HERE IS YOUR MONTHLY UPDATE...
DEDICATION DAY AT THE CLINIC
Forever faithful, God provided an answer and calmed my fears, and He did so at the perfect moment - the evening of the clinic’s dedication. The morning worship service and afternoon dedication had been tiring for us, and we all were looking forward to some much needed rest before seeing our first patients the next day. As we were closing the door to the clinic, however, a mother carrying her son approached from a distance. I recognized her at once. She was one of the not-so-sick, a lady who tended to come for medical care at the first hint of a symptom. Since our first visit in 2011, we had seen her and her children every trip and had never found anything significant to treat. Now, at the end of a long day and with the clinic not officially open, she was coming again.
“My baby’s sick with a fever,” she said to me when she arrived at the door. “Can you see him?”
I looked at the child she was carrying. As in years past, there was no appearance that he was acutely ill. My first inclination was to tell her to return with him the next morning during scheduled clinic hours. Before I could say this, however, a question entered my mind: what would Jesus do with this boy?
Knowing the answer, I took the boy into my arms and entered one of the exam rooms. With the aid of a penlight and tongue depressor, I was able to examine his throat. What I saw surprised and alarmed me. The child’s tonsils were very large and pustular, so much so that his upper airway was at risk of being acutely compromised. It was one of the worst cases of exudative tonsillitis I had ever seen, and it needed treatment immediately.
We treated him that day with antibiotics for suspected streptococcal pharyngitis and with acetaminophen for pain and fever. We also provided him enough medication to complete the duration of his care, and we urged the mother to bring him back the next day for re-examination. Before leaving, we offered a prayer to Christ on behalf of the young boy.
As the mother’s silhouette disappeared into the dusk and the clinic’s door closed, I realized that we had just treated the first patient at the Los Laureles clinic. Instead of being marginal or meaningless, which I had feared, he was truly sick and his treatment was emergent. It was as if Christ were saying to me, “Don’t worry. I’ve got control of this. Open these doors in My name and treat every patient with My love. That’s all I ask you to do. I will make sure those who are truly sick get inside.”
What a gloriously ironic turn of events! We had modeled our clinic on four friends who brought a sick man to Jesus. On the day the clinic was dedicated, Jesus had assumed the role of those four friends by bringing a sick boy to us. Furthermore, He was promising do the same in the future. No obstacle, even a crowd of the not-so-sick, would stand in His way. He would make sure the neediest received care. There was no need for me to worry, nothing for me to fear.
(Next month's update will give details about ordering your copy of Corner of the Cot.)
- Pray for the Medical Mission Trip October 7-13Highlights:
-- medical clinics at Los Laureles and Los Pinos
-- Operation Amalia: a new infant ministry at the Jalapa dump
-- youth choir emphasis and Thursday night worship concert
-- diabetic education
- Los Laureles clinic
A medical mission team from Arkansas ministered at the Los Laureles clinic in July. The team was led by Larry and Sarah Plyler, former Southern Baptist missionaries to Guatemala. Here’s a report from Larry:
What a blessing it was to work in the Los Laureles Clinic! We were able to see 695 patients, we gave out 595 pair of reading glasses, we had one dentist who pulled 136 teeth, and we also gave out around 130 pair of sun glasses. We were able to visit the families at the dump. We carried a VBS and door-to-door evangelism team and visited in many homes trying to build more lasting relationships. God truly blessed our team.
You have a real "jewel" in Lilian. We love her and her family very much. She is certainly a dedicated and faithful worker. We have known her family for 20 years – her Mom and Dad (Carmelino), brother Marlin, her uncles, aunts and cousins. They all are truly great Christian people who are like family to Sarah and me. We are praying God's blessing on you guys and the people of Los Laureles.In Christ, Larry - Los Pinos clinic
The foundation and roof are completed. A cistern and septic tank have been added. Inside work is underway. The unfinished clinic will be used this October for the first time. Dedication of the clinic will be in early May, 2018.
- Coming next month in paperbackCorner of the Cot:the why, how, and what of Four Friends InternationalRead another excerpt below about thefirst patient treated at the Los Laureles clinic:
DEDICATION DAY AT THE CLINIC
Although I
kept it to myself, I had a nagging concern about what would happen when the
clinic began to open its doors on a weekly basis. Up to that point, our medical
work in Los Laureles had consisted of teams treating up to one thousand
patients in a week’s time. If those numbers turned out to be the weekly norm, I
feared that the clinic would spend too much of its time and resources treating
the marginally ill instead of the acutely and chronically ill. I wondered if
the diabetics, the hypertensives, the seizure patients, and those who were
truly sick would be unable to get care because of the presence of the
not-so-sick. Just as the crowd had hindered the four men in the gospels in their
quest to get their paralyzed friend to Jesus, I feared that those who needed
help the most would be thwarted - and
the clinic staff overwhelmed- by
the sheer number of patients before them. Would the clinic really be able to
help the sickest and neediest? This was my unspoken question and greatest
worry.
Forever faithful, God provided an answer and calmed my fears, and He did so at the perfect moment - the evening of the clinic’s dedication. The morning worship service and afternoon dedication had been tiring for us, and we all were looking forward to some much needed rest before seeing our first patients the next day. As we were closing the door to the clinic, however, a mother carrying her son approached from a distance. I recognized her at once. She was one of the not-so-sick, a lady who tended to come for medical care at the first hint of a symptom. Since our first visit in 2011, we had seen her and her children every trip and had never found anything significant to treat. Now, at the end of a long day and with the clinic not officially open, she was coming again.
“My baby’s sick with a fever,” she said to me when she arrived at the door. “Can you see him?”
I looked at the child she was carrying. As in years past, there was no appearance that he was acutely ill. My first inclination was to tell her to return with him the next morning during scheduled clinic hours. Before I could say this, however, a question entered my mind: what would Jesus do with this boy?
Knowing the answer, I took the boy into my arms and entered one of the exam rooms. With the aid of a penlight and tongue depressor, I was able to examine his throat. What I saw surprised and alarmed me. The child’s tonsils were very large and pustular, so much so that his upper airway was at risk of being acutely compromised. It was one of the worst cases of exudative tonsillitis I had ever seen, and it needed treatment immediately.
We treated him that day with antibiotics for suspected streptococcal pharyngitis and with acetaminophen for pain and fever. We also provided him enough medication to complete the duration of his care, and we urged the mother to bring him back the next day for re-examination. Before leaving, we offered a prayer to Christ on behalf of the young boy.
As the mother’s silhouette disappeared into the dusk and the clinic’s door closed, I realized that we had just treated the first patient at the Los Laureles clinic. Instead of being marginal or meaningless, which I had feared, he was truly sick and his treatment was emergent. It was as if Christ were saying to me, “Don’t worry. I’ve got control of this. Open these doors in My name and treat every patient with My love. That’s all I ask you to do. I will make sure those who are truly sick get inside.”
What a gloriously ironic turn of events! We had modeled our clinic on four friends who brought a sick man to Jesus. On the day the clinic was dedicated, Jesus had assumed the role of those four friends by bringing a sick boy to us. Furthermore, He was promising do the same in the future. No obstacle, even a crowd of the not-so-sick, would stand in His way. He would make sure the neediest received care. There was no need for me to worry, nothing for me to fear.
(Next month's update will give details about ordering your copy of Corner of the Cot.)
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