Today we had about a 70 min drive to Loma Cava. Ordinarily apparently it would not have been a 70 min drive, but the Bridge of the Americas was only available for one way traffic (the opposite way), so we took the "scenic route". We crossed the Panama Canal on the Sentinel Bridge
which opened in 2004 to supplement the overcrowded Bridge of the Americas. It is part of the pan-American Highway, which runs from Argentina to Alaska (except for the Darien Gap). We did hit some traffic,
but not a lot...The last town before Loma Cova is Arraijan (which means "last exit at your right hand"), and indeed it is the last exit before Loma Cova... The buildings of Loma Cava look fairly similar one to the next,
and the church is positioned seemingly randomly in the midst of these houses
There were also plenty of dogs and chickens wandering around.
There will soon (maybe two years from now?) be a train line that will connect Loma Cova with downtown Panama City (Allport Mall,etc), with one of the stations being visible from the back of the church.
What a blessing that will be for the people in the area! The local people include many from the Kuna indigenous group, and they thanked us for coming by singing a song for us in the sanctuary.
Given the Kuna's origins as a fishing tribe (living on islands), the altar is in the shape of a boat.
The people coming to the clinic started out with the Evangelism station in the sanctuary, where they received booklets about Jesus,
then came around the outside of the building to re-enter through the back of the fellowship hall, where Anita and I used a small room for the nursing station.
The other stations were all in one room ("fellowship hall").
Griselda's husband made an amazing lunch for us,
and then we returned to our stations, serving 179 people in total today.
-One was a girl who was deaf and could not speak, but when she got her glasses, she was smiling from ear to ear. We were also able to provide glasses for her mom.
-There was also a gentleman who unfortunately had an extreme case of conjunctivitis with active drainage. He was a construction worker and said dust kept getting in his eyes. We are not able to serve people with drainage from conjunctivitis due to the risk of contaminating our equipment, and spreading the infection to others, so we advised him to see a doctor for treatment. However, he also suffered from sun sensitivity, and we were able to send him directly to the last station for a pair of sunglasses, for which he was very thankful.
-Many of the Kuni women that came wanted to improve their near vision, not for reading, but for sewing their Molas, which are an important source of income for them as well as a beautiful traditional garment in their culture.
-One of the interpreters working with me at the nursing station slightly modified the question about "have you ever had an injury to your eyes?" and would routinely ask about not only accidents but also specifically about injuries due to "footballs" (soccer balls) and falling mangoes (I would not have thought of asking about that!)
It was a long ride back (2 hours), with A LOT of traffic, but we finally arrived at Mi Ranchito restaurant for dinner, which is on the causeway.
Back at the hotel, we had devotions and team meeting.
In thinking about the day, I will leave you with this wall that we passed driving through Panama City. (It is on the property of Balboa Union Church.)
Then Jesus spoke to them again, saying, "I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life." (John 8:12)
Jesus, You ARE the light of the world, and without You there is nothing but darkness in our lives.... But with You, there is always light - even when it seems dark. Give us courage to follow where You lead, and may your light shine through us to those we meet.
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