Spread Love

Melvin is the name of a child that I have herd allot about but have never met. He is an orphan in Guatemala and now been diagnosed with Leukemia. A very good friend of mine went down to the orphanage where Melvin lives and had the opportunity to serve there. During her time there she grew very close to Melvin and he holds a special place in her heart. She is planing on returning to the orphanage to serve for three years soon and its hard for her to get this kind of news and not be able to phyically be there and help. Melvin reminds me allot of the kids I helped serve in Honduras and it's sad to get this kind of news about a child. He has been in my prayers lately and even though I have no physical connection with Melvin my heart go's out to this child. Prayer is the main way we can help Melvin because we know the only one who can truly do anything about Melvins condition is Jesus. He is in control and He Loves Melvin more than we can imagine. So I ask you to read the messages about Melvin below and keep him in you prayers. Help me spread Love and Prayer for Melvin. Thank you

Message 1

We are sending out this message as an S.O.S. for prayer. Our four year old Melvin has been sick for about a month and in the hospital for 2 weeks. They couldn't find the reason for his fever and pain. However today, after a second bone marrow aspiration, he has been diagnosed with leukemia. The doctor says that it is very treatable, so we think that it is acute lymphocytic leukemia. He will be transferred soon to the cancer hospital.

His home mother, Bety, has been at his bedside this whole time except for a couple of nights and brief spells during the afternoons. They only have a plastic chair beside Melvin's bed, so Bety is exhausted as well as emotionally drained. We have some of our oldest girls who have spelled her each day for a few hours. The government hospital where he has been is very primitive in comparison to what we are used to, but we have had to pay very little for all the testing they have done, so we are thankful.

We don't know exactly what is coming next, but we know that this is going to be a long road. We are trusting the Lord that Melvin will recover, but it all feels pretty overwhelming right now, as you can imagine. Bety is the home mother for the older girl house with 10 girls. She also has taken on the task of caring for Melvin's baby brother, Angel David, who was born in December. Bety has no children of her own, but she has a true mother's heart for these kids. We will need extra help to cover for her during this difficult time, and there is no extra in our budget.

Thank you for your prayers and support. It encourages our hearts to have so many standing in the gap with us. We will keep you apprised as we find out more of what is in store.

Message 2

Dear Friends,

I just wanted to let you know that we don't know whole lot more about Melvin and the kind of leukemia he has. As I mentioned in my last message, everything pretty much shuts down during Holy Week. We had hopes that he would be moved to the cancer hospital today; however, we discovered that he has a bacterial infection ("klabsiella" for you medical folks), and they will not receive him in the cancer hospital until he is cured of that infection.

This is particularly frustrating since his defenses are down and he got the infection in the hospital. Did we mention that the hospital where he is located is the Pediatric Hospital of Infectious Diseases? With a name like that, infections are rampant indeed!

On top of that, doctors have not been able to tell us for sure what kind of leukemia he has because the results are languishing in the closed down offices of the hospital somewhere. (Do I sound frustrated?!)

Melvin has had to have a couple of blood transfusions in the last few days, and he feels poorly most of the time so we would appreciate your prayers for him and his pain and comfort levels. He's also a very normal, active, 4 year-old boy which means on top of everything else, he's bored to tears. This hospital has no TV and does not allow any electronics (like a small, personal DVD player). We are able to rotate in a few toys, puzzles, and books. This is not meant as a complaint as much as to give you an idea of how to pray more specifically knowing something of the situation and also the challenge for his home mom, Betty, and others who are caring for him.

Many folks have asked how they can help. We can use extra donations right now to just help with logistics--extra gas (2 round trips a day to the hospital which is about 30 to 45 minutes one way), meals, increased cell phone charges, etc.  We feel that we will have to hire another home mother to take over Bety's other duties, while we continue to pay her. This will be about $325 per month extra.

There are two ways that you can give:

1. Online via our website using Paypal. You can use your credit or debit card or if you have a Paypal account, you can set it up to debit from your bank account. Go to this link on our website: http://nlch.net/#/ways-to-give. Click on "Donate securely online to NLCH!" and you will be taken to a page where you can enter your donation information. Be advised that though the donation will go to NLAI for NLCH, there is no way to designate your gift for Melvin, so email me the amount of your donation at wgfwflute@gmail.com and we'll track it, making sure it is used as intended.

2. You can send a check to our Houston office. Make your check out to NLAI and attach a separate note designating your gift for "NLCH-Melvin". Mail to: 

New Life Advance International

P.O. Box 35857

Houston, TX 77235-5857

So to summarize, pray...

...for healing from the infection so he can move soon to the other hospital

...pain and comfort levels

...against boredom

...for Betty and the older girls who are staying with Melvin

...extra dose of prayer for Betty and her spiritual, emotional and physical strength

...doctors and a clear, on-target diagnose and solid treatment plan

...provision for all expenses

Ultimately, we are asking for healing, however our precious Lord wants to do it!

Thank you for standing with us. We are thankful!

Blessings,

Wendy

NLCH Team