there are so many of them. Mosquito nets play a key role in controlling the spread of the disease. Depending on how many nets we get, we’ll probably focus primarily with infected individuals in healthy families. This is the highest risk.

Thirdly we’ll get some mosquito repellant for those with the disease. I noticed that the villagers like to socialize together in the evening after a long day’s work on the farm. They don’t realize the huge risk they are taking since the Anopheles Mosquito feeds primarily in the early evening.

Finally, I hope to do a little public awareness about the disease to help the people protect themselves against infection.

The challenge will be to get all these items together and fly them out to Shea by nightfall tomorrow.

Is there a risk of getting Malaria? Sure… There’s always possibility that I could be infected with malaria myself. But how can we effectively share the gospel if we remain a safe distance during their time of need.

I pray that God will use this crisis situation to open many hearts to the good news of the gospel. People don’t care how much we know until they know how much we care.

Please pray that God would place a hedge of protection around me as I go down
tomorrow.

God bless

James


James & Joy Ash
121 Durban Backlands
Georgetown, Guyana
011-592-227-2184
www.guyanaaviationevangelism.org

James & Joy Ash
Gospel Ministries International
Project Name: Guyana Aviation Evangelism
874 South McDonald SW
McDonald, TN 37353
1 (423) 473-1841 or 1 (423) 473-1842

Incredible Weekend in Shea

I knew the moment the wheels touched down in Kamarang that I had six minutes to unload the airplane, pick up the Bible worker and be airborne.

As I shut off the engine, I scanned the airstrip for sign of the Bible worker. Far in the distance, I saw his lonely figure walking toward the airplane, without his bag.

I groaned - my goose was pretty well cooked. I had no choice but to overnight in Kamarang Village. I had just enough gas in the airplane to get to Lethem the next day. I would need to buy more gas, and pick up a few supplies before I could go on to Aishalton and Shea.

The next morning, I called my wife on the ham radio to ask what the weather satellite picture looked like. I could hear her voice faintly in the background static, but it was so faint I couldn’t make out her words. "Oh Lord, you have to help us get through!" I breathed. Almost on cue the static cleared for about sixty seconds and Joy’s voice broke through: "Everything is clear… clear in region 8 and 9… except for a few clouds around Kopinang" No sooner did she deliver the message then her voice was gone. "Thank you Lord!!!"

By 9am, we were airborne out of Kamarang, headed for Lethem with a quick stop in Kopinang to drop off Pastor Casey. Joe (Bible Worker) in Kopinang had just concluded a new evangelistic series and he needed the district pastor to conduct the baptisms and help organize the church.

We continued on to Lethem. Lethem is a South American Cowboy town of about 4000 individuals, bordering Brazil. They have many modern amenities, and most importantly gasoline for the airplane.

After fueling up, we were off for Aishalton. There, we dropped off a returning student and picked up Gregory (Bible Worker) and a Shea church member. The flight from Aishalton to Shea was only 13 minutes. By motor bike it takes 2-3 hours.

We landed in Shea just in front of a huge thunderstorm. We barely had time to unpack our gear and hurry inside before the driving rain hit.

About sunset, the church members gathered for a Friday evening service. The church building that the members are presently using is an old thatched roof house that someone has gutted for public use. During the heavy rains the roof leaks in like a sieve. I happened to be under one of those leaky spots when it rained, and needless to say I quickly repositioned myself! In spite of the bad weather, 15 people show up, half of which were children. Some had walked several miles to get there and had to walk back in the dark. Since Shea is so close to the equator, when the sun goes down, it gets dark very quickly.

Fortunately, someone had brought a truck battery, a 15 foot length of wire, and one lone light bulb. There in soft white glow of the 12volt florescent bulb, we welcomed in our first Sabbath together. What an awesome experience!

The church members at Shea are an exciting group of new believers. They all listened intently as I preached Sabbath morning on ‘How to be Ready for the Second Coming’. Gregory is teaching them some hymns out of the Adventist hymnal, but they don’t know very many yet. They love to sing, and really come alive when they sing the gospel songs in their dialect (especially the kids!).



Sabbath afternoon at A.Y. (Adventist Youth), Gregory taught them about stewardship. He emphasized the meaning of true stewardship as being more than merely giving money. I shared a couple stories and illustrations from my life. After the program finished something very special happened. The people didn’t want to go back home! In fact they did a little impromptu concert just for us! Everyone (including us) had to get up front and share a song or two. Several hours later we finally wrapped everything up.

Sunday morning the weather, and my emotions, were mixed. I could see that the weather was beginning to change for the worse and I was worried that I might not be able to get out. On the other hand, I really wanted to meet with the captain and council before leaving the village. Out in these villages, no one seems to be in a rush.

Eventually, the captain and council members showed up and we talked together outside under a cashew tree. We discussed the up coming move and the modifications that are needed in order to make the health clinic habitable. The building is in good condition but when it rains water comes through the windows soaking the floor. We also found out that the 30-year-old well outside only produces two buckets of water during dry season. Not good.

The council’s main question to me was "How soon can you come?". A day before we arrived they had just encountered a fresh malaria outbreak (34 people) and were desperate for a full time health worker. Fortunately, the regional health office sent some medical personnel to help test and treat the people. Things appeared to be under control by the time we left.

Malaria is an issue during rainy season in Shea Village, but most of the cases occur in the outer lying farm areas. Even so, we’re taking precautions and will be putting screens on the clinic windows.

I told the council that our plan is to be completely moved down by July 20. As we concluded our meeting together, we all bowed our heads and prayed for the Lord’s blessing.

The weather from Shea to Aishalton went from bad to worse and I ended up landing in a light rain storm, but there was sunshine in my soul. It was clear that God had moved in a mighty way over the course of the weekend and we were excited to be a part of it.

James & Joy Ash
Gospel Ministries International
Project Name: Guyana Aviation Evangelism
874 South McDonald SW
McDonald, TN 37353
1 (423) 473-1841 or 1 (423) 473-1842