March Update 2006
What an incredible month we had doing the work of the Lord! We had our volunteer meeting on March 5th with 55 people interested in helping us with this outreach. We now have an occupational therapist that is helping us with every clinic. So, the numbers of patient encounters also includes the patients that he is seeing. Another way we are showing the love of Christ with one-on-one hands-on encounters. Other resources include a pediatrician to help in the Spanish community and 2 nurse practitioners. We also have a dietician/diabetic nurse educator that will start volunteering in April – WOW!The mobile clinic saw 109 patients in March in 6 different clinics. We had 75 volunteer experiences! And this was just our first month of getting into a schedule! It is such a blessing to us to be a blessing to others. These encounters include the patient seeing the receptionist, greeter, nurse, doctor or NP or therapist, and a prayer partner. That is a minimum of 4 people that get to interact with every patient seen. Here are some comments from some of our volunteers:
Joshua, RN – Healing Hands ministry is a wonderful ministry tool, as it allows not only for physical needs to be met, but also spiritual. The patience and gratitude of the people served is heart warming and makes me strive to be a better representative of Christ.
Suzanne – “I have showed you all things, how that so laboring ye ought to support the weak, and to remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how He said, ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’” Acts 20:35 The experiences that I have had with Healing Hands have truly been a blessing to me, probably more so than the people we are there to serve. I am on the prayer team and have seen so many answered prayers in regard to their health and family lives. It is such a privilege to talk with them and pray with them about the issues they are facing and to see how they respond to the love and care they are given. It seems almost that coming to the clinic is a social experience for them as well. They sit and talk with friends as they wait for their appointments and we have developed personal relationships with them from talking with them and praying for them after they are seen. The Healing Hands Mobile Clinic is most certainly a gift from God for these precious people and it is a blessing and a privilege to be involved.
Gayle – What a blessing to be able to serve with Healing Hands Ministry!!!! God is sooooooo good. Over and over we hear thankfulness that someone cares enough to sacrifice the time and energy to help them – at no cost to them – and they are most grateful! Regarding those that return (and there are many), we get to hear praise reports of their healing and that “prayer works”. They see the love of God being poured into their lives and they are given hope. Actually, the blessings come back to us – to see God at work in their lives, and experience the smiles on their faces when the victories come is absolutely awesome . . . and God gets all the glory!