This past week, I was reminded of something that I hadn’t realized had one time not been true. I remembered that I liked being a nurse. Part of the reason the World Race was appealing to me, was that it was not medical. It’s solely evangelism based.
However, I knew I would still “be a nurse” while on the field. This week it was especially true, as part of the team traveled to a nearby village Rah, in the KampongChhnang district. Our team was there to assist in the beginnings of building a church plant. And it’s true: we did help start to build the building. We spent a very warm afternoon digging waste deep holes in order to begin placing columns for the structure itself. We also spent a lot of time with the children of the village. Playing games, laughing, eating, etc.
One little boy grabbed my attention immediately once we arrived. In the house near our campsite is a little boy who is nearly 2 years old. But he has some delays. On the last day in the village, Pastor asked me if I had any advice. Even though I do not know anything about the child’s background, I had my suspicions about what could be happening. I gave some tips on some physical therapy exercises, and also gave some nutritional advice. A part of me was thinking, “That’s not enough”. But another part of me thought, “That’s more than they had to begin with”.
Another moment, I found myself dressing some old wounds. I found out the young boy had been bitten by a dog. My initial response was, “Dear God, I pray the dog did not have rabies”. Thankfully it was an old wound, but it still looked infected. I busted out some bandages and quickly got to work.
There were a few other situations similar within hours of each other, where I was asked to consult with some of the locals on their current health. My teammates even told me later, they enjoyed watching me in the role of nurse. And that’s when I realized how much I love being a nurse. I was reminded how much I love to care for others’ physical needs. I was reminded how much I love public health and health promotion. Sometimes the simplest information is what people need the most. You may think you’re just throwing a suggestion out about proper foods, but really you’re reducing the risk of malnourishment. You may think you’re just putting a bandage on a kid, but really you’re giving them a chance of living without infections.
The Lord reminded me that day: “I have called you to care for the hurt. I have called you to care for and heal the sick. It’s no mistake. I have called you”. A passage that continually comes to my mind is:
Continue to pray for the Village of Rah. There are many strongholds. But the Lord is beginning to break them free of those strongholds. The building project has begun. And God’s glory is going to shine through it.
