A medical bill away from bankruptcy
As healthcare providers we continue to serve and share Christ’s love whilst always longing for the day when there will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain.
We long to see healthcare professionals practising, modelling and mentoring competent, compassionate medicine, but doing so in places where they will influence unreached people groups for Christ.
For many years healthcare professionals wishing to be involved in cross-cultural mission in Africa have been encouraged to partner with church health care providers. However, the church/mission hospital paradigm is less applicable these days and alternative models are increasingly appropriate. This might involve partnerships with governments or other NGOs, basic community health work or a variety of creative alternatives. The need for this kind of health ministry is everywhere – we don’t aspire, however, to trying to meet that need anywhere, but more strategically among unreached people (directly or indirectly).
Often it’s more appropriate to go to a place, live there and figure out, in conjunction with the local community, how to be involved after one arrives. The idea that you can take a pre-determined programme or plan and simply implement it may exist in the popular Western mindset (all these needy people need the help that we can offer), but we aspire to more than simply doing things for people and communities.
As healthcare providers we continue to serve and share Christ’s love whilst always longing for the day when there will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain.
I love being a doctor, and using medicine to demonstrate the love and compassion of our Saviour, especially in places where he is not known.
We asked one of our missionaries serving in healthcare in a creative access location to share about their experiences.
Becoming a Christian aged 21, Alexandra is excited to serve God using her profession. She works as a doctor in a hospital in Vevey, Switzerland, and is considering further mission work in the future.
Ann works in northern Chad, seeking to share the gospel and to demonstrate God’s love and power through her medical work. She shares more here.
In April 2017 an AIM team, led by Steve & Sharon Entwistle had to leave Zemio, the Central African Republic. But since August 2017, a small team of AIM personnel has returned monthly to offer support to our African colleagues. In November, a medical team offered practical care.