Kingdom of darkness

Typhoid. Dysentery. Landmines. For Dr. Doug Page, it's 'just another day in paradise.'

Feature Elements

Mud homes dot the hills of the Central Asian town where Doug and Alice Page* serve as Jesus’ hands and feet. The absence of green alludes to the harshness of life here. From the air — the only secure means of reaching the area — the town is a pallid oasis, swallowed by a seemingly endless march of dead, sun-burnt mountains. The mother of 18-month-old Mohammed waits for a doctor with quiet despondence as her son sleeps in one of the hospital’s wards. Severely underweight, Mohammed was admitted for malnutrition, pneumonia and an infection in his leg. Sunlight filters through the hospital’s windows allowing Page to examine Mohammed’s chest x-ray for signs of pneumonia. Dirty and poorly equipped, the hospital lacks many basic necessities including lightboxes for viewing x-rays. Wards are lit by a single, bare fluorescent bulb and smell strongly of body odor; patients lie on aging, paint-chipped beds covered with threadbare sheets. Stethoscope in hand, Page listens to a young girl’s heartbeat. In contrast to his colleagues’ hands-off approach, Page believes touch is a valuable tool for diagnosing problems and building rapport with patients, communicating “that you’re not afraid of them or their illness,” he says. A team of surgeons work to relieve excess fluid that’s built-up around the heart of Jalal Hossein,* a 28-year-old mullah (Islamic teacher). Though it is a relatively simple surgery for Page, the procedure is new territory for the hospital’s staff, who say they are grateful for his guidance. Using a scalpel, Page removes excess cartilage as he closes the incision around Hossein’s catheter, a soft rubber tube that will drain the excess fluid from Hossein’s pericardium. Page discusses a patient’s treatment with Dr. Walid Asad,* one of the hospital’s top physicians. Page sees his role as that of a mentor and player-coach, working alongside the hospital’s staff. “I have a lot of respect for them and have also learned a lot from them. They do very well with what they have,” he says. Dr. Asad chats with Page during the senior medical staff’s morning meeting. Tall and handsome with a robust sense of humor, Asad loves practicing his English with Page, an endless source of entertainment for them both. Page says close relationships are crucial to Kingdom growth in Central Asia, breaking negative stereotypes as believers reveal Christ’s character with those who don’t know Him. Death, often at the hands of one’s own family, is a very real threat for Central Asian Muslims who become Christians. More often, choosing Jesus costs new believers their marriages, jobs and homes, even custody of their children. Branded “kafir” (unbelievers, infidels), they live like lepers, alienated by family, friends and their community — virtually cut off from everyone they have ever known or loved. Page examines a man complaining of back pain, likely the result of a hard day’s work. This sort of medicine might seem beneath a highly-trained thoracic surgeon, but Page says that’s not the point. “I think you have to approach it with the fact that everything is on the table,” he says. “There is nothing He has given us that He doesn’t ask us to give up … whether it’s your family, or your career, your education, your pride.” Holding Mohammed’s tiny hand in his, Page prays aloud for the malnourished 18-month-old in Jesus’ name. Despite the best care Page and the hospital’s staff could offer, he died several days after this photograph was taken. “There’s an urgency to what we need to be about here. There are people who are dying every day and lost for eternity. I really believe that,” Page says. “I don’t want to miss an opportunity that God puts before me to share with somebody.”

ALSO

PRAY

  • Pray for perseverance and encouragement for Doug and Alice Page as they represent Jesus’ heart, hands and voice in Central Asia.
  • Ask God for wisdom and boldness as the Pages share Christ’s love.
  • Pray for the hospital where Page serves. Ask God to improve conditions there and increase the quality of care.
  • Pray for greater access to healthcare and health education throughout the province.
  • Ask God to change cultural and religious practices, traditions and stigmas that inhibit access to proper medical care and cause further suffering and pain, especially among Central Asia’s women and children.
  • Ask God to ease widespread suffering caused by conflict, poverty, corruption and lack of infrastructure in many Central Asian countries. Pray that He brings peace, stability, education and sustainable living conditions.
  • Ask the Lord to protect national believers and seekers (like “Paul”) from persecution, and to strengthen those who must endure it.
  • Pray for strong, Godly national Christian leaders who are able to disciple new believers and pastor/plant new churches.
  • Ask the Lord to send new workers to help meet the overwhelming needs for physical and spiritual healing in Central Asia.
  • Pray that many Central Asians will one day worship the one, true God.

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