fire burned on the floor through out the night. On the night of the accident she was overcome by car bon monoxide and rolled over on to the fire and lay there 'cooking.' "When they brought her in she was in such shock and psychologi cal depression that she refused to eat — she had no desire to live. I did all that was medically possible. My wife, May, and the nurses poured tender loving care into her life. "The entire staff prayed constant ly for her healing and salvation. Let me tell you, it was a great day when one of the nurses came run ning to us and said, 'Pabla just told me she wants to say "yes" to Jesus the same way I have done.' " Pabla was in the hospital from May 18 to October 25,1962. Those dates are important as during that time the Billy Graham Crusade was held in Asuncion. The thoughtful hospital staff took her to the meet ings in an ambulance. There at the stadium she made a public profes sion of her faith in Christ. The joy of her new found faith was so con tagious it spread to others in the hospital. Getting to see her was an extra dividend that Dr. Raymond Benson and I had not expected. At the close of our missionary conference in Argentina, we planned to return directly to the States. But an air ticket mistake changed all that. Finally we found a route to Los Angeles via Asuncion and Panama. It is amazing what Cod will do to bring people together who need each other. He knew I needed that young girl in room seven. So in spite of our lack of visas and our inadequate Spanish the authorities Page 49
There's a bed in room seven of the Southern Baptist Hospital in Asuncion, Paraguay that I will nev er forget. It contained a body mer cifully protected from my eyes by a quonset-style wire cage which was covered by a blanket. "The cage elevates the blanket so it doesn't touch the burns on her body," Dr. Donald McDowell explained, "yet the covering is close enough to keep her warm." The missionary doctor directed my companion, Dr. Raymond Benson, and me to the head of the bed. With relief I saw that Pabla's face had escaped the ravages of the fire that took such a heavy toll of her body. "I am glad I was burned," she told us. And I knew by the way she fixed her big brown eyes on us that she wasn't joking. "You see," she explained, "apart from this acci dent I would never have heard about Jesus." What relaxed gratitude coming from such a pain-wracked being, I thought. But this peace had not come easily, Dr. McDowell informed me. Pabla's bed had been the scene of a fierce battle. For sixty days white- clad Dr. McDowell and his faithful nurses had fought to keep her alive. They pumped into her charred body antibiotics and quarts of plas ma. They did skin grafting and were everlastingly changing bandages. "The burns are deep, affecting both the subcutaneous tissues and muscles," the doctor said. "I be lieve she must have been 'cooking' on the charcoal for some time. "She was a house girl for a po lice officer, and in the cold winter months she slept in the kitchen with the door closed. A charcoal
Made with FlippingBook - Online magazine maker