one final team post

Technology is an amazing tool...when it works!  Celeste tried to get this posted while we were in Jos without success, so here it is now that we are home...

Hello All … From Jos, Nigeria!

God is doing a miraculous work during our mission trip. We are enjoying the hospitality of Christians who know at any time they could be martyred for their faith in Christ and still they reach out. Persecution here, I am finding out is a way of life for those who want to be God followers. We have listened to many testimonies of God’s mercy during abduction or a rescue attempt. The Hezbollah, the Islamic police, do not accept the Christian faith. In order to reach the lost, people here need to have a great amount of wisdom, discernment and faith – a total dependence on God. I am also finding that I have much to learn.

Providing dentistry on a mission trip to care for the poor is a wonderful experience but to actually train the people to care for themselves and each other is truly indescribable! The value of the dental skills in witnessing and sharing the gospel is unexplainable – you almost have to see it for yourself. I love dentistry and have for 27 years, but I am more excited about my work and have a renewed passion for the gifts and talents that God has allowed me to enjoy now after seeing this training program in action.

I am new to this group. Some of them work together at Southeast Christian Church and know each other well. I met our team leader, Charlie; at the Global Health Mission Conference where I first listened to Steve Saint speak about missions and how dentistry could be used. It is natural to be a little uneasy at first when meeting all new people, but God truly put this group together. We have bonded as one body of many parts … Everyone on the team has a special and unique talent and watching it unfold together as God directs has been a wonderful encouragement to my faith. We laugh, joke, share and are serious together in our work. Our host Daniel and his family have given us great joy.

Yes, we have also bonded through some “typical” mission team experiences – like sharing a bucket of water in the morning with at least four other people. Trying to “catch” water to flush with or even worse for a woman – looking at a square hole in the ground and knowing that will be your only option for the next eight hours while working on the field! Drinks served at room temperature – why would anyone want “ice” when the Lord as provided you a nice warm house to live in …? Blow dryers that are way too much for the generator to handle … the resulting “mission hair” … No make-up …

One look into the eyes of a grateful patient receiving dental care or a person learning how to do something that we take for granted everyday – for the very first time. Knowing you are being given the privilege to have a small part in advancing the gospel of Christ and it is all worth it! What is a little missionary hair anyway?

Blessings,
Celeste

Back Home - Note from Charlie...

All team members are safely home and the Danners are serving in Ethiopia on their next trip.
Our team owes each person that labored in prayer on our behalf a HUGE debt of gratitude.
Our team was protected physically, mentally and especially spiritually.
We found enormous favor with all the people we worked with and in the works He had prepared in advance.
As team leader, I want to thank each team member for the faith and perseverance they demonstrated. Each one of us
Were stretched in ways we could not have imagined, but the focus was still Christ.
 
Jesus says in John 15:16, “You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit—fruit that will last…..”
We were allowed to minister God’s way. To empower, equip, train and encourage the saints to minister in the name of Christ.
We ministered to the least of these, those that do not yet know Him.
We ask that the intercession continues for the brothers and sisters that labor for the sake of the gospel in a very difficult part of the world, to the Glory of our Lord.
 
Thanks to each one for their faithfulness as being a part of the body of Christ,
Charlie  

Wednesday Clinics

Today was such a great day.  We began with a devotional session led by Tina, dealing with 1 Corinthians 12, in which Paul spoke of the importance of each member of the body of Christ recognizing and fulfilling their God-given roles.  The talk really seemed to hit home with both students and our team members, and it was especially applicable in light of the fact that we and our friends from Nigeria were growing more and more appreciative of each other's God-given gifts.  We were in awe of the tremendous display of faith of our hosts in the face of frequent persecution, and they were overflowing with gratitude for the dental knowledge we were imparting to them.         

We started out the day with a review of the training from yesterday.  The students were able to give one another injections yesterday, but this morning's review session helped to fill in some gaps in the training, in preparation for real live treatment of patients this afternoon.   The students were soaking up the information with amazing proficiency, as evidenced by the thoughtful and insightful questions that they asked.

We spent considerable time discussing infection control this morning, explaining the importance of adequate sterilization procedures and ways to prevent cross-contamination.  It was fortunate that one member of our team, Ian, happens to be a physician who specializes in infectious diseases.  He and Janet reinforced the necessity of the students to protect both themselves and their patients during and after treatment.  

We returned from lunch to begin patient care, treating family members of those being trained.   A total of 18 patients were seen, requiring a good cross-section of procedures, including fillings, cleanings, and a few extractions.  Some students were able to fully meet their patients' needs, while most of them benefitted from additional advice.  While there was one molar that was broken during attempted removal, it ended up being a good teaching case, and Charlie did the honors of removing what remained, sending the patient home happy and feeling no pain.  The beauty of the afternoon was the sweet, humble, cooperative atmosphere that existed.  Students were encouraging and learning from one another during the entire three-hours of treatment, and you could feel their confidence grow with each patient.     

One interesting question came up today, relating to the students' desire to pray with their patients.  While praying verbally with Christian patients is something that they always appreciate, such is not always the case with Muslim patients.  Some of those with considerable experience interacting with Muslims stated that they might be offended by prayer in Jesus' name.  Therefore, students were encouraged to use their own discretion in determining when to suggest praying and when to pray silently.  This was an excellent opportunity to reinforce the importance of prayer- whether out loud or in our hearts- as a way of acknowledging our dependence on the Lord's blessing of our efforts.

This evening's dinner continued the solid streak of most delectable meals, consisting of spaghetti, tomato sauce, hot mixed vegetables, yams, bananas and watermelon.  We spent time after dinner rehashing the events of the day and planning how to best help develop our students' abilities tomorrow.  The plan is to give them more freedom to diagnose and develop a treatment plan for each patient, then a doctor will verify the treatment plan and confirm that the student is capable of performing the necessary treatment.  This time they will be treating patients from a nearby community, rather than family members.  Only time will tell if they are up for the challenge.        

Bill for the team

Thanks for prayers

Dear Steve, Dani, Jan, Marilou and all my other dear friends and family,

Thanks so much for your encouragement, words of love and Godly wisdom!  We're up and ready for showers..the promised water has yet to come, again.  The little travel cleanups go fast on a whole body!  

Our hosts, Daniel and his wife Myrna are so wonderful, friendly and generous.  Our students have are very  bright and our first session yesterday had them giving injections! and examining each other.  today they'll do fillings, cleanings and more injections.  Most of them speak Hausa, a dialect spoken in the north but understand some English.  Everything has to be translated to me sure they understand so it takes time to communicate.

God has been soo good.  We're all well or getting more well! , our team is excellent with good relations together, friendships being forged..We feel safe and well taken care of but some of the families here have been abducted, beaten and stoned for becoming Christians..pray for continued safety for those wanting to leave the oppression of Islam and for this ministry to grow.  They were Muslim as well and have such a heart for their brothers and sisters still in the faith.  Most of our students were Muslim scholars and now know the Jesus was not just a prophet but is our Lord and Savior.  They love Him dearly and are so beautiful.  You can see the love in their faces.  They each have a committment to visit 3 Muslim scholars per week.  They have many vehicles and are always switching cars and routes to remain hidden from Hezbollah the Islamic police in the northern sharia law states.  Our state is not under sharia law and is more safe.  Lots to tell but that gives you an idea.  

God bless and keep you all,

Jeanne

Miraculous Stories

We arrived in Lagos on Saturday night. The airport was chaotic and we were blessed to have Daniel (our host) make it inside to help us get through customs. We only lost one bag, and the guys said if there was one to lose, that was a good one. So thanks for your prayers!

We stayed at a nearby hotel and were up and ready to head to the domestic airport by 9 the next morning. It took longer to get through the baggage check in and ticketing process than the flight itself. It was a relief to have Daniel working it all out and all we had to do was be good followers. Once we got into the terminal Ian was invited into the VIP room at the airport. Being a good teammate, he invited everyone. They later found out that the "free" VIP room drinks were actually about $8, when they protested, they rejoined those of us who were too tired to get up in the main terminal. We were off to an exciting start!

We made it with no problems through the local airport here and settled into Daniel's home where we will spend the week. We arrived to late to begin training on Monday, so it will start today. We had a couple of hours in the afternoon to get settled in, have a nap and for some of us, chat and get organized.

I am not sure any of us were prepared for what God allowed us to experience Monday night. The trainees and their families came to the house for a reception and dinner. We heard how God has developed this outreach to Muslims and several of the trainees shared reports. One couple had been captured and held for six months before they could be found and rescued. One man severely beaten for his faith and walks with a limp, one couple are called a "plague'' by their neighbors because of the rate of conversions of those that they share the gospel with.

I will ask our team to write more about these stories after we get home tonight from training. But we are certain that we are among those God is using in miraculous ways. What a blessing to be part of their stories as they use this gift of dentistry to expand God's kingdom.

More from the team soon. Thanks for your partnership in this ministry through prayer.

Blessings,
Tina for the team

We're on Our Way...

It is so exciting to be on our way!  Our team of 8 are coming from all over the US.  I will give you our first names - we will be a bit security conscious since where we are serving is in a highly Muslim area.  As you pray, please lift up Charlie, Ian, Bill, Celeste, Jean, Dee, Janet and me, Tina - the team scribe! :-)

We are in transit, hooking up with each other along the way.  We appreciate the prayers of our friends and family.  Nigeria is 6 hours ahead of e.s.t time.  The Amsterdam airport is a busy place - people buzzing around every where.  We are sitting in seats that face each other with our community food in the center (winegums, snickers, pringles and m & m's!).  There is a real sense of camaraderie already among us, even though many of us are meeting for the first time.  That is something to be thankful for already.

Posting on the blog may be a bit sporadic this week.  I am not sure how easily accessible the internet is going to be in Jos, so don't worry if there is a gap in updates.

Here is our schedule (which of course is always up changes!)~

Sunday, 24th:  arrive and overnight in Lagos

Please pray that all our bags will make it through customs - we are carrying portable dental chairs, dental instruments and supplies.

Monday, 25th:  Catch our domestic flight at 10 am.  Training will begin after lunch.  There are 16 being trained.

Tuesday, 26th:  Finish up classroom training

Wed, 27th - Sat, March 1st:  Clinical training in a nearby village, treating patients.

Wed:  100 patients

Thur:  150 patients

Fri:     200 patients

Sat:    200 patients

Sunday, March 2: pack up and head to Lagos

Monday, March 3 - we're home.

We'll keep you posted as best we can - thanks so much for partnering with us!

Preparing to Go!

Our Nigeria Dental Team will be on our way on Saturday, February 23.  We will be posting as often as we can along the way.