Right out of the gate on the first day of our Woliso medical mission clinic our team treated 1,400 patients. When volunteers arrived at the clinic site Monday morning, there were crowds of people waiting for them. Our contacts with a Messianic congregation there help us tell the community we are coming. Together with signage, the word spreads easily about a JVMI medical mission offering free medical and dental care.
People walk many kilometers to get to us. Thousands come and wait in line. One of the hardest things for us is to run out of time at the end of the week before all patients are seen. We are heartbroken to turn people away when it is time to close up for the week. We can only imagine how devastating it must be for those waiting in line on Friday but who miss their opportunity to receive important medical and dental care. For this reason, many arrive early and camp out in line all night long to ensure they can be seen.
Take a closer look at this line of people waiting to enter our Woliso, Ethiopia medical missions clinic.
The line curves all the way around into the background!
One veteran team member estimated an increase of between 30 and 40 percent more people presented on this opening day than previous medical missions on which he has served. We have not been to Woliso since 2011 and we are so happy to be there again, meeting the needs of the Gefat Jewish People and their neighbors.
Unlike many medical missions, Jewish Voice has a specially-designated Prayer Room to which we invite every patient and family member after they have received treatment. Our prayer team is mobile, too. They are often called to come and pray with and for a patient who is too sick to leave an examining room. On Monday, they were called to pray for a demon-possessed man who, after much prayer for him, was delivered and prayed to receive Yeshua (Jesus) as his Savior.
Next came a call to the gate, where they found a man trembling and experiencing breathing difficulties. As they made arrangements to get him inside, they prayed with him. Although he was a Muslim, he desired to call upon the name of Yeshua and receive Him in faith. In the clinic he was tested and diagnosed with malaria. Before leaving he stopped by the Prayer Room and received prayer for healing. When he left, he confessed that he felt much better and that his pain was relieved. We are excited to be trusting God that He has not only given this man new life in Yeshua but has healed his body as well!
Two-hundred-fifty patients confessed receiving Yeshua as their Messiah on the first day of our medical clinic in Woliso! Please join us in praying for these new brothers and sisters in Yeshua. We are excited to offer immediate New Believer Discipleship classes for them. The Gefat elders of the local Messianic congregation are doing this follow-up, and on Wednesday evening, a NEW Messianic congregation will hold their first service outside Woliso. This is the second to be planted in this area since Jewish Voice began conducting medical missions in Woliso three years ago.
Check out our 2014 schedule of medical mission trips on the Medical Outreaches page of our website. These life-giving clinics are not possible without people like you, praying, donating, and volunteering. Why not come with us on one of our upcoming outreaches? Pray, plan, and come along! There’s a vital role waiting for you on any of our JVMI medical missions!
Become a Jewish Voice Prayer Partner and undergird our ministries with your prayer! Visit the Prayer page of our website and sign up today.
