A Moment of Thanks

It is an especially busy time around the office. We are wrapping up all of the final work from the 2010 Auxiliary Benefit; preparing for the upcoming national Religious Education Congress in Anaheim; gathering materials for the March 26-28 MDA Retreat/Seminar; and making plans for our Annual Mass and Brunch on March 28^th!

Drs. Brent Burket and Dr. Jennifer Thoene along with their four children left for Guatemala this month, Dr. Jim and Mrs. Terry Hake are in the current formation program and will begin three years in Cameroon later in the year. I am also working to try to meet with many of our friends and supporters one on one to share information about where we are – and where we hope to be to make the Mission Possible.

While the work can – at times - feel a bit overwhelming, this is also the most exciting time. The opportunity to spend time with those who make the work of Mission Doctors possible as well as the opportunity to introduce new people to the mission of MDA truly fuels our energy for this work.

I wanted to take a brief moment in this blog and thank all of you who are supporters, volunteers and missionaries who not only make Mission Doctors Association the growing, faith-filled organization it is, but renew my passion for it everyday. Wishing you a prayerful Lent as we all strive to grow closer to God through our prayers, support and service for our sisters and brothers around the world.

Thank you!

If you would like to make a Lenten sacrifice in support of the work of Mission Doctors Association you can do so on our website.

Valentine's Day

Valentine’s day, celebrated this Sunday, often brings images of red roses, large boxes of chocolate and candle light dinners to mind. The St. Valentine, whose feast day is February 14, is among the earliest of Roman martyrs, and on this day we celebrate and treasure love, love of all kinds. The romantic and committed love of husband and wife, the devoted love of parent and child and the affectionate and caring love between friends.

In my job, I get to see a very special kind of love everyday. This kind of sacrificial love motivates people to leave their homes, travel half a world away and share their gift of healing. Not flowers or chocolates, but the love we are all called to have for all of our sisters and brothers, a universal, faith motivated love.

The title of this blog and the prayer of St. Theresa - Christ has no body,
but ours, no hands but ours is always the challenge; how can we be
Christ to others; how can we ensure that they experience the love God
has for each of them?

This week Dr. Brent Burket and Dr. Jennifer Thoene, along with their four small children, began a
three year assignment to Hospitalito in Lake Attitlan. Brent and Jennifer are very close with their
families in California and Oregon - their families too make a sacrifice, sharing their loved ones
with the people who need them in Guatemala.

Please keep this young family, and their family at home in your prayers this week, and you can
let them know you are praying for them by signing a prayer card on our web site.