On October 10, 2020, I was touring Cedarville as a prospective student, and my cousin Jack Kehl (a Cedarville alumni) was looking to move with his family to Togo, Africa as a mission field. While I was growing up, Jack encouraged me by saying, “Wherever I end up on the field, you will have to visit!” Our family prayed for him during his undergraduate years, while he was in medical school, while seeking to serve somewhere as a medical missionary, and while his family was learning French in Switzerland.
Fast forward to May 13, 2024. A team from Cedarville University’s School of Nursing (four rising seniors and three leaders) and I were on a plane to Lomé, Togo to serve at Hôpital Baptiste Biblique (HBB) — the exact location where the Kehl family had settled.
Our first day at the hospital began with a devotion read out loud in French and summarized in Ewe (a tribal language). Someone prayed and the medical team sang a worship song. The music was like a sweet aroma in the hospital, filling every corner with a joyful noise, but before we knew it, our singing turned into urgency as the team rushed off to a medical emergency.
The day continued, and our nursing students followed the Togolese nurses, observing their care. At noon, we took our two-hour lunch and returned to the hospital to finish the day at five. By the end of our first week, we had moved from observing the nurses to practicing skills ourselves. We drew up many medications, gave injections and pills, started IVs, set drip rates by hand, and inserted foley catheters and NG tubes.
Practicing nursing in Togo came with its challenges, as we were faced with a culture and language barrier. All medical documentation was in French, most of the staff spoke French more than English, and many of the patients communicated in their mother tongue. Thankfully, our nursing leaders, Scott Long, ToniLynn Flemming, and Lydia Rhuker, had thoroughly prepared our team to encounter these differences.
In the months leading up to our trip, we met every other week to build the team relationship, to discuss relevant key topics, and to smooth out logistical details. There was even a weekend dedicated to reviewing common medical cases we would be working with, such as hernias, malaria, typhoid, and parasites. Applying our training in Togo was what we had been anticipating for months.
Our team found intentional ways to connect with the Togolese hosts, nurses, doctors, and the townspeople. A greeting of “Bonjour! Ça va?” (Hello! How’s it going?) went a very long way. Acting out medical directions to patients covered our language inadequacy. Eventually, our care went beyond physical needs and gave us opportunities to reach the heart.
Makovi, one of the maternity nurses I had become close to, gave me an opportunity to share my testimony and the Gospel. She said, “Do you want to go share the Gospel?” and took me to the bedside of my patient. “I will translate,” she said, and she did. She translated into a tribal language and the patient’s daughter translated into the mother tongue. Two weeks later, I saw the daughter at a long-term care center, listening to four chaplains preach the Gospel. Every student on our team had encounters like this, knowing that we had been chosen to plant seeds, and our confidence is that God’s Word does not return void.
High Low Buffalo
Towards the end of the trip, my cousins invited our team to dinner, and we played “High Low Buffalo.” This time of reflection had us sharing our favorite, least favorite, and random experiences we had while in Togo.
The highs were unanimous for our team. We loved going on a mobile clinic to the village of Lancui, and we were all moved by hearing the chaplains speak at the Rafah House. The mobile clinic was operated by stations covering spiritual needs, public health education, pharmaceutical needs, and manual screening. The students helped scan over one hundred people for diabetes and hypertension by taking blood pressure and pulses. There were many children to play with in between our work. The kids would play hand games with us, run to the soccer field for an exhilarating match, and some were determined to master the jump rope. There was a lot of laughter and smiles on that trip, which brought joy to our own hearts. By the end of the day, the priceless gems we left behind were new hearts that had come to Jesus.
The second event we enjoyed took place at the long-term care Rafah House. One chaplain would preach in French, another would translate into Ewe, and the rest of the chaplains listened or would occasionally interject to add to the message. What made this encounter even more personal was our ability to hear it all translated into English from our fellow rising senior and nursing friend Noah, who had learned French as a MK (missionary kid) in Congo. His service to our team brought the hearts of the chaplains even closer to ours. While listening to the chaplains preach, I felt like we were surrounded by fierce lions who were bearing witness to the One Lion of Judah, who is our precious Christ.
Our low points included several deaths at the hospital. Christina Penny, one of HBB’s anesthetist and pulmonary specialists, told me, “What makes death difficult to see here is the lack of closure.” Her point was very settling for all the unsettling things we saw. Closure is not a luxury the hospital workers see all the time, but it emphasizes the importance of the work the missionaries are doing by sharing the Gospel in Togo.
The buffalo of our trip was hiking up a mountain on the border of Togo and Ghana. It felt like we were crawling up a 90-degree monster while it was indeed about 90° F outside. However, all our discomfort was forgotten when we reached the top — looking out at God’s magnificent work. We went a little further to swim at a waterfall, which we all enjoyed!
To Stay or To Go?
For Cedarville nursing students who are interested in missions — Togo is just a plane ride away! I sense that God truly wanted me in Togo for His purposes. If He is calling you to go, your trip will be filled with many new, thrilling experiences. What will make your trip impactful though, is how you set your eyes on Jesus today. Whether you have an opportunity to serve overseas in Togo or if you are His hands and feet at home, He will show you the way to go because He is God, the author and perfector of your faith.
Tags: #college, #experience, #globaloutreach, #studentlife
Posted in: College Life, Experience, Global Outreach