Chattanooga Medical Team - Guatemala Trip - Day 2

Sunday Morning began very early and we were seeing patients by 7:30 in the morning.  We had breakfast and I gave a short devotional thought before we headed off to get the operating room in shape for surgeries.  I had the privilege of working with the team – you know changing light bulbs, helping get equipment running, moving things around, moving boxes of medicine and supplies, etc – while the rest of the team did the important stuff.  I feel like a fish out of water, even in their conversations that they include me on I am lost.  I just smile, nod, and act like I got a clue why it is so important to have certain lighting in certain ways, or that certain procedures are done one way and not another, or, my favorite, that certain medicines do certain things.  Yeah, I act like I understood, but they might as well be saying it in Spanish – every 3^rd or 4^th word makes sense, but overall, I am clueless.

I did get to watch as the day began with a presentation of the gospel and singing at the front of the emergency room.  About 60-70 people sat and waited to be seen by the doctors, but before they could go in, they were able to hear about Jesus.  What a blessing.

It was a long day for the doctors – seeing a crowd of people and qualifying 45ish to actually have surgery this week.  From the removal of warts to hernias and hysterectomies, they have their work cut out for them.

 The rest of the group was hustling about getting instruments ready, preparing the tables, the equipment, the various elements needed for surgery ready.  They all seemed to know what was necessary, so everyone seemed busy most of the day.

By about 4 we had completed everything necessary to be prepared for tomorrow, and dinner was at 6.  Some laid down to rest, others wanted to take a walk, so we went down to the square.  We walked around, saw shops and people everywhere, and just enjoyed taking part in the culture.  We stopped by the local Catholic church and went inside.  The walls were lined with life sized figurines of the saints.  One team member said, “this would have terrified me as a child”.  It always interests me how the focus of Jesus is almost secondary to these other people.  I am so glad that AMG is sharing the truth of Jesus Christ with the people every day here in Cubulco.

After dinner, I opened the floor for discussion about how they had seen God that day.  Jim Holloway shared that he gained a greater appreciation for the things he has at home seeing the poverty and difficulty that the people here deal with every day.  The rest of the team was rather quiet, but I had the opportunity to encourage them to look for opportunities to see God as they go throughout their day. They are a very intelligent and thoughtful group, I am excited about what I we are going to hear as we go through the week.

We ended the night with a couple of games including the 2 interpreters and the 2 dentists.  They all had a great time learning new games and laughing and playing together.  Some even picked up nicknames, like Jonathan Hernandez was referred to as “skippy” by Del Ashcraft because he kept skipping him in the game.

Eventually we wrapped it up for the night .  Tomorrow we are opening the OR at 6:30 to get the ac on and room prepared, and breakfast is at 7.  I will be sharing with them from God’s word briefly before they begin their surgeries.  I pray God gives me the words that will encourage them and motivate them toward spiritual maturity.  Tomorrow I am supposed to begin my Spanish training at 9 – we will see how that goes.  Enough for now – it’s bedtime – 12:00 PM at home – 10:00 local.