We had a great time serving in Pallatanga with the medical team. We had the clinic Sunday (Oct 7) through Friday (Oct 12). Before I get into details about the trip, I want to share this:
Unworthy Servants
Luke 17:7-10 English Standard Version (ESV)
7 “Will any one of you who has a servant plowing or keeping sheep say to him when he has come in from the field, ‘Come at once and recline at table’? 8 Will he not rather say to him, ‘Prepare supper for me, and dress properly, and serve me while I eat and drink, and afterward you will eat and drink’? 9 Does he thank the servant because he did what was commanded? 10 So you also, when you have done all that you were commanded, say, ‘We are unworthy servants; we have only done what was our duty.’”
I've been thinking about these verses since I read them (for the who knows how many-eth time) a couple weeks ago. As a follower of Christ, I am only doing my duty when I share His gospel, His love, His hope. I am only doing my duty when I encourage and pray for others in Jesus' name. I am an unworthy servant.
I think I can speak for everyone involved with this team that we don't want any credit or recognition for "doing our duty". Our duty in Pallatanga was to share and show God's love to that community through medicine, glasses, hugs, laughter, prayer, smiles, listening ears, and true concern for their needs. God did that through everyone on the team, and it was awesome!
The team was big - about 40 people! There were missionaries, translators, medical doctors, nurses, eye doctors, and members of the La Vina Pallatanga church. We made a great team - everyone doing their part and doing it well.
I translated for one of the medical doctors and Hannah translated in "triage" for one of the nurses. Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday, the whole team was together in one location (a commercial center that has several floors and shops, and the BIG market on Sundays) in the center of Pallatanga.
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| Lots of people wanting appointments! |
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| Triage - Hannah translating |
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| Steve translating for one of the doctors (not Santa Claus!) |
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| Pharmacy |
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| Waiting room |
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| Eye exam |
On Wednesday, part of the team went to a nearby community and part of the team stayed at the same location in Pallatanga - Hannah and I were part of the team that stayed.
On Thursday, the whole team went together to two different communities - one in the morning and one in the afternoon.
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| Thursday morning clinic |
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| Thursday morning - Triage |
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| Thursday morning - Pharmacy |
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| Thursday morning - 3 doctor's "offices" |
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| Ever been to a doctor's office that had a goat? |
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| Thursday afternoon - Triage |
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| Thursday afternoon - waiting room |
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| Thursday afternoon - doctor's "office" |
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| Thursday afternoon - Pharmacy |
On Friday morning, the whole team went together to an elderly care facility in Pallatanga. We did general medical and eye appointments for the residents and for the staff. And, the Camp Pallatanga cooks came and prepared lunch for everyone!
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| Friday morning - our team with the nursing home staff |
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| Friday morning - Triage |
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| Friday morning - Pharmacy |
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| Friday morning - doctor's "office" |
All told, our team served about 1,000 people! Each person experienced some sort of "touch" from God. Many people were prayed for and many people heard the Gospel. Several prayed to accept Christ in their lives for the first time. I had the privilege of praying with 2 of them.
All of these people have the opportunity, if they want, to hear more about God's Word and get involved in the local church in Pallatanga where our OMS co-workers are involved. Please pray.
Many kids were there. Before and after their time with the doctor they, and their parents, would just hang around the area to be part of the "action". Fortunately, one of the translators that came was an Ecuadorian gal from Guayaquil. She loves working with kids, and she's very good at it. Her ministry in Guayaquil is primarily working with kids. Once it was found out about her passion for kids, she spent her time blessing those kids with songs, puppets, and sharing the Gospel.
God is working in Ecuador. God is working in Pallatanga.
Here is a link to many more pictures from the week.
Medical Team Pictures. Many of these pictures were shared with us by another member of the team. God bless you.
