Where we go...What we do...
Brazil, China, Cote d'Ivoire, Ghana, Guatemala, Haiti, India, Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, Macao, Mexico, Nicaragua, Nigeria, Pakistan, Panama, Philippines, Russia, Siberia, Sierra Leone, Slovakia and Venezuela.
Medical Teams provide temporary clinics for local churches,
often using the church building to examine hundreds of patients and to
dispense medicines donated by pharmaceutical companies. Simple surgeries
are sometimes performed in a "makeshift" operating room. The teams combine
medical care with teaching efforts that use visual aid, such as "What
is Disease" or "How to Build a Latrine" to instruct the waiting crowds.
In countries where allowed, witnessing occurs while people wait for services.
Dental Teams are another medical specialty. Dentists provide relief from pain when decayed, aching teeth are extracted. People walk for hours and wait for days to have their teeth extracted. Often five to six extractions are needed to end the infection and pain for the patient. This can be accomplished without sophisticated dental equipment. In countries where it is allowed, witnessing occurs while the people wait, sometimes for hours, for their treatment.
Hospice Training Teams Death and Dying. . . A difficult subject
in any culture. In many countries however, doctors were not trained as
American doctors are now. They were taught that "the body is like a machine;
when it is too broken to fix, just let it die." These doctors do not believe
there are any emotions or a soul in that body. In 1995, MOST Ministries
sent the first team of presenters (a doctor, a nurse and a counselor)
to Riga, Latvia. They addressed hospital administrators, doctors, nurses,
and psychologists. Since that first visit the largest hospital in Latvia
has established a 25 bed Hospice Unit and a National Hospice Association
has been registered with the Latvian Government. We are now receiving
requests for Hospice Training Seminars from several different countries.
These teams give a strong witness to the value of all human life, especially
the dying and in countries where allowed, witnessing occurs whenever possible.
This is an excerpt from a letter we received from an attendee of one of
our seminars (the grammar and spelling are original text): "Dear Friends,
What you have done and are doing in your country is so worthing and rewarding,
that you come here to share this experience with us, your brothers and
sisters. You care a dying person, with a team of high skills and deep
compassion, diminish his or her pain and elevate his or her wholesome,
so that he or she can live life to the best till the last moment. You
encompass a tortured soul with so tender hearts that he or she is no longer
a mere prey of death. . .It is our glory to receive this love bonfire
from you. . . Thank you. . ."
Teacher Training occurs in countries where school teachers have
limited formal education and classroom resources. These professional teams
are a source of information and encouragement to these dedicated teachers
who often work for very little salary and can not provide "extras" for
their students. The teachers of these schools are blessed long after the
team leaves by being able to return to the classrooms spiritually renewed
and excited in their Christian Faith. In countries where allowed, witnessing
occurs whenever possible.
Eyeglass Clinics God has blessed thousands of people around the
world through this ministry. Eyeglasses are simply not available or affordable
to people in many countries, and yet the need for improved eyesight through
a simple pair of glasses is there. When one Kuna Indian in Panama was
asked why she wanted glasses, she responded, "So I can see to pick the
bugs out of the rice." Another woman in Latvia was overheard to say, "Now
I can see for distance and for reading; I think I must be in Heaven."
Teams are trained to use a very simple method of testing the eyes for
appropriate prescription and then selecting and fitting the right glasses.
Training for the eyeglass team can be done in three to four hours during
team meetings or if team members cannot attend the team meeting, a training
video and a manual are sent to them for individual instruction. When a
team arrives in the country for a clinic, additional training provides
the final eyeglass instruction. Depending on the number of team members,
a team can serve from 100-300 people each day of clinic. All patients
are registered and these registrations provide names and addresses for
the local church for follow-up evangelism. Each patient receives a pair
of glasses (or two if both distance and reading glasses are needed) as
well as sunglasses and information on how to protect their eyes. In countries
where allowed, while patients are waiting or being tested and fitted for
eyeglasses, they are given personal witness of a team member or a local
church member and sometimes given tracts or other evangelistic materials.
The glasses that these teams distribute are donated from a variety of
sources such as schools, churches and individuals that send used eyeglasses
to MOST Ministries as well as glasses that are obtained through the International
Lions Club. These glasses are collected, sorted, tested and marked with
the prescription strength by volunteers who spend countless hours doing
this work and making this eyeglass ministry possible. This simple eyeglass
clinic process and training can also be taught to lay church workers in
the foreign field. The ministry can then be continued after the team leaves.
Ongoing Clinics have been established in Haiti, Ghana, Nigeria, Cote D'Ivoire,
Mexico and Latvia.
Construction Teams
help in building schools and
churches in third world countries and provide a local ministry with "extra
hands" and sometimes partial funding of the project. The teams are often
asked to raise money for the project through their local churches. These
teams are a real blessing to national pastors as the teams work side by
side with national church members in construction. In countries where allowed,
witnessing occurs while working side by side with nationals.
English as a Second (Foreign) Language Teams through MOST Ministries
offers the wonderful opportunity to spread the Gospel of Jesus Christ
through teaching English. The goal is to be a part of building Christ's
Kingdom by assisting local national churches in doing evangelism. The
Camp environment provides an excellent atmosphere for building personal
relationships and sharing Christ with students. During this time, national
lay leaders from the host country and counselors involved with the camp
establish key relationships for future follow-up. Many countries that
are not open to evangelism are asking for English teachers. MOST Ministries
is responding to these requests with respect to the government laws. These
English Camps offer opportunities for our team members to live out their
faith in silent witness.
Evangelism/Worship Teams have individuals skilled in music, drama, puppets, bells, or any variety of artistic talent that can be incorporated into formal or spontaneous worship and praise. In countries where allowed, these teams use their talents to share the Gospel with hundreds of people at each event. These teams also teach members of the local church how to "develop" music and drama for evangelism in their own countries. Music and drama transcend the language barriers and are considered a universal language.
Vacation Bible School Teams assist local national pastors in
the children's ministry and outreach. Some teams are used to plant churches
in new areas. They gather large numbers of children for a three to five
day VBS that results in a Saturday Bible Club, leading to Adult Bible
Study and establishing a church. Some VBS Teams are used to demonstrate
teaching techniques to adult lay workers in the church, providing training
for future Sunday Schools and Children's Ministries. These dedicated VBS
team members have lasting memories of hundreds of smiling children, eager
to learn about Jesus and Christian principles of living.
Prayer Teams
are engaged in a variety of prayer activities, praying
on-site with insight at the location where the answer to prayer is expected.
Team members walk through a specific area while praying, without drawing
notice to themselves, focusing on the sights and sounds. Inspiration for
these prayers can be spontaneous while on-site, or may be the result of
accumulating information about the area and then praying specifically about
known needs. Other types of prayer activities are planned in consultation
with the national host.