   Stephen and Katie share their experience through sickness and disappointed hopes! An experience that taught them to trust in God’s faithfulness as they walked through the valley of the shadow of death.   

AMEN 2017: Are You Willing?

<div> <div> <div> <p>Stephen and Katie share their experience through sickness and disappointed hopes! An experience that taught them to trust in God’s faithfulness as they walked through the valley of the shadow of death.</p> </div> </div> </div>

<p>Free sharing permitted under the Creative Commons <a rel="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/us/">BY-NC-ND 3.0 (US)</a> license.</p>

Adventist Medical Evangelism Network (AMEN)

Plenary

Phil Mills

Infertility Clinic

Father in heaven, you've told us that as physicians and dentists and health professionals, we are especially to seek for Christ-likeness, because to our shame, we're not Christ-like.

You've called us to do medical evangelism like Christ, and to our shame, we have not been like Him.

You've told us that we're in dire need of reform, many reforms.

And you've stated that the reform most needed is conversion, conversion to the truth that works by love and purifies the soul.

We're embarrassed that we have to be told that saving a soul is our first work.

You've promised to give us the privilege of actually walking and working with you, and that you will give us the leaves from the tree of life that we can provide relief to the suffering around us.

You've promised all these, and we know they're true.

You've told us to ask you to fill our wayward hearts with your Spirit, that we may understand the meaning of your words and help us to make a right application of these words to our individual case tonight.

And Father, we ask these things confidently Because you've asked us to do this.

And so it's with confidence that we open your word to have you make this right application to us in our health professions, in our ministries, tonight, in Christ's name, amen.

To understand the context of the passage in Genesis that we will be studying, we'll start at Exodus 32, 13.

Remember Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, your servants, to whom you swore by your own self and said to them, I will multiply your descendants as the stars of heaven.

God had made a very specific promise to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, here called Israel.

They were to have descendants as numerous as the stars of heaven, and that takes us to our passage this evening.

These are the generations of Isaac, Abraham's son, Abraham begat Isaac.

You'll remember this occurred when Abraham was 100 years old and Sarah was 90.

Isaac was 40 years old when he took Rebecca to wife, the daughter of Bethuel, the Syrian of Paddan Aram, the sister of Laban the Syrian.

40 year old Isaac was wealthy and respected.

It was a couple that seemed to have everything, but not until heaven will we live happily ever after.

In this earth, sorrow intrudes into every home.

Some people think that if they accept Christ, difficulties of life will vanish.

Sin brought sorrow into the world, and Jesus has warned, in the world you will have tribulations.

But that need not bring us to despair, for Christ quickly adds, but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.

We notice in the very next verse of our passage, verse 21, that even in the best possible of homes, even in the best possible home situations, There were problems.

Though God had promised Isaac descendants as abundance as the stars, the promise didn't seem to be fulfilled.

Rebecca was barren, not just for 1 year or 2 years.

Please skip down about a half dozen verses to Genesis 25-26 and notice that Rebecca was barren for 20 years, for Isaac was 3 score years old when she bared them." What did Isaac do during this trying period of barrenness?

Isaac entreated the Lord for his wife because she was barren.

Do you think this was a trite, memorized, or ritual prayer?

No, those prayers don't go any higher than the ceiling.

True prayer is an expression of our greatest needs and deepest desires.

The word entreat means to make an earnest prayer or request, to beseech, to implore.

Year after year, Isaac prayed earnestly for a child, but year after year, no child came.

So often in my prayers, my prayers become less urgent over time.

The passage of time made this prayer more urgent and more frequent.

And he prayed in faith, claiming God's promise.

What difference would 1 child make in Isaac's home?

What difference would 1 child make with all the millions and billions in the world today?

What difference did Samuel or John the Baptist make?

What difference did Isaac himself make since he was a prayed-for child?

Isaac knew the difference that a child, 1 child, would make, and he keenly felt his need.

We're told a deep sense of our need and a great desire for the things for which we must ask must characterize our prayers, else they will not be, what's the next word?

Isaac understood the importance of 1 child.

Isaac was filled with desire for this child, and as the years passed, Isaac felt his need more keenly.

Though his prayers seemed to be unanswered, though his prayers seemed to be unheard, Isaac continued to pray.

Now we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them that are called according to his purpose.

God was leading Isaac through this faith-building experience to make him a better father.

And it was for his good, and not only for his good, God left this experience on record for our good as well.

We also need to learn that trials mean, what's the next word?

Benefit and not to despise the chastening of the Lord nor faint when we are rebuked of Him.

The Bible likens such earnest prayer to fragrant incense, and God delights in these prayers.

And the smoke of the incense which came up with the prayers of the saints ascended before God out of the angel's hand.

And the Lord smelled the fragrant incense of Isaac's prayers.

And what was impossible to Isaac, with all of his efforts, was possible with God.

And the Lord was entreated of him, and Rebekah his wife conceived." All this was to teach an important truth.

In the sign language of the Bible, having children is evangelism.

For though you might have 10, 000 instructors, Paul said, you might have 10, 000 instructors in Christ, yet you do not have many fathers.

For in Christ, I have begotten you through the gospel.

It is not our plans and methods that win souls.

Souls are born not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor the will of man, but of God.

Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit, says the Lord of hosts.

The wives of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob were barren.

3 generations of wives were barren for a time.

Rebecca was barren for nearly as long as Sarah, 20 years.

And Rachel was barren for some years as well.

Do you think God was trying to tell us all something?

Rebecca's barrenness increased Isaac's prayers.

God's promise to Abraham is for us if we are his children.

A nation and a company of nations shall proceed from you and kings shall come from your body.

Since giving birth is a symbol in the Bible for soul winning and Abraham's promises for us, shouldn't we be asking ourselves this question, have I won a soul to Christ or am I barren?

If I would be a soul winner, what must I do?

Has My barrenness caused me to pray for a soul." In a letter, Ellen White wrote to her son Willie, the salvation of souls is the work of every follower of Christ, however weak.

Carlos Moretta

Free Clinics: Willing Service Inspires Willing Changes

Father in heaven, I come to you this morning, empty me of self, and I pray that you would, through my words, inspire those listening to become active in this very particular ministry, medical missionary work.

We thank you again for this opportunity, and these things we pray in your son's name.

So this is a brief outline of what I wanted to touch on, a little introduction.

There's always the bad and ugly associated with free clinics.

And then I want to go over the effect of free clinics on the community the provider the Christian provider the church and patients of course free and charitable clinics are critical part of the health care safety net system in the United States.

All are non-profit and serve the uninsured for free or with nominal charges.

Most free clinics are primary care focused, but a small portion provides other services such as dental, behavioral health, and optical care.

Free clinics range from a small organization staffed by a volunteer physician offering care once a month from a church basement or a large multi practitioner facility with substantial budgets.

So these are some of the 60 Amen free clinics promos that have happened in the last 4 years in 2017 alone.

Amen provided over 30 free clinic in 3 30 free clinics in communities across the country and we are now getting invitations to go global.

American Samoa, of course, San Bernardino, which is my backyard, and Tacoma Washington, which are clinics that are happening the same weekend in November this year.

Of course we have the affiliate free clinics your best pathway to Health.

Many of us have participated in this work with this organization.

I am in charge of the dental department this year in Arizona and I'm realizing what an incredible overwhelming production that this is.

And if we focused on the downsides, we wouldn't do anything.

Expense, limited budgets, Depth of need is overwhelming.

Many of us at these clinics have to turn patients away because the need is just so great.

You're all familiar with the chaos that could happen in the flow of a free clinic, the long lines, demanding providers.

Lack of materials, lack of privacy, medical records, unreasonable expectations, doing what I want to do instead of what the patient needs that happens.

Limited provision of services licensure local law professional competition malpractice is always a concern travel accommodations logistics media materials and equipment I.T.

Hospital support venue and of course what about follow up.

So we'll look at a few points on how free clinics affect the community.

There's a lot of information on this slide, but in 2016, the National Association of Free and Charitable clinics reported these statistics regarding the demand of free clinics and financial challenges they face.

And I want you to focus there on this slide where it says let's see here.

There's a 40 percent increase in demand of services from free and charitable clinics.

And that paragraph underneath I want you to see there it talks about how the average operating budget for most clinics across the United States that are free and charitable is about 100000.

And I just want you to know that that is not what a man free clinics budget is.

So I'll share that a little later with you and Hopefully you'll get a sense of the need of the need that we have of your support.

It says in addition patients who utilize the services of free and charitable clinics reduce the burden of our nation's emergency rooms.

Data collected shows that patients are free and charitable clinics utilize emergency rooms less than other uninsured individuals.

So we know that we take approximately, at least they reported that for every dollar that they get to free and charitable clinics, $5 goes out the door in treatment and services.

That's very, very unequal and probably in many cases not sustainable.

The break-even budget for this year, this year for Amen Clinics was guess what?

And next year it's projected to go over 1000000.

Of the 60 that are planned for 2018, this year was 30, over 30.

Of the 60 that we've offered to have 60 slots, 52 are already occupied and requested and scheduled.

My question is, are you willing to contribute, to plan, to participate?

The Cleveland Clinic has a free clinic that's well-established and well-funded.

I wish we had their kind of funding, right?

But naturally, they can provide and publish clear and definite statistics with ease of what they provide to the community.

But you may be hard-pressed to find long-term statistics associated with our temporary short-term clinics.

That type of book work demands its own funding.

Our faith based clinics have the potential to fall into the numbers trap.

We like to be able to report how many we treated how much money was provided in services etc.

And this is important because membership needs to know what's going on, and they want to make sure that in order for funding to continue, we want to make sure that it's going to the right places and it's meeting the right need.

But we're called to measure effectiveness and success differently, right?

Reaching a soul for Christ should be our measuring stick.

This is how much they provide to the community just in I believe it is last year 2016 808700000.0 dollars in services to their community.

I've often thought at 1 of our clinics, okay, so I extracted a tooth.

I'm sure many of you have thought the same thing.

So if I get this patient to live longer great but for what.

And as a church we know how to extend life don't we.

We also know why it's important to extend life.

So 1 of the most important, we all know 1 of the most important ways to impact a patient's life and the community they live in is to get them to consider lifestyle changes.

And we've seen documentaries like Forks Over Knives, Facts Sick and Nearly Dead, What the Health recently.

Our emphasis on lifestyle initiatives makes us unique and we need to recognize that because there's a myriad of safety net free clinics in the United States And even the faith based ones are not actively evangelizing or sharing.

I've participated in those and it's just a humanitarian clinic.

So the concept of faith based free clinics, well let's just say we didn't invent that.

We certainly haven't perfected it and we haven't been around long enough as some of the other faith-based organizations.

As I mentioned, some of the faith-based free clinics are actually right in a community church all the time, just like a food bank.

Which is kind of a strong and effective way to establish a free clinic because there's no mystery about the source of intentions to impact the community it serves.

But if it's a more short-term free clinic like our Amen Free Clinics or like Pathways, by holding it in a church, it's simply a great way to connect the community to that church.

And This is the way we did it in Nevada, Tennessee, California, for example.

Attendees to free clinics held in large convention centers, by comparison, are large venues that are not inside a church, have unique challenges, but they're not insurmountable.

So patients are appointed to go to 1 of our churches nearest to their residence to get lab results or follow up referrals which were obtained in the free clinic.

Their first encounter with the church in their community was where was in that free clinic.

I don't want to say too much about networking.

All of us know the value of friendship evangelism and of course we know that free clinics are a great way to develop that relationship.

This word community, it's a bane, the bane of my existence.

It's often synonymous with the word church, right?

It annoys me to no end that the word church has become negative.

Today however I'm going to use this word but in the following context.

The etymology of the word community is common unity.

These days, the only times a community comes together in common unity is for some tragedy, some natural disaster, some political agenda.

Sandy Hook, Kalamazoo, Boston, Aurora, all of these are strong, strong, strong.

We're only always strong after the disaster or the tragedy has struck.

So where's the SDA church strong in the community?

What about coming together for healing, true healing?

How about preempting all of these disasters and these tragedies, which we all know are gonna increase as time progresses, and strengthening the community around something positive like health, and pointing them to He alone who can heal and save to the uttermost.

Our common unity should be Christ, and our wedge?

Ricardo Whyte

The Vital Connections of Wholeness

And I definitely want to start by saying it is a privilege to be speaking to you today on the concept, the vital connections of wholeness.

You deliver care on some level, okay, wonderful.

I think as clinicians, we at times can be so patient focused that we overlook our own wholeness.

And so as much as you'll listen to this information for how it can impact your patience, your practice, I would really like you to be listening and taking notes on how this can impact you.

Because certainly if the vessel is broken, it will not deliver what it is supposed to.

Especially broken in a way in which the cross hasn't broken you.

So I'm inclined to jump into my talk, but sometimes if we're a little premature, it can be dangerous.

So, my goal here is that we would discuss the concept of wholeness and have a viable definition for it.

And then we'll have a discussion of the vital connections of wholeness.

Within that, we will also talk about the 3 dimensions of purpose because it is so core to wholeness.

And then we will talk about the over, we'll do an overview of the master process of creating.

In formulating this theory, in formulating how it is that I would approach psychiatry, I did take some cues from my intellectual forefathers.

Sigmund Freud is of course famous in the field of psychiatry to the point where those outside the field of psychiatry are pretty familiar with Freud, even some of his theories.

In fact, it's pretty well known that Greek mythology actually influenced his theory.

He talked about things like the Oedipus complex and or the Electra complex and these of course being things that were influenced by Greek mythology and if Sigmund Freud can be bold enough to allow a myth, something that we know is not true, to shape his theories that he's going to use when people are in crises and bringing their lives into him, I thought I could take some license and use scripture, the Bible, what we as Christians believe is true to influence how I would approach the treatment of patients that entrust their lives to me in a period of crisis.

How did he formulate his theory of Maslow's hierarchy of needs?

So Maslow noted that we as clinicians, we as an intellectual community, we have obsessed over fragmentation.

We have paid very close attention to disease.

In fact, we have become experts in disease as we've allowed our understanding of wholeness to suffer.

And so what Maslow did was he said, as opposed to studying just mental sickness, what if I studied the people who are whole, in fact, people who are achieving amazing things in their lives.

And so he selected people like, for example, Albert Einstein to formulate his theories.

And I let that influence me because I think it makes sense to take a look at a person who has, who is as accomplished as Albert Einstein.

However, I don't think Albert Einstein can shake a stick to Adam, who's coming direct from the hand of God.

If I want to understand wholeness and what wholeness looks like in its original picture, just untouched, uncorrupted, I should take a look at Adam.

Because that's really going to help me understand, if a patient is coming into me fragmented, what is it that I'm trying to get them back to?

And then lastly, I considered the work of Dr.

Bruce Alexander is a Canadian addictionologist.

And without fail, there would be addiction studies done, and the researchers would conclude, look at how addictive that substance is.

The animal is choosing the substance even to the point where they're dying.

Alexander, he said, you know, you're not showing how addictive that substance is.

What you're showing is how awful their living environment is.

And so what he did was he developed a thing called Rat Park.

And Rat Park was essentially a Disney World for rats.

It gave them areas where they could congregate and associate with each other.

And into that perfect rat utopia, he introduced elements where they could self-dispense substances like opiates or heroin.

And wouldn't you know, the rats would reject the drugs and instead choose to associate with each other.

And so he walked away with a theory called the dislocation theory, where he said as we become disconnected, Disconnected from what I'm terming vital connections as we become disconnected it increases our risk for addictions and ways of coping that are less than ideal so Are you ready for us to begin?

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Series

Plenary

When Loss is Gain

Transcript

Description

Parent Series

Parent Conference

Sponsor

Recorded

Parts

Infertility Clinic

49m

Free Clinics: Willing Service Inspires Willing Changes

38m

The Vital Connections of Wholeness

51m

When Loss is Gain

57m

Willing to Be Humbled?

36m

The Tyranny of the Urgent: When Your Best Is Not Enough

56m

Sound Doctrine