This year might look nothing like you planned. It may be tempting to get used to it or grumble about what has changed. But things aren’t going to stay this way forever. There is so much to look forward to! So as this year comes to a close, let’s look at three ways to continually stir up your faith.
1. Encourage Yourself in God’s Word
We can receive encouragement every day by hearing God’s word. (Romans 10:17) Not just during this season or the next–but every day. In difficult seasons or good, by making a habit of spending time in God’s word, we prepare ourselves mentally and emotionally. It can be a challenge to want to hear what is in the Bible or in prayer at times, but when we are disciplined, then we do this. We know God loves us and always has the best in mind, and we love God too…and want the best to be on our minds as well!
Discipline helps us form and maintain the habit of every day spending time in God’s word and becoming trained in it. It may not always be our first instinct to get ready for the day and then sit quietly with God, or to make that time later in the day. But if we do, we are thankful to notice God is still the best coach and mentor! He brings peace to every situation and certainly encourages us.
2. Spending Time in God’s Presence
Faith is so often stirred by spending regular time in prayer, praise, thanksgiving, and quiet time with God. If you have gotten away from this, you can go right back to it and be strengthened once more. Romans 12:12 says to “Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer.” When we make the effort to do this, it helps us be consistent in how we hope and where we place our faith.
Discouraging news can be distracting, but we have a certain hope in Christ that encourages us. Time spent worshipping God and sitting in his presence changes things. You will notice there is so much to praise him and celebrate. He truly is good and he is for you!
3. Remembering God’s Goodness
God is bringing us through this season and any other season to come. It’s just like before! He’s answered our prayers before. We each have a history with him that shows us he is faithful. There are people reading this right now who have prayed about a thing and received the answer then, soon, or years later. God listened and did not forget. Not only that, but he over-delivers. So you can stir up your faith by recalling his goodness too.
All Things Work Together for Our Good
It can be frustrating to wait. Waiting in line, waiting for an answer, waiting for the Internet to speed up. We have become so used to being able to order something with a few clicks on a website, and it’s here in a couple of days. But we know we can wait with a thankful heart. God knows what work needs to be done, and he knows just how to get all the pieces to come together in a wonderful way. Staying focused on God and his goodness might not always decrease the wait, but it will help you feel and remember how close he is to you, how good he is, and stir up your faith.
Have you been looking for a way to stay involved with medical missions trips this year? Perhaps you could consider becoming one of our volunteers, a monthly supporter through donations, or sign up to go on a medical missions trip with us! Go to our website, Mission Partners for Christ, to learn more about how to volunteer or join us. Looking forward to seeing you soon!
Have you considered how you–a current medical missionary–might encourage medical missionaries of the future? The pandemic has not ended our ability to reach people globally and participate in making a difference! We are blessed to be a blessing in many ways over the last year. This mercy and grace is continual.
Current medical missionaries might not yet be going on as many trips, but are still able to communicate with organizations and people in some of those places or help raise funds or donate supplies that support training doctors, staff, and patients in places where there is a lack of basic medical care. They are still able to prepare for a future trip and stay updated on things related to where they are going.
There are other things that current medical missions volunteers can do as well! We would like to share with you three things you can do to encourage medical missionaries of the future.
Be An Advocate
There might be medical residents who have not been a regular part of their faith community since they started to learn and practice, but they dig in and their faith deepens. As this happens, they seek new ways to give back to the world. Or there could be a registered nurse who has just moved to your city and is looking for an extra way to be plugged-in to a new volunteer opportunity. A newly certified medical aide might be unaware of how they can volunteer or participate in medical missions trips. A current medical missions volunteer like you could advocate for global medical care issues.
You can shine a light on the different ways these medical missions volunteers of the future could be a part of the changes they are eager to see. Your advocacy may encourage medical missionaries to seek out organizations where they can volunteer sooner rather than later!
Share Your Testimonies
Your testimonies can be the spark that lights up what is already in the heart of future medical missionaries who are not even grown up yet. Your compassion and dedication shines bright when you share the good things you have seen or heard. Not only that, but the glory of the gospel of Jesus is highlighted.
Your words encourage those who have dreamed of becoming a doctor, nurse, medical aide, counselor, or being part of some kind of medical missions team, and stir up the faith of everyone who hears you. You could blog, ask for permission to share about things that have changed since your last trip in church, or find other creative ways to share your testimonies as part of your regular day. You could do something similar to what we do on our Facebook page, and post live videos sharing good news and prayers.
Educate
As medical care professionals and volunteers, there are things you stay updated about on a regular basis that other people might not. You could provide education about some of those things in a way that brings hope and clarity to people who might one day become a medical care professional or volunteer. What you share about malaria in a region where there is a lack of access to basic health care could stay on the heart of a person who is thinking about going back to medical school now that their children are grown up. Or someone who is considering which medical field to go into might be moved to hear about how some in hard-to-reach places are accessing eyecare or dental work. You never know who might benefit from a bit of news that you share.
Mercy and grace are experienced every time there is a miracle in someone’s life. It is certainly a miracle any time someone receives much-needed basic medical care when they previously could not. It is also a miracle when someone decides to become a medical professional because they heard the story of someone like you. Or because they experienced the compassion of someone like you on the job.
Would You Like to Learn More?
Are you interested in learning more about our current upcoming 2023 trip to Guinea? We are leaving February 4, 2023 so there is plenty of time to sign up if you have considered it. If you would like to learn more about Mission Partners for Christ, we’d love to answer your questions. We look forward to hearing from you!
We often cover how to prepare for missions or how to support someone going on a trip, but it’s also important to have a plan for what to do when you return from a missions trip.
An experience like a medical mission trip is, more often than not, life-changing. If you are going to experience transformation, you need to be prepared for what it’s like to come home after returning from a missions trip.
1. Take care of yourself physically, spiritually, and emotionally.
You will likely suffer from jet-lag and exhaustion from all the emotional, physical, and spiritual work you were doing on the mission field. Be sure to take care of yourself! Get some rest, eat right, slow down, and don’t jump into a super busy, chaotic schedule right off the bat. Ease your way back into your regular routine.
Also, be sure to create for yourself an environment that gives you time to process everything you experienced. You can do this by unpacking all of your things so you don’t have that hanging over your head and then sit down and journal or think through the changes you want to make or the memories you want to remember.
2. Expect yourself to be off balance.
Many people report being overwhelmed returning to their culture. They go from a culture that barely has their needs met on a day-to-day basis to then coming back home and seeing people who are constantly seeking more and more despite the fact they have so much. When your worldview is changed from being overseas, it’s hard to see your normal life the same way. Even though nothing has changed about your life at home, everything may look different because you will begin to see your world through a different lens.
Give yourself grace. Don’t try to make any major decisions right away when you return from a mission trip.. Give yourself permission and the space to feel differently and decide if there’s anything you want to change about your life in the future.
3. Make more time for prayer than you think you need.
The Lord will want to be a part of you processing your trip. He may want to reveal things to you that you will only be able to hear in communion with Him. And He most definitely wants to be there for you as you grieve what you saw and share it with others.
It’s also important to pray for the people you’ve left behind. Pray for their health. Pray for the spiritual seeds that you planted to start to grow and flourish! Spend time with the Lord afterward and make prayer a priority!
4. Find someone to listen without judgement.
You may feel alone when you return from a medical mission trip. But you don’t have to be! Find someone who you can share about your time away. Having a listening ear will make the world of difference! It will likely be someone who was with you from the start when you made a decision to join a mission trip. Make sure he/she understands a cross-cultural experience so that you can feel supported and understood after returning from a missions trip.
We would love to connect with you and hear about your medical mission trip experience! If you are interested in joining one of our trips, contact us here.
In this week’s post our founder, Sheri Postma, shares about a highly impactful trip where her passion for medical mission trips grew significantly.
Every mission trip experience leaves a mark for different reasons and each trip fans the flame that sparked my passion for medical missions. I play back memories of my time in each country like a film reel — seeing hearts change when they hear the Gospel for the first time, watching the carefree spirits of communities who lack in material possessions but have an abundance of love.
But, my trip in January 2011 stands out to me as being the trip that opened a chapter in my life to answer God’s call. It was when I traveled to Jamaica that sparked my passion for medical missions.
Our team served in Jamaica through several unique ways. We performed construction work at a school for the deaf, volunteered with the Eden school, and served children at a local orphanage. At the orphanage, the children greeted us with their smiles and were so happy to have us there. They loved hugging us and, at the same time, challenged us to games of kickball. It gave me so much JOY to serve God by reminding these children that God loves them and He sees their worth!
I spent a lot of time reading the Bible, praying, and hearing from God. I received clarity from the Lord that my focus should be on medical missions because of my nursing background and God’s gift of organization.
The call was clear, and my answer was “yes!”
There were many high school and college age students on this trip who worked hard that week shoveling and carrying buckets of dirt and rocks. But more importantly, they were carrying the Gospel into places that were searching for hope. Though I knew God’s Word, He spoke to me in a new way that week as well. In addition to those humbling experiences, another reason I enjoyed this specific trip was because my son Trent accompanied me for the second time.
Since my time in Jamaica, I became more actively involved in planning and leading all future medical mission trips for my church and continue to willingly listen to God’s call.
My passion for medical missions continues to grow stronger with each trip I join!
The Mission Partners for Christ team would love to help you experience the joy of providing medical services, treatment, and education in underserved areas of the world. Please visit our VOLUNTEER page to find out how you can make your dreams of serving internationally a reality!
Once you decide you want to learn more and you go through the process of signing up and preparing to go, you will be so excited and joyful about the work you may do, that you wish the first day would arrive. Multiple things in life may compete for your focus till then. We would like to share three ways to focus on things of good report that will help keep the joy and excitement fresh while we wait.
Whatever is True, Whatever is Noble
Philippians 4:8 is one of the most encouraging Bible verses. It contains so much simple wisdom we can continue following every day.
“Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable–if anything is excellent or praiseworthy–think about such things.” Philippians 4:8 (NIV)
When we consider what we do as medical missions volunteers through the perspective of “whatever is true, whatever is noble”, we find we are able to think upon what God is doing already that we don’t know that is of good report. He has always done amazing things for us and with us. We can turn our focus to the opportunities around us to do good. Also, we can be thankful for the many ways we will get to serve again as we hope to one day.
Whatever is Pure, Whatever is Lovely
Medical professionals and volunteers are not immune to having a bad day. Everyone experiences moments of being annoyed or tired, for example, especially when multiple things simultaneously go differently than planned.
Before you are under such pressure is a great time to think about what strategies you might employ. Think of it like a tool in your self-care kit. One way to do this is that when ugly thoughts enter your mind, immediately evict them with opposing thoughts of what is pure and what is lovely.
For example, if you are working and suddenly find yourself concerned about how long it is taking to receive your passport in the mail, think about how wonderful it will be to present your new passport to the ticket agent one day. Think of the smiling face of a patient who has just received a good report. Consider the people in a community washing their hands in clean new water. There is so much good news to take note of each day!
Whatever is Admirable
The new year has begun, and with it come new opportunities to grow and use your gifts to spread the good news of Jesus and help provide basic health care in places where people are unable to access it. You can do this at home or where you work while you wait to go on a medical missions trip. All around you are valuable ways to make a difference. You can partner with someone who is already in another country, donate to them, help them brainstorm, or partner with people who are doing this too. You can donate to nearby groups or causes, volunteer to help someone where you are, start a blog, or do many things!
We believe every person has so much valuable experience to share, and we are thankful if you are interested in volunteering with us. We’ve seen many good things happen! Also, we are thankful for you however you join our endeavors to bring health, hope, and healing to parts of the world where people are unable to obtain basic medical care. While some difficult things such as COVID-19 are going on in the world today, there are also many good things going on in the world today too! It’s a big decision at times to focus on things of good report, but if you choose it, it’s also truly amazing! It will positively impact your life and the lives of others forever.
The MPFC team recently completed a medical mission trip to an island in the Indian Ocean.
This medical mission trip was different than others in the past as we had to discretely share the gospel in this closed country. We experienced powerful connections with local peoples who have little to no access to medical care. Our missionary partner prayed with people during the outreach and are continuing to support them in their faith.
Here are a few highlights from our medical mission work that we’d love to share with you!
DAY 1: Our medical mission team of 15 looked out the plane window as we flew over the the Indian Ocean. We saw hills, coastline and a lush island full of palm trees. We couldn’t wait to explore! Upon arrival at the airport we were greeted by news reporters, government officials, and our local partners. They put fragrant flowered lais around our neck.
We dropped off our personal luggage and were off to meet the governor!
DAYS 2 & 3: The first 2 days we held our medical mission outreach at the islands only hospital. The hospital director and the hospital staff were very accommodating to our team. This hospital had a laboratory, x-ray machine, and eye examination equipment. They are able to perform surgeries however they need more qualified staff to provide medical care. Often doctors fly into the country short term to treat patients. In addition, most of the patients cannot afford to see the doctor or pay for the medication or treatment that is required.
DAYS 4 & 5: During the following 2 days we traveled on curvy roads around the island to 2 different villages to see patients. During the drive we had incredible views of the country, including fragrant smells from the trees producing ylang ylang which is used to make Chanel no 5.
DAY 6: The 3rd day of our medical mission outreach was especially rewarding but also sad. We were able to provide health education to at least 300 people as they waited to see the doctor. This varies depending on country, village and site we have available for the outreach.
The sad part was we met a woman with a oral tumor. She explained that her husband recently left her because of the tumor. Unfortunately on this island there is no cancer treatment available. However, our Christian partners have established a relationship with her and also met her oldest son. They have had an opportunity to pray with her.
Would you join us in praying that Marian opens her heart to receive Christ?
Would you also pray that God heals her of the cancer?
On this trip we had an evening over dinner to meet with secret believers. This is a very closed country and believers are unable to meet publicly like we do. There is no public Christian worship. Two of our team members shared a teaching about our identity in Christ and one shared a very personal testimony to encourage the believers. This time spent with them was very encouraging.
DAY 7: The day after our medical mission outreach was complete our team divided into groups with our local partners and did a prayer walk through the village. It was a very powerful time. It was encouraging for us and for them. We enjoyed an afternoon at the beach taking in the beauty of the island and in the evening the governor welcomed us to his home for dinner. The governor thanked our team for serving the people of his island and he hopes we will return.
DAY 8: On our last day the team had time to relax, share about trip memories and buy a few souvenirs to remember their trip. When we left our translators even came to the airport to see us off. They put small token gifts in our hands and hugged our necks. Our hearts were full. We are so grateful for the opportunity to serve.
Will you continue to pray for our local partners and the people there?
In a couple weeks our partners will begin distributing 60 water filters and sharing over 200 solar audio Bibles. Our local partners are grateful for the many people they were able to meet as a result of the medical outreach. We are praying for more to come to know Christ in this unreached country.
