Steve and Casey Cretsinger Experiencing Tribal Missions in Guinea, W. Africa 
Little baby Alisan
They were each just three pounds when they came to us. Hard to believe that two little twins had made it that far and were still alive. Their mother was exhausted and unable to provide any milk for her babies. We decided to have the mother move from her village – which is very remote – and come live here in our village to seek care. A family offered to have the mother and the babies move in with them while we tried to get them on the road to recovery. We worked with our local medical clinic to make a plan.
The mom began a diet of corn, fish, rice, and peanut. She was so tired when she first came. They babies were starving and crying all the time. She was trying to feed them, but was unable to give them enough. So, she desperately needed sleep and to get her strength back.
The twins were six weeks old with sunken faces and just looked so sad. They were so hungry!
Using formula is a rare occurance here. Guinea does not want mothers to use it unless absolutely medically necessary. Even if they can get a doctor’s clearance, the formula is completely beyond their financial means. The formula costs would be the same as feeding an entire family. And, culturally, women don’t nurse other women’s babies. So, most often, these little ones who cannot get enough milk from their mother’s will eventually starve to death.
We did not want to see that happen with these two little precious ones! The mother started her special diet of food to gain more milk and we started giving the twins formula for every other feeding. It was a big deal to see two babies with bottles in the village. Many other ladies came and sat around to watch and I was so excited that I could be there to show them exactly how to prepare the bottles – and I showed them how to feed them. They drank it right down! I was so afraid it wouldn’t work, but they were really hungry. Their mom was so visibly relieved that she couldn’t stop smiling and thanking me.
It’s been a few weeks now and they are really growing. They’ve gained over 2 pounds each! Their mom is so much stronger and more rested. They were telling me that in their village, when the ladies saw how tiny these two were, that everyone told them they needed to poison the babies. People said that they were demons. But, the mom said that she knew she was supposed to go for help. She says that we missionaries were brought here to show everyone in her village that these babies aren’t demons. Some people came from her village this past week and she showed them the twins and said “see, you believed they should die, but look at how they’ve grown”.
I love that we can show Christ’s love in ways like this. I love that God continues to bring people into our lives and gives us the opportunity to be a blessing. Please keep praying for this family…keep praying that through all this their hearts may become open to hearing the Gospel!
So tiny
The twins with their mom
Growing more every day
