God’s Healing Touch – One Heart at a Time
One of our special ministry partners is a grace-based international community that brings children with congenital heart defects from throughout the Middle East to the advanced medical centers in Israel for lifesaving surgeries. Approximately eight of every 1,000 children are born with congenital heart disease, a defect in the structure of a baby's heart. It is this birth defect that is responsible for the highest percentage of infant deaths. If treated early, the child will usually live a healthy life.
These dear ministry allies began their work in 1994 with the purpose of helping children from neighboring nations receive lifesaving heart surgeries in Israel. Their work consists of locating children with heart defects in cooperation with partner physicians. They work in cooperation with these physicians in the Middle East who refer children for surgery. After diagnostic examinations are performed, the physicians consult with Israeli physicians to set and prioritize a list of children requiring surgery. When a child is officially invited to Israel for surgery, this ministry undertakes all transportation, documentation, housing, and financial needs for the patient and family members during the treatment process.
At area medical centers and hospitals, the local doctors even help to raise funds for surgeries through their charities and other ministry partners. "We do this out of love," says one of the partner doctors. The doctors freely give up their nights, weekends, and holidays to fight for the lives of these special children. All the partner hospital administrations give a generous discount of 50% from the already low cost of heart surgery in Israel.
Depending on the severity of the case and the complication of treatment, a child may stay in Israel between two weeks stretching to several months. Children from Gaza can choose to travel back and forth between the border and the hospitals; while other Middle Eastern children from further abroad, stay in the ministry home in Jerusalem. The spacious lodging is their sanctuary while in Israel, with sleeping quarters, a large kitchen, dining room, and recreation room. This arrangement brings the believing staff, Holy Spirit filled volunteers, the children and parents all to live together in the same building. The hope (and often the visible result) is that they witness up close the promise of ‘brothers dwelling together in unity’ spoken of in Psalm 133.
It is both The Joshua Fund’s and this ministry’s continuing prayer that as these children and their families look back on this time in their lives that they will remember the goodness and love that our Lord has for them. Will you join us in seeking the Father’s blessing on these efforts? As our ministry partners shared, “It is truly miraculous whenever a child comes through the doors in need of healing and leaves with a healthy heart. We never want to forget every successful surgery is due to the Lord’s hand in each child’s life, not just mere chance.”
Please join us in praying for this ministry of the Lord, for these precious children and their families that the Lord draws to this life-saving work. We also want to pray for the staff and volunteers that serve the Lord in this way that He would supply abundantly, more than they could ever ask or think.
Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen. Ephesians 3:20-21
