Clinic day one...Tuesday, October 20th

My eyes popped open. Leanne was staring into my face..."Hey Dean! Get up! It's 7:30." I usually consider myself a morning person, but the sleep was so good and long I needed to coax myself up with reminders that today we would finally be able to work.

There were already people waiting for us when we arrived. Mom went directly to make the list, and we tested out all the equipment. Another obstacle! Jamie discovered that her x-rays weren't turning out. We had brought down new x-ray film fixer, but through the process of elimination found that our developing solution was bad. No x-rays the first day.

Most of our patients the first day were ones that Octavio brought from other villages. He went and picked them up in his beat-up blue car. Some of them lived over a half an hour drive away.

Isaac stepped up to the plate as Dad's assistant, loading syringes, passing instruments, and holding the suction tube during fillings and extractions. Paula and Lily ran the hygiene department, using the ultrasonic cleaner to polish teeth that haven't been cleaned in a long time, possibly not ever. Joby played handyman for all the equipment that tended to break down during the day. Jamie polished teeth and Joe cleaned chairs. Leslie kept up her position as sterilization expert.

The morning ran very smoothly, with a small exception... =) Because the people in the little villages use very little medication, if at all, she freaked out as she was feeling the tingle of the anesthetic and lost her nerve. The little girl in the chair next to her was observing all of this, and decided she wasn't having any of it, and left her chair as well. Mom and Zelina were able to convince the lady to come back to her seat, and found a towel for her to squeeze. She made it through the procedure, and became our biggest promoter as she told everyone waiting, "I didn't feel a thing! I cried, but only because I was nervous. These doctors are great!"

Zelina cooked amazing meals for us during the week, and was also our primary translator in the clinic. We were able to manage pretty well on our own, but occasionally we encountered questions or explanations that needed...well, a little more expertise than we possessed. Fortunately, the church/clinic, the house, and the kitchen/cafeteria were all within a block of each other, so that expertise was close at hand.

Paula and Joby went with Mr. Alfredo to a local school to give dental education and exams to the kids. They did a presentation in each class, translated (and embellished) by Alfredo, and each child was examined for cavities and presented with a toothbrush. We saw several patients as a result of these visits, and more of them learned how to care for their teeth so that hopefully they wouldn't be in as bad of shape as some of the adults we saw.

In talking with Mr. DeHoyos, Dad learned that one of the main reasons for coming to this town was to disciple the local Pastor who's church we were using. As we ministered to the people physically, he and his sweet wife mingled around and visited with the patients waiting outside the clinic. Several times we passed out, "Are you a good person?" tracts, and I noticed several of them in conversation with the Pastor. We are praying for these people, that those who already know Christ would be encouraged and those who don't yet know Him would be attracted by His spirit as it propels our joyful service.

Some of my favorite memories from the trip were the evenings with Octavio's family, Jennie, and the Pastor's family. The first day we arrived, Octavio's wife recognized me from a CD the DeHoyos had given them months earlier. Both musicians themselves, they were excited to hear us play. We brought the guitar and violin to dinner, and had a time of music afterward. Octavio played a bit of violin, and at first was reluctant to participate, feeling bad because everything he learned he taught himself, although he did say he'd take a lesson. With some coaxing from his family, he played some hymns and popular Mexican tunes for us. After everyone had dispersed a bit, he asked me if I'd show him some things, and I had a chance to put my Spanish to the test for my first bilingual lesson! He was a very motivated student, and practiced what I showed him.

Just outside the city, the family owned a sugarcane plantation, which they invited us on a hike to view sometime during our stay. We eagerly accepted for the following evening.

The road to El Pachon....Monday, October 19th

Driving...

It seems like the greater the anticipation of something, the greater the enjoyment of it. It has certainly been so with this trip. With the longest travel time of any of our Mexico trips to date, and certainly the furthest distance traveled, we had much to expect from God. Fellowship along the way has been sweet, but our eagerness to get to work has been steadily increasing since we left. Another mirror to the life of Elijah. The first calling recorded from God is a command to go into the wilderness to be fed by ravens. We felt much the same, with just the traveling and meeting of our own basic needs occupying our energies, we were itching for the opportunity to invest, and excited to arrive to our destination.

The road was beautiful, and we were even more delighted to explore our accommodations. A log cabin built entirely of palm tree trunks! The host family, a couple with two young sons, moved into their parents home, unoccupied because the owners were away on a trip, and gave us use of their home for the three days and 4 nights.

We had meals at the grandparents, 2 doors down and across the street. It was an outdoor cabana, comfortable because of the warm weather, and fresh because of the many trees and flowers surrounding it. An enormous bogenvilla tree with its twisted trunk shaded the patio, adding to the retreat-like atmosphere. Zelina stayed at this house, and cooked in the kitchen.

We were fortunate enough to have one of the only houses in the village with a bathroom inside the house. A newfangled invention, the locals usually build a small outbuilding for the purpose. The first morning, Zelina shared stories of her adventures with midnight trips...in the dark...carrying her own water. =) Talk about adventure! She came over to our "house" for showers.

Paula and Joby stayed at an older couple's house down the street and around the corner. They had a guest room, and were more than happy to have company. The lady of the house was happily chatting away, in spite of the fact that Paula gently told her "I don't speak much Spanish." The welcoming spirit of everyone is delightful!

That first night we set up the clinic so we could start first thing in the morning. Set up went well, and everything was going smoothly until we tried threading the compressor tube under the crack between the window and the wall. Because the walls are made entirely of hollow, unfinished concrete block, there were giant holes from the bottom of the window all the way to the ground. A mishap with the tube sent a very important connector part down the hole all the way into the wall. Ooops! Prayers were sent up and we finished setting up the rest of the clinic. We were concerned though, because all of the handpieces, drills, etc. required the compressor to run properly. How much could we accomplish if we couldn't get the piece? Does God have another plan in mind?

We freshened up and enjoyed a delicious dinner from Pollo Feliz, "Happy Chicken" that Señor DeHoyos and Zelina brought back after coming back from grocery shopping for the week. During this time, Jamie and Joby went back with Octavio (the owner of the log cabin) to the church to try to see what they could do to retrieve the compressor part. The pastor gave permission to make a little hole in the wall, and Jamie shined the flashlight from the top down, and Joby dug around in the cement dust. An answered prayer...a part retrieved! Praise the Lord! We went to bed with full tummies and happy hearts.

Monday, October 19

One last posting as we're getting packed up to leave...

Elijah's ministry was one of prayer (James 5:17-18). He prayed powerfully, and God acted powerfully on his behalf. Please remember to pray for us as the Lord brings us to your mind. For unhindered travels, for the people in El Pachon, that they would be open to seeing God as He is: master, source of life, and giver all good things.

May the God of peace be with you all.

Sunday, October 18, 2009

Happy Birthday, Leslie!! =)

It's so good to be back in Hualahuises. It feels so comfortable here, and the air is filled with the buzz of conversation. Mr. Alfredo is talking and laughing as we swap the latest stories around the dining room table. Mom is making cocoa mix in the kitchen with Zelina. Dany and the boys are relaxing on the couch, engaged in an animated discussion about...muscles and superheroes I think. ;) Cristina is looking well, having just returned from a grocery shopping trip. Zelina laughs, "She never goes grocery shopping, and has been gone for two hours!!"

Whew! It's been a long day! After a leisurely morning enjoying the San Antonio sunshine as we waited for Capps rentals to open at 10, we loaded our luggage (thank goodness it fit!!) into the rental van and headed South towards the border.

Devotions for this trip center around the life of Elijah. Not much is known about his early history, and there are only a few chapters about this man of faith in proportion to the scope of his influence in Israelite history. He first appears in 1 Kings 17 where he confronts wicked King Ahab, predicts drought until further notice, and runs off to the wilderness to drink from a brook and eat food delivered by ravens.

It's interesting to look at his life from the context of a ministry and mission mindset. When sent to find a widow at Zerephath, he tested her openness by asking her to give him a drink. Often, the best approach to take when making a contact for a "touch-and-go" type of evangelism is the "Can you help me?" attitude. Most people will stop to give help, when they wouldn't stop to take something from someone. When the widow responded positively to Elijah's initial request, he probed a little further until he discovered her area of need.

We had an opportunity to observe this principle in action as we stopped a the border. While waiting in line to obtain visas from the official, we struck up a conversation with the two ladies in line behind us. From Ohio, the pair drove through the night, and were on their way to Mexico for vacation. When it was our turn, we struggled to communicate with the immigration officer, sharing the load between the 3 of us who knew Spanish the best. When we hit a roadblock in trying to explain why we were all coming down together, but two were leaving early, she poked her head in and spoke to the official with flawless pronunciation. A translator! What a relief!

Later, after the moment of opportunity had passed, (of course!) we talked about how it would have been easy to respond with sharing the Gospel with the attitude of gratefulness. For example: "Thank you so much for helping us! Can we share a story that has been instrumental in our lives and would be a benefit to you as well?" Always on the lookout for new ways to share the Gospel. =)

We take off for the tiny town of El Pachon in the morning. Not sure about the wi-fi situation, but I'll keep everyone as updated as I can!

 

Leslie with our luggage cart. See our fancy new patient chairs for the clinic?

Happy Copilot 

At the border. Green lights all the way!

Mexico Fall '09 -- Day One

Saturday, October 17th, 2009

First day of travel down, two more to go…

Both groups made it safely here to San Antonio with out undue complications. Paula and Joby had a bit rougher time of it, being delayed out of Seattle with crazy storms and electrical trouble with the plane. A tight connection in Denver, but they were able to get through just before takeoff.

The friendly assistant behind the Southwest counter helped us check in our 14 bags. We had a bunch of dental supplies, plus 3 lawn chairs to replace our broken patient chairs. She came from a family of seven too, and sympathized with the quirks of traveling with large groups. Quandaries such as where to stand when dad checks in and everyone is pulling two bags and the space behind the counter is limited, and, who stays with the carryon luggage and who needs id checked and who takes the bags to the x-ray man...things that are simple when traveling alone become slightly more of a challenge when multiplied 8 times.

We had our mission team meeting while soaking our tired feet the hot tub, listening as Dad filled us in on “the plan.” Excited for the trip, I know we’re all feeling the anticipation of watching for how and where God will use us this week. Thanks for praying everyone!

Waking up in China . . .

China…
In the pictographs of the Chinese language, the symbol for China is a combination of two characters, the one for “center” or “central” and the one for “country.” This symbolized the ancient cultural thought that China is the center of the universe. =) Scientific reality aside, I have respect for this country from the mere perspective of age. Vast cities were being founded and ornate architecture was being created in China before Christopher Columbus was out of diapers. The industrial spirit of the Chinese is indisputable.

There’s not much to tell about the first two days of the trip. We crossed the international dateline somewhere during the first loooong flight, and arrived in Beijing at 11pm of Tuesday when we had left on Monday. Our tour guide, Lee, met us at the terminal. He is a friendly, wiry man who speaks English very well. He’s been teaching us everything, from Chinese history, to the language, to discussing current events. It’s been so great!



Wednesday dawned, and we prepared for our first day of touring. The sun was bright, and it was forecasted to be 98, though it only ended up being about 93 degrees. I knew that I would be learning a lot during this trip, but I absolutely wasn’t prepared to be won over so quickly! Our first stop was the “Heavenly Peace Gate” more commonly known to us in the west as Tian’an Men. There were many walls constructed around the city of Beijing at one time. Chinese culture is more a defensive culture than an aggressive, conquering culture. Walls need gates, so many ornate buildings were built to allow passage in and out, and stop unwanted intruders.
Our little band moved through the square as we stopped to admire the many buildings and monuments. Mr. Forman went closer to get a picture, and was stopped by a green-suited policeman and asked for his passport. I guess the guard thought he looked like a journalist! Lee explained that his tour guide flag showed that he had a permit to be inside the square, and that it was best to stick close with him.
By the time we got to the entrance to the Forbidden City, we were excited, sweltering, and thirsty. Mr. Forman bought us bottles of water that had a solid core of ice. The forbidden city was amazing. Building after building, it seemed like the city kept on going and going. Lots of stairs, lots of temple-looking buildings.

never. .. . .

tonight i was shocked.

i really shouldn't have been. i have heard it a thousand times.

after a rousing game of "chicken foot" here in mexico i pulled open my computer. immediately some pictures came up. alejandro was looking over my shoulder. he started talking in spanish. quickly he called for the others to gather around. "look there are pictures of us!" (or at least, thats what i understood him to say :)). after showing the ones from this past week, i dug through folders on my computer and pulled up an album marked "mexico spring 2008", exactly a year ago.
over the years i have taken off photos of things, knowing i could put them on my external hard-drive and never look at them again. however, mexico pictures have a special place in my heart. and the ones from spring of last year even more so. that was the trip i met for the first time the guys from sandia. a little village high in the mountains. master adobe builders. the poorest people i know. the hardest workers i know. that week, i learned a TON working alongside alejandro, sammy, and victor. spanish phrases i still remember and how to put the adobe on just right. getting in the car to go home after that week i remember telling my dad that next time we came, in october, i wanted to go to sandia and do a dental clinic there.
october came and went. we worked in hualahuises all that week. i was disappointed. what about going to the mountains? i realized my spirit of discontentment. God wanted us at the DIF that week. joe shared the gospel as danny translated and about 30 people heard a clear concise message given by my 15-year-old brother. God knew what He was doing.

i started flipping through those pictures in that old album. immediately, the guys started calling out names, "scott! he es my friend" . . . "mira! sammy y pablo esta en lodo!" . . . . "jesse, kelsey, scott, ryan" . . . . "reece, nathan" . . . .
i was shocked. they remembered. it has been a whole year. they still remember names, conversations, and . . . they heard the gospel for the first time that week. during lunch one day a testimony was given and a question was asked. all three men responded. yes, they wanted Jesus in their life. a few weeks later they returned and brought 5 more men with them. they too received Jesus as their Savior.

i have been to mexico more times than i can count. i was in argentina last summer. sometimes i find my self wondering if its worth it. i look at my bank account when i get back and its always quite a bit lower. i missed out on fresh powder on the mountain or finished projects still at home. does it even make i difference if i go on a missions trip? aren't there people that live in my city i could minister too?

they remember. they know. when a life reaches out and touches a life, it makes a difference.
i don't know where you are at right now. maybe God has turned your life in a different direction. thats great. where God wants you is the BEST place to be. i know i have resisted many times going and talking to someone or complained about the cost of a missions trip. but would it be worth it if even 1 person were saved from eternity in hell?

if you had a hose and every time you turned it on it cost you $700 would you turn it on to put out a fire on a person right in front of you? or would you hold onto the hose and keep it off, letting that person burn to death in front of you.

"he is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose." - jim elliot

think about going on a missions trip this year. if you let God work you have the power to change at least 1 life (your own) and you are sensitive to God's spirit maybe 2.

is that worth it?