“… pray without ceasing.” What does this really mean? Is it possible for us to pray without stopping? Do I pray brushing my teeth? Say a prayer of thanksgiving when I am eating chips & salsa? Praying is part of my job in the operating room. We pray for each patient that comes into theatre. I pray when we are searching for a vein to place a IV in a dehydrated child or for a infection to clear from a surgical wound. It is almost a constant conversation between me & God when we have a difficult case. “Lord, close the blood vessels that are too delicate for the surgeon to see.” We pray for our patients that have been ashamed or hurt because of outside appearances that they will feel loved during their stay on the ship. “May the healing start from the inside out for them.” That is not only our prayer, but also the reason why we are here.
Different things may trigger prayer… when the Emergency Medical Team alarm goes off- we know there is something going wrong with a patient. A status change on facebook may prompt me to pray for a friend. Lots of meetings, Bible studies, and chats lead to prayer among friends onboard. I glance up at my wall covered in pictures of loved ones. God places people on my heart to pray for… a dear friend grieving the loss of her father, missionary friends in other parts of Africa or at home, my sister in PNG, family members that are sick, and my church family in transition. I look at pictures of my supporters and I’m encouraged to know that the prayers are reciprocated.
With all this talk (or type) about prayer, I don’t want be perceived that I’m perfect in it… sometimes I feel “prayered” out. If there is such a thing? It’s a challenge for me every time I bow my head. I don’t want to have the same prayer for each hernia patient, but lately it has been… does God listen to the same mundane prayers? Of course He does, but my heart needs to be in it. I have seen miracles in answers to prayers here and afar; my faith is renewed each time. Sometimes, I feel like my prayers are a one-sided conversation and I wait for a response. I want to know the answers God has for my prayers… His timing is perfect and until then I will try to “Rejoice always; pray without ceasing; in everything give thanks; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.”
1 Thessalonians 5:16-18
My wallpaper picture on my laptop has been the same ever since I came back to the Africa Mercy this January. In years past, I enjoyed switching between pictures of cute African kids and good friends from back at home. I just don’t have the heart to change it this year. The picture is of my family taken this past Thanksgiving. I love and miss them so much… There is something comforting to know when I open up my laptop, there a picture of all of us together, even though a ocean separates us. They know me and still love me... they are my biggest supporters in all aspects of my life as a missionary. I receive boxes in the mail of chocolate chip cookies, gum, and salsa, and most recently shoes.
My parents sent me these shoes at my request… I tried to buy some online and I accidently ordered track shoes with spikes included. So my parents were up to a challenge of finding me new sneakers. My parents, affectionately known as, Papa-doe and Mother Green, have blessed not only me, but also many crewmembers with mail. They send me the Sunday morning comics along with snacks (that I share with friends) as well boxes on the container full of Mexican food. When I’m working out in my new sneakers, I think of my parents. They are hard working and supportive of their children- they keep us stable when we are running toward our dreams.
Next pair of shoes just came last week… still getting compliments of my bright yellow birkies from my brother and sister- (skip the formality of “in-law”). Jeff and Kara were worried when they heard I kept slipping in the operating room. The combination of my old crocs and freshly mopped theater floors were not ideal. Kara and I have a special relationship because in a family of educators, we’re outnumbered being the nurses. She loved this brand of shoes and I figured I followed in her footsteps, why not try her shoes out! I thank God for Jeff & Kara, for their love and support as I work each day in the operating room, with my feet firmly planted to the floor.
Now, these last pair of shoes I received just days before heading back to join the ship in South Africa. My best friend and my sister, Robyn, gave me these cowboy boots. I am ashamed to say, being Texan, these were my very first boots to own and I was not going to just leave them in a closet. Robyn always came into town before I left overseas to make sure my to-do list is complete and my bags are packed even if I waited until the night before. I couldn’t fit the boots so I sent them on the container and they have been a BIG (as BIG as Texas) hit on the ship. I just have to laugh as well as thank God for a wonderful sister that thinks a girl needs her cowboy boots in Africa. Right now, all I wish I could do is to jump on a plane and be in Dallas today. Robyn is leaving for a two-year stint with New Tribes Mission in Papua New Guinea as a secondary school teacher. She’s going to the “other side of the world” and we can now swap missionary stories. I can’t wait to see how God works… and if only she had room in her luggage for some cowboy boots.
I miss them... Papa-doe, Mother Green, Jeff & Kara, and Robyn everyday as I look at the picture, but all it takes is for me to look down at my feet and know my family is with me every step of the way.
