Vietnam 2024- Team Update 2
On Saturday our US team joined with our ALWM Vital Links medical team of volunteers sponsoring a major medical evangelism outreach at Khanh Vinh Church, in Khanh Vinh Province! We arrived at 8 am to a parking lot that was rapidly filling with motorbikes, and many people ready for their doctor visits and the other things brought by our US team. This ALWM partner church is one of the two largest Protestant Churches in Vietnam, with 8000 members! They are also the mother church of many congregations planted throughout the province (see below). Our ALWM Vietnamese team that day included 35 volunteer doctors, pharmacists and nurses. There were approximately 50 volunteers from the host church, plus 6 on our US team. So about 90 volunteers served 475 people from the surrounding villages up to 20 + miles away!
The medical team did health exams for everyone, with prescriptions and meds for anyone who was sick. Medical care is in very limited supply for the poor villagers and church members, and the pastor said this is their best outreach every year. Our US team added crafts, sports, toothbrush and toothpaste for all, plus reading glasses were matched to over 225 people including hand sewn glass cases from friends of ALWM in the US.
Vietnam is about 2% evangelical, with another 8% that the Joshua Project identifies as Christian adherents from Catholic Churches planted during French colonial occupation.
Our local bus driver said as the day unfolded, “this is great and many of the people are very happy!” In addition to the 475 adults we had another 100 children take part in the crafts, sports and games, as well as the toothbrush demonstration by the volunteer dentist. We also came with floss for everyone, which Van, our project manager said the kids in the village had never seen before! It was a long warm day, and everyone was tired and grateful for all that happened. It was a memorable day, another example of how ALWM Int’l does effective ministry with gifted and called ministries and partners.
Sunday we worshipped with a local Vietnamese congregation, followed by visits to several churches where we have installed water filtration systems over the past year. Vicki & Sue are from Living Word Lutheran in Milbank SD, which has supplied funds for 8 systems over the past year! So it was really special for them and their congregation to visit a few in person.
