Mumbwa, Zambia, Medical Outreach
- 8,215 Patients Received Care
- 705 People Received Dental Care
- 2,137 Eyeglasses Distributed
- 654 Children Attended the Zehra Kids Program
- 959 School Children Experienced Zehra in Their School
- 1,578 People Visited the Spiritual Care Ministry
- 514 People Professed Faith in Yeshua
- 697 People Requested Congregational Follow-up
In May, we returned to Mumbwa, Zambia, after our first Outreach there last fall. It can often take a second visit for people to understand that we really ask nothing in return for the medical, dental and eye care we offer to a community.
We were delighted to see a 73% increase in the number of patients seen this year over last. We also had over 55% more visitors to the Spiritual Care Ministry this time. Also, more than twice as many people accepted Jesus as Messiah as our first Outreach there. As the people learn that we genuinely care about them — and even more profoundly, that God loves them deeply and sees their needs — the door opens wider for the Gospel.
Eyecare is a tremendous need among the people in this area of Zambia — intensive care and vision correction. Even little children often need eyeglasses. A staff member of a very high-ranking government official visited during the Outreach. He, too, was amazed at the need for eyecare. He toured our eye department and walked the vast lines of patients waiting for eye care, asking them about their needs. At one point, he turned to someone with him and said, “Learn from Jewish Voice how they are meeting the needs of these people.”
Another day, a mother came to us carrying her son, who Who had Cerebral Palsy. Social stigma often accompanies such congenital disabilities or other maladies, and some presume it is a curse on the parents. At one point, this dear woman learned that the boy’s father wanted to “get rid of him,” which she understood meant killing him. The revelation shed light for her on the mysterious deaths of her previous children. She left the boy’s father and struggles today to make it alone, committed to her son.
Such a life would be difficult no matter where one lives. But in a developing country with few resources and a challenging rural lifestyle, it’s even harder. For the rest of his life, this boy must be carried by someone or eventually gain a measure of independence using his arm strength to scoot along the ground in a world that towers over him. When Jewish Voice provided him with a wheelchair, his mother’s smile told the story of her overwhelming joy and relief. What a difference it is already making in the lives of this boy and his faithful, loving mother.
You made this difference in their lives. Without you, we couldn’t have provided a wheelchair for the boy. Without you, we wouldn’t have been there at all to meet their needs and those of so many others. Thank you!
