Partnering for the Kingdom in 2014
November 2013 was filled with excitement. We were returning to Seka, Thailand to work in the local hospital providing free eye care. God blessed us with two Laos ophthalmologists to join our team. Providing a medical benefit for free is huge in areas where the closest provider is nearly a four hour drive away. These benefits pale in comparison to receiving the greatest gift ever, that of accepting Christ as Savior. Many have never heard of Jesus nor His sacrificial gift of eternal life rather than suffering eternal death.
We then spent the remainder of the week in the Nong Bua Lam Phu province providing the same free eye care but in non-medical settings. God opened the doors of heaven as nearly 70 gave their life to Christ as first time decisions. What is a lost soul worth? Christ’s sacrificial death on the cross. But praise God He rose from the dead and now is our eternal mediator, Savior , Lord and King.
There were several times when the teams from Firstlight Fellowship Churches rather than assisting in providing eye care were sharing their faith in Christ. At times we “ran out” of those available to talk to those God had prepared to accept His free gift of eternal life. What a blessing. One of our faithful sisters named Pom said “I wasn’t sure what to say at first but God gave me the words.” The Holy Spirit used her and the other team members’ obedience, and behold many new brothers and sisters were added to the family of God.
I enjoy seeing how mixing medicine with the gospel creates the perfect environment for drawing the otherwise disinterested person to an event where they can hear God’s truth. We will continue to look for new opportunities to serve in 2014. Dan will be joining a group from His Servants Ministries’ Kentucky as we return to Laos in February 2014 and then again as we repeat the adventure in Thailand in November 2014. As we use these moments to share the precious gift of Christ’s redeeming grace in SE Asia, will you consider joining with us in prayer, in person and or in financial support?
~ Dan Ecker
