Schmedes Family Blog

This is Pastor Ndi. For many months, his voice was very hoarse. He couldn't preach because nobody could hear him. I first saw Pastor Ndi 3 months ago. I examined his vocal cords and saw that he had a very large polyp on his right vocal cord, along with a nodule on the left side. We scheduled him for surgery and gave him some medication and voice therapy.


Yesterday, he returned to see me and to be admitted for surgery to remove the polyp. He said that something amazing had happened. He had been using a microphone to preach at his church on Sundays. The past Sunday, as he stepped up to preach, the power suddenly went out. He knew that nobody would be able to hear him preach. Yet, he started to speak and his voice projected perfectly. He preached the entire sermon without any issues!

So I re-examined him and both of his vocal cords were normal. He is completely healed!

Galatians 6:10 states: "As we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith." One of the great privileges of working cross-culturally is serving the church and my brothers and sisters in Christ. I'm incredibly grateful to know that one more brother will be preaching in the church on Sunday mornings. God does not heal every patient here, but we continue to trust Him as He blesses the sick and suffering at Mbingo.

This is his church, Calvary Baptist. They are praying to get a roof someday. 

Patients often come to us unable to pay for surgery they desperately need. Thanks to the generosity of our faithful supporters, we have funding available to help such patients. I cannot highlight all of them, but here's two people we have been able to recently help thanks to you! Names are changed.

Today, my oldest turns six. A great time for me to reflect on life as a husband, father, and missionary. Just 5 days after he was born, we rushed Isaiah to the emergency room with severe vomiting. After an episode of severe respiratory distress and a night in the ICU, we found out Isaiah had Hirschsprung’s disease. There were no nerves that grew into the end of his intestine, not allowing him to pass any stool. This of course, was quite a shock to two new parents, but this is where the story takes an interesting turn.

God spared his life, and he didn’t stop there. God provided a highly specialized surgeon to perform a surgery to remove the intestines that had no nerves connected to them. So I thought, “God, you made me a surgeon, and you sent me a surgeon when I really needed one. Maybe you could use me like that, too? Maybe you could send me?”

And he did. He sent us to Cameroon. And I tell people Isaiah’s story. I tell them how God provided me a surgeon in a dark hour, and I want to be their surgeon now because God loves them too, just like He loves me.

Kelly and I are so thankful not only for our 11 years of marriage, but the amazing 6 years we’ve had as parents. Isaiah has blessed us in so many ways, and his story is one that so beautifully illustrates the Golden Rule. We are here because we want to treat others the way we would like to be treated. God sent us a surgeon, so we are to be sent to others.

Another exciting twist in Isaiah’s story: his surgeon, Dr Streck, came to Mbingo to perform surgeries on children here. He even did some of the same procedures as Isaiah had. We thank Dr Streck for his willingness to be also sent by God.

Happy Birthday, Isaiah! Thanks for your gentleness, kindness, and tender heart. Thank you for helping us to practically live out the Golden Rule.

My Cameroonian friend and colleague just returned from a neighboring country where he performed more than one hundred surgeries for children. When I asked about his trip he said, “I’m so thankful for Cameroon.” He spoke of the country he had visited: how there were many children not going to school, poverty, and hunger. He was truly thankful to be back in his home country. I’m not used to hearing about Cameroon in this context. After all, Cameroon ranks 153rd in the world for human development. One may be tempted to say they have a right to complain. And yet, my colleague is not complaining. Instead he’s thanking God for placing him in a great country such as Cameroon.

Philippians 2:14 Do everything without complaining or arguing.

1 Thessalonians 5:18 Be thankful in all circumstances.

I recently heard a wise surgeon say that if he became immensely rich, he would still be looking under the last stone for more money. This was his way of saying that constantly looking up is a trap.The reality is that no matter what your background is, you will be tempted to look up. That next best thing will be the answer to my problems. Or perhaps what’s worse, “If I could just have what he has, I could really accomplish something.” If I could just get that promotion. If I could just get this much money. If I could go to that school. The moment I look up to glare at someone else’s wealth, I’ve immediately forgotten how wealthy I am. My thankfulness vanishes, leading to a complaining attitude. By looking up, it’s seems that God hasn’t given me as much as that next person.

But what happens when we look down? What happens when we reach out to the poor, like my colleague just did. God’s blessings in our life become clearer. We stop complaining. We become thankful. Suddenly that thing we had desired so much either fades away or turns to healthy ambition. We also see the opportunity to help someone. Much like the high ground gives an advantage in battle, it also gives us the opportunity to look down. While looking up leaves us anxious, bitter, and frustrated, looking down brings contentment and opportunity.

Don’t miss looking down today. Remember the blessings in your life. See your own opportunity to make a difference with what God have given you. Cameroon may not be a rich material country, but God’s people here see it for what it really is: a country rich in opportunity to serve God and to serve people.

A major reason we came to Mbingo was to teach young surgeons and send them out to work in very underserved, difficult places. We have 10 surgeons-in-training at a time (aka residents). I get to play a small role in training them, teaching surgery within the head and neck. A major issue here is that when doctors finish their training they leave Africa to take higher paying jobs in the Middle East or Europe, even though they're desperately needed in their home countries. Doctors that stay in Africa often move to larger cities and demand very high prices. I'm humbled to see our residents so dedicated to serving God in tough places. For example, we graduated 3 residents last year. Two went to underserved areas in Cameroon, and one went to Liberia and was placed on the cover of Time as an Ebola Fighter. This year, we just graduated 2 more (Dr's Tony and Njume). Dr Tony will serve at a mission hospital in Kenya, and Dr Njume will remain in his home country, Cameroon.

The residents are absolutely dedicated to giving their lives to Christ, forsaking the opportunity to leave Africa for a higher salary, and stay to bring light to dark places. Here I am with 5 of our residents, with the countries of South Sudan, Cameroon, Sierra Leone, and DR Congo represented. It's been a joy to work with them.