Medical outreach touches lives

“Mission” connotes service. It goes along with the word “outreach.” Collaborating with medical services, the mission outreach of health professionals makes the activity even more rewarding. It does not only address the physical health needs of people but their spiritual needs as well.

The medical mission that was conducted by HOPE International and the Manila Adventist Medical Center (MAMC), January 5-12, in the province of Siquijor, fulfilled what a mission outreach envisions. It saved the physical body and revived the spiritual life of many individuals.

In coordination with Negros Oriental-Siquijor Field of the Seventh-day Adventist Church (NSM), the Siquijor Provincial Government and Jaylan Shipping Company, this weeklong medical mission brought in 20 medical doctors, a dentist, eight nurses, six paramedical personnel and one pastor from the United States and MAMC. The team was a good mix of Adventists, Catholics and Protestant practitioners.

“‘HOPE International,’ is a nonprofit organization that gives opportunities for everyone to share their resources, time and life in service to humanity. The acronym for ‘Helping People for Eternity,’ HOPE spells its objectives as ‘preaching, teaching, and healing,’” said Drs Michael and Chequi dela Cruz, a Filipino couple from the United States who heads the team.

Pressed for more enlightenment of the HOPE’s mission, the dela Cruzes said they do this program “as a way of developing Christ-like character while fulfilling Christ’s commission.”
The week’s activity catered to 60 people undergoing major surgical operation, 170 minor operations, and more than 1300 medical and dental services performed. One assessed the total services as not falling below the three million-peso threshold.

“Doing medical ministry, Christ becomes real to you and happier when seeing people relieved from pain. The integration of spiritual activity is part of the package of the activity,” Michael and Chequi added.

“My life was empty, and I wanted something beyond what I ordinarily do. What I did was to cancel my earlier-laid itinerary and joined the medical mission. I am now fulfilled!” said a non-Seventh-day Adventist member of the team.

An employee of the Siquijor Provincial Hospital voiced out his observations: “The team members were kind and loving. They go the extra mile besides hearing no foul words from them.”

Some of the highlights of the medical mission were a nightly revival meeting that the team conducted. They also had room-to room serenading at the government hospital where the mission event was held. This special activity led to the baptism of eight people towards the end of the outreach program. [Jimmy S. Guma]

Secretaries from church’s regional office hold Jakarta seminar

A four-hour plane ride bridged thousands of miles between Philippines and Indonesia bringing five office secretaries from Manila to the city of Jakarta, January 23-31. They were responding to the invitation of their fellow secretaries at the Adventist Church in west Indonesia (WIUM).

The five from the church headquarters of the southern Asia-Pacific region (SSD) were Mercy Ferrer, secretary to the Associate Secretary; Laila Nacario, secretary to the Personnel Director; Jane Fajut, secretary to the Adventist Mission Director; Dulce Mabituin, secretary to the Children’s Ministries/Family Ministries Director and the Women’s Ministries and Shepherdess Int’l Director; and Gay Tuballes, secretary to the Communication Director.

The lecturers who produced their seminar materials dealt on basic secretarial skills to include Work Ethic and Time Management, Basic Grammar and Business Correspondence with Email Etiquette, Electronic Filing, Telephone Manners, Receiving Visitors, demonstration of File Maker Run Time version used for Global pioneers for Adventist Mission, Men and Women in the Workplace, Dress Code and Social Responsibility. An introduction to Microsoft Publisher software and integration of video and audio to Microsoft PowerPoint were also presented.

“Each topic catered to our individual needs,” said the participants. “We learned, too,” responded the presenters.

Other highlights of the event were the stress-reduction activities. Believing that stress has become the number one factor that hinders excellent performance and work efficiency, the secretaries were given practical tips to do away with stressful work by taking short stretching breaks for good blood and oxygen circulation, a demonstration of simple and quick chair massage ideal for an office setting.

“There is no better way to understand the work of a secretary more than a fellow secretary can impart,” said the participants. “We saw no gap between participants and presenters as we feel we belong to each other,” said Esther Manurung, a WIUM office secretary.

The participants also voiced out that a seminar on understanding personality in the workplace will make the secretaries more effective as they deal with their bosses and colleagues. “We need those important tips,” added Corry Sagala, another WIUM secretary.

Ian Christie who said she was trained an accountant and landed on secretarial job considered the seminar “enlightening and worth the time spent.”

The presenters’ response to the care and amiability of the participants including their assessment of the conduct of the seminar was summed up by Laila Nacario: “The accommodation was superb. We covered so much important details in the profession and these make us glad and fulfilled.” [AND Staff]

Young participants quick at learning skills

Youth, teachers, pastors, administrators and lay leaders took their time off for two and half days, January 27-29, to attend a writing seminar on what they termed as ‘first to happen’ in this marble-rich island of Romblon in central Philippines.

A total of 113 participants faithfully spent their time at the headquarters of the Seventh-day Adventist Church in Romblon (RAM) located in Dapawan, Odiongan, Romblon, imbibing lessons believed to enhance their skills to communicate through writing for print, for web, and for personal consumption.

“Of all seminars we have conducted, this has the biggest attendance,” said Dr Jonathan C Catolico, communication director for the Adventist Church in the southern Asia-Pacific region (SSD). The Romblon participants, most of them were students at the Adventist Mission Academy of Romblon (AMAR) and the Romblon National High School (RNHS), a nearby government secondary school who took advantage of the seminar upon the invitation of Pastor Donald E Zabala, president and communication director for RAM.

The youth who had edge on newer technology over their older counterparts learned the techniques of writing, layout and design, and e-publication much easier. They asked the questions the most. “When you ask, you learn better,” remarked Reuben A Pagaduan, design presenter and chair of the Fine Arts Department of the Adventist University of the Philippines (AUP).

Besides Catolico and Pagaduan, Winelfred G Pasamba, AUP information technology specialist and web master, presented a half-day skills development on web and electronic publications. He also presented the curricular offerings at AUP that cater to every need of the Adventist youth.

Among the several write-ups submitted by the participants, four were chosen as best contributions that represented feature, news feature, and news writing. “Venturing into the devil’s lair,” was a 400-word feature story submitted by a high school student from RNHS. She cautioned young people from making light the power of the devil as the latter may take advantage of their weaknesses. A young mother also summed up her birthing experience in a 200-word news feature article entitled “Laughter beyond cries!”

“I have learned a lot,” said one young participant, “me, too,” said a young pastor. “Indeed, such an intellectual exercise sharpens rusted skills that are inherent in us,” concluded an experienced professor and news writer and one of the seminar attendees. [Seminar Participants/AND Staff]

You can’t tire God

The widest highway where traffic goes unchecked and uncontrolled, I believe, is the World Wide Web or the www. The www has nets of varied snapping tolerance; some stronger. And the stronger ones persist. The traffic successfully touches your senses—disgust or anger, among them.

Competing websites dominate the cyberspace. Many are within the realms of advertising, and they come uninvited into our inboxes in electronic mails.

They intrude our privacy in appealing packages. And we are awakened to accessing these emails fully unaware.
Curiosity influences. Web designers capitalize on the influencing power of curiousness. This leads subscribers to accessing these pop-ups. When a printed material comes to the marketplace with an attractive cover, a shopper spends a bit of time to decipher the content. That curious mind begins to work. Based on this premise, therefore, why should we not knock at someone’s door too? If our life-saving message comes in a label that leaves no doubt for good reading, then what hinders us from employing such strategy?

If you are an Internet user, you are not on your own anymore. Your email address has been known by someone from nowhere. One ‘googler’ says,“If you don’t find yourself in the Internet, you do not exist!”

We do exist but we are not on our own. God who owns us desires that we live to our potential through His grace. Internet gives us the access to reach anyone anywhere in a tick of a timepiece. How can we engage that power to reach out to someone in need of Jesus’ love?

One prominent characteristic of web advertisers is their persistence to sell their trade even if you have repeatedly deleted their ads. No amount of deleting works. This teaches us a lesson: “…persistence pays off.” A persisting joy that wells up from experiencing Jesus’ saving power is ‘undeletable’! Also, if we reach out to people “in season or out of season,” someone out there will receive our offer.

Sometimes we feel trapped when caught in Internet traffics. When falling into a quicksand of life’s turmoil I don’t mind getting trapped in God’s undying love. Do you? God’s offer of life keeps popping up and no rejecting or ‘deleting’ would tire Him to get us to His side. He is not employing His trade cunningly. Was His death a trap? His death gave me the assurance of a life beyond the present and gives me every reason to tell others the availability of that life. Access it!

Through a hostile environment

A book entitled, Into Thin Air (Anchor Books, 1999) by Jon Krakauer gives a personal account of the 1996 Mount Everest disaster when eight climbers died in a single day. Fifteen died in that entire year making it the deadliest year in Everest’s history.

The book details Krakauer’s ascent to the world’s highest peak which turned catastrophic and cost well-known New Zealander mountain guide Rob Hall and American climbing legend Scott Fisher their lives. While they were on the top of the world, they were caught up in a rogue storm that blew almost without warning.

As I browsed through the pages, I figured out that the equation leading to the tragedy was neither due to lack of preparation nor of equipment and mountaineering technicalities, for Hall and Fisher were both professionals in mountain guiding business.

I believe this tragedy stemmed from little things the climbers overlooked: turn-around times, placing a fixed rope in advance to avoid delay, watchfulness at diminutive signs of climate change, limit in number of climbers to hit the route on a single time, and a few others.

If ignored, these minute yet important things contribute to a failure of an expedition. And in their case, a disaster that killed both the veteran Himalayan guides and six of their clients!

Carelessness is a human tendency. As we get adept to certain capabilities we tend to disregard little things that may have big impact in the outcome of every endeavor.

As Christians, we trek on slippery paths in a hostile environment. The world is so dangerous that in a wink of an eye we slip away from the path if we aren’t careful. We need crampons* to get a firm grip on solid rocks at every step of the way. We need to brace ourselves with a clear understanding of the doctrines that will guide us in everyday decisions to make. Furthermore, prayers are ropes that keep us attached to the strong cornerstone of our faith.

Steel ladders are the encouragements from our fellow believers to help us get across crevasses of disappointments and discouragements. Ice axes enable us to have a strong grip on the things that matter most not only in this life but thereafter. Thick clothing represents the fellowship of the brethren that keeps us warm on chilling conditions, while the supplementary bottled air is the word of God that gives oxygen to our blood to keep us strong as we walk into hostile environment.

When we become too self-confident with our spiritual walk, we are likely to neglect some things that contribute to the success of our journey toward our heavenly goal. Apostle Paul counsels us, just as he counseled the early Christians, “Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves. Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you—unless, of course, you fail the test?”(2 Cor. 13: 15).

The most experienced Himalayan guides would be reduced to neophytes in the most unfriendly situation on this planet. No man can help us in this expedition!

Our journey to heaven is an individual quest. Sometimes we become too confident with ourselves when we get acclimatized to the intimidating environment. Christians should be aware that sheer precipices are few side-step distances from where we walk. Bulges of ice may cause us to stumble. In this hostile world, keeping watch on important spiritual things are of great import. Focusing our eyes on Jesus is recognizing that He, indeed, is the captain of our journey.

*crampon is a grid of two-inch steel spikes that is attached to the sole of each climber’s boot for purchase on ice.

by JERSON PAICAN is manager of Sunplus Accounting Services Center of the General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists