My Ambulance Ride
Grandma (ya) Yang, (I’m not sure I’m spelling it correctly) is sick. I first met her when I arrived at our ministry site, Kanchanaburi, Thailand. This May is ‘Manistry.’ Us14 M Squad men are here, building a ywam base, planting banana trees, grunting, other man noises, and no women! The only women here are the 3 ladies of the home. Grandma Yang, Ma, and the Grandaughter Pang(our ministry contact). Three generations. And they’re Christians in a Budhist country.
As us guys are sitting eating our lunch meal during our break of planting banana trees, we are asked to come and pray for Grandma in the house. All of us guys, sweating, dirty, smelly, go into her room area and we realize she’s not doing well, at all. There was something stuck in her throat we thought. She couldn’t breathe well. Her eyes rolled back. She was very frail. She’s in her 90’s. We pray.
Grandma (ya) Yang, (I’m not sure I’m spelling it correctly) is sick. I first met her when I arrived at our ministry site, Kanchanaburi, Thailand. This May is ‘Manistry.’ Us14 M Squad men are here, building a ywam base, planting banana trees, grunting, other man noises, and no women! The only women here are the 3 ladies of the home. Grandma Yang, Ma, and the Grandaughter Pang(our ministry contact). Three generations. And they’re Christians in a Budhist country.
As us guys are sitting eating our lunch meal during our break of planting banana trees, we are asked to come and pray for Grandma in the house. All of us guys, sweating, dirty, smelly, go into her room area and we realize she’s not doing well, at all. There was something stuck in her throat we thought. She couldn’t breathe well. Her eyes rolled back. She was very frail. She’s in her 90’s. We pray.
Pang calls the hospital. We’re on our way. Bill and I jump in the truck with Pang, Grandma Yang sitting lifeless in the front seat. I pray the whole way.
An hour long bumpy ride, through half cemented, half dirt roads, bouncing around with this frail woman of God. We get to the hospital. They keep her for only 10 minutes. They say she needs to be transported to the main hospital in Kanchanaburi city. They prep the Ambulance. It’s frantic. She’s put inside. Hooked up to a respirator and heart monitor. She looks no better, but worse. Pang, her grandaughter jumps in the front of the ambulance. I jump in the back. With grandma. My heart pounding. Sweating. Monitors making a lot of beeping noises. I sit there, bouncing around, going 100 miles an hour, and put my hand on her ankle. I pray. I pray hard for her. The two Thai nurses don’t ever notice. I pray that they are Christians. I look at the monitors, things are stable. Then the battery on one of the machines she’s hooked up to starts to go out. The beeping gets faster and louder. I start praying for the battery to stay strong until this next hour long ride ends at the hospital. I never let go of her ankle. I hope she subconsciously realizes the soothing touch, maybe it will feel like the Lord’s comfort to her. Even though this is the most ‘dirty’ part of a Thai person’s body.
We arrive at the hospital. She’s rushed into intensive care. I wait. Bill and I are quiet, but then realize our minds can healthily escape. We talk. We’ve been on this mission trip for 5 months with each other but have yet to really talk, to really get to know each other’s hearts. The Lord brought life to our friendship, even in the midst of this life testing situation. I’m so grateful.
Pang comes out several hours later and lets us know the status. She says we can go home in the truck with Pa, and herself. Ma will stay overnight (as my mom did with my grandma when she was dying) and take care of her mom. She will sleep on the floor, in between the hospital beds, where I walked through the halls and saw hundreds of people in their last stages of life. Lined up dozens and dozens of rows deep. 3rd world hospitals. My eyes are wide open. This is not like in America. But Ma wants to be present with her mom.
The next few days my heart prays a lot for Pang’s Grandma, Yang. I ask Pang daily if there’s an update. 2 days after we took her to the hospital we find out she had a heart attack. Most likely during the ambulance ride. My heart drops. I knew, sitting with grandma during that ride, that she wasn’t doing well. My heart raced so fast, but had hope in God. I have also come to the conclusion that it is likely she had a stroke, or something, to put her in such a still, lifeless state.
As I write this blog, I am a few blocks away from where Grandma Yang is sleeping in the hospital, 1 week after the ambulance ride. If you can, send a prayer up to God for her comfort, and for the comfort of her daughter, Ma, and grandaughter, Pang. These are beautiful people. Great ministry hosts.
I remember when I went through the process of being with my mom as we took care of my grandma, Nereda, as she lived her last few years of life. She was such a loving, joyful, sweet servant and woman of God. I’m remembering her a lot these days. The same God that is comfort to our families in the United States is the same God that is the comfort to Christians and families around the world, and here in Thailand.
“1“Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me. 2In my Father’s house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. 3And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. 4You know the way to the place where I am going.” John 14
Please pray for Grandma Yang’s healing, comfort, and for the family.
And please let this draw you closer to the Father, to Jesus, to the Holy Spirit, who love you, and who want you to spend this life with them on earth, and eternal life with them in heaven.
