Presence and Provision

by Senae Yoshihara, Simpson University
Today the team and I had the wonderful privilege of visiting the village of Thurupalem to set up for our first medical camp of the trip. I woke up that day knowing that the Lord had been faithful in providing everything for our trip down to the last detail. His favor kept pouring out on us even though it had only been a couple days. To give some examples of God’s provision for this trip, we had been given a whole bunch of extra medications the day before, and we also received news that we were able to get 100 Bibles that were translated in the language of Telegu (the native language of the area we were in). This was the first year the team was able to have access to the word of God in their language, and we are blessed to have the opportunity to give people access to it.
We packed up the bus with loads of medications and the legit, God orchestrated team comprised of different cultures. The bus ride in itself could only be described and compared to the Indiana Jones ride at Disneyland. Of course, since Disneyland is my favorite place, I was more than happy to experience this wonderful, joy ride. We arrived at the camp and started setting up. We also had the privilege of working with doctors, a pharmacist, a couple of students nurses from Kim’s Hospital and translators and teachers from Riverside school. What an honor to work with such an incredible group of people. I felt humbled to work with people who were so full of joy and a desire to help us with the medical camps.

After setting up, patients started coming in as a steady stream throughout the day. I was given the job as “gatekeeper,” which meant that I helped people get to the stations that they needed to go and helped with keeping the camp somewhat organized. We got to see about 80-100 patients today, and were able to administer medications they needed for pain, nausea, diabetes, etc. The Lord definitely showed up today with His presence and helped keep the flow of the first day go smoothly. I felt His presence as I watched my teammates pray for their patients and tell them about Jesus. The body of Christ was exemplified in the unity that seeped between the team members and the love that radiated at the campsite. In that moment, I knew we didn’t need fancy medical equipment or nice tables and chairs. All we needed was God’s provision, presence, and most importantly love. I was amazed by the merging of two totally different cultures coming together to fulfill the calling and purpose found in Jesus Christ. Even with insufficient knowledge of each other’s languages, one thing that was present at the camp that everyone and anyone could understand was the love of Jesus.