Healthcare as a platform in missions has opened countless doors for providing spiritual care hand in hand with physical care.
Meeting medical needs provides unique inroads for evangelism and discipleship in communities, even in hard-to-reach places where opportunities to share the gospel may be otherwise restricted. Medical missions impacts not only the patients receiving care, but also the healthcare professionals themselves, creating four primary benefits.
1. Medical Care Presents Opportunities for Spiritual Care
The platform of medicine is a powerful tool to reach those who are in desperate need of hope and healing. Dr. Seth Mallay, who joined the ABWE medical team at Hôpital Baptiste Biblique (HBB) in 2019, recognizes the potential for medical services to allow doctors, nurses, dentists, physical therapists, and other healthcare professionals to initiate spiritual discussions.
He remarked:
“We have unique access into the lives of the Togolese people as they seek us out to help them in their moments of need, and they open up to us in ways that you never see outside of healthcare. We have found, at least in some cases, that folks are much more open to hearing the gospel in these desperate situations, and we have a tremendous opportunity to show them the love of Christ by showing compassion and seeking to meet their needs. There are dozens of people groups in Togo and the medical team is well positioned to help the entire Togo ministry team in its mission to reach every people group in Togo.”
Dr. Mallay is one of many who provide both medical and spiritual care for patients at HBB. The hospital, built in Togo, Africa, in 1985, serves over 18,000 outpatients and 2,500 inpatients each year. Many seeking treatment express amazement at the level of compassion and love they experience from the providers and become interested to hear the message of Christ that both motivates the missionary team to serve and offers hope beyond suffering.
HBB’s ministry has continued to grow, as has that of its sister facility, Hospital of Hope, located in northern Togo. In both locations, teams of physicians and chaplains travel regularly to local communities to provide physical care and preach the gospel, opening doors for additional outreach through evangelism and discipleship.
2. Health Education Opens Doors for Evangelism and Discipleship
Health education is another outreach that has allowed opportunities for evangelism and discipleship in local communities. Particularly in developing regions, where many people live without sufficient resources or infrastructure, providing training on topics like disease prevention, nutrition, basic hygiene, and water purification can increase the quality of life for families and open doors for biblical teaching.
In another West African nation, an ABWE physician assistant serves through community health, combining public health education with spiritual teachings. During a maternal health clinic, she found a unique opportunity to introduce gospel truth to a Muslim woman.
She shares:
“An exhausted mother with four young children, including a four-month-old on her back, brought me a positive pregnancy test at the clinic. As I shared with her the results, we cried together in a corner, and I prayed for this Muslim woman and the unborn child in Jesus’ name. I was concerned she would try to end this unwanted pregnancy, so week after week I broke cultural norms and prayed for her and the child, speaking life into this precious gift from God. Nine months later, she joyfully called to share the news of a beautiful, healthy baby boy. To this day, this Muslim woman tells everyone about her miracle baby that the Lord gave her in answer to prayers in the name of Jesus.”
Through providing health education, this missionary has witnessed God change hearts as local residents attend the clinics and discover the saving knowledge of Jesus Christ. These clinics leave a substantial impact on both the patients and on her as a practitioner. As she experiences God working, she is moved to continue reaching the lost, discipling new believers, and praying fervently for these people groups.
3. Medical Missions Encourages Right Priorities
Medical missionaries using compassionate care to communicate Christ keep the priority on eternal life, not just physical life. Even when treating a full caseload of patients, they extend care beyond the immediate physical concerns, understanding that each person’s body is temporal, but their spiritual state is eternal.
In Nicaragua, ABWE nurse practitioner Traci Warner joined a church planting team in 2010 to help reach Central America. Whether through medicine or church ministry, her goal is to lead women, teens, and children to Christ. As the Lord allowed her ministry to grow, Traci began facilitating short-term teams into her region, some providing medical care and others supporting building projects or organizing VBS programs.
Traci reflected on the ultimate goal of healing, saying:
“As a nurse practitioner, I love seeing a patient come in with elevated sugar levels and, after some education, lifestyle modifications, and perhaps medication, watching those sugar levels drop to a more controlled level, or when a patient comes in with a skin abscess and, after prescribing an antibiotic, seeing it cleared up after a week. That said, I also recognize that in this profession, 100 percent of my patients will eventually die. So what else am I offering them? What more can I provide that leads to ultimate healing?”
At the end of the day, whether her ministry is serving a patient as a nurse practitioner or organizing a teaching event for a local church, Traci focuses on the “why” that motivates her efforts—the eternal value of what she is sharing.
4. Medical Missions Impacts Both Patients and Practitioners
As God continues opening doors through healthcare and providing opportunities to share the gospel in hard-to-reach places, the results impact not only the patients receiving care but also the healthcare professionals. As they follow the Lord’s leading into missions, many practitioners enjoy employing their skills and training to treat those who otherwise may not have access to the care they need, finding creative approaches to provide care, and having a level of freedom to share their faith and focus on the patients to a level that may not be possible in the public healthcare system of their home nations.
Holly F. is a nurse practitioner who began serving in Ukraine in 2006. Her ministry has focused on mobile medical clinics and the Choose Life prolife ministry in Odesa. In October 2023, she began participating in the annual ABWE Healthcare trip to Moldova. The team brings in medicines and glasses and sets up simple clinics in several villages to assist local pastors with evangelism. She reflected on the experience, saying,
“I really enjoy this ministry because it gives me the opportunity to be involved in a number of church plants at one time—to be able to be an encouragement to a number of a pastors and small churches. It’s also fulfilling professionally because I get the opportunity to focus on medicine without so much paperwork and insurance, and it also gives me many opportunities—more opportunities than I think I might have in a regular practice in the States to share my faith with the patients that I’m taking care of.”
As a practitioner, the ability to serve patients physically and freely pray with them and share the gospel is an energizing and encouraging experience.
God is truly working through healthcare professionals to reach people all over the world, evangelize and disciple communities, and open patients’ eyes to the gift of eternal life in Christ.
We believe God will continue to provide opportunities for medical missionaries to share the love of Christ both within ABWE medical facilities and out in local communities. But there are more opportunities than there are workers.
That’s why we’re looking for doctors, nurses, and other medical partners to help meet the needs of the hurting across the globe, whether it’s a one-week trip or a lifetime career. If you’re passionate about serving God through medical missions, we’d love to partner with you.
A great opportunity to meet us and learn more about how you can use your medical skills around the globe is at the Global Missions Health Conference (GMHC), November 7-9, 2024.
GMHC is a wonderful venue for connecting with other people who are interested in medical missions: whether that be short-term trips or long-term commitments. GMHC also provides opportunities for international continuing education related to missions topics in underserved and needy populations around the world. ABWE engages with countless providers at GMHC who serve in some capacity at our hospitals and facilities. Come begin a conversation with us at booth 1206-1209, FH1. Register today.
