[Beens Prayer Partners] Fwd: Great news!

Here's the note from Gardners, received today.  What great news!!!!  Rejoice with them

Blessings,

Robin

Begin forwarded message:

From: Shawn & Sarah Gardner <gardnersforgod@msn.com>

Date: October 18, 2007 5:14:01 PM GMT+02:00

To: <smithsinmoz@hotmail.com>, <dhulseymoz@teledata.mz>, <holtoncrew@gmail.com>, <rustyandann@gmail.com>, <robin@mozambiquemessages.com>, <deoliveiras@yahoo.com>, <aaronandmika@hotmail.com>, <hearttransform@yahoo.com>, <chad.westerholm@cordovachurch.org>, <africahowells@yahoo.com>, <jacobjaynie@gmail.com>, <dm4moz@yahoo.com>, <nyefamily@gobrainstorm.net>, <bzentmeyer@sccable.net>, <bettyparriott@yahoo.com>, <aprilcbrown@yahoo.com>, <ncc_office@sbcglobal.net>, <andybrumley@aol.com>, <papazufelt@hotmail.com>, <bbbyrd2001@yahoo.com>, <annetteseals1@yahoo.com>, <khblee@verizon.net>, <bob@actcom.net>, <albumsmem@msn.com>, <blake@pmgx.com>, <bgrenco@aol.com>, <vanliere@montrose.net>, <alcorson@avwildernesssupply.com>, <anastasiasears@yahoo.com>, <buckndo@montrose.net>, <bpcc@itctel.com>, <betty_plese@yahoo.com>, <annmarie6767@aol.com>

Subject: Great news!

Our sgardner@teledata.mz address has been disconnected so please email us at gardnersforgod@msn.com !!

 

 

Hello praying friends and family!

 

TO GOD BE THE GLORY!

 

We have some great news for everyone.  After nearly 8 weeks in the hospital, Caleb was discharged today!!!  He has remarkably improved over the last week and this great day has finally arrived!  It is so exciting to see him rolling over, sucking his finger, big eyes looking around and ears that hear us when we talk, etc.  He is learning to sit up again on his own (can't do it without support yet) and starting to reach out for objects.  He smiles when his brother Ben plays with him and really looks at us when we call out to him.  Huge news is that he learned to suck from a bottle again so he is drinking all of his milk from his bottle so they removed his feeding tube on Tuesday.  What a joy to be able to hold him without any wires or tubes attached, in our own 'home'!!!!!  At this stage I would say Caleb is acting like a 6-month old but even just a few days ago it was like a 2-month old so every few days he is really improving.  It gives us so much hope for the future!!!!!!!!!!

 

Yesterday Caleb had a repeat hearing test and both ears passed (a few weeks ago he was not hearing from his right ear)!  He can not hear low bass sounds from his right ear but can hear normal and high range sounds without a problem.  We will repeat the ear test in about 6 months.  He has stopped the heart medicine and before we fly to the States he will have one more check-up with the cardiologist to make sure that his heart is working strong without any problems (his heart took quite a beating when he was so sick and was weakened from all the infections and medication; however the doctors do not think this will be a long-term problem).  His pediatrician has decided, with our approval, against doing the MRI.  He says that the MRIs are not always conclusive and can not be used to to diagnose, and that Caleb is doing so well we need to just proceed with helping him completely recover.  Also it would require Caleb to be completely sedated again which we are not crazy about since he finally seems to have all the heavy medications out of his system.  If in the next few years we have any problems or concerns then we can do an MRI at that time which would be more practical.  So just one more check-up with the doctor and we can be on our way!! 

 

It was fun to take Caleb back upstairs to the ICU ward (he had been moved to the pediatric ward a few days ago).  The nurses came and immediately grabbed him, carrying him around the ward saying good-bye to everyone.  They were all smiling and laughing and just as happy as we are I think to see him going home on the road to recovery!  We are so very thankful for all that the wonderful doctors and nurses have done for us, and as a small thank-you we are having a pizza party for the nurses this Saturday.

 

So our plans are to spend another week or so in Johannesburg, getting more comfortable with Caleb being at home and getting everything in order for our trip to the States.  We will hopefully arrive in the US towards the end of the month, spending a few days in Denver seeing Shawn's mom before heading over to Grand Junction, CO, where we will be living for the next few months while we consider what road to take in the near future.  Caleb will most likely receive regular physical therapy for the next few months as well.

 

How can we say thank-you to all of you?  Thousands and thousands of people, friends and 'strangers', have been praying.  Wow!  Isn't God so good??!!  We pleaded with Him to heal Caleb completely, and just look how far Caleb has come the last few weeks, against all odds!  We have so much hope that God will finish this good work and continue to heal Caleb in the months to come!!  We pleaded with Him to strengthen us during this whole ordeal, and the peace that He gave truly does surpass all understanding.  We say it again, WOW-- ISN'T GOD SO GOOD!!!!!!!

 

Thank-you, thank-you, thank-you.  God has provided for our financial needs, emotional needs, physical needs-- He does much of this through YOU!  Thanks again!

 

Oh, check out our website at www.gardnersforgod.org for some pictures of Caleb in the hospital!!

 

Your grateful friends,

Shawn and Sarah Gardner

Benjamin, Olivia and Caleb!!

[Beens Prayer Partners] Fwd: 10/12 update on Caleb

Dear friends,

Here is the most recent note from Sarah.  Shawn's wk in Nampula ends tomorrow.  It has been good and we've manage to tie up a few loose ends, talk with him some and plan.  There's still tons for him to do and he's feeling a bit overwhelmed at it all, especially since so many Mozambican friends keep stopping by to visit with him and say good-bye; that's a good thing - they want to show they care, but it's also a challenge to handle when there's so much you want to do.  He'll leave tomorrow around 1pm.  Pray he has a safe flight back to Jo'burg to join Sarah and the rest of the family.

Blessings,

Robin

Begin forwarded message:

From: Shawn & Sarah Gardner <gardnersforgod@msn.com>

Date: October 12, 2007 8:55:40 AM GMT+02:00

To: <smithsinmoz@hotmail.com>, <dhulseymoz@teledata.mz>, <holtoncrew@gmail.com>, <rustyandann@gmail.com>, <robin@mozambiquemessages.com>, <deoliveiras@yahoo.com>, <aaronandmika@hotmail.com>, <hearttransform@yahoo.com>, <chad.westerholm@cordovachurch.org>, <africahowells@yahoo.com>, <jacobjaynie@gmail.com>, <dm4moz@yahoo.com>, <nyefamily@gobrainstorm.net>, <bzentmeyer@sccable.net>, <bettyparriott@yahoo.com>, <aprilcbrown@yahoo.com>, <ncc_office@sbcglobal.net>, <andybrumley@aol.com>, <papazufelt@hotmail.com>, <bbbyrd2001@yahoo.com>, <annetteseals1@yahoo.com>, <khblee@verizon.net>, <bob@actcom.net>, <albumsmem@msn.com>, <blake@pmgx.com>, <bgrenco@aol.com>, <vanliere@montrose.net>, <alcorson@avwildernesssupply.com>, <anastasiasears@yahoo.com>, <buckndo@montrose.net>, <bpcc@itctel.com>, <betty_plese@yahoo.com>, <annmarie6767@aol.com>

Subject: 10/12 update

Hello again everyone.

 

Caleb continues to improve a tiny bit each day.  It is sometimes hard to see the improvements on a day-to-day basis, and sometimes we get discouraged as we've got the memories of our bright and smily baby boy so vividly in our minds.  But when you step back form the daily grind and look at his improvement over a week's time you can see dramatic results.  This week Caleb is getting much stronger and he can hold his head up pretty well.  All the spastic, involuntary movements have stopped and his skin is not extremely sensitive to touch anymore.  This makes it much easier to hold him, hug him, do physiotherapy with him, etc.  He is eating cereals and pureed foods without any problems and as far as drinking goes he has not learned to suck from a cup or bottle yet so the nurses just pour a little milk into his mouth for him to swallow.  He'll usually take about half his milk this way and then they'll put the rest in the tube that goes through his nose into his stomach.  Other than this tube he doesn't have any more IVs or tubes or wires or anything attached and the only medicine he is receiving is half a tablet of heart medicine.  A special treat this week is that Caleb has smiled a few times when he gets excited and kicks his feet back and forth.  And he even smiled a little at me when I played peek-a-boo with him.  Some days he seems to focus his eyes better, like yesterday he was looking at me quite a bit which was so rewarding.  Other days he seems half-awake most of the day and doesn't really respond to much.  So as you can see, there are good days and bad days but overall there are improvements and we are really excited about his progress.

 

Next week Caleb will have an MRI to scan his brain.  We hope that this will give us some ideas on what areas may have been damaged.  But we also know that his progress already is remarkable and so we won't let any results we receive rule us but instead trust God to restore Caleb and go forward in his recovery with hope and joy.

 

We hope that after the MRI Caleb will be discharged.  We look forward to having him home with us again (Saturday makes 7 weeks that he's been in the hospital!!!) and think that the stimulation he will receive at home from us and the kids will be good for him.

 

Shawn returns to us tomorrow after an extremely busy week in Nampula. The missionary community and the Mozambicans have all been so encouraging and supportive.  He did have the opportunity to share with our church family about Caleb and encourage everyone to continue steadfast in God even when you encounter hardships.  A lesson very applicable to the lives of our Mozambican Christian family. 

 

How can we thank-you all enough for all the prayers and encouragement?  We know people literally all over the world are praying, both our friends and supporters and those we don't even know!  God is so good and He hears us knocking at His door.  Please continue to pray for a complete recovery for Caleb, for patience on our part as we go forward this next year and most of all for God to be glorified in this situation!!

 

Your partners in Christ,

Shawn and Sarah Gardner

 

www.gardnersforgod.org

gardnersforgod@msn.com

[Beens Prayer Partners] note from Dan

Dear Prayer Partners,

Our teammate Shawn is here this week packing up their house in
preparation for a return to the States. Once Caleb is released from
the hospital they will return to the States to continue his treatment
and evaluate their situation. They do not yet know if they will
return to work here in Mozambique. Over the next months they will be
able to make a decision about their ability to return based on how
Caleb is and their emotional state, yet for now Shawn has asked us to
plan and proceed as if they are not coming back.

Yesterday Shawn took some time to teach with me, and that became an
emotional time for me as it highlighted some important things.
First, I was reminded at how he and I compliment each other in our
teaching styles and have different strengths and weaknesses that
allow us to minister well together. Secondly, Shawn was the detail
person who helped us organize. I am not detail oriented. I
generally see all the options and help to come up with different view
points and Shawn helped to see the detail. I now need to see the
details which is a very hard skill for me. Thirdly, I was reminded
at how great it is to have a partner to work with. Fourthly, I was
once again reminded of the temporariness of our time here. We are
here to train nationals to take over the ministry; we have a goal of
the ministry being totally nationalized by 2017. Shawn and I both
brought different training skills to the table. Now that is gone,
Lord willing only temporarily, but I must plan as if it is gone for
good. I therefore must be able to train people in a more complete
way, drawing on areas and skills that I normally don't use. Fifthly,
I was reminded of the harshness of life in this country.

Will you please pray that God would work through my strengths and
weaknesses. That He will enable me with new gifts, if necessary, to
meet the ministry needs. That He will help us to see God's grace,
power, and plans at work. That Robin and I, would, through this
become more convinced of the all sufficiency of God and become more
graceful and grace-filled people. That as we mourn the loss of our
teammates, friends, and overseas family we would continue to move
forward. That God would heal Caleb physically and Shawn and Sarah
would receive emotional healing.

Thank you and blessings,
Dan Been

_______________________________________________
PrayerPartners mailing list
PrayerPartners@mozambiquemessages.com
http://mozambiquemessages.com/mailman/listinfo/prayerpartners_mozambiquemessages.com

[Beens Prayer Partners] quick update

Dear friends,

I realize it's past time for me to write our normal monthly letter.  I will try to do that soon, but in the meantime wanted to drop off a quick note to update you on the Gardners.

Before that however let me say Amy Westerholm has received clearance from her doctor and they will be returning to where they live in Montepuez (5 hrs north of us) this upcoming Wednesday.

As for Caleb and the Gardners.  They have had a few good days.  I've pasted a couple comments from Gardners below.  Thanks for your prayers and please keep them up.

For the first time in a long while we laughed and celebrated with the nurses about Caleb's rapid progress over a few days!  He is doing pretty well this week and is learning to eat from a spoon again.  He is still on a feeding tube so that he can get liquids as he hasn't taken to a bottle or cup yet, but the doctors hope to wean him off the feeding tube over the next week.  He is much less sensitive to touch and his spastic movements are greatly diminishing.  This week his eyes seem to be focusing better although he still can't really follow an object with his eyes.  He seems to have at least partial hearing which we're happy about too.  A big thing is that he can hold his head up for a short time and even flip his head over while lying on his stomach.  All of these things seem to indicate that he did not lose his motor functions, and although he will have 'lost' his milestones such as sitting by himself, crawling, standing, etc. we are hopeful that he will regain these and more with time.  We have no idea how his 'intelligence' was affected by everything but at this point we won't worry but instead trust the Lord to handle it.

 

So the doctors are extremely pleased with how he's doing, esp. considering how very sick he was on several occasions.  We recently learned that Caleb was indeed without oxygen for a long time during those frightening hours before he was evacuated to South Africa.  But on hearing that report and seeing how he is doing today we are encouraged as there are definitely some good signs that give us hope (and we trust God to bring about a miraculous recovery in His time).  Caleb really 're-learned' eating from a spoon and swallowing remarkably fast.  We are hoping that Caleb will be able to get the hang of eating and drinking so that in another week or two he will be discharged and we'll be able to make plans to fly to the States.  

Blessings,

Robin

[Beens Prayer Partners] Monday news from Gardners

Here's a message from Shawn and Sarah they asked me to pass along.

Blessings,

Robin

Begin forwarded message:

From: "Shawn & Sarah Gardner" <gardnersforgod@msn.com>

Date: October 2, 2007 5:02:10 AM GMT+02:00

To: "Been" <robin@mozambiquemessages.com>

Last night one of Caleb's nurses, Maronel, looked like she was beginning to cry as I told her how Sarah and I are feeling and dealing with the realization of Caleb's condition. I wasn't sure if she was crying, but when she told me that she was becoming quite attached to Caleb I figured she had been and that she was feeling emotional about him. Later, however, she came back in and I thought I would encourage her with some of the same encouragement I had been receiving through the emails and in meditation upon Caleb and suffering. It didn't have the effect I was hoping for. She cried quite openly then. I was a little puzzled, but I thought what I was saying must be hitting some chord in her and kind of continued. At one point I said something like, "At least Sarah and I have accumulated enough experience in walking with God to know in a time like this that He is Good and loves us and Caleb more than we ever even could. At least we don't have to deal with doubts on that matter." It was at that point that she revealed to me what was obviously tearing her up. With tears dripping down her nose she asked me, "How do you know? How do you know God exists and that He is good? With so many religions and things said about God and life how can you be sure?"

 

Her question caught me a little off guard because, at the time, I was trying to comfort Caleb who was experiencing some discomfort and she had told me weeks ago that she was a Christian and goes to church. I was under the assumption that we were talking from the same set of assumption. As we spoke I realized that suffering was what posed a problem to her. She and her husband, who also is a nurse that takes care of Caleb, have a nine year old daughter who was born with several special needs. She struggles to learn, speak, and interact with children her own age. I think that Maronel's struggle went beyond her daughter however. At one point as I shared about how I came to know that God exists and that He is good, I shared about how He helped me, and continues to help me, to deal with certain vices that had dominated my life. She was really interested in knowing more about that and indicated that she feels unable to overcome a certain undesirable habit.

 

I went on basically recalling how God revealed Himself and my sin through His Word, and how it brought me to a point of eventually talking to Him. I told her how I thought I was crazy when I began speaking to God, like I had gone off the deep end and was suddenly believing there was Someone actually there listening. But I figured that if I doubted there was no better thing to do than to just admit it and ask Him that if He was really there, and really like Jesus, to let me know because I didn't want to go on one more day living in ignorance. As I went on with all sincerity recalling what God had done in my life I eventually concluded once again relating the whole of those events to the confidence we are able to have in God's goodness now. She plainly said at that point, "I wish more than anything I could have what you have."

 

I told her that I wished she did too. I began recalling for her the whole stream of events and actions on the part of the Body of Christ from the beginning of this trauma with Caleb up to the visit we recently received from Michael Gray and Jason Hanselman. At that point I concluded once more and drew her attention to the love shown in such a visitation. I told her how people in the Church sacrificially gave and insisted upon sending our friends to come see us. That is God's love. She just sobbed.

 

There are so many things that God is showing us about Himself through this sad time that my stories of His graciousness to us flowed from me at about the rate that her tears did from her. I realized through relaying those stories that what had changed me and gives us peace at this time is nothing more than a long chain of experiences of being loved and accepted as we are. Being saturated with that kind of unconditional love for so long helps us to know who God is and who we are to Him, and thus gives us peace in times of grief. That is what Maronel said she wanted when I asked her what I could pray for her.

 

Maronel told me that our family has touched her life from the time we have arrived. I told her that it wasn't us. That's Jesus in us.

 

We cry most nights about Caleb. But our tears are not just from saddness or grief. They are that; but they are mixed with hope and joy and peace. When I look at Caleb and consider his current condition and all that will need to be done in order for him to regain his faculties I often get a striking image of how we humans must appear to God: one of my most cherished children, debilitated by a sinister and horrible tragedy, but who will day by day be renewed until he is raised to glory if I have my way with him.

 

Last Friday our teammates in Mozambique and many others of you all joined in fasting and praying for Caleb. We all obviously want to see Caleb fully restored. At this point that would most certainly constitute a miracle. Thank you to all who are praying. At this point we are pacing ourselves in our hope in preparation for a long distance miracle. We hope that by the end of two years Caleb will have regained a high percentage of his faculties.

 

The doctors and their devices cannot say to what extent Caleb's brain has been damaged, nor what capacity he may regain or how long it will take to regain it. We are on a one-day-at-a-time program of observing Caleb and responding to what he shows us he is able to do. All his IV's have been taken out and he is no longer on any medication except something to help him rest from time to time and a small dose of oral heart medicine. He is still receiving his food through a tube going through his nose into his stomach. Today he was able to swallow about seven spoonfuls of yoghurt though. That is good news! We are hoping to get him to where he can eat without a feeding tube before being discharged. A neuro-physiotherapist comes by twice a week now and is trying to desensitize his over-sensitized nervous system. If you just touch him on his face and some other places he winces and whines. He whines most of the time he is awake. He still doesn't seem to respond to us visually or audibly. They say his eyes are well and his left ear too, but that it might just be that his brain is not properly interpreting those sensations yet. We've been encouraged, however, from several stories we've heard of children who have had the same symptoms after long ICU experiences and brain trauma, but that are doing well now. We've also noticed Caleb responding positively to the physiotherapy and slowly regaining some muscle control and use. So, all these things together have given us even more reasons for hope.

 

When Caleb eventually is discharged we may hang around for a several more days until we feel comfortable taking a 20 hour plane ride with him back to the States. Between now and then I, Shawn, will be taking a trip up to Nampula to organize our affairs there. We have no idea what the future will hold; what opportunities, challenges or changes will present themselves. However, we know Who will be there to walk us through them.

 

Your fellow pilgrims,

 

Shawn, Sarah, Benjamin, Olivia, and Caleb