What an amazing trip to Iraq! The whole time I was reminded of Ephesians 3:20-21 "Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen."
God's favor and open doors were truly incredible and humbling as we met with many high ranking officials and shared God's heart for the people of the Kurdistan region of Iraq. We met the governor, deputy prime minister, secretary of defense, director general of the department of health, a general, a lieutenant colonel most of them informally over dinner with much time to talk and share hearts. These leaders and all of the people of Kurdistan that we spoke to were happy that we were there and willing to help.
So what did my day to day look like? Every day at 9AM I taught an equipping seminar for the staff at the mental health center. After that I sat in on one on one counseling sessions with a counselor. The move of God's heart in these sessions was awesome! I got to share from Scripture His hope into hopelessness, His joy in the midst of depression, His peace in the midst of anxiety, His promises in the midst of uncerainty. What a joy for me as the counselors and patients, who were all Muslim, were touched by the Truth of His words.
I'll give two of the many examples. A young man age 30 came in with his father. The father did almost all the talking as he explained that his son had problems with depression, fear, bedwetting, etc. for the past 16 years. As we focused the discussion on the son and got him to share in his own words, he shared his pain of watching his 5 year old brother die before his eyes when a bomb hit their house in 1991. He continued to unveil the confusion that set in back then as he asked his father what happend and his father replied "Nothing." As we began the process of validating the son's feelings so he could process this trauma that he has been carrying for 16 years we saw a brightness come to his face. His eyes lit up, a smile returned and you could see hope and peace begin to fill him. We ended with the father and son sharing forgiveness, hugs and tears as that young man felt the touch of His creator bringing healing and wholeness to him!
The second example is a 20 year old young woman who came in because of dreams. She shared that she had a kind young man who came to her in her dreams to warn her of potential danger or harm. Then small demons would come and tell her that because of what her father did to another young woman they had the right to attack her. She always obeyed the kind man, but the demons' words left her in fear and she had trouble eating, sleeping and concentrating. Her family thought she was crazy and needed to be put on medication. It was truly inspirational to watch the dark cloud lift from her as she realized that the kind man in her dreams was Jesus and as she found His peace, freedom and victory over the attacks of the demons.
On Saturday November 10th I gave a 3 hour workshop for around 35 representatives from various human services agencies throughout Kurdistan. The focus of this workshop was to introduce community based addiction treatment and prevention into this area of Iraq. Everyone was eager and open to share learn and share their concerns for their community and their people. The two main drugs of concern were glue sniffing and injecting opium. During this workshop I was filmed teaching and learned the next day that an excerpt was on the evening news. As I arrived at the mental health clinic, the waiting room was filled to overflowing with Muslims who had seen the news and wanted to see Dr. David for healing and/or deliverance. Hours later when I left the clinic, the waiting was still crammed with people hoping to see Dr. David.
The late afternoons each day were filled with visits to local places. I got to tour the men's prison and sit down with prisoners in their pod. They served me tea and shared their hearts and concerns as we had a good time talking together. I also toured the women's prison, the juvenile prison, the women's protection shelter and an orphanage. In each of these we had the opportunity to talk to people one on one. I can share with you that the hearts of those in Iraq in these situations are the same hearts that I find every week in Lancaster County Prison. They are hearts yearning for healing and wholeness, looking for a hope and a future, and hearts that hunger for someone to believe in them.
Several prayer requests as a result of this trip. 1) My host asked for my permission to publish my books "From Addict to Disciple" and "The Heart of an Addict" in Kurdish and Arabic. Pray that God streamlines this process, moves aside any impediments and that these books bring Him glory as they bring His healing, wholeness, reconciliation and restoration to people throughout Kurdistan and the surrounding Arab countries. 2) There is an open invitation to return and stay for about a month. Pray for His wisdom and leading in the timing of a next trip. 3) There is a door opening for 2 or 3 families to return and stay for 6 months to several years working out of the mental health clinic. Pray for His wisdom, His plan, His timing and His heart as this idea develops further.
To view photo album of this trip visit this link
http://picasaweb.google.com/david.hain/Iraq1107
