Thank you for your prayers as I join a large group of medical and non-medical volunteers on a medical missions trip to the Dominican Republic tomorrow! I'm excited to use the skills God has equipped me with to be a blessing to others. An added blessing is that 2 of my brothers will be joining me, as well as one of my best friends and her husband!
We will be in the Dominican Republic for 10 days, 4 of which will be
8-hour "Clinic Days." Nurses and Doctors coming from around the US will be serving local Dominicans as Providers, while other professionals and non-medical volunteers service our mini pharmacy, lab, triage, and other areas. Each patient will be given a clear explanation of the gospel in their own language, by a local Dominican Christian, as they wait to be treated or receive their medications. To see pictures of our group as they're posted, "like" Medical Missions Outreach on facebook, or for more information, visit www.medical-outreach.com.
I think the biggest challenge, for me, will be acclimatizing to the Dominican form of Spanish. I find Mexican Spanish the easiest to converse in and understand, but Dominican Spanish often sounds like a foreign language to me. Please pray for clarity as I converse with my patients and others, and that I would be able to adapt to their accent and vocabulary quickly.
Though this trip is un-related to my larger goal of reaching the Deaf people of Honduras (and was planned before I had considered joining Team Honduras), I am still excited to go, and grateful for the opportunity to improve my skills. I am not solely a missionary to Deaf Hondurans, I'm a missionary to lost people; whether it be my next-door neighbor, a Doctor on my Intensive Care Unit, a patient in a Dominican clinic, or a Deaf child in Honduras. Jesus was never too proud to reach out to those "different" or "below" Him, nor was He ashamed to challenge those in earthly authority over Him. May we be humble enough to follow His example.