Trent's South Asian Journey

Goodbye Welches

Hello!

So just a quick update: I had to say goodbye to the Welch family last week when they headed back to the States until God opens the door for them to come back. It was sad to say goodbye because I grew to really enjoy spending time with their family, but I know God has great plans for them. 

Other than that I am still doing great out here! Also, other than one minor cold, and some painfully annoying Jock Itch which was taken care of thanks to some sweet meds from Dr. Welch(perhaps too much info…), I have not been sick in Bangladesh! 

I am done teaching my own computer classes, and am now using the same time to train as many of the more advanced computer users to teach their own computer classes. One user who I have spent a pretty good amount of time with, (who is also my Bangla teacher) has already learned to teach Red and Yellow classes. Please pray I would be a good reflection of Christ to him, and that he would see his need for a savior. 

A praise: there was young girl who came in with Guillain-Barre syndrome which is an auto-immune disease which caused her muscles to stop working. It started with her feet, and worked up to the diaphragm causing her to stop breathing for about three weeks. Long story short, she started breathing again and is now going to be fine. 

Thanks for your prayers!

Computer class.

Hello everyone!
I am having a great time out here. I'm sure its purely due to all the
prayer support that has been sent my way. God has been with me, and I have not been too lonely. I
have not missed home (too) much, and have been able to keep my mind and energy focused out here.  I've also made some really good friends out here(some of whom just went back to the states).

I feel like God has confirmed that the medical field is right for me. I love working in the hospital here, and the need is very big. Many of the patients we see are quite a bit different than those you would see in the states. Tusk wounds from wild elephants living in the hills, machete accidents, and monkey bites are all common to see out here. Also because medical care is so poor in this area, and this is an openly Christian hospital, people wait much longer to come to the hospital for treatment then they would in the states. The tumors we remove in the OR here are on average about 5 times as large as you’d see in the states.

I have also decided that I really like anesthesia. As of right now, I feel like God wants me to become a CRNA(nurse anesthetist). CRNA schools are very competitive, so I will have to work hard, but I have no doubt that if this is what God wants then it will happen. It will be an extra 2-4 years of school, but I'll get a 1-3 year break just working in a hospital, and I've gotten a lot of reassurance from the Doctors here that it should not be too bad. So basically I am now planning on becoming a CRNA and eventually working overseas. (this obviously may not happen, but it's kind of
like what the traveling team says "plan on going overseas, and let God
keep you home if it's His will").

Computer classes for the national hospital employees have also been going very well. I have been teaching computer classes four times a week with about seven students in each class. The levels are Red, Yellow and Green. When I talked with Dr Welch at first, he said that some of the employees here didn’t know what a mouse was. I thought he was exaggerating, but I quickly learned with some of the red card students that this was an accurate statement. It has been funny to correct students on holding a mouse sideways. They are learning though, and when the hospital starts using computers in 3-4 years; most the employees should be ready.

Conversational English classes have been great also. The students are mostly pre-nursing students and are very motivated to learn.  who must be somewhat proficient in English

Please pray for:

-All the nationals I work with, and train in English and Computers, as the majority of them do not know the son.

-The believers here, that we can all be a great example of Christ.

-My friend Brock and his family. They do not know the Lord, and their mother recently passed away due to ovarian cancer(among other problem). I was with him in the female ward just a few hours before his mom died. What is wonderful is that she made a decision just a few days before she died. Pray that the rest of the family can follow her example in this matter. 

The view from where I stand by the anesthesia monitor.

Memorial Christian Hospital

(The hospital in the video above is where I have been working.)

Hello everyone. So the internet on the computers here is painfully slow, and the wifi is even slower. As a result, I probably won't be able to upload too many of my own pictures(and I can forget about video)...
I have had a full schedule of working in the OR, teaching conversational English to nursing students, and teaching computer classes to hospital staff.
All the American workers here(esp Dr. Welch and his family) have been so kind and welcoming to me. They have invited me over for dinner, let me borrow bikes and motorcycles, and helped me with figuring out how things work around here. I've really enjoyed spending time with them and their families.
Inside the hospital I've gotten to work closely with Dr. Kelley, the anesthetists, and surgeons. In the OR I now know how to record the anesthesia log, help move patients in and out of the OR, help with prep for surgery, and occasionally hold arms and legs before and after surgery. Working in the OR has been great due to my interest in anesthesia, and the fact that I don't know the language. Computer and English classes have also been great because it is a big need, and I get to work with nationals who do not know the Lord. (You can be praying for them)
It's been great out here so far. God has been faithful, and is teaching me a lot!

Malaysia, Singapore and begining of Bangladesh

The Petronas towers

Malaysia was a fairly big contrast from Indonesia. The country seemed to have much more affluence.  I was able to spend a day touring around Kuala Lumpur, and saw the the Petronas towers.

Sentosa Island

After Malaysia, I took a bus to Singapore where I spent three days. My Dad's friend Viroy(a Singaporean businessman) met me there, showed me around the city, and paid for all my expenses. It was very generous and a huge blessing, because Singapore can be very expensive. I honestly did not know anything about Singapore before this trip, and expected it to be similar to Indonesia. I found that Singapore is actually the nicest, and cleanest big city I've ever visited.

My bathroom in Singapore

My bathroom in the village

I arrived in Bangladesh, and the next morning went to a village with the worker here to visit schools, and orphanage, and baptizenew believers. We spend three days in the village, and now I am at the worker's house in the city. I'll leave for the hospital tomorrow.

New believers getting baptized

Leaving Indonesia

A view from the village where I lived

I'm leaving Indonesia, but have grown very close to the family here. I have learned so much from the them, and the work they do for the Lord up here. I'm sad to leave, but I'm also excited for what's ahead. I have a lot of video footage of us riding motorcycles to a fairly remote village so they could teach Bible stories, the volcano erupting(just spitting out lots of ash), me harvesting potatos, teaching english, and more. So i'll try to get some of that on here soon. 

Indonesia

I just got off skype with my sisters, and am told that I need to provide more frequent updates. So here is a short update :)

A view 20 minutes from the house of the family I am staying with.

I am currently in Indonesia on the island of Java. I flew from South Korea to Singapore, and from Singapore to Jakarta Indonesia. Jakarta is a big city with a very high population. I spent two nights in Jakarta, and met a guy named Ferry who happened to be a christian. He showed me around Jakarta on his motorcycle for a day, and I left the next day for the village where the family I am visiting lives. It took a 13 hour train ride to Surabaya, another two hour train ride, and an hour car ride up winding mountain roads to get to their house. I've never experienced any landscapes like I have here. It is very beautiful. The house sits about nine miles from a volcano that has been very active recently, spitting up lots of ash. I have spent most of my time with the family, learning from them, and serving them in whatever ways possible. I can't write their names on here, or show them in my pictures or videos, but I'll try to make another video update here soon. I'll be here until Saturday (Jan 22), then fly to Malaysia, and then take a bus to Singapore to meet up with an old friend of my Dad's, and spend a few days there. I'll finally arrive in Bangladesh the 26th.

Minsuk's story

When Minsuk came back to Korea, he began to attend a local Korean church. It was in that church that he met his wife Jinhee. Minsuk and Jinhee have been on several mission trips themselves, and are passionate about seeing the nations come to Christ.

This whole experience has given me a new vision for reaching out to international students at CU. Every year God brings the nations to Colorado, and Minsuk is such a great example of what can happen when you reach out and show the love of Christ to international students.

South Korea

*The video is better quality if you watch it on youtube :)*
On the way to Bangladesh, Robby was able to book my plane tickets so that I have several layovers to visit family friends in a number of different countries. My first stop was in South Korea, where I spend 3 days with Minsuk. We met Minsuk a few years back while he was doing culture exchange at CU. He came to Christian Challenge, and eventually began a relationship with Christ. It was encouraging to see how Minsuk has kept the faith, and grown into a strong man of God.