“For unto you it is given in the behalf of Christ, not only to believe on Him, but also to suffer for His sake”~Phil 1:29
In Patriarchs and Prophets, page 423.1 it states: “It is important to believe God’s word and act upon it promptly, while His angels are waiting to work for us. Evil angels are ready to contest every step of advance. And when God’s providence bids His children go forward, when He is ready to do great things for them, Satan tempts them to displease the Lord by hesitation and delay; he seeks to kindle a spirit of strife or to arouse murmuring or unbelief, and thus deprive them of the blessings that God desired to bestow. God’s servants should be minutemen, ever ready to move as fast as His providence opens the way. And delay on their part gives time for Satan to work to defeat them.” Doctor John states that it is important to hear the still small voice of God and to act on it promptly and it really inspired me. Despite him being so busy with his work, he still took the time to pause and pray for his patient. Despite being so busy with the work in his life, he still took the time to do what God wants him to do first.
During my last semester, when I was posted to the medical ward, I was assigned to take care of a female patient. One day when I was doing bed bath for this patient, she told me that she doesn’t want to live anymore because of her sickness and that she felt that life was meaningless. At first I was taken aback by her statement and I prayed a quick prayer in my mind asking God to help me. A thought flashed into my mind telling me to pray for her but I was afraid of getting rejected and so I just consoled her by telling her to not think negatively and tell her to focus on her healing. I walked off afterwards with the thought that I just lost my chance to tell her about Christ and I regretted my decision till now.
Continuing Doctor John’s experience with Madam Z, her condition later deteriorated and she had a really poor prognosis and had respiratory failure with acute respiratory distress syndrome and diffuse alveolar hemorrhage. The family members of Madam Z were having a tough time when Doctor John had the second prompting to go and talk and pray with them. He then later shared about how he understands their condition because he was once in their shoes too when his father was suffering from brain cancer. His life story helped the family members to trust God even more and trust even if healing never come. He then prayed with them and left. He taught me that we shouldn’t let our faith be contingent on the outcome.
In Desire of Ages page 224.5 it says, God never leads His children otherwise than they would choose to be led, if they could see the end from the beginning, and discern the glory of the purpose which they are fulfilling as co-workers with Him. Not Enoch, who was translated to heaven, not Elijah, who ascended in a chariot of fire, was greater or more honoured than John the Baptist, who perished alone in the dungeon. “Unto you it is given in the behalf of Christ, not only to believe on Him, but also to suffer for His sake.” And of all the gifts that Heaven can bestow upon men, fellowship with Christ in His sufferings is the weightiest trust and the highest honour.
I felt amazed by how powerful our God can be if we are used as His instruments to serve Him. I looked at how God really sees the beginning from the end and how God ministered to their needs through Doctor John. As a result, Madam Z’s family members have stronger faith in God and God blessed them by healing Madam Z completely. In the Bible, Jesus’ ministry involved the restoration of the body as well as the soul. When He sent His disciples out to do the ministry, He instructed them to do by preaching and healing. This makes our unique health teaching shines brighter the most compare to the others because God is the centre.
I learn that this model of ministry is still one of the most effective ways to spread the gospel to this sinful world, in our generation. Once we meet the needs of the health, we will be able to reach to the soul of the sinners. Oh, we are not the nurses or health care workers that happen to be Christian but we are Christians happen to be a health care professionals.
I would like to thank God for opening the doors for me to join AMM conference this year because I gained so much blessings from this conference. I learned especially that only Jesus can heal hearts and He should be our first resort, not our last one!-Shanice Lim, Diploma class of 2021/2, Penang Adventist College of Nursing.