Karibu Aviya – by chad

Aviya Zuri Hoffman

Tuesday morning, as I was giving our dishwasher (Samuel) a little  reprieve, I found myself weeping over a soapy cloth and sink half full of dirty dishes.  I was so overwhelmed with the presence of the Lord, thanking Him for the miracle that He brought to our family just five days earlier.  Over the last several years in Africa, we have had the opportunity to witness many amazing things:  the blind see, the deaf hear, the lame walk, the sick and diseased are healed.  But if I am allowed to pick my favorite miracle, it would be our little Aviya Zuri.

From the very beginning, Aviya has been nothing but surprises.  Somehow, despite a nearly thirteen-year-old vasectomy, she was conceived on our fifteenth anniversary.  This unexpected pregnancy was an occurrence that was prophesied more than ten years earlier by our friend Prophet Ed Lixey.  Though of course, at the time, I was pretty sure that he had “missed it.”

On the 5^thof January, while carefully monitoring Sara’s labor, our midwife (Lucy Muchiri) broke Aviya’s bag of water at about 12:30pm. Both Sabra and Samuel were delivered in less than 45 minutes after their bag of water was broken, so I was expecting things to move quickly.  While we were waiting for Sara’s contractions to move closer together, we shared Prophet Ed’s word with Lucy.  Later Lucy told us that when Aviya’s life was hanging in the balance, the Lord reminded her of the prophetic word and she knew in her heart that Aviya was to live and not die.

Lucy and Sara waiting for contractions to grow closer together.

However, our little miracle took nine hours before she made her début.  We were so thankful to await her arrival in the comfort of our own home.  Ever since we knew that we were expecting, we had been planning for a home birth at our apartment in Nairobi.  After hours of waiting, and much to our surprise, it wasn’t a head that we saw at 9pm, it was a little bottom.  Somehow, late in the pregnancy, Aviya found a way to flip around and was now being born in a jack-knife breech position; definitely not ideal, especially at a home birth.

Our midwife Lucy was just as surprised as we were to see the little bottom coming first.  She called me over and I held Aviya as Lucy pulled out one leg at a time.  It was emotionally difficult to hold her lifeless, limp, blue body as Lucy reached in to free Aviya’s arms, which were raised above her head.  Finally, after a few short minutes that seemed like an eternity, Aviya was freed up to her neck, but her head remained stuck in Sara’s cervix.  Sara was pushing and yet Aviya remained with her body hanging limply in my hands.  At that point, Lucy quickly moved to perform an episiotomy so that we could free Aviya.  One small cut, and Aviya’s head was finally able to clear the birth canal.

Samuel is finally a big brother!

At 9:24pm Aviya’s body came into the world.  Without breath, without movement we laid her on the bed below Sara.  By now we were all praying over Aviya.  For the next thirty-six minutes we continued to work on cleaning the airway and administered infant CPR under Lucy’s direction.  Lucy said that there was only a faint heartbeat.  Sara kept telling us to call Aviya back as she sang a song in the Spirit over our little miracle.  At some point, Sara grabbed the computer and typed that Aviya was born and NOT breathing on her Facebook status.  In between calling for the ambulance, I called one of my Pastor friends that I knew was praying for us at that time.  Within moments, people all over the world were lifting Aviya up in prayer.  Friends far and wide were calling life and breath into our precious little girl in the name of Jesus.  In the midst of the chaos, a tangible sense of the Presence of the Lord filled the room.  Lucy continued to speak life as she took care of Aviya.  Sabra was speaking life and praying in the Spirit as she took her turn administering CPR to her little sister.  At one point, I felt praise begin to rise in my spirit-man and found myself walking around the room clapping and praising the Lord.  Everyone began to thank God for Aviya’s life.  Then at 10:00pm, Aviya took her first breath, followed by another and another; then a few small cries.  Our miracle was born!

Sabra and Aviya

While doing the dishes this morning, I found myself recounting all that the Lord has done for us over the past few months.  I remembered that on the morning of December 15, I was asking the Lord about Aviya.  With Sabra and Samuel the Lord told us so much about them before they were born and spoke many promises over their lives.  When asking about Aviya, the Lord told me that He is full of surprises and even her birth would be a surprise.  Little did I know that she would come bottom first into our lives with a birth experience that would bring miracle after miracle.  Aviya’s name means “my Father is Yahweh.”  According to her Grandpa Hoffman, Aviya just wanted to spend the first 36 minutes of her life with Him before coming to join us.  I can definitely believe that to be true for our precious little girl who remains a mystery, full of surprises.  We know that Daddy God has great things in store for His little Aviya Zuri.

Ready for the Kenyan sunshine.

Karibu(welcome in Swahili) Aviya!
…now back to changing dirty diapers and playing kissy-face.  I never expected to see these days again.  God is so good.

Playing kissy face.