Michigan — Darrel and Kristina Muehlhauser had only been in the mission field a few days when there was a knock at their door. One of the guards for the compound wanted Kristina to go with him to the hospital where his wife would soon give birth to their second child.

At the hospital, each patient brings someone to take care of them — cook for them, do their laundry, bring them water or whatever they need, and tell the nurses if there is a problem. Kristina watched as the new mother, who had no sheet or baby blanket, lay down on a brown vinyl mattress covered with two small pieces of fabric. Even though it was a chilly night, there was nothing to cover her baby with.

Kristina remembered her container of household goods still sitting at the dock in America, waiting to be shipped. With all her heart, she wished she had one of her sheets to give to this new mother.

A few weeks later, Darrel and Kristina were asked to give another new mother and her baby a ride home from the hospital. Arriving at the family’s apartment, they found four people were living in one small room, only a little larger than a king-size bed. In this room, they had only one twin bed and one small table. The young mother asked, “Please, may I work for you so that when your shipment comes I could get a bed sheet? I only have one and it is hard when it needs to be changed.”

Yes, thought Kristina, you may have a bed sheet — even if you have mine.

Kristina’s burden for mothers to have sheets was shared in an e-mail to her brother, Homer Trecartin. Homer shared Kristina’s story with Linda Fuchs, Michigan Conference assistant education superintendent. In November, the teachers in the Michigan Conference received an urgent e-mail from Linda asking if they would like to help with a Uganda Bible Lab project.

Students in grades 1–6 at the Holland (Mich.) Elementary School joined their teachers, Darlene Huckabay and Genie Philo, and Ingrid Slikkers, student teacher, in collecting sheets and baby blankets for Africa. The students had to work quickly — they had only three days — since everything collected needed to be shipped in the Muehlhausers' container to assure a safe arrival. Thirty-one sheets and fifteen blankets were collected and sent to the mission field!

When the Muehlhausers' 20-foot shipping container arrived after a nearly nine-month wait, they excitedly unpacked things they had forgotten they owned. But even more exciting was finding boxes and boxes of sheets, baby blankets, towels, and toys to share with the mothers and children in Uganda sent from schools and churches all over America.

The last thing off their container was the piano. Kristina immediately sat down in the midst of all the boxes and furniture and began to play, “How Great Thou Art.”

What a blessing the Bible Lab program is to children and adults!

Linda Fuchs, Michigan Conference associate education superintendent