Vietnam
I became a Christian in 1986 and almost immediately felt the call to do short-term mission trips. This passion has not diminished and, at the age of 71, I am still asking God to send me somewhere soon!
What a privilege God has given me over a period of 13 years when I did a yearly trip to China with various teams, and must have carried many thousands of bibles to give to the believers. Although China now prints some bibles inside the country there is still a demand in certain areas and still plenty of desperate Christians wanting their own copy of the Word.
During this time God willingly opened the door too, enabling me to minister and show His love to children living lonely sad lives in china's state orphanages. Oh, the joy on the faces of these kids as our teams took them out of their institutions into a world they seldom glimpsed. A world filled with parks, swings, fun fairs, restaurants, ice-creams. God the loving Father at work again. Thank you that I did not miss it.
In January 2008 I went to the country of Vietnam for the first time. A testimony written by a young American missionary about her passion for AIDS patients in the hospitals in Ho Chi Minh City gave me the motivation to go. Her passion touched my heart. How exciting to walk into the AIDS hospital. Out little team of three went from ward to ward, praying for some of the patients and even for family members. Four patients accepted Jesus as their saviour and we were aware that the angels in heaven were rejoicing. It was a grim establishment, but how beautiful it was to see lives transformed. Later in the trip there was an opportunity to spend three days looking after some orphan babies. They were so beautiful and I cried on the day I left. I think that I was crying for all the people I'd met who were suffering: the girl with AIDS, whose baby is HIV positive and whose husband was dead; and Tam, a 12-year-old boy who lived with his mother and sister in a shack which the authorities plan to knock down. The family are so poor, so Tam spends his weekends fishing in order to bring a little more food to the family table.
It was so special to meet all these beautiful previous people, and to see them through God's eyes of love and compassion. Only in Him lies the hope that they need.
Dot Lewis
Africa | China | Colombia | Iceland | India | Jamaica | Romania | Vietnam