Co-workers train to be effective witnesses of Christ!

Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. 2 Corinthians 5:20

We desire to build effective ambassadors of Christ among CURE co-workers. The CURE Zambia Spiritual Department, with help from staff members of other departments, organized the Saline Process training program. (The Saline Process is the first in a series of training sessions that will focus on being effective witnesses of Christ.)

The Saline Process training equips health care workers to be witnesses for Christ in their clinical settings. Ultimately, the program prepares health care workers to be salt, light, and witnesses of Christ so that our Father in heaven is glorified (Acts 1:8; Matt 5:13-16, Matt 28: 19-20; John 4:39-41.) The training program will be an ongoing activity throughout the remainder of the year. All CURE Zambia staff will receive the training, which will equip them to be witnesses of Christ by learning how to overcome barriers faced when evangelizing to the lost.

Co-workers partake in Saline Process training program.

Spiritual Director Pastor Harold, who was also a participant of the training, highlighted the objective of the program:

“The intended objective of the training is to: 1) teach them how to identify the spiritual, social, and emotional needs of the patients as they continue to do their day-to-day work, and 2) equip them on how to lead the patients after solving the identified needs.”

He also shared the impact the training had on him: “The training is amazing in the sense that it leads you to be able to get a patient’s spiritual history without offending them and also to be able to penetrate through the emotional, intellectual barriers through which you eventually lead them to Christ. It reminds you to be the salt of this world. It was really great, one of the few spiritual trainings I have attended with a focus on the hospital setting. I am excited about the fact that we will be able to train our staff to make them disciples to our patients and be an avenue through which they find Christ eventually, and also to make them the salt and light of the world. I am pretty sure we will see the results. We will therefore roll out the training to all co-workers in about six months.”

Learning how to become effective witnesses of Christ.

Loice, from CURE Clubfoot, is a certified Saline Trainer and also a member of the Nurses Christian Fellowship. She said, “The training focuses on how to present the gospel in a health care environment. They take the picture of salt: when there is too much salt, it is deadly, and when there is too little salt, that is also deadly. The idea is that health care providers should have knowledge in the disseminating of the gospel.

“International Health Services Global heads the training program. The participants were excited about the training; they said it was an eye-opener. We talked about the barriers that stand in between the patient and faith—these being emotional, intellectual, and volitional barriers. The participants were taught how to overcome these barriers. They learned that leading someone to Christ is not a one-day process; it takes time in some situations. Ultimately, the trainees will be made part of the Saline network, and they will continue receiving reminders on the key points that they were taught.”

Nurse Dyness spoke about the usefulness of the training: “The information came at the right time. It’s been so useful and has helped us to reach out to the patients, encourage the mothers, and lead them to the cross. It’s something that looks simple at first sight, but it needs some sort of training like the one we have had. After this training, it will now be easier to talk to the mothers. The training is important not only to my soul but also to the people around me. It reminded me of the importance of feeding my soul because you cannot lead others when you don’t know the way. Thanks to the people who organized the training. My prayer is that everyone at CURE Zambia can attend.”

Spiritual Center Associate Pastor Lubasi articulated how spiritual faith plays a vital role in physical healing. “What is great about this training is that it elaborates upon how Christians can effectively share their faith in a medical setup because as Christ followers, we are called to be effective witnesses (Matthew 5: 13, 14). Spiritual faith plays a vital role in physical healing, hence the need to encourage people to have faith in God through the intentional sharing of the good news of Christ. The training empowered us to share this good news of our Lord Jesus Christ effectively.”

Co-workers proudly display their certificates of completion!

Theatre Porter Luka was impressed by how the training showed how to share the good news of Christ: “I was a person uncomfortable reaching out to the non-believer and people of other religions about Jesus. We learned how to reach out to patients that come to CURE Zambia effectively. In the past, it was a challenge; I didn’t know where to start when introducing Jesus, especially to non-believers and those who belong to other religions. Through this training, I have gained confidence because we learned the processes we have to take before introducing Jesus to others. We also learned how to overcome different intellectual and emotional barriers. I can proudly say that we are now equipped disciples of the gospel.”

We are thankful for those who organized this training, and we’re delighted that it will be offered throughout CURE Zambia, making all our co-workers effective ministers of the gospel to the people we serve.