Usually I dread going to a doctor’s office. But this time, I didn’t mind.
Our team is on the ground at the Syrian border this week, and one of our first stops was the Mercy Medical Clinic. We stepped into the crowded waiting room to find dozens of patients — mostly women and children — waiting to see the doctor.
While such a long wait would make most people grumpy, we were greeted with smiles. These people were simply happy to be receiving the medical help they needed. Without this clinic and the medicine and supplies provided by generous World Help supporters, they would have nowhere else to go.
As I stood in the waiting room talking to refugees, I heard stories that were both heartbreaking and uplifting.
One woman sat all alone, and I could tell that she had been through extreme hardship. When I asked her if she would share her story, she quietly told me how she had lost her only son.
He had been injured in an attack on their Syrian village. She did everything she could to save him, driving miles through dangerous war-torn territory trying to find help at the border. But when she arrived, there were no doctors. Her son passed away in her arms.
She now lives in a refugee settlement close to the Mercy Medical Clinic where she receives treatment when she needs it. She’s grateful for this place because it means other parents won’t have to go through the same loss she’s experienced.
Another woman, whom I’ll call Eva, is one of those parents. Eva is a mother of six children — five of them with special needs. This clinic is a lifeline for her family.
Eva is growing old and weak. In fact, she looks much older than her actual age because of the trauma she’s endured. She’s often sick and can’t work to afford the medicine her children desperately need.
She doesn’t know what she would do if it weren’t for the clinic and the people who make it possible. It’s their generosity that gives her hope and keeps her going.
But it’s more than just physical healing that is happening at this clinic.
Since many of the patients regularly visit, the doctors have had the opportunity to build relationships with them and even share the Gospel. This year, 16 families have come to Christ! They not only have physical help for today … they also have spiritual hope for tomorrow.
When you give to a refugee, that’s the powerful gift you are giving.
Your $35 gift provides a refugee with $189 worth of lifesaving supplies such as medicine, food, and clean water. Plus, it opens doors to share about Jesus.
During this Christmas season, will you bless a refugee far from home? You can change the life of someone like Eva with the gift of physical and spiritual healing.