Medical Missionary News: Supporting Christian Mission through Healthcare

From the early beginnings of Medical Missionary News, when a group of doctors saw the need for prayer for medical mission across the world, MMN has been seeking to support those involved in making the Lord known through the provision of healthcare, through prayer, and in practical ways.

In 1934, a quarterly magazine was released to inform Christians of healthcare needs overseas, as little money was being donated towards medical needs. From 1947, funds were raised and a charity was created to support missionaries in medical work overseas, which has been running all these years.

Container Work

The work of MMN was completely transformed in the late 1970s, following a request by medical missionaries for medical supplies that could not be sourced within their country. Therefore, in 1980 MMN sent its first shipment of five tons of drugs, which were shipped by air. Initially, around two containers were shipped every year from the UK, particularly for use in Africa.

The container work exceeded all expectations, and at its peak in 2004 a total of seventy-eight containers were sent to eleven different countries. Containers would include medicines, medical supplies, food, clothing, vehicle parts, supplies for babies and children, as well as an array of material to encourage people in their relationship with the Lord -from Bibles to Sunday school prizes.

Since then, the container work has continued on a reducing scale and is now located in Swindon, having moved there from Wickford in 2020. The reason for this is threefold: supplies have become more readily available in many countries; shipping costs have increased; and the bureaucracy has become more complex. We now ship a handful of containers to Angola, Malawi, and Zambia. In addition, we work in partnership with others - Christian charities such as ‘CMIAid’ in Moldova and ‘Tools with a Mission’ to facilitate other shipments.

Grants

This change has enabled MMN to re-focus its activities on praying for and financially supporting those involved in medical mission; in essence, going back to our original focus.

Through the generosity of our supporters, we can give grants to support Christian mission organizations in their ministry of sharing the gospel through their healthcare work - in mission hospitals/clinics, in community healthcare programmes, in caring for the disabled and orphans, through health education programmes, and offering support to those affected by disasters. Supporting partners financially means that we have been able to help projects in other parts of the world where the health needs are enormous. This includes the continued support of CMML hospitals in the northwest province of Zambia and the mission hospital in southern DR Congo, as well as new medical work that assemblies in Albania, India, and Kenya are involved in.

Each project that applies for a grant must provide a detailed account of how their funding will be used, whom their funding will benefit, and how the gospel will be preached through the work they provide. Once the funding is received, the project provides a report of the impact of the work, as well as regular prayer updates.

The aim is to develop these relationships so that we work in partnership for the gospel. It is exciting to hear of what God is doing through our partners overseas to bring light back into people’s situations and to draw them to Himself, which we can then share more widely through our various media outlets.

Students

Recently MMN has been supporting medical professionals and students in their medical and/or missionary training and development. We have been working in collaboration with Christian Medical Fellowship in the training of doctors and nurses who are looking to use their medical skills in a global health setting through their Global Track programme.

MMN has provided medical students with financial support to do their electives in a mission hospital or clinic, to encourage them in exploring what is involved in serving God in such a setting, and it is exciting to read of the way God is using this opportunity to spark an interest in overseas mission.

Prayer

Above all, the focus of our work is prayer - it is what we long for our supporters to get involved with, and is at the heart of all we do. Our dependence on the Lord has not changed, and we know that everything in medical missionary activity is only possible through His will and intervention.

MMN wants to be a platform for sharing information about medical mission to encourage prayerful support. We share stories, information and resources from our partners through our website (www. mmn.uk.com), quarterly magazine, and weekly prayer email, so that you can pray alongside us for our partners, as they seek to reach people with the gospel by providing practical healthcare.