Short Term Mission, Long Term Goals

I would like to share with you an excerpt from a book we use in mission training:

“Elephant and mouse were best friends. One day Elephant said, ‘Mouse, let’s have a party!’ Animals gathered from far and near. They ate. They drank. They sang. And they danced. And nobody celebrated more and danced harder that Elephant. After the party was over, Elephant exclaimed, ‘Mouse, did you ever go to a better party? What a blast!’ But Mouse did not answer. ‘Mouse, where are you?’ Elephant called. He looked around for his friend and then shrank back in horror. There at Elephant’s feet lay mouse. His little body was ground into the dirt. He had been smashed by the big feet of his exuberant friend, Elephant. ‘Sometimes, that is what it is like to do mission with you Americans,’ the African storyteller commented. ‘It is like dancing with an Elephant.’ “ 

While a bit sad, this small passage reflects exactly what we don’t want to do as short term missionaries. In fact, while we are serving each year, the ultimate goal is to create a long-term mission through short term trips. Are we going on these trips to provide veterinary care? Of course! God has given us a love for veterinary medicine, and we are excited to share those gifts with other communities. However, we want to highlight that this trip is for the people first and foremost. 

Each team member that wants to be included on a trip with us is required to go through mission training. Collectively, Drs Ginger and Bri have been through the training numerous times, and each time, learn a little bit more about how to help without hurting.

We arrive in these communities with a heart for teaching and training. Our main prerogative is to inspire members of a community, working with them and not for them. For example, on this trip we have the opportunity to train local veterinarians and assistants. Sure, we could swoop in and do a plethora of surgeries and treatments, but what happens when we leave? Did our surge of work to satisfy a personal set agenda create any positive long-lasting effects? The answer is no, we would have simply been whirlwinds blowing through without truly meeting deeper needs within the community. 

When we shift the focus from “how much can we accomplish ourselves?” to “how can we support the people who will continue the work once we leave?” amazing things can happen. This is the foundation for how we build trust and relationships. Deep meaningful relationships don’t happen overnight, and truly, trips like this can take years to develop. That is okay! As long as God continues to lead us here, we are in it for the long haul. 

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To summarize, our goals of this trip are simple:

1. Go ready to share God’s love! We do this through prayer, through work, and through loving the people.

2. Take time to sit, listen, and build relationships.

3. Be ready to use our gifts in veterinary medicine to serve and teach within the communities, as is requested by the community. We should only provide what is asked for and help others learn what they can do when we are not there. This helps build relationships but also empowers the local people to continue the work after we head home.  

4. Be ready to pivot and change plans. We have loose plans, but nothing set in stone. As a team, we should always be ready to about-face and do something different. God places so many wonderful opportunities in our path, we don’t want to miss those because we are too focused on an agenda. 

We are so excited to see how God will move and use us during this trip. Please continue to pray for the team and for the people of Nicaragua as we prepare to head out in a month!