God is continually looking for people who are willing to step out in faith and obey when He calls us into action. In Isaiah chapter 6, God is asking for some one to take a message to the people of Isreal. It was not an easy message to deliver and He needed some one who would display the courage, trust and confidence it would take to share the message with those who needed to hear it. In verse 8 of that chapter Isaiah steps out in faith and says, "Here I am Lord, send me!".
God still calls us today. He asks us to share His love; to deliver His message of hope and salvation. He asks us to be His hands and feet and to serve a lost and hurting world. And He assures us that if we respond to His call, He will guide and direct our path and provide us with all that we need to accomplish the task.
Megan returned home today after responding to God's call to serve in Swaziland. She spent six weeks providing medical care and spiritual support to many people through out the country. She will tell you that she felt the presence of God as she tended to the sick and needy during her time with the Luke Commission as well as with Nurse Jane in community outreach clinics. While Megan was a blessing to many, we also know that she was blessed in return.
Thanks to all who prayed for Megan and supported her before and during her time away. Now that she is home, be sure to get some time with her. Allow her to share her testimony and the stories of the people she encountered during her time in Swaziland. Then you too can be blessed!
Tuesday, September 21, 2010
Wednesday, September 15, 2010
Loving Lavumisa - An Update from Megan
I just spent the weekend in Lavumisa and I really enjoyed being a part of the first church service in the new church! As I arrived on Friday, Jane and a team were finishing up passing out 500 health packs throughout the community and inviting people to the church. Members of Jane’s home church donated the supplies and we put together 500 health packs for the people of Lavumisa. Each pack contained laundry soap, wash cloths, bar soap, toothpaste, toothbrush, vasoline, Tylenol, multivitamins, HIV educational information, and a gospel tract. Here is a picture of me with the packs after we finished putting them all together.
After the distribution of the health packs, and again on Saturday we worked on the building projects at Lavumisa. The sandbag walls of the church are almost done, and we began laying the foundations and first sandbags for what will be the pastor’s home and first children’s home.
I have to say that this weekend at Lavumisa was one of my favorite times in Swaziland so far. It was very encouraging to see how the community is really coming behind this church and the projects. The team of home based care workers that Jane has been training worked so hard and so diligently all week long and many people from the community came out to work with us on the buildings. On Sunday there were about 200 people who came to the church service. All of the seats were filled, and many people sat along the walls and stood in the back. The Holy Spirit is really moving!
Even though I was only there for a couple of days, I felt really sad to leave Lavumisa when the weekend was over. Something about that place just grabbed my heart. I think that God is really pouring out his Spirit and is blessing Pastor Sabelo and the church; and I was able to be blessed by the outpouring as well.
Last night some of the ministry leaders here got together for a time of worship, sharing Scripture, and prayer. We had a time of intercession for Swaziland and especially for the people of Lavumisa. One of the leaders felt led that we should pray Scripture from Isaiah chapters 1-4 over this nation. I thought I would share this with all of you so that you can join us in prayer!
“Wash and make yourselves clean.
Take your evil deeds out of my sight!
Stop doing wrong, learn to do right!
Seek justice, encourage the oppressed.
Defend the cause of the fatherless, plead the case of the widow.
‘Come now, let us reason together,’ says the Lord
‘Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow;
Though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool.
If you are willing and obedient, you will eat the best from the land;
But if you resist and rebel you will be devoured by the sword.’
For the mouth of the Lord has spoken.”
Isaiah 1:17-20
Oh, one last thing: I forgot to mention that it rained while we were in Lavumisa for the first time since April. The people were so excited and were praising God! What a blessing in a dry land!
After the distribution of the health packs, and again on Saturday we worked on the building projects at Lavumisa. The sandbag walls of the church are almost done, and we began laying the foundations and first sandbags for what will be the pastor’s home and first children’s home.
I have to say that this weekend at Lavumisa was one of my favorite times in Swaziland so far. It was very encouraging to see how the community is really coming behind this church and the projects. The team of home based care workers that Jane has been training worked so hard and so diligently all week long and many people from the community came out to work with us on the buildings. On Sunday there were about 200 people who came to the church service. All of the seats were filled, and many people sat along the walls and stood in the back. The Holy Spirit is really moving!
Even though I was only there for a couple of days, I felt really sad to leave Lavumisa when the weekend was over. Something about that place just grabbed my heart. I think that God is really pouring out his Spirit and is blessing Pastor Sabelo and the church; and I was able to be blessed by the outpouring as well.
Last night some of the ministry leaders here got together for a time of worship, sharing Scripture, and prayer. We had a time of intercession for Swaziland and especially for the people of Lavumisa. One of the leaders felt led that we should pray Scripture from Isaiah chapters 1-4 over this nation. I thought I would share this with all of you so that you can join us in prayer!
“Wash and make yourselves clean.
Take your evil deeds out of my sight!
Stop doing wrong, learn to do right!
Seek justice, encourage the oppressed.
Defend the cause of the fatherless, plead the case of the widow.
‘Come now, let us reason together,’ says the Lord
‘Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow;
Though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool.
If you are willing and obedient, you will eat the best from the land;
But if you resist and rebel you will be devoured by the sword.’
For the mouth of the Lord has spoken.”
Isaiah 1:17-20
Oh, one last thing: I forgot to mention that it rained while we were in Lavumisa for the first time since April. The people were so excited and were praising God! What a blessing in a dry land!
Monday, September 13, 2010
Doing more than just medical Care
While much of the work I have been doing here is related to medical care, I have also had the chance to serve in other ways. For instance, one day we met a woman while doing a home visit who was in poor health and needed some help fixing up her home. So we organized some of the kids from Hawane Farm to do a little community service and help her out! Check this out:
First we had to fill in holes where rocks were missing or had fallen out.
Then we had to mix up mud and put it over top of the rocks - almost like a plaster coating. We needed shovels and wheelbarrows to get the dirt mixed and moved.
And when all else fails, you mix mud with your boots on!
In addition to working on the woman's house, we also did a bit of work in her garden.
While the way of life here is simple, it is not always simple to accomplish things. We are thankful that God gave us the ability to do work and to do it in His name and for His glory. How awesome it it is to be Jesus' hands and feet!
Until next time..... Megan
First we had to fill in holes where rocks were missing or had fallen out.
Then we had to mix up mud and put it over top of the rocks - almost like a plaster coating. We needed shovels and wheelbarrows to get the dirt mixed and moved.
And when all else fails, you mix mud with your boots on!
In addition to working on the woman's house, we also did a bit of work in her garden.
While the way of life here is simple, it is not always simple to accomplish things. We are thankful that God gave us the ability to do work and to do it in His name and for His glory. How awesome it it is to be Jesus' hands and feet!
Until next time..... Megan
Outreach Work Continues
In my last post, I told you about the medical clinics we held at Lavumisa and Hawane. I also accompanied Nurse Jane in transporting a couple of our elderly Hawane neighbors to a medical clinic being held in Bulembu. A group of American and Canadian physicians were visiting Swaziland and were holding an outreach clinic at the Bulembu clinic. Here are some photos of that day:
The Clinic at Bulembu:
Neil, a clinic worker carrying our neighbor from Hawane into the clinic:
A young child undergoing a wound cleaning:
One of many dental extractions happening that day!
Thank you for your continued prayers on by behalf and on behalf of the people of Swaziland. They do make a difference.
~ Megan
The Clinic at Bulembu:
Neil, a clinic worker carrying our neighbor from Hawane into the clinic:
A young child undergoing a wound cleaning:
One of many dental extractions happening that day!
Thank you for your continued prayers on by behalf and on behalf of the people of Swaziland. They do make a difference.
~ Megan
Wednesday, September 8, 2010
A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words.... So Here are Several Thousand!
Hello, it’s Megan again. Another week has passed so quickly here in Swaziland! I thought I would share some pictures to give you an idea of what has been going on the past two weeks.
We held a medical clinic at Lavumisa, which we ran out of the church building currently on the site:
We also offered a clinic at Hawane. Sipho Roy, a member of the Teen Challenge Ministry program preached while people waited for care.
Jane assessing a child:
Me checking a sore throat:
We held a medical clinic at Lavumisa, which we ran out of the church building currently on the site:
We also offered a clinic at Hawane. Sipho Roy, a member of the Teen Challenge Ministry program preached while people waited for care.
Jane assessing a child:
Me checking a sore throat:
Wednesday, September 1, 2010
Megan's Mission Field Moment
Hello from Swaziland! My name is Megan. I am a nurse and I came to Swaziland with the medical team in August to work with the Luke Commission. After the team left, I made my way over to Hawane where I am now working with Jane Bradshaw. Jane is a nurse from the UK who runs a clinic on the farm as well as clinic outreach into the local community. I have really enjoyed my time with Jane so far and I have been learning a lot. I am really thankful for God’s timing of bringing me to work with Jane, because she just returned from a month of leave. In fact, we both showed up at Hawane on the very same day! There is a lot of work to catch up on, and I am so glad to be able to lend a helping hand to such a driven and hardworking missionary.
So far we have done two community clinics, including one yesterday in Lavumisa. Around 90 patients came to the clinic at Lavumisa and all were able to sit down one-on-one with a nurse to be assessed and treated. We saw a lot of patients with respiratory, skin, and pain problems. In addition to giving basic medications and antibiotics, one of the most important things we do is provide individualized health advice and education. Jane, Jude, and I served as nurses while ten local home based care workers (more on that below) from Lavumisa helped as translators, checked patients in, measured blood pressures, and gave deworming tablets. Pastor Sabelo was also there to preach God’s Word and pray with the people who came. Sabelo is the pastor of CLC Lavumisa: a great man, very joyful, and such an encourager. It was great to meet him and many other members of the community as we held the clinic!
One of my favorite parts of Jane’s ministry is that she is training home based care workers within the communities of Hawane and Lavumisa who can help their neighbors when a clinic is unavailable. Jane is training these Swazis in many areas of care such as health and nutrition education and some basic medication administration. We met with two of these workers from Hawane on Saturday to do some teaching and also catch up on needs they had seen within the community. It was so humbling to listen to the needs they presented. I am used to attending campus Bible studies where the prayer requests are college students praying for help on exams. Here the first need and prayer request was for two children whose young father and only caregiver just passed away. These children now had nobody to take care of them. Many of the others were for medical needs that would be routinely treated in the US, or for people lacking basic necessities like food. We not only prayed for these needs, but discussed how we could help meet the needs through our ministry.
Thus, we have also spent a couple of days doing home visits in the local community of Hawane. We visit homes of people whom the home based care workers report as needing help but that are physically unable to come to community clinics. Many times these are very sick patients, and at times we lack the resources we need to truly meet their medical needs. But we are always able to pray with each family and present the gospel to those who have not heard. God is at work in many lives and it is both humbling and awesome to be a part!
In addition to the community outreach, we have also completed health checks for the children who live at Hawane CLC and across the street at Hawane Farm (The Teen Challenge project that initially drew CLC to Swaziland). Each child is seen once a month to be assessed by a nurse. It was encouraging to listen to Jane tell the stories of some of the children who came to the farm underweight or with various health problems, and then to see them now growing and healthy. It was also a good way to meet the kids on the farm.
Tomorrow we are doing another clinic in the community, and Friday we are taking some local patients to be seen by a team of visiting American doctors. Pray for the people who come to our clinics: that we would not overlook their medical needs, but even more importantly that they would be pointed to Christ and understand the gospel. The HIV/AIDS epidemic and the poverty caused by years of drought have caused so much destruction to families and communities in this nation. The transformation that God alone can bring to hearts, lives, and families is Swaziland’s greatest hope. Truly He is any nation’s greatest hope! Also pray for Jane, because she has been going non-stop since she returned from her break. She does so much, I pray for her that God will give her energy and focus as she serves.
So far we have done two community clinics, including one yesterday in Lavumisa. Around 90 patients came to the clinic at Lavumisa and all were able to sit down one-on-one with a nurse to be assessed and treated. We saw a lot of patients with respiratory, skin, and pain problems. In addition to giving basic medications and antibiotics, one of the most important things we do is provide individualized health advice and education. Jane, Jude, and I served as nurses while ten local home based care workers (more on that below) from Lavumisa helped as translators, checked patients in, measured blood pressures, and gave deworming tablets. Pastor Sabelo was also there to preach God’s Word and pray with the people who came. Sabelo is the pastor of CLC Lavumisa: a great man, very joyful, and such an encourager. It was great to meet him and many other members of the community as we held the clinic!
One of my favorite parts of Jane’s ministry is that she is training home based care workers within the communities of Hawane and Lavumisa who can help their neighbors when a clinic is unavailable. Jane is training these Swazis in many areas of care such as health and nutrition education and some basic medication administration. We met with two of these workers from Hawane on Saturday to do some teaching and also catch up on needs they had seen within the community. It was so humbling to listen to the needs they presented. I am used to attending campus Bible studies where the prayer requests are college students praying for help on exams. Here the first need and prayer request was for two children whose young father and only caregiver just passed away. These children now had nobody to take care of them. Many of the others were for medical needs that would be routinely treated in the US, or for people lacking basic necessities like food. We not only prayed for these needs, but discussed how we could help meet the needs through our ministry.
Thus, we have also spent a couple of days doing home visits in the local community of Hawane. We visit homes of people whom the home based care workers report as needing help but that are physically unable to come to community clinics. Many times these are very sick patients, and at times we lack the resources we need to truly meet their medical needs. But we are always able to pray with each family and present the gospel to those who have not heard. God is at work in many lives and it is both humbling and awesome to be a part!
In addition to the community outreach, we have also completed health checks for the children who live at Hawane CLC and across the street at Hawane Farm (The Teen Challenge project that initially drew CLC to Swaziland). Each child is seen once a month to be assessed by a nurse. It was encouraging to listen to Jane tell the stories of some of the children who came to the farm underweight or with various health problems, and then to see them now growing and healthy. It was also a good way to meet the kids on the farm.
Tomorrow we are doing another clinic in the community, and Friday we are taking some local patients to be seen by a team of visiting American doctors. Pray for the people who come to our clinics: that we would not overlook their medical needs, but even more importantly that they would be pointed to Christ and understand the gospel. The HIV/AIDS epidemic and the poverty caused by years of drought have caused so much destruction to families and communities in this nation. The transformation that God alone can bring to hearts, lives, and families is Swaziland’s greatest hope. Truly He is any nation’s greatest hope! Also pray for Jane, because she has been going non-stop since she returned from her break. She does so much, I pray for her that God will give her energy and focus as she serves.
Saturday, August 28, 2010
And Then There Was One
.JPG)
Even though the majority of our medical team returned home August 25th, one person was left behind..... intentionally.
Megan is remaining in Swaziland until the third week of September. She will finish out her work with The Luke Commission on Sunday, August 29th and then she will move out to Hawane where she will work with Nurses Jane Bradshaw and another short-term stay nurse, Jude, who is from England. We look forward to hearing what types of things Megan will be doing at Hawane.
Megan is not new to the world of international missions. As a high school student at CLC, Megan participated in mission trips to both El Salvador and Nicaragua. She also was active in Campus Crusade for Christ while attending Wright State University, where she received her degree in Nursing. Megan felt God calling her to serve in Swaziland. She believes she is to use her medical knowledge to help meet not only the physical needs, but the spiritual needs of the people in this impoverished place. Megan looks forward to putting her medical skills to use as she serves the people of Swaziland and spreads the Gospel for Christ.
Megan, her family and the entire Swaziland ministry covet your prayers in the coming weeks. May Megan have the chance to see what God sees, feel what God feels and love as God loves as she cares for the people of Hawane, Lavumisa and the whole of Swaziland.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)