A Lawyer, A Liar, and A Tooth Extraction
First the tooth extraction - it wasn’t mine! Last fall when I was here in Uganda, I met a dentist at a local hospital. I asked him if he would be willing to come to the village and examine the teeth of all the children when I returned in January. It took a bit to track him down, but he was still very willing. So on Saturday afternoon he arrived and set up shop under a shaded tree. Two chairs, a small table for his tray of instruments, and he was in business. I had assured the children that all he was going to do was examine them and make sure their teeth were healthy - I should have known better. After he had been at work for about an hour, I thought perhaps I should check on him to make sure everything was OK. I came around the corner just in time to see him standing up beside the child in the chair with his pliers firmly entrenched in the child’s mouth prying loose a troubled tooth. As I was coming closer, the tooth gave way, and with his pliers he held it up, and said, “that was really a bad one - it had to come out!” I found out later that he had brought Novocaine along with him so it wasn’t quite as bad as it looked. Throughout the afternoon he examined 23 children, ages about 7 thru 17. It was the first time any of them had ever seen a dentist, and in all he did four extractions - the total bill - $26! The children assured me that they still loved me!
The lawyer… God has led us to a wonderful lawyer; and after one whole year of dealing with one who was a liar and a cheat, this lady is a true blessing and a great source of assurance to me that we can now make serious progress on the various land issues that we face in the village. I will spend the better part of Wednesday in the land office trying to obtain very important documents, and I have an exit interview with our lawyer and her partner on Thursday afternoon prior to heading home.
Speaking of heading home… Friday at 10:30 PM (12 noon MST), I board the plane for the US. The magic of time zones kick in and I am due to arrive on Saturday about 2:30 pm. Thanks for praying for me and this trip - it has been a very strategic time and one that was marked by the blessing and direction of the Lord.
Give me a day or two (or three) to recover and I’ll send out a little more detail on the trip and the future.
May God bless you all!
Really can’t wait to be back home…
- Pastor Gary