All In A Night's Work

Dear friends and family, thanks for all your sweet thoughts and prayers! I was able to work my night shift on Sunday. I did not feel great at the beginning of the shift and I was wishing I had taken another sick day, but at that point it was too late to call another nurse in for the entire night, so I said, "Lord, if I am going to get through this night I really need you to help me." God answered my prayers. I enjoyed my shift, had no trouble staying awake, and felt better and stronger as the shift went on. I also got to work with a Dutch nurse, whom I did not know very well. We got to talk and discuss some interesting topics throughout the shift. We talked about everything from different foods, to wooden shoes and the moral and ethical issues in Holland. I do not know how many of you are aware about the political and ethical issues in Holland, but I learned about some of Holland's current medical advances in University and I wanted to verify what I learned with a native of Holland. It is true that "Euthanasia" or "Mercy Killing" is legal and actively practiced in hospitals in Holland. My friend spoke of standing within the presence of doctors who have listened to patients express that they are sad, depressed, and did not want to live anymore and the doctor told the patient, "not to worry, the nurse will give medicine to help with that and in the morning it will not be a problem anymore." My friend reports this is not rare, often she is faced with doctor's orders that instruct that "narcotic pain medicine doses should be increased until the patient feels nothing." I asked how my friend how she deals with this issue. She reported one time she point blank told the doctor, " I will not do that! That dose of medicine will kill the patient!" The doctor replied, "oh, don't think of it like that, we are helping the patient."My friend went on to tell me that she often has to take care of patients who come in for elective surgeries. I thought, "so what, big deal, we do the same in the US. If someone wants their knee replaced because of pain, they elect to have a surgery. But, she went on the explain that her patients are coming to the hospital to have a "routine abortion." I cannot imagine having to face these issues every day in my workplace. And I have been pondering how many of us think the big moral issues don't involve us, that we don't have to worry because it will never happen where we live. My friend and I then went on to discuss some current moral battles that are being fought in America. We talked about same sex marriage and the fight for the federal marriage amendment. Sadly, my friend said, "homosexual marriages have been legal in Holland for years." YIKES! I see the path our country is taking and we need to stop it. The reality is we need to speak up and out for what the Bible says is right and true! I am sure my friend's grandparents never thought their grand daughter of 26 years would have to worry about her job and loosing it because she refused to kill a patient. Keep praying for our country and world! Take action to stand for the truth. You and I are both called to a mission field, right now mine is here, and yours is there, but don't forget your ability to change a life. As I hold the "baby Jittas" of Africa, make sure you keep fighting for the unborn in America so that some day they too can be held. And that is that, all in one night's work.