Christmas 2015
 |
| Our first grandchild |
One month ago,
in a far-away land called Germany, my daughter gave birth to her
first baby—a son. She laboured quietly alone for several hours,
not calling her husband at work or even realizing that she was really
in labour until the midwife came by for a routine check. By that
time she was so far along that the midwife popped her in the car and
drove her immediately to the nearest hospital instead of to
the family-friendly hospital an hour away. Baby Micah was born
quickly and safely, but not in the peaceful environment or with the
quality midwifery care that our daughter and son-in-law had planned.
Our first grandchild is strong and healthy, but our daughter is still
recuperating from the second-rate experience of her second-choice
hospital care.
Which all begs
these questions: Was their Plan B back-up-hospital choice
actually God's Plan A experience for them? Or did their
midwife jump the gun in rushing her to the nearby hospital instead of
opting for the longer trip to the better facility in Hanover? Was
God's sovereignty somehow trumped by exigency? Or were the
circumstances of baby Micah's birth exactly what God had decreed they
should be?
I will leave
those questions of God's sovereignty and man's responsibility to the
theologians of both Calvinist and Arminian persuasions. While it
bothers me that my daughter suffered more than she “should have,”
I don't have time or energy to wrestle with the theological
implications. And in all honesty, I have to admit that her
experience was not unlike what sometimes happens at Casa Compasiva.
“Juana” was
a recent client of ours anticipating a lovely cozy birth at Casa
Compasiva. She laboured well until 5 cm, when suddenly her labour
slowed down and she failed to progress—at all. Hours and hours
later, after trying all the tricks of the trade that we know—and
all to no avail-- our midwives reluctantly made the call to transport
her to a local hospital. Both Juana and her baby's safety were at
stake, not to mention our integrity as a medically responsible
birth-facility.
Plan B back-up- hospital experience was less than
ideal.
And yet, I have
to ask myself... was her Plan B actually God's Plan A?
For whatever unfathomable reason, did God have a purpose in allowing
the circumstances of Juana's baby's birth to be exactly as they were?
Did He have reasons far beyond that which we can see or understand
in allowing Juana's isolation in a Mexican government hospital... and
in allowing my daughter to suffer “needlessly”... and in
allowing Mary to be forced to give birth to Jesus in a dirty stable
far away from mother and midwife because “there was no room in the
inn.” The answer, I suspect, is “yes”. Just as “The heart
has its reasons which reason knows nothing of...” (Blaise Pascal),
so also God has His own reasons which His creatures cannot begin to
comprehend. He allowed our Saviour's birth to be in terribly
unhygienic conditions---definitely not Mary's Plan A choice!
He sometimes allows medical complications for which we at Casa
Compasiva have no solutions. In a fallen world, stuff happens...
As the old hymn
goes: “Ask Him not then, 'When?' Or 'How?' Only bow....only bow.”
We bow, then.
Casa Compasiva will bow to God's inscrutable ways, continuing to
serve the Oaxacan mothers and babies to the best of our ability.
Being human, we will feel frustrated when things don't work out as
planned-- when a mother's Plan B must be applied and it yields
unsatisfactory results. But we will continue to trust that ultimately
God is working out His Plan
A purposes in each mother's pre-natal care, birth, and
post-partum recovery period.
It is a
privilege to do what we can. It is a privilege to provide Oaxacan
women with quality maternity care, ministering God's love through
Jesus Christ in both word and deed. It is a privilege to comfort
them even when their Plan A's go awry, and we are hindered in
our ability to provide all their care. Then we encourage them to look
to Jesus in their disappointment. We grieve with them when their
birth plans fail to materialize as hoped, resulting in inexplicable
suffering. And when we can offer absolutely no explanations as to
the “why's and wherefores” of that suffering, we pray for the
strength and the grace for all of us to bow.
Our first three
midwives graduated from the Casa Compasiva midwifery course at the
end of October. ... just in time to serve through this very busy
Christmas season. These three excellent midwives will attend some of
our Oaxacan clients in relaxed and joyful births at Casa Compasiva.
They will all celebrate the successful conclusions to the natural
birth classes that we offer.
However, in
spite of everyone's best efforts, it is likely that some of the
labours will end in the necessity of higher-level medical
intervention. Our midwives may be forced to make the agonizing
decision to transport to nearby hospitals. There will be tears shed
all around. Some of the women whom we transfer will suffer difficult
births under deplorable conditions. Those babies will be born during
an imperfect Christmas season into an imperfect world.
But in God's
economy, even the sorrows of their mamas' labours can be redeemed
into something of eternal value in imperfect lives, and we stand
ready to minister His love into their hearts. Please support the
imperfect ministry of Casa Compasiva as we attempt to bring good
tidings of great joy in both Plan A and perceived Plan B
circumstances. We cannot do it alone. We ask you to remember
the mamas and babies of Oaxaca this Christmas and in the coming year,
and we thank you for your gifts and your prayers.
Feliz Navidad!
Lila
Joy Quezada
No comments
Post a Comment