An Individual Story Amid a Sea of Matching T-Shirts

The five of us "left behind" in Managua miss the comaraderie of our fellows who are currently in Puerto Cabezas, but I'll bet we arrive better rested!  :-)

On the flight from Houston to Managua, there were two prominently attired mission teams, wearing colorful T-shirts emblazoned with the themes of their trips.  For example, there was the blue "Water and the Word for Nicaragua" (or something like that; probably Christians building water wells). Then there were the orange T-shirts for "BMDMI," but initially I couldn't figure out what that meant.

As "luck" would have it, my airplane seat was next to Cassie, who was clad in one of the orange BMDMI shirts.  I asked about her mission, and learned that the acronym stood for Baptist Medical & Dental Mission International.  Although most of the team members were on a one-week medical clinic relief stint, Cassie's story was completely different.

She was staying for three weeks working in a home for sexually abused girls, helping them cope and learn life skills they can use to support themselves.  Some of the girls escaped from the sex slavery trafficking world, others were abused by relatives, etc.  The Nicaraguan govenment provides little or no assistance to these tragic victims, which is why BMDMI is involved.  One of the biggest ways Cassie helps is by watching the children that have resulted from the forced "unions" when the girls were sex slaves.  The youngest of these mothers Cassie helped was only 12!

I asked if BMDMI, being a Christian organization, dealt with the spiritual aspect of the girls' recovery.  The answer was yes, although of course they don't push Christianity on them.  But their relational approach results in many of the girls seriously considering the faith held by these young people who give of their time and resources to help the victims of sex trafficking, expecting nothing in return.

Cassie has been doing this every summer for eight years; in most cases the entire summer, not just a few weeks.  I am encouraged by the example of those like Cassie, and look forward to the relational ministry of our own trip to help the village pastors in the Puerto Cabezas region.

-- JohnH