The Lesson of the 352

Today was an amazing day for our clinic team. Of course, it was an amazing day for our construction team, too, but for this post I am going to focus on what our medical team experienced today.

Our mobile clinic went up into the hills aound Lago de Yojoa to the village of Lomas de Aguila. The small and remote village had not had a medical team of any kind - from any ministry or NGO - in over two years. The village is so remote that it is only accessible by 4-wheel drive vehicles.

When the team arrived at the school where the clinic was to be held there were already hundreds of people (many of them children) in line waiting to be seen. One of the pharmacy workers immediately said: "Lord, help us." That was quickly followed by a round of amens. Whether is was the long line of patients, the scores of anxious children or the mind-boggling number of prescriptions that were to be written the task ahead was daunting. One of our children's workers summed it up best: "It's just like eating an elephant. You have to take it one bite at a time."

We were blessed to have six medical providers today and as a result our clinic was able to see 352 patients today. That is not exactly correct...352 patients had prescriptions written for them. Some patients simply received vitamins and were sent on their way. Others could only be prayed for because we were not set up to meet their specific type of medical need. Let me tell you about one of them...

A young woman who was about 18 years old came to see Glenda, one of our providers. She had an acute medical problem that she has dealt with for about three months with no relief. Unfortunately, we were unable to treat her problem or even provide any medication for her. Glenda's husband Don was translating for the patient and he began to pray for her. As Don prayed powerfully for the miraculous healing of this young woman Glenda recalled the story in the Bible of the woman with the bleeding problem. As soon as Don finished praying he immediately began to tell the woman the same story that Glenda had recalled. Don encouraged her with these words: "God can do what no doctor can do and He is stronger than any medicine. God knows exactly what you need."

As we debriefed this evening, the recurring theme was how God provided in difficult circumstances. The number of children who attended today was more than the space for children could contain so the children's workers developed a rotation system that allowed all of the children tim to do arts and crafts and be loved on individually. This area is so remote that many of the kids do not even attend school; they spend their time working in the fields or doing other jobs that help provide a meager income for their family. Consider this: some of there children had NEVER even seen a crayon before today. They were amazed at how the bright and beautiful colors could be used to create works of art. God gifted these precious workers with patience, strength, and an unending supply of love for these children.

God's sustaining strength and provision was also seen at work in our pharmacy. A somewhat behind-the-scenes element of our clinic, the pharmacy is still vital to what we do on these medical trips. Getting the correct medicines in the proper doses with the right instructions in a foreign language is no easy feat and yet our trio of Emily, Deanna and Jim pull it off day after day. With each patient averaging four prescriptions apiece the pharmacy team filledover 1400 prescriptions today alone. The Lord provided just enough medications for the day (but now we are praying that God will provide more meds from local pharmacies tomorrow). Once again, God stepped in exactly when we needed Him to do so.

I want to share with you two seperate readings. The first is from John 15 where Jesus tells the disciples that He is the true vine. The second is a poem by e.e. cummings. While the poem was undoubtedly written for a lover, read it as a response to the words of Jesus. Read it as a prayer.

"I am the Real Vine and my Father is the Farmer. He cuts off every branch of me that doesn't bear grapes. And every branch that is grape-bearing he prunes back so it will bear even more. You are already pruned back by the message I have spoken.

"Live in me. Make your home in me just as I do in you. In the same way that a branch can't bear grapes by itself but only by being joined to the vine, you can't bear fruit unless you are joined with me.

"I am the Vine, you are the branches. When you're joined with me and I with you, the relation intimate and organic, the harvest is sure to be abundant. Separated, you can't produce a thing. Anyone who separates from me is deadwood, gathered up and thrown on the bonfire. But if you make yourselves at home with me and my words are at home in you, you can be sure that whatever you ask will be listened to and acted upon. This is how my Father shows who he is—when you produce grapes, when you mature as my disciples.

And now our response...

i carry your heart with me(i carry it in
my heart)i am never without it(anywhere
i go you go,my dear; and whatever is done
by only me is your doing,my darling)

i fear no fate(for you are my fate,my sweet)i want
no world(for beautiful you are my world,my true)
and it's you are whatever a moon has always meant
and whatever a sun will always sing is you

here is the deepest secret nobody knows
(here is the root of the root and the bud of the bud
and the sky of the sky of a tree called life; which grows
higher than the soul can hope or mind can hide)
and this is the wonder that's keeping the stars apart

i carry your heart(i carry it in my heart)

The lesson of the 352 is this: There is nothing that we can do to bring glory and honor to God apart from His spirit dwelling within us. Nothing! But when we are filled with His spirit there is NOTHING that we can't do to bring honor and glory to His name.

What every member of our clinic team did today they only did through the power of the Holy Spirit. What they could not do in their own strength they allowed God to do through them in His strength. Thank you, Lord for allowing us to once again be apart of Your plan and for finding us to be worthy vessels in Your hands.


Soli Deo gloria,
Michael