Wheels to Jordan
JONI: Hi, I’m Joni Eareckson Tada with a “Wheels for the World” update.
And my friend and co-worker, Jean Schintee recently traveled with Wheels for the World to the middle east to serve in the country of Jordan. I have invited her to tell us what it was like. “Marhabaan” Jean.
JEAN: “Marhabaan” Joni. That’s Arabic for “Hello”!
JONI: Oh, I’m so glad to know that and as I understand it your Wheels for the World team was made up of not only Arabs, but Christians from Israel, Palestine, Lebanon, South Africa. You all came from such completely different cultures. What was it like?
JEAN: Joni, it was incredible. I mean our team all of them were Christians, but we came from such different backgrounds and cultures; we spoke different languages. Just our love for the Lord and our love for serving people was the thing that united us all.
JONI: Speaking of servicing, you must have one memorable incident of fitting somebody to a wheelchair.
JEAN: I do. I remember a father and mother. They brought their two young adult children, a boy and a girl, and I watched their faces as they saw them getting fitted for their wheelchairs and just the kindness and the tenderness of our volunteer physical therapist.
JONI: That must communicate a lot, right there.
JEAN: Yes. Just how we came in and loved on these people and really made them feel valued. So afterwards after they were done with the seating, we went outside and I saw both brother and sister just racing around in their new wheelchairs and laughing.They were like two little kids and just watching their parent’s faces I was able to go over and sit with the mom. She said, “Do you see their joy? This kind of joy is coming from deep down in their souls.” It was a very special moment.
JONI: And because they knew that you all are Christians, they could make that connection. I think that’s awesome. Well, another thing that intrigued me that you visited Christian refugee camps, Syrian refugees. What was it like in that refugee camp?
JEAN: Well, during the different distribution days we did have people come there to be served who were Syrian refugees. One family, in particular, the older son brought his father. He had a spinal cord injury from when a bomb went off in his neighborhood just when he was walking down the street. So to get a wheelchair that day (and they also got a Joni Book in Arabic) they were just so grateful and really humbled.
JONI: What made this particular Wheels for the World trip so different?
JEAN: This one for me was centered around prayer because we were in a country where 98% of the people there are Muslim and 2% are Christians every day, five times a day, you can hear the call to prayer coming from the mosque and so for me when I would hear that it was a reminder for me to continue to pray for the Jordanian people that their hearts and minds would be opened to the gospel and to the truth.
JONI: Absolutely. I remember the last time I was in a Muslim nation with my girl friend who is a Christian and we heard the Muslim call to prayer in the morning. She leans her head out the window of the care and starts singing “Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name”. It sounded just like an imam, except it was the Lord’s Prayer.
JEAN: It’s very loud also at 5:30 in the morning. You are up and you hear them blaring through.
JONI: And as a reminder that you are in a spiritual warfare, especially in the Middle East. I am so glad that prayer was a pinion of your Wheels for the World outreach. Gee, I am so happy you mentioned prayer because today we have a Wheels for the World team heading for the Dominican Republic all loaded down with Bibles and wheelchairs. Listening friend we need you. Please be in prayer that God will open the hearts of every wheelchair recipient and their family to the gospel of Jesus Christ. And if you would like to serve on a wheelchairs team like Jean then…
JEAN: …just go to our website at joniandfriends.org and you can sign up.
JONI: Absolutely! Thank you so much, Jean for coming.
JEAN: Thank you.
JONI: And how to do say “thank you” in Arabic?
JEAN: “Shukraan” (thank you)
JONI: “Shukraan” (thank you) Jean
© Joni and Friends
