First Fruits Ministries supports several medical mission trips a year.
 

2006

IBADAN, NIGERIA AND NIAMEY, NIGER
January 28-February 6

Our team was invited to join Richard Roberts and his team headed to Ibadan, Nigeria the first week in February.  We would be operating much the same as we do in Mexico with the addition of being a part of a larger group that was doing medical clinics, dental clinics and a "Healing and Miracle Crusade" in the evenings.  Sounded exciting and we all agreed to make it one of our trips for 2006.

We initially arrived in Niamey, Niger for approximately 24 hours where we met with the local missionaries who were excited about the possibility of us returning next year to do a similar medical and crusade event.  All the details are being worked out now for such a trip to take place.  Included in our group were Mike McGee, MD, Scott Cordray, DO, Clay Powell, MD as well as Glenda Payas, DDS.

We found it to be a great blend of work in the OR during the day and then the evening events where literally thousands of people came for the healing services.  We were able to accomplish our goal of 60 cases during the week, actually exceeded that by one case.  In the Crusade we saw as many as 5,000 people come to Christ and hundreds of healings were witnessed. 

OTHER TRIPS SCHEDULED FOR 2006:

ARRIAGA, CHIAPAS in March

COMITAN AND SAN CRISTOBAL, CHIAPAS in October

details to follow

2005
We completed three projects in Mexico in 2005, the first was in Comitan, Chiapas where we had a great week both surgically and spiritually.  We saw several of our co-workers there come to Christ as well as a businessman on the plane down from Dallas to Mexico City.  Carlos is growing in his faith and is an encouragement to us all. 

            Clair and Lin Brister spent a week with a team ranging from age 8 months to 87 years bringing new sight to the eyes of over 120 people in San Cristobal, Chiapas, Mexico.  On the team were Mexican ophthalmologists including one young lady who came to saving faith in Jesus on a similar campaign about four years ago.  She now is graduated from her training and the mother of the eight month old little girl.  She and a resident from Monterrey, Mexico worked along side our group the entire week.

            We planned to do 80-85 cases of cataract and actually did over 100.  Patients ages ranged from just over one year to ninety three.  There were many children this trip with a minimum of 12 to 14 operated over the week, most with congenital cataracts.  One little girl, Maria seems to well represent the spirit of the week.

 Maria was about six years old and had been born with cataracts in both eyes that limited severely her sight.  She had already had surgery in her left eye but, for some reason unknown to us, they had elected not to place an implant.  That was her best eye when we met but very limited in focus without the implant.  Her second eye had a mature cataract and other than light or dark she had no useful vision in it.  We planned surgery for the second eye and carried it out successfully on Wednesday.  During the case there was a direction to look once again at her second eye.  Sure enough it was found to be a great case for a secondary implant.  To avoid the risks of bilateral infection, we postponed placing in implant until Friday.  The second case went well also.  Due to her inability to use one or both eyes over very long periods of time, Maria had developed a strabismus.  In other words she was cross-eyed.  This persisted after doing the first case on Wednesday but after the second implant was placed, her eyes came very near to being straight even without any use of muscle surgery.  I enclose a photo of her on that second post-op day. 

We presented the gospel to all patients and their families in our post-op sessions and over 40 prayed to receive Christ for the first time that week.  We are very grateful to Chevy and Elizabeth Cruz for their faithfulness to work with us on these projects.  They are responsible for the majority of evangelism that takes place.  This particular trip the nurses that worked in the hospital began to participate in pre-operative praying for the patients.  That was a first for any of our projects. 

This is Maria on the day after her second eye surgery.

OTHER TRIPS IN 2005:

COMITAN, CHIAPAS in March:  This was our third trip to Comitan and it has become a favorite of the team.  Our ability to get a good deal of surgery done in addition to building friendships makes it a very enjoyable week.  We hope to return in 2006.

ARRIAGA, CHIAPAS in November:  We had been scheduled to be in Tapachula, but three weeks before our arrival the city was inundated with a floor from one of the many hurricanes that struck Mexico this past year.  We were moved to the smaller town of Arriaga, Chiapas.  It sits on the main road people travel from Guatemala and Oaxaca, Mexico.  Our week was one of building relationships with the medical community and with the people.  We completed approximately 80 cases and had a good deal of progress in developing newer techniques that allows for even improved outcomes for the future.  It was a great week and we will be returning to Arriaga.

2004
Our team went to San Cristobal in Chiapas in February, Palenque in March, Comitan in August and returned to Valladolid, Yucatan in November.  For a complete summary of the trip to Valladolid, see the downloads area.  In addition the Bristers were in Celaya, Guanajuato on an evangelistic mission in August as well.

Below are photos and reports of various trips over the past couple of years into Mexico.

As we were finishing up on the first Sunday with the screening, we had almost completely filled our surgery schedule with still over thirty people yet to see. At the rate we were filling the schedule, we were concerned that someone who might be bilaterally blind from cataract might be overlooked and not be able to be helped.

We sent one of our screeners out among the large crowd in the holding area and he sent three people who he felt were in need. All three were scheduled into those last few spots. Little did we know the significance at that moment.

All three were operated on the last afternoon, one was a gentleman about forty years old. He had not been able to work for over six months, unable to see anything other than light and dark. As we met in the anesthesia area, he told us he was a Christian and seemed thrilled as we began to pray with him. After his eye was "blocked" with the anesthetic, I glanced over at him as he waited. He had his hands folded in a prayer continuing to petition the Lord for his surgery.

All went very well surgically and we were pleased with his outcome the next morning. In fact he had a huge smile on his face as we went through the post-op sesson. When everything was done and the people were milling out, he made a point to come by me for a hug and a parting note. He let me know that he had been so depressed with his blindness and inability to provide for his family that he had begun to plan a way to commit suicide. When he heard that our group was coming to town he began to pray that we could help him in some way. I was overwhelmed. That was the first time I had heard anything quite like that in over 26 years of mission surgery. As I shared it with one of our nurses from Florida, she broke down and offered that she felt that must have been why we had come to that place at that time. God's timing is always perfect.

Mark 10:46-52
Then they came to Jericho. As Jesus and his disciples, together with a large crowd, were leaving the city, a blind man, Bartimaeus (that is, the Son of Timaeus), was sitting by the roadside begging. When he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to shout, "Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!"

Many rebuked him and told him to be quiet, but he shouted all the more, "Son of David, have mercy on me!" Jesus stopped and said, "Call him."

So they called to the blind man, "Cheer up! On your feet! He's calling you." Throwing his cloak aside, he jumped to his feet and came to Jesus.

"What do you want me to do for you?" Jesus asked him.

The blind man said, "Rabbi, I want to see."

"Go," said Jesus, "your faith has healed you." Immediately he received his sight and followed Jesus along the road.

And just like Bartimaeus, our friend is following Jesus along the road. Praise God for he is merciful and full of compassion.

San Cristobal Children's Project

January 2004

In January of 2004 we returned to Chiapas to work with children in the picturesque town of San Cristobal.  Situated in the mountains at about 7,000 this is always a wonderful location to visit no matter the time of year.  This trip we had the added joy of having Dr. Jim Rowsey of Clearwater, Florida accompany us.  Dr. Rowsey was affiliated with the Dean McGee Eye Institute in the past and at one time was my corneal professor at O.U
It was Jim's first such trip and we had a great time together in the Lord.

The number of cases was low but the hours worked was not.  Just getting eight kids done in a single day can take as much time as doing twenty adult cataracts.  Several times we had to have the children placed under anesthesia just to determine if we could help them.  The photo below is from the last day of surgery and shows eight children who had surgery the previous day.

COMITAN, CHIAPAS in MEXICO

July 2004

Here's a small report about our recent trip to Comitan, Chiapas, Mexico.  We were at about 6,000 feet of elevation so the weather was wonderful.  Of course it hasn't been so bad here either.  It truly was a bit nicer there.  No residents met us this time but we did have the joy of working again with a young man, Carlos, who is the local director for the IDH program.  Carlos accepted Christ last trip, two years ago, and was eager for further instruction and discipleship this visit.  In addition we saw several people each day pray to receive Christ including one of the Doctors who heads up the medical programs there in Comitan.  Several nurses and many patients prayed to receive Christ.  Chevy and Elizabeth did their usual great job.  As a team we were able to do 83 cataract cases over the week, several were second eyes from previous visits in Chiapas.  Two sisters had their second congenital cataracts removed.  They are in the collage below.  Saturday after post-ops we took time to visit the waterfall shown with Clair in the foreground.  It is hard to explain just how beautiful it is.  Wow! 

The previous week we were in Celaya, Guanajuato, Mexico doing prayer walking and Gospel saturation.  We found that hard soil is difficult for planting so we did a good deal of soil preparation during the week.  We did find two young people who were prepared to receive Christ.  We were enthused to see the email from the missionary couple, Craig and Lori Clayton, about the visit.  It was a part of them getting their ministry on track and moving.  Praise God for He is great and His mercies endure forever. 

Rio Bravo 2003

This was our third visit to Rio Bravo and what an improvement we saw in the facilities there.  The Red Cross building has made many improvements and the operating room was fully functional this time.  We worked once again with residents from Monterrey San Jose Hospital and were therefore able to get over 100 cases done during the week. 

One of the highlights of the week was seeing the local director of DIF invite Jesus into his heart.  That was on Tuesday; by Friday he was quoting a scripture verse as he shared how much the week had meant to him personally as well as how it had positively impacted the community.  We were graciously received and look forward to returning as God allows in the future.