Our faith and calling starts with daring to love like Jesus — only then can we begin to boldly break barriers to health and restore wholeness in a hurting world.
We believe every person is made in the image of God. Because every person is made in the image of God, every person deserves love. Every person deserves the chance for a better life. The chance for health and wholeness.
So God created humankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them. —Genesis 1:27
At Medical Teams, we are called to care for God’s vulnerable children by addressing critical health needs. We are called to serve in a way that honors, upholds and restores the dignity and value of every human being. We are compelled to practice a love for all people — no matter their religion, nationality, sex or race.
When we look into the face of a worried mother cradling her sick child, we see God. When we meet a refugee carrying the wounds of war, we see God. When we treat a person who has survived a disaster or someone suffering a chronic illness, we see God. We believe that every person is worthy and precious.
Jesus modeled God’s perfect love, so we strive to love like Jesus. Whether it’s a health worker staying up late to care for a malnourished baby or a dentist volunteering at a mobile clinic to treat the tooth pain of someone experiencing houselessness, we are driven by the desire to demonstrate love to people in crisis.
This is the future generation, and God created us. We are different, we are unique. If you lose just one single baby, I believe that we are losing something very precious, very good, that God made that person for.
There are times when even I kneel down and I say, “God, I need this baby to live. Give me the spirit, give me the skill. Let me not miss anything so that I do the right thing.”
—Monicah, Nutritionist (Uganda)
Our Medical Teams International staff are trying to deliver the service with love and care. And that’s what we were able to impact on the refugees. And delivering the services with love and care shows the refugees that every person matters. And as they start to notice that and believe that every person matters, their mental health situation will be better.
—Samira, Program Manager (Lebanon)
It’s a love that is healing. The kind of healing that is concerned with the whole person — physical, emotional, social and spiritual. The kind of healing that relieves pain. The kind of healing that restores wholeness. That delivers people from loneliness and hopelessness in a broken world. It’s a love that strives to bring about God’s kingdom here on earth.
It’s a love that is for everyone. It’s for our next-door neighbor and the stranger we’ll never meet. It’s a love that triumphs over differences of culture, race and religion. Differences of gender, politics and wealth. It invites everyone in because it sees value in every person. It is not conditional, and it doesn’t have to be earned. It recognizes our common humanity, loving others as we would like to be loved.
It’s a love that is courageous. It requires bold action, asking us to heed the call to serve and step out in faith. It challenges us to leave our comfort zone. To crack open our hearts a little wider. To seek out the outcast and the unreached. It’s showing up in the places no one else wants to go. For the people no one else cares to see. It can be costly, asking us to act justly and stand in solidarity with people who have been overlooked.
It’s a love that is selfless. It requires us to put others before ourselves. To be slow to speak and quick to listen. To step into someone else’s pain. It’s offering ourselves up in the service of others. Giving of our time, our skills, our possessions and our hearts.
Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind. And love your neighbor as yourself. —Luke 10:27
This is what it means to put love into action. This is what it means to dare to love like Jesus.
Be the first to hear about the urgent needs of people in crisis, receive special invitations to events, and get updates on what’s happening in the field. Sign up now!