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.

Chattanooga Medical Team - Guatemala Trip - Day 1

The trip began very early in the morning – we were flying out of Chattanooga.  We knew we had a long day ahead of us as we were flying to Atlanta, then on to Guatemala, followed by a drive from Guatemala City to Cubulco.  The last time I took that drive it took over 8 hours.  Coleman Arnold, the team leader, took this trip back in May and it took him 13 hours. From what I understand they took the short cut over the mountain. (Not a big fan of that shortcut!)

Things went very smoothly from Chattanooga to Atlanta.  We had a 2 hour stopover, so we grabbed some breakfast while we were there.  Eventually we boarded the plane and were on our way to Guatemala.

First impressions – I found it interesting that while in the airport the group stretched out all over the terminal.  I think Coleman and his wife were the only ones sitting next to each other, and most of the group sat in benches by themselves.  They all basically knew each other – most had worked with Coleman or Del.  This group is going  to be a great group.

When we arrived in Guatemala, we went through immigration, and collected our bags, and then headed over to customs.  Knowing that we had medicines and medical equipment, I was wondering if we were going to run into problems.  The dumb gringo act kind of helps, so when the customs agent asked what we had in our baggage, I told him only what he needed to know.  He briefly asked about medicines, but I was able to tell him in my “broken Spanish” that we were a medical team here to help the people of Guatemala.  Jonathan Hernandez and Kristen Hinson are fluent in Spanish, but if he knew that he would have asked a lot more questions, and we probably would have had to spend more time in customs – and possibly pay a “tax” for some of the items we brought in.  Thankfully, God went before us and cleared the path through customs.

As we left the airport, Kenny Hayman, Phil Wilson and Cabot met us outside.  We loaded up and headed to the corporate office.  When we arrived there, we took a brief tour, loaded our luggage on a larger (more comfortable) bus, picked up interpreters and 2 dentists, and headed for Cubulco.

Only 5 hours later, we arrived at the hospital.  Record time! (at least for us – they tell me it is 2 hours if you take the short cut and about 4 hours if you go highway).  The team unloaded and found there lodging.

This is when things get interesting… We have 4 doctors on the team (including Kenny Hayman).  In preparation, our Guatemalan hosts figured that the surgeons and myself should lodge together.  They walked three of the doctors and myself back to the house that I stayed in with the Berean Bible Church Team, and we all got situated.  Then shortly after the 4^th doctor was “escorted” to the house as well.  Kristen Hinson, yes, she is a girl, was supposed to stay in the bed in the living room (separated by a curtain) with the other surgeons.  Her face was priceless.  She did not want to offend them, but she had no desire to stay in a 3 bedroom house with 4 men – especially since she didn’t get a room, she got the living room separated by a curtain.  I couldn’t help but laugh inside as I asked our hosts to allow her to stay with the ladies.  It really was hilarious – at dinner I had to tell everyone else about our almost sleeping arrangement.

We ate about 8:00 local time – 10:00 PM back home, and shortly after headed for bed.  It was a long day, but a very good one.  This is going to be a great team.

Saving time with the computer...

I have lost all of my pictures on my blog.  Actually, I deleted them all from Picasa that was connected with Google that housed all of my photos for my blog.  Go figure.  I had no idea my stuff was so connected, but after choosing to erase them off Picasa (so I can stop paying for storage of photos), I  found that I erased it all. 

So I have spent a few hours trying to put it all back together, but my thought is - move forward and don't do it again.

Anyway, I just wanted to point out how easy computers make my life...

Where Mercy Meets Grace

This is the truth of the Gospel.  At the cross, mercy and grace collided.  Both were present in full force, and neither was greater than the other.  The magnitude of mercy met with the greatness of grace, and neither gave an inch.  Both had to be present for the Gospel to have it's full effect.

Fast forward 2000 years, and you will find a struggle that has continued as long as these two forces have been in place.  What is the difficulty?  Allowing the truth of one to rule over the other.

Mercy had it's place at the cross.  When we realize the fact that God's holiness demanded a punishment for sin, and that His wrath needed to be poured out on the ones who have sinned against Him, Christ taking our place was a huge act of mercy for us.  Christ realized the full wrath of God upon Himself.  Jesus took our sin and our punishment so that we did not need to experience the consequences that we justifiably deserve.  Mercy was not passive, but active in moving us out of the way so that Christ could receive Gdd's wrath that we should have experienced.

Grace also showed up that day.  Not only did we not receive what we deserved, but due to Christ's gift of His own perfection charged to our account, we received membership into the family of God.  No longer are we foreigners.  No longer are we enemies.  No longer are we outcasts.  We are heirs with Christ.  We are part of God's family.  Yeah, grace made it possible to approach a holy God not only without fear of experiencing His wrath, but more importantly, an expectation of experiencing His joy. 

Here's the struggle though - both were equal at the cross.  If we emphasize the one to the neglect of the other, we have missed out on the full gospel message.  We want to be amazed at God's grace that has given us freedom from sin and it's power in our lives.  Yet, if we magnify His grace to the neglect of His mercy, we forget the depth of sin and the massiveness of His wrath that was poured out on Christ.  Mercy tends to keep us humble.  Appreciation of grace left unchecked could lead to an arrogance of being selected to receive the grace.

Yet the alternative exists as well.  To the point at which we emphasize the mercy that God had on our sinful soul to the neglect of His grace, we can find ourselves seeking to payback the one who took our punishment.  Mercy cleared my slate of sin and so I am no longer a slave to it, but if I am not careful, I will find myself a slave to good works for the benefit of earning the gift I received.  A proper view of grace keeps us free from this bondage.

Neither of the two stand alone.  Neither of the two reveal the whole Gospel message.  Both are necessary to give us a balanced understanding of the truth of the Gospel.  AND a balanced view of both will give us the ability to share them with others.  To the extent that I understand grace, I offer grace to others.  To the extent that I understand mercy, I offer mercy to others.  Both are necessary in the Christian walk. 

Where do you tend to lean?  Lean toward either to the neglect of the other, and you are missing out on a key part of the truth of the Gospel.  Thank you God for both your mercy that took my place on Calvary, and your grace that made a relationship with you possible.  You are a great, merciful and gracious God!

Which would you prefer?

It's your special day.  Might be a birthday, an anniversary, a retirement party, a graduation, whatever.  Everyone you care about has gathered together for the event.  You are going to be receiving many gifts. You are going to be honored.  The day is all about you.

Then it dawns on you, these people you "care about" don't spend any time with you the rest of the year.  They don't pay attention to anything about you. They don't call.  They don't write.  They don't visit.  And you start to wonder why they are making such a big deal about this event.

As you begin to open the gifts you are even more confused.  The gifts they are offering are nice, some are even very expensive.  However, they don't fit you.  I mean, the colors are not your colors, the items are not items that you would use, the gifts do not fit your personality, your passions, or even your patterns. As you open the gifts the givers talk about how much they spent, or how rare the gift is, or how lucky you are to receive that gift. You are not impressed, but they all seem to be.

You thank everyone for the gifts.  People stay, talk, eat cake and ice cream, and eventually leave.  It is then you sit and wonder what this day was even all about. Was this really about me?  Or did my friends just find a way to make themselves feel better for "honoring" me?

Another "ordinary day" rolls around.  You don't expect a party, you don't expect gifts, you don't even think that anyone else will think about you.  This is really just an ordinary day.

However, you are again surrounded by friends, real friends.  They are talking with you about things that matter to you.  They spend time hearing about the things that are important to you.  They respond by doing the things you want done, the things you need done.  They give of their time, their energy, their "wealth", to meet the needs that you have.  Day after day they listen and respond.  They interact with you regularly.  They want to know how you are feeling, what you are thinking, how they can help you. Interestingly enough, you find yourself being all about them as well.

Two options - one gets you lots of gifts on "special" days, the other gives you the sense of being "honored" every day. Which sounds more appealing to you?

Many of us treat God much like the first group of people.  We meet with Him on His "special" day and give Him gifts - our work, our service, our money, our "worship", our singing...  And I wonder if God is asking, "Where are you the rest of the time?".  And I wonder if He doesn't look at our gifts and say, "What is this?  I didn't ask for this?  I don't even want this."

If the second scenario is more appealing to us, how much more do you think it appeals to a holy, loving, gracious and merciful God?  Don't you think He deserves more than our occasional gift that we boast about in our own spirit?

I do.

God help me give you all of me - even the worst of me - daily, that I might be reminded that You are a wonderful God.  Help me daily pursue you that I might know you more, so that my gifts of praise and worship would reflect Your very character, that You might be glorified in me.

Quick, easy, and accessible, but is it beneficial ???

Okay, I know you can't read it, but this image lists the multiplicity of "social networking" sites online.  I was amazed when I googled "social networking sites" and found this image.  I never dreamed there are so many.

That being said, I have to ask a question I posed a number of years ago when I started with this "blog" thing.  Is technology benefiting us?  Are relationships being developed?  Are people really connecting?  Are deep and meaningful interactions possible with these mediums?

I ask this because it seems that if you are not up to the latest, greatest craze in the electronic world, you are assumed to have something wrong with you.  If you are not texting instead of calling, if you are not twittering instead of e-mailing, if you are not posting your latest thoughts on Facebook, Linked-in, or some other site, you are "out of touch".

We are constantly being barraged with possible ways to simplify our lives and our interactions with others.  However, I am not certain that simplicity is what we should be looking for when it comes to things that really matter.  And I am confident that without doing the work to establish real relationships, deep friendships, eventually we will find ourselves connected to thousands of people with no one really knowing us.

The deepest longings of man are to know and be known.  I want to know others, I want to be known by others.  The scariest things in life are when I take the risk to get to know others and exposing myself to them to be more fully known to them.  If this is done in the safety of anonymity, then the risk is taken away.  Without the risk, there is no reward.  I cannot truly be know anonymously, and I cannot truly know others anonymously. 

I am not saying that these networking sites do not have their place, but I will ask that we wrestle with how much time and energy we are going to spend on them.  Sit down with someone across the table and talk.  Have a conversation with a group of people on a couch in the living room.  Face to face.  If you find this difficult to do, if you find yourself wanting to "hide behind" your phone or your computer, maybe it's time to lay those things down and build some real "social networks".

Just a thought.

What is wrong with me?

Charles Schulz, creator of Charlie Brown, developed a character who struggled with this question most of the time.  Have you ever felt like something was wrong with you?  Have you ever wondered why others seem to get it right, but you tend to mess up?  Especially as it relates to the Bible and the things of God?

In Romans 7, Paul records an internal struggle that helps us understand the heart of the apostle.  He tells us, "For the good that I want, I do not do, but I practice the very evil that I do not want." Paul was human.  Paul struggled with sin just like the rest of us.  Or do we struggle like this?

I heard a preacher talking about the beatitudes yesterday, and he was referring to the passage, "Blessed are those who mourn for they will be comforted." (Matt 5:4), and he explained that the mourning that Jesus is talking about is the "mourning" over our sin/sinfulness.  I don't want to re-preach his sermon, but he did a great job making his point.

While he was speaking though (I was driving back from Knoxville), my thoughts were brought to this section in Romans, and the struggle that Paul records.  He is wrestling with the law of the flesh and the law of God which obviously is more powerful.  However, it seems that occasionally, or at least much more often than he would like, he bends his will to the law of sin.  His desire is to follow completely the law of God, but the "law of his members" wins out sometimes.

It is this struggle that exposes the heart of the apostle to see him "mourning" his sinfulness, to the extent that in 1 Timothy he refers to himself as the "chief" of sinners.  He recognized more of the depth of his sinfulness than any of those around him.

It is into this "mourning" that the blessed message of the gospel shines through!  Christ's righteousness is sufficient for me and my belief that this is so allows me to be declared righteous before God.  What is the greatest blessing I can receive?  Is it not that my sinful, wretched flesh that I struggle with daily is only limited in my demise to the extent that I do not rely on the righteous perfection of our Savior?  It no longer has any power over me (unless I chose to allow it to) because as Paul goes on to remind us in Romans 8 - we are conquerors through HIM (in Him, clothed in His perfection).

What is wrong with me?  I am sinful.  I mess up.  I fail.  And as a result of this I should mourn my condition.

BUT, in CHRIST I stand before the Father clothed in His righteousness.  This is the blessing that we receive.

Praise be to God for His unmeasurable mercy and grace.

New England Bible Church - Guatemala Trip - Day 7 and 8

As typically happens, the rest of the story is often left to the imagination as we wrap up our week and head for home.  I often miss jotting down thoughts for the last few days, so I want to make sure I highlight the final events of the trip.

Friday morning we awoke without much urgency and relaxed, ate breakfast, sang songs and did our devotional.  Eventually the Wilson clan showed up and we finished our time in the word and made our way to Antigua.  We went a different way than I have ever gone because we were stopping to see the Stricklands, and we met them at the cross on the side of the hill by Antigua.  The view was amazing as we surveyed the Antigua valley and took pictures at the foot of the cross.  It was an amazing experience.

From there we went to the coffee plantation.  We toured a music museum and the coffee plant.  Both were interesting, although I am not a big fan of tours.  Most of what they told us on the music side was written out so we could have spent more time just looking, but the coffee part was rather interesting.  I found myself taking pictures of flowers for most of the time – as if that is something new – I got some great pictures.

After the tour we headed off to the market.  The team shopped for a couple of hours and I actually bought a hammock chair for my wife.  She had mentioned it two weeks ago so I wanted to surprise her – only to find out she had texted me that morning to remind me.  After the joyous shopping experience (sense the sarcasm), we headed off to McDonalds for ice cream and then off to the center square. 

At the square we saw a street performer who pulled one of our kids into the act.  Interestingly enough, I had just started filming before he pulled him in – How convenient.  They were hilarious together – the performer is very animated and fun to watch.  Anyway, the team really enjoyed it.

After the square we headed off for dinner.  Brian and his wife, Phil and a few from his family and the Stricklands joined us – we had a wonderful time.  We had steak, chicken or fajitas.  The food was delicious.

Eventually we returned to Thelma’s and had our usual end of week encouragement/blessing time.  I LOVE this part of the week – it is wonderful hearing the body build itself up in love.  To hear people that have plenty of reason to complain about each other choose instead to speak the truth of love to others and build their faith in Christ is awesome.  This group was no different – they did an excellent job lifting each other up.  We went until about 11, and then had to finish our time together in the airport the next day.  God is doing great things with these people and I am excited to hear about what He does with them as they return home.

Saturday morning we woke up, headed to the airport and headed home.  Lee got bumped to first class (he took Hannah’s ticket – she didn’t want to sit alone).  He was offered steak and chicken and he chose a salad instead – next time Tyler sits in first class – I am confident he would take advantage of the good food.  As a matter of fact, he flew first class from Miami to Boston – I wonder what he ate??

Eventually I arrived back at the airport in Nashville and spent the night with my wife at Days Inn in Nashville.  Although she was asleep when I arrived (got up to open the door, but went back to sleep), it was great to see her.

Another trip met expectations and even surpassed them.  God is faithful.  God is good.  It is all for His glory.  AMEN.

New England Bible Church - Guatemala Trip - Day 6

The final day in Los Esclavos began with breakfast, devotions and packing to prepare to leave. The team was obviously struggling because they were wrestling with various emotions as they were excited about heading back to Guatemala City but were sad to leave the children they had built relationships with.

We had much to do in finishing the projects, but only a couple of hours to complete it. We also had the opportunity to go on home visits and give out bundles of food, so that was going to limit our time as well.  All that being said, the team got right to work on the projects that we had to finish, and by lunch time we had made 2 house visits – handing out bundles of food/oil, finished the kitchen and put all of the furniture back in (including the new shelves we completed building this morning, and we cleaned the office completely and put it back together.

The team did an excellent job of balancing relationships with the kids and getting the jobs done.  The women in the kitchen were thrilled with the increase of space that was now available as a result of the wall being torn down and rebuilt.

As we ate lunch, the children surrounded the table and gave each of the team members a gift – a hand painted sculpture – for them to take home.  It was humbling to have the children give to us, but they really enjoyed the opportunity.  The team also gave out gifts of candy, clothing, and hugs and kisses to the kids.  It was a wonderful time of closure as the team loved on the children.

Finally we took our team picture with some of the workers and then said goodbye to the masses of children that gathered to see us off.

After a 2 hour drive back to the city, we arrived at Thelma’s house.  It was a very welcomed site to see Thelma at the gate of her home.  I love staying here.  Thelma loves hosting teams, and every team that has had the opportunity to stay here has loved being with Thelma and her grandkids.  Sammy, Sassy and Kiki came in an served us dinner and then cleaned up after.  They are fun to watch as they minister to the teams.

After dinner we recapped the day – as we always did – and sang songs.  The team laughed together, shared with one another, and gave glory to God for what they had heard and seen today.  This is always my favorite part of the day.  I love to hear what people are learning and what experiences they had for the day.

We wrapped up the evening by playing cards and sitting around talking.  This group knows how to enjoy being together – I am truly blessed to be part of their team.

Tomorrow is Antigua – and I really love that shopping thing – I hope the Olympics are on the television then I will have something to do while the team shops.  Tomorrow my wife and daughters head to Carson-Newman to drop Kendra off.  Dee really needs prayer.

 
I am excited about going home Saturday – it will be wonderful to see Dee in Nashville!

New England Bible Church - Guatemala Trip - Day 5

We awoke to a new day, and I was feeling better, the stomache seemed to be a little more under control.

We had breakfast and spent some time in the Word, and then headed off for Matochos.  We tried to get there a little sooner this morning, but due to the traffic (as a result of grading of a mountain next to the road) we again were stuck in the car for about a half and hour or so.  The fellowship is wonderful, but you can sense the anxiousness of the team to get to work and finish the tasks that have been set before them.

As we passed the “grading” point, I looked up and noticed that some of the rocks were falling – just as I was telling the team, rocks began pelting the van – Phil sped up and we got out of the “danger zone”.  We really weren’t in danger, but it was exciting.

Finally we arrived at Matochos and got back to work.  The wall needed completion, the bathrooms needed to be painted a second coat, the floor tiles needed to be laid, the kitchen needed painting, the tables needed to be finished and a bookshelf needed to be built!  Yes indeed, we had our work cut out for us.

Early on, Isaac was running around with the kids – it is hilarious to watch the kids responding to him and the other kids.  Most of the team members spent a little time interacting with the children before we began working.  It is wonderful to see the connections that are being made.  Jody was handing out “dulces” (candy), you know that she was a favorite person.

As the day progressed, many of the jobs were being finished, or were completed enough to be ready to finalize tomorrow.  They are doing a great job.  Lee spent most of his day on his knees – laying the tile in the kitchen.  Along with Y, they got that room done!  I was very impressed, especially since they did not have all the tools that they needed, and Y had never cut tile before.  They did an excellent job.

At one point in the day, I pulled out the guitar and all the kids gathered around to sing.  As they sang their worship songs praising God, it was very moving.  I love watching the passion and zeal of kids as they sing about God.

Pastor Tyler and Matteo had the opportunity to speak to the men of the church briefly in the afternoon.  As he shared in our evening time together, it was a wonderful and encouraging time for the men of the church and for Tyler and Matt.  It is neat to see the body of Christ working together to encourage one another.

We headed home a little later today, so dinner was at 7.  After dinner we met for our debrief and worship time.  We sang songs (I had to play because Lee’s fingers were sore from laying tile) and then the team shared the lessons they learned and the wonderful experiences they had today.  I am always encouraged as the team sees their connection to the ministry here, the impact they have had for the week, and then the desire to deepen and lengthen that impact.  I pray that as they go home their passion for the people of Guatemala continues to grow.

Tomorrow we finish here and head back to Guatemala City.  I am SO looking forward to talking with Dee.  It has been way, WAY too long.  I do miss her and the kids.  Kendra heads off to college on Friday, so I am going to miss that, but I know God will be there for her.  Enough for tonight – tomorrow we do it all over again!