Participants: Dick Duerksen
Series Code: MMS
Program Code: MMS004151
|
00:01 Hello, this is the Maranatha Minute.
00:02 More than 40 volunteers from the Arden Adventist Church 00:06 in North Carolina hopped on a plane 00:08 right after their Christmas 00:09 to spend their New Year's holiday 00:11 in the Dominican Republic. 00:12 But it wasn't a vacation, they were building a church. 00:16 The Arden, North Carolina team wasn't the only team 00:19 in the Dominican Republic, 00:20 16 volunteers from past Ultimate Workouts 00:24 also arrived in this Caribbean country 00:26 to renovate the Escondido Church. 00:28 The Ultimate Workout reunion team 00:30 resurfaced the baptistery, built a water tank, 00:33 installed new toilets and sinks and held an evangelism meeting. 00:38 The Escondido Church was originally constructed 00:40 by teens from an Ultimate Workout in 2002. 00:44 Check out our Ultimate Workout Facebook page 00:47 to see more photos of this special mission trip 00:49 at facebook.com /ultimateworkout. 00:53 Next, listen in on a candid conversation with doctors, 00:56 dentists and nurses who rediscovered their calling. 01:17 Hello, there. 01:18 I'm Dick Duerksen, your host on "Maranatha Mission Stories." 01:21 Today's program comes from Panama. 01:23 My mission trip that included group of medical professionals 01:26 who came with their families to build a school. 01:29 Their tools, trowels, gloves, 01:31 safety glasses and helmets. 01:33 However they couldn't come to Panama 01:36 without also using their medical skills. 01:39 After they came back from a clinic, 01:41 I sat down with them around a table 01:43 and asked them how it went. 01:45 Come along and listen. 01:47 Okay, so you discovered 01:49 that you're gonna be able to do a medical clinic on Sunday. 01:52 What were your expectations 01:54 when you heard you're gonna go to an indigenous tribe 01:58 who still dress in their way 02:02 and that you're gonna be able to do a medical clinic 02:04 and that the government probably 02:05 isn't really gonna care? 02:06 What were your expectations of what you would do? 02:08 Who wants to answer me? 02:10 Yes, sir. 02:11 Our flexibility was the name of the game. 02:14 We have planned to do this medical clinic 02:16 and it was on, off, on, off, again. 02:20 In fact the day we flew down here 02:22 it was probably not going to happen because, 02:25 A. The medicines were gonna be too expensive 02:28 if we were gonna get them at all. 02:30 So we actually had decided we probably shouldn't do it. 02:33 We came here and the locals said, 02:35 you know, it really would be nice if you did it afterwards. 02:37 So we said okay. 02:38 Then a local physician came 02:40 and said, man, you know, I'm not sure. 02:42 You really should have a permit for this 02:45 that takes two months to get but we of course did get that. 02:49 She said, she will be willing to come along 02:51 with four of her colleagues actually only she showed up. 02:54 And it turned out to be with you an awesome experience. 02:58 We had originally 13 of us planned to go 03:01 and ended up that only four were supposed to see medical patients 03:05 and two dentists but that was way too little 03:08 because we had such a big group of patients show up. 03:11 So we ended up having a chip in 03:13 and we saw over 300 rather than a 50 to 100 that she estimated. 03:17 That was really, really very nice. 03:19 Overwhelming even to the local doctor. 03:21 Yes. 03:22 See, they are not accustomed to this. 03:24 They're not accustomed to groups coming in 03:25 and doing what you did at all 03:27 and so it's just totally strange. 03:29 Tell me your experience. 03:31 Well, for dental team, you know, 03:32 we were actually quite honored 03:34 and actually privilege to have actually a dental missionary 03:37 from Bangladesh Gerardo Toledo 03:39 who was out there for four years. 03:40 So we were actually ready for anything. 03:44 If you've been a dentist in Bangladesh, 03:46 we are ready for anything. 03:47 We had about probably good 100 instruments 03:49 for any type of surgeries and we were able to do 03:53 some productive lots of instruments. 03:56 Lots of Novocaine, we still have probably 03:58 good for another 100 patients, or so-- 04:01 Piece of point, you know, one of the problems 04:03 that we've had everywhere in the world 04:05 is whether you make or how you find a dental chair. 04:08 What did you use for dental chairs? 04:10 Well, I've learned after placing different positions 04:12 that the best to see the patient on the floor, 04:15 and then they laid against our legs and the head is on the leg, 04:19 and so we have a full access to all the teeth. 04:21 And though we had to bend a little bit, 04:24 I've found that that's the best position 04:25 so that's what we're doing. 04:27 Well, that's a whole lot work creating a two table chairs 04:29 leaning against each other or a soccer ball against a tree. 04:33 That really works comfortably? 04:35 Yeah, it is. 04:36 I think the patient is also comfortable 04:37 because if we stand behind the patient, 04:40 sometimes somebody had to be holding their neck. 04:42 In this way they're resting fully against our legs 04:45 and so there is a--we put a pillow or something there 04:47 and so they just rest there 04:49 and actually the last patient we had, 04:51 he had four molars, one on each corner. 04:54 So he said let's do the two bottom ones. 04:56 And so he said, well, do one more. 04:58 And then everybody was packing on 04:59 and say well, the bus is ready 05:00 and he said, well, do the last one so we just did for him. 05:04 Got the last teeth out. 05:05 Yes, yes. Oh, that's fine. 05:07 Is that what you expected for a dental clinic, too? 05:11 Well, you know we really were ready 05:13 and we had one patient where a child had bottle caries, 05:17 every single tooth was basically rotten out. 05:21 And we just basically to carry couple that, 05:24 you know the worst the molars 05:26 and but you know the patients 05:29 every single one of them were so cooperative, 05:31 so compliant, very appreciative... 05:34 Have you ever done this sit down dental chair record. 05:36 You know actually this was very first time 05:38 so I learned new position myself. 05:41 You can use this in your office, right? 05:42 Oh, yeah. 05:45 What are the kinds of dental-- medical care you give? 05:49 What did you give? 05:51 I was able to give some medications to help kids. 05:55 We saw some ear infections 05:56 and some with pretty bad cough, bronchitis hyper illness. 06:00 So it's nice to do, do something to help them feel better. 06:04 Other kids were not as sick, 06:06 maybe just needed some reassurance, 06:08 not sure how frequently they were able to 06:11 see a physician so sometimes a little bit of health guidance 06:14 or reassurance is all that's needed, so I'm-- 06:16 Do you speak Spanish? I do. 06:18 That makes it easier, doesn't it? 06:19 Yeah. 06:22 But you used it a lot? Yes, I tried. 06:24 And parents, how did the parents 06:26 respond to you taking care of their kids? 06:28 I think they were all very grateful to have us there 06:32 and receptive to what we have to say. 06:34 Cool. 06:35 Well, you know we actually had several high school 06:38 and college kids helping us and I think some of them... 06:40 From our volunteers. 06:41 From our volunteers, right, and many of them 06:43 I think had some interest in either medicine 06:46 or something in the medical field 06:47 or want to be a missionary nurse. 06:49 Yeah, okay. 06:50 Nurse or a physician or a dentist 06:52 so I think this really gave them a good opportunity 06:54 to get a good understanding of that. 06:58 And then we actually had also one young lady 07:01 who was from the village, came out, 07:05 she spoke English and Spanish, 07:06 she just said, I want to come and help, 07:08 help to take care of my people and so... 07:10 Then you could have taken her, where did you put her? 07:12 So she was actually right in what we call our triage area. 07:15 Yeah. 07:16 And so after Lilia I would do the intake, 07:19 they would come here 07:20 and then myself and my brother were both the physicians 07:24 and so we're sort of used to these mobs 07:25 of people coming here 07:27 and we tried to send them in the right direction 07:29 and then when they got overwhelmed, 07:31 we tried to take care of some of ourselves 07:33 and then sort of decrease that, 07:36 you know, the bottle neck. 07:37 In the area they were at, 07:38 you know there is essentially an indigenous tribe there, 07:41 indigenous people that we realized 07:45 despite my broken English I speak Spanish as well. 07:47 But despite our efforts, 07:49 we realized that many of the seniors in that area, 07:57 they're not really you know speak Spanish. 07:59 So no English, no Spanish. 08:00 They spoke a specific dialect, 08:03 well, maybe Ngobe-Bugle and so this young lady, 08:09 obviously actually she was sort of the bridge 08:12 and was able to speak to the seniors 08:13 and she, I thought in mind she was a God sent. 08:16 That's true. 08:17 So she was there 08:18 and just a little while said tug on her shoulder 08:21 and said thank you and she just she thanked us 08:23 and she just disappeared. 08:24 And disappeared? Yeah. 08:25 So you don't really know that was your angel. 08:27 They will take a picture there and you know 08:30 and try to express our gratitude. 08:32 Have you looked at the picture, is she still there? 08:34 Yeah. Exactly. 08:38 As you can tell we were having a good time. 08:41 Be right back. 09:13 I spent an hour with a group of caregivers 09:15 after a clinic in Panama. 09:17 The conversation was wonderful. 09:19 Join us. 09:21 In all army cells I was so much surprised 09:23 that the actual sort of commonalities 09:26 that we have, you know, sort of in North America, 09:31 literally we did see a lot of minor illnesses 09:34 and you know coughs and colds just like you see back at home. 09:37 But the same time then you see a lot of sort of conditions 09:42 that obviously we're not accustomed to seen 09:44 like parasitic disease or some tropical diseases, 09:48 lots of different most of tropical rashes 09:50 and we just are not really familiar with, 09:53 you know, so we did sort to rely on the patients as well, 09:59 lot of them actually knew what the problem is 10:01 and so we sort of just refer to their previous knowledge of what 10:05 and they would come in and ask for specific medication 10:07 'cause they know exactly what they needed. 10:08 They said, oh, you know... 10:09 Yeah, we got some of those. 10:10 Sometimes the best, you know the best sort of hint 10:13 or the best advice to a physician is, 10:16 you know, get out of the way and let the patients says 10:18 or let them talk and let them tell you what the problem is, 10:21 as a person trying to impose your will 10:22 or impose your knowledge on them. 10:25 And then I think that 10:26 that was really true as far as with these-- 10:28 I need to find your chart in sometimes. 10:32 What did you experience up there? 10:34 Oh, I think the need thing was just working 10:37 with the native people that were even different 10:40 from the people we are interacting with here. 10:42 They have their own culture, 10:44 they're still very retained in their culture, 10:47 like he mentioned they have their own language, 10:49 they're colorful... 10:50 Their language is, tell me again. Ngobe-Bugle. 10:53 Ngobe-Bugle, I've never heard of that. 10:56 Okay, were they dressing completely differently? 10:57 Yes, their native clothes that they all make at home, 11:00 Lilia brought one there. 11:01 That was like the special dress they make them, 11:04 and it's all handmade with quilting 11:06 but they look really cute, different, very bright colors, 11:09 I bought one this that is not bright color. 11:11 But all this is all handmade with machine. That's nice. 11:15 And they, the little girls make them. 11:17 They teach, they were like 10 or 9 or 12 11:20 and they're the ones doing these things. 11:22 So you were learning all about, 11:23 how you were helping patients. 11:25 Yeah, we asked them to bring 11:27 the stuff if they had something to sell. 11:28 That's right, it always works, doesn't it? 11:30 They always find something different. Yeah. 11:32 She also explained that the peaks on here 11:34 represented the mountains 11:35 because they live up in the mountains 11:37 so that's why they put all the peaks. 11:39 Was this really a way up in the mountain experience? 11:41 Yes. Yes, it really was. 11:42 Wow, one of the things I heard is 11:45 that you were able to do things at this clinic 11:50 without doing a lot of paperwork. 11:55 Well, talk about that. Not too much, yeah. 11:58 Let me talk on that so... Okay. 12:00 So after I got back, 12:03 I sent a couple of my colleagues an email 12:07 'cause they want to know how the clinic went 12:09 and I told them we saw almost 350 people in 6 hours 12:15 and in my ER which is the very busy ER. Yeah. 12:19 We don't even see 300, the most we've seen is 12:21 maybe 280 and that's in a 24 hour period. 12:24 And obviously some of the activity plays a role, 12:27 but a lot of it is the paperwork 12:29 and so it was very refreshing to be able to see someone, 12:33 diagnosed their problem and check a box 12:37 and send them on their way. 12:39 And you know I probably saw myself 12:42 30 or 40 patients during that period. 12:45 You really felt productive. 12:47 I did, felt very productive 12:49 and it was great being able to help people, 12:51 you know, you'd see families come together 12:53 and you could see everyone in their family 12:55 and you know that would probably 12:58 take an hour in the States. That's true, that's true. 13:01 For you to able to see everybody in the family, 13:02 I mean you come into an ER, 13:04 and there maybe families standing around 13:06 but you basically try to get them 13:07 out of the way a little bit. 13:08 Well, you know in the ER, 13:11 you almost spend more time 13:12 on the computer than with patients. Yeah. 13:14 And this was reverse and it was really great, 13:16 that's the way medicine used to be 13:18 and so it was great to be able to do that again. 13:21 I was in the pharmacy and so I'm not a pharmacist, 13:25 I'm a nurse and but it was like he was saying these, 13:29 the patients would come through with their paper 13:32 and I was dispensing drugs left and right to them 13:35 and then I see a friend next to them 13:37 got a certain medication, 13:39 especially the stomach antacids and they were like, 13:42 may I have one of--they didn't just say may I they just point. 13:45 Yeah, I've one of the pink is to. 13:46 Gastrogel, gastrogel. I'm like okay, here you go. 13:50 I mean here in the States could I just be giving 13:52 out the meds to everybody but they knew-- 13:54 Was that good or was that bad? 13:56 It was great because they didn't have go back and say, 13:58 this patient would like to have Gastrogel, 14:00 can you write a prescription for that? 14:02 And then they came back to the pharmacy and get it filled. 14:04 I was like, okay, yes, you can have that one. 14:06 You were able to make that decision right on the spot. 14:08 So, Marcus Wealthy 14:13 the old fashioned Adventist physicians now as you were. 14:17 I'd like you just go around here for a minute 14:20 and talk about the spiritual experience you had 14:25 and the spiritual experience you gave for patients 14:28 and their families and include what you did with prayer. 14:31 Can you do that? 14:32 Let's start here and just go around the circle clockwise. 14:37 So I'm from Loma Linda and they talk about 14:40 whole personal care there 14:41 but I will say during this mission trip, 14:44 I had far more effective 14:47 and far more connected prayers with the patients. 14:52 You know we can give 14:53 the different symptomatic medications 14:54 and they may not be that different 14:55 from what we're used to have there 14:58 but very unlikely we'll see that patient ever, 15:01 ever again and if the last impression you give 15:04 is one you have of a prayer, of a thought, 15:08 of a respect to a God that they might hear about, 15:12 they might not hear about is the only opportunity 15:15 that you would have had 15:16 and I think that is a little differentiated 15:19 between what we do in the building project 15:21 because we're typically not praying with people 15:24 that we don't know and that's one of the things we have 15:26 and you think about we saw 350 plus patients, 15:29 that means each one of them had an opportunity 15:31 to pray with all the physicians. 15:37 I unfortunately didn't get to pray with anybody 15:39 as most of the physicians know 15:41 I had a long line in the pharmacy 15:43 lining all the way around. 15:45 But it was amazing how many patients 15:47 said to me God bless you. 15:49 So I'm going here trying to bless them 15:51 and they are saying to me as I'm running around 15:53 trying to get the medication together, they were blessing me. 15:57 How exciting is that? That's such a deep coming. Please. 16:03 It's amazing how many people just need somebody to talk to 16:07 and that's how I felt seeing a lot of these patients. 16:11 They seem to have a lot of need than probably 16:15 a lot of them are not met. 16:17 And being able to spend sometime with them, listen to them. 16:20 You almost felt bad if you didn't write 16:22 something for them to take home. 16:24 Even if it was just writing as they were looking for. 16:26 But it was a really neat experience to be able 16:28 to spend sometime with them. 16:30 And few some of just bond that we are to form 16:34 like Jesus did when He was healing the people. 16:37 A lot of them may not have been to medic 16:41 or physical illness that He would be healing 16:45 but truly trying to heal the soul. 16:48 So I think a lot of the role of that we had in this, 16:53 you know, clinic was really trying 16:55 to connect with the person spiritually as well. 16:59 At this point, the interview moves from the clinic 17:02 to how they prayed with their patients. 17:05 Well, let's take just a minute and look at some of the projects 17:07 that are upcoming here at Maranatha, 17:09 and then we'll come back to Panama. 17:12 Mission trips are a common event in the Christian world. 17:15 Certainly, Maranatha didn't invent 17:17 the concept of the mission trip 17:18 but we've had more than 40 years of experience. 17:22 We work with hundreds of church 17:23 and school groups to organize mission trips. 17:26 From selecting a site to providing 17:28 in-country support staff, 17:30 Maranatha makes it easy for anyone to coronate a trip. 17:34 If you're interested in taking a team on a mission trip, 17:37 contact our projects department to discuss the details. 17:40 We'll walk you through the steps 17:42 and even give you ideas on fundraising and outreach. 17:45 If you don't want to lead a trip 17:47 but still want to go on a project, 17:49 simply go on the Maranatha website 17:51 to see what opportunities 17:53 are available on our project calendar. 17:56 Each year we have dozens of opportunities 17:59 for individuals wanting to serve. 18:01 Anyone can join, just fill out a registration form 18:04 and we'll contact you to begin the conversation. 18:07 To serve with Maranatha, go to maranatha.org. 18:12 Our program today features a group of clinicians, 18:16 professional caregivers who were with us in Panama 18:19 and at this point of conversation, 18:20 everything shits and you'll find prayer 18:23 in the center of it. Watch this. 18:26 You know for me I prayed with my patients 18:29 from time to time in the States, 18:31 especially those before procedures. 18:33 But here, it was neat because 18:35 you could pray with every single one, 18:37 if I did that in the States, 18:38 they'd probably think I'm pretty crazy. 18:40 But here, it was almost expected 18:42 so it was really, really a nice experience. 18:45 Just refreshing, isn't it? Yes, absolutely amazing. 18:48 Yes, you know I did get to pray 18:50 and I had opportunity to pray with a few patients 18:54 but honestly you know I thought that I gained 18:56 more than what I was able to offering the patients. 18:59 And I really I do feel 19:00 you certainly blessed for that opportunity. 19:03 It's amazing to me how many times I hear that comment 19:06 from a physician on a mission trip. 19:09 Maybe it's the direct contact that you've been talking about 19:12 or the ability to listen more, 19:15 but it really is effective. Please. 19:18 I had a little bit of change of my see of mind 19:22 partway through the clinic. 19:23 At first I think I felt the trappings of word back home, 19:28 you see a long line of patients out the door 19:31 and in triage and my natural response is you know, 19:36 I need to speed up and get and try to help 19:39 as many of these people as quickly as possible. 19:43 And after few patients, 19:45 I realized this is not my regular clinic, 19:48 I'm here not just to try to make them physically better 19:53 but spiritually as well 19:56 and so I kind of slowdown a little bit, 19:58 took more time, tried to pray in my rudimentary Spanish 20:03 and as a result I felt much more peace 20:07 than I think that made a huge difference. 20:10 You felt that peace so did they? 20:12 Yeah. 20:14 I saw pediatrics patients and... 20:16 So you just saw all the kids. 20:18 Saw the kids, between the two of us. 20:20 Yeah, that's fun. Saw all the kids. 20:22 And like they've mentioned before many of them 20:25 came for very basic things, cough, fever, diahorrea, 20:28 stomach pain, headache, you know, typical things. 20:31 All the stuff that on the television 20:33 when it says you got to take this, 20:34 or by the way the side effects are? 20:36 Right. 20:37 All of those you saw, okay. 20:38 All of that. 20:39 So you know maybe not terribly, terribly be sick or esoteric 20:44 but I found like, you know they came to us, 20:47 they wanted to see the American physicians, 20:48 they wanted to have their kids examined to be reassured, 20:52 and then I keep praying with them 20:54 just really gave them that sense of care. 20:58 Were these people Christians? 20:59 I don't know honestly. 21:01 I don't think that they are 21:02 because I heard that and I'm not sure 21:05 if I'm not good but I heard 21:06 that there's some things up there 21:07 with sun worshipers and some... 21:09 Lots of on a mission. Lots of on a mission. 21:11 Very different things from what we are accustomed to. 21:14 But definitely nobody was offended. 21:16 You know I always ask may I pray with you 21:18 and nobody did can't. 21:20 Nobody said no please? 21:21 Nobody said no and they did seem very appreciative 21:24 and I think again seeing patients 21:26 as something that you're doing 21:28 because you want to use your skills 21:30 not only to help them physically but to nurture them spiritually. 21:34 There's so much more for you than seeing patients 21:36 when you're earning a paycheck. 21:39 So when you're doing a emergency room work at home, 21:41 you don't often pray with patients, do you? 21:44 No, it's quite difficult. It's trash piece, 21:47 but actually I invite yes the question 21:49 because what inspired me the most about this clinic 21:52 was actually seeing I guess my new colleagues here. 21:56 You know they took the time 21:57 they prayed with the different patients 22:00 and I sort of thought about that, 22:01 you know, as an Adventist, as a Christian, 22:06 you know you can give hope to your patients. 22:10 Lot of them, you know I've met actually several Adventists 22:12 that have come to my ER and one of them came on a Saturday 22:15 and said, you know I was at church 22:17 and I sort of felt passed out 22:19 and so, you know, Saturday church, 22:21 I said well, are you an Adventist? 22:22 And then right away, there's a connection, 22:24 a familiarity and comfort. 22:26 And so, you know, what I gained most out of this experience 22:29 was seeing that if there is, 22:34 you know, if you can create some comfort through your religion, 22:38 through the love of God, through love of Christ, 22:41 then you can put patients at ease. 22:43 And so I'm actually trying to in my mind think of ways 22:46 how I can incorporate that in my practice 22:48 when I get back home. 22:50 Give me the last word. 22:53 Well, as the Loma Linda model says "To Make Man Whole", 22:56 it was truly one of those experience 22:58 where we could touch the patient, 23:01 hug them, give them emotional healing, 23:05 detract the tooth whatever the toothache, 23:07 the physical healing and to be able to pray with them, 23:10 do physical healing and have spiritual healing. 23:13 Doctor Allen's daughter was my translator, Rebecca. 23:16 And you know to see a youngster, 23:18 a teenager to hold patient's hand 23:21 and just truly just with the caring mind to pray 23:26 and to see witness that was really a touching moment for me. 23:31 Martha Lucia lives in the Dominican Republic. 23:34 Three years ago, she decided 23:35 to start a church within in home. 23:37 The church she'd been going to was too far away. 23:40 You have to understand that in the Dominican Republic, 23:43 many people don't own cars. 23:45 They take public transportation or walk, 23:47 sometimes running a simple errand 23:49 or even going to church can take a lot of time. 23:52 This was the case with Martha Lucia, 23:55 so she and her husband opened up 23:56 their living room for worship services. 23:58 They invited everyone in their community 24:01 and on the first meeting, they had 25 people. 24:04 The problem was they didn't have enough chairs. 24:07 She told her husband, go out and buy some more chairs. 24:10 But neither of them had any money. 24:12 So Martha Lucia and her husband prayed for chairs 24:15 so that the people gathered in their home 24:16 could have a place to sit during worship. 24:19 In the meantime the group kept meeting and growing. 24:23 Soon, the group needed more room 24:25 and Martha Lucia was able to find another space to meet, 24:28 but it needed to be cleaned. 24:30 It was there while cleaning that she came upon a surprise 24:34 that brought her to tears. 24:35 In a dusty old folder, Martha Lucia found $250, 24:40 it was a miracle. 24:42 Martha Lucia purchased more chairs 24:45 and today those same chairs are now 24:47 in a beautiful new one day church 24:49 that generous Maranatha donors and volunteers help to build. 24:54 The ultimate pretty going church, 24:56 Martha Lucia's church was dedicated in December, 2013. 25:01 When Martha Lucia started the church group in her home, 25:04 she was stepping out in faith, 25:06 she believed the Lord would provide 25:08 and He did in a very big way. 25:11 There are so many people like Martha Lucia 25:13 who are praying for place to worship 25:15 and now Maranatha is stepping out in faith 25:17 to build more churches in the Dominican Republic. 25:20 Please help be part of the miracles 25:22 by making a donation. 25:24 Visit our website or call toll free number now. 25:32 Several years ago, my good friend Tom Werner, 25:34 president of Adventist Health Systems, 25:36 handed me an article listing 10 reasons 25:39 to not do short term mission trips. 25:42 Read this he said, come up with a strategy 25:44 that answers the problems 25:45 and gives more of our hospital employees involved in missions. 25:49 Well, the strategy we developed, 25:51 the footprint plan for missions has hundreds of employees 25:55 involved in footprint mission trips 25:57 all around the world every year. 25:59 One part of the footprint 26:00 is the active involvement of physicians, 26:03 nurses and other caregivers in mission trips 26:05 that have been planned to bring a long-term impact. 26:10 Something very similar happens at Maranatha. 26:12 When a Maranatha volunteer team 26:14 chooses to conduct medical clinics, 26:16 my wife Brenda helps organize the plans 26:19 and when the volunteers arrive, 26:21 they're prepared to share medical skills 26:23 in ways of true relief a meaningful 26:27 long term footprint wherever they serve. 26:30 However, another key aspect of footprint medical missions 26:35 is that the caregivers themselves 26:37 will be changed in ways 26:38 that are transformative in clinical practices at home. 26:43 As I've listened to caregivers, 26:44 returning from mission trips around the world, 26:46 I've heard many phrases like, I will never treat a patient 26:50 as just a broken arm again or these clinics have shown me 26:56 that every person I treat is a prince or princess, 26:59 a child of God deserving the very best I can give. 27:03 The footprint of long term transformation 27:07 in clinical practice, emergency room, 27:10 dental care, caregiver listening, 27:13 that leaves trail of kindness, 27:15 honor, value and love in many lives all around the world. 27:20 There's an old Christian song comes to mind, 27:23 they will know we are Christians by our love. 27:28 Short term mission trips well planned 27:32 are really long term lessons in God's love. 27:37 Thanks for joining us today. 27:39 I'm Dick Duerksen, your host of Maranatha Mission Stories 27:42 looking forward to see you next week 27:43 as together we make footprints with God's love. |
Revised 2014-12-17