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| Praying for one of the workers at the township MISSION WHO counsels abused children |
Why the Short Term Mission Trip?
In my last issue I told you all about my time at Mercy
Ship’s headquarters in East Texas, completing an intense training termed
“Onboarding”. For the last two weeks of
this training my onboarding group
(28 new long termers, 3 kids and 2 leaders) spent time in the Winterton area of South Africa for a field practice. The field practice seemed a strange concept at first. Why on earth does Mercy Ship ask its long term crew to basically participate in a short term mission trip before boarding the ship and settle into their long term positions? I don’t know every reason they do this, but let me share with you a little of my experience and what I learned during this process.
(28 new long termers, 3 kids and 2 leaders) spent time in the Winterton area of South Africa for a field practice. The field practice seemed a strange concept at first. Why on earth does Mercy Ship ask its long term crew to basically participate in a short term mission trip before boarding the ship and settle into their long term positions? I don’t know every reason they do this, but let me share with you a little of my experience and what I learned during this process.
As I said above our field practice took place in the
Winterton area of South Africa. We worked with two missionaries in 2 large
Townships (slum areas) among the Zulu people. 80 percent of the people in this
area are HIV positive. Many Zulu are practicing ancestor worshipers. These are among
the poorest of the poor in South Africa. The lies of hopelessness, inferiority,
and helplessness blanket the area with a fatalistic view of life. Sophie and
Betsy (the women running the mission organizations in these Townships) are
challenging this view, lights shinning in a dark world.
The plan was for our onboarding group to help with
construction projects. One of the organizations had just acquired a plot of
land and needed help building walkways, a fence, a playground, etc. We were
then going to take turns participating in home visits to connect with and pray
for local people; however, God sometimes has other plans. In my onboarding
group there are four nurses and one physical therapist. Upon our arrival we
discovered that the nurse at one of the missions had quit and left the day
before and they had yet to find a replacement. So the home visits quickly
turned into nurse visits. The mission was also ecstatic to find out about our
physical therapist who ended up seeing many stroke patients in the area.
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| Our physical therapist making a huge impact by teaching a stroke patient’s wife how to wrap his foot so that he can walk without dragging his toes |
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| The beautiful (hopefully destruction proof) playground made from old tires. I didn’t have much to do with this project, but our team was pretty proud of it. The kids were plenty excited too. |
You would think that nurse visits would be in my comfort
zone, after all that’s what I do. Right? Wrong! These visits were a struggle.
Early on I felt very useless. We didn’t have anything to work with, remember we
weren’t planning on doing any nursing. There wasn’t a whole lot that we could
do, and I found this very frustrating. As the first week went on many of us in
the group started voicing feelings of uselessness. Even our carpenter who was
basically leading most of the construction projects voiced feelings of
uselessness. Thankfully, someone noticed the pattern and brought it to the
attention of the group. We realized that we were listening to a lie, that we
were allowing the enemy to demean our time in Winterton. We decided as a group
that we would not let that happen. We prayed together and we encouraged each other.
As a nurse I realized that I was providing the exact care that the mission had asked me to. They weren’t expecting me to fix chronic problems. They simply needed trained eyes on their patients. We were able to give them that peace of mind, and on two occasions because a nurse went on the visit, someone recognized the need to send the patient to a hospital. I also realized that I was so focused on the physical impact I was making, or lack thereof, I didn’t see the spiritual, emotional and relational impact I was making until I changed my mindset. One example of this was pointed out to me by the social worker I was riding with on our way to a new HIV patient’s home. The patient’s family worked for a white farmer and lived in a little community on the farmer’s land. If you are aware of South Africa’s history, you know about apartheid and the deep scars caused by segregation between the whites, blacks and mixed Africans. Relations between the races are slowly improving in many parts of South Africa, but in areas like Winterton the separation is still very noticeable due to the drastic difference in class status. The social worker told me that the very act of her black person driving me a white person around was “blowing people’s minds,” let alone that we were coming to visit with them in their homes.
As you are reading this we will have arrived in Benin. I will be starting orientation for my new job as a ward nurse while the screening team starts the process of finding the patients we can help; however, as I write this issue we are sailing. The hospital is not in service, and I am currently working in housekeeping, a hard but rewarding temporary job because I have quickly learned every inch of this ship.
As a nurse I realized that I was providing the exact care that the mission had asked me to. They weren’t expecting me to fix chronic problems. They simply needed trained eyes on their patients. We were able to give them that peace of mind, and on two occasions because a nurse went on the visit, someone recognized the need to send the patient to a hospital. I also realized that I was so focused on the physical impact I was making, or lack thereof, I didn’t see the spiritual, emotional and relational impact I was making until I changed my mindset. One example of this was pointed out to me by the social worker I was riding with on our way to a new HIV patient’s home. The patient’s family worked for a white farmer and lived in a little community on the farmer’s land. If you are aware of South Africa’s history, you know about apartheid and the deep scars caused by segregation between the whites, blacks and mixed Africans. Relations between the races are slowly improving in many parts of South Africa, but in areas like Winterton the separation is still very noticeable due to the drastic difference in class status. The social worker told me that the very act of her black person driving me a white person around was “blowing people’s minds,” let alone that we were coming to visit with them in their homes.
Sifting Sand:
Reflection of God’s Grace
I
didn’t only do home visits. I build a
ramp! Ok I helped. Actually, I spent nearly an entire day sifting the sand we
would need to make the cement for the wheelchair ramp we were constructing for
an elderly handicapped couple while the carpenter and a couple of the guys
demolished the dilapidated old structure and built the wooden frame that would
allow us to pour the cement evenly.
The only sand available for sale was full of
rocks, both big and small. When the nurse with me and I took one look at the
mess I’m sure we were thinking the same thing. How are we ever going to turn
this rocky mess into the fine sand required to create the smooth structure this
couple needed for their walker and wheelchair?
Our first load of sand was damp and stuck to the cumbersome contraption
we were using to sift. Each shovelful required gentle coaxing by rubbing the
sand through with our hands. The dry sand was much easier, but even the dry
sand had to go through the sifter multiple times. Every time we sifted the sand
the rocks left behind became smaller, and the pile looked more and more of what
we had envisioned, but we didn’t stop sifting until it was just right for its
purpose. We had a plan.
As we sifted I couldn’t help but compare our
lives (my life) to the sand. I am full of rough edges and rocks, but God has a
purpose for my life. He has a purpose for every life, and He is a patient
sifter. Sometimes I am not ready to be sifted. I want to hold onto my sin and
my flesh. I’m like sticky wet sand, but God doesn’t give up on me. He has a
vision and has planned my purpose. He waits patiently for me, coaxing me until
I become like dry sand, ready and willing to let go control, let go of burdens,
let go of the rocks. Just as the sand is sifted many times, so to must I, but
each time I become more like His image and ready for my purpose.
Sailing
As you are reading this we will have arrived in Benin. I will be starting orientation for my new job as a ward nurse while the screening team starts the process of finding the patients we can help; however, as I write this issue we are sailing. The hospital is not in service, and I am currently working in housekeeping, a hard but rewarding temporary job because I have quickly learned every inch of this ship.
We boarded
the ship in Durban and sailed around the Cape, stopping briefly in Cape Town before continuing north along the west coast on our way to Benin.
I have
decided that I really enjoy sailing (except for an unfortunate event that left
me stuck in the crew galley for 30 minutes holding a standing freezer door closed and then paying for it later with a few hours of seasickness).
For most
of the trip the sea has been calm, but we had one day when I awoke to what appeared to be an angry sea. The wind was causing the waves to fight our ship.
We pitched and rolled more then we ever had before. The sea looked so huge and
mighty. You could see God’s strength, His power, His glory, His justice, yet it
was also an example of His mercy and grace because in the mist of the chaos and
fury our little ship stayed afloat, and we were safe in His protection. It
reminded me of two things. First, I deserve God’s wrath, His fury, His
justice, but He instead offers His grace and provides a place of safety through
His son. Secondly, when I stay within Him, keep my heart and mind steadfast on
Him, He is my protection from the hardest storms and the deepest waters in this
world.
Thank you for partnering with me in
this journey. Your support in whatever way you have given it (financial,
prayers, encouraging words) makes you as much a part of
this mission as I am. I couldn’t be doing this without support. I am truly
bless by you.
Prayer Points:
1.
Pray
for the people in the Winterton area. That God’s light would shine and the truth would be made known.
2.
That
God would guide us as we start screenings and treat out first patients in
Benin.
3.
That
we would trust God to work through us and know how to minister to others cross
culturally
Author's Note: While I am currently serving with Mercy Ships the ideas and
opinions expressed here are my own. Mercy Ships has not reviewed nor do they endorse
the content written within this blog.
