Food supply veterinary medicine can certainly lead to interesting and heartwarming backstories, and the following is one rather convoluted but fascinating example full of miraculous coincidences. It appears in my book,
A two-week shuttle mission began when I saw a picture of Dr. Jim Nash, an ex-partner of mine, in a newsletter from Christian Veterinary Mission (CVM). Dr. Nash and I both worked as cattle veterinarians at a large veterinary practice in North Carolina in the early 1980s. In the photo in the newsletter, Dr. Nash was in Bolivia, South America, serving a long time on a Christian mission with CVM. I felt moved to contact him because I had known him “before” he became a Christian.
Up to the point that he left our practice, Dr. Nash had easily taken the lead as the morally worst and most selfish character I had ever met in my life. Every two to three years, he would purge himself of everything and start his life over. This purge included his current family, friends, and associates. He had dependencies on drugs and alcohol and was a mean drunk. I had numerous “run-ins” with him during the six months that I worked with him. Then, he also left our practice and moved on. Now, after recognizing him in this picture, I was completely stunned. I never imagined him serving as a Christian missionary in a foreign land, teaching people about the Lord. He had become a Christian! I felt utterly compelled to contact him and tell him how proud I was of what he had done with his life.
So, I called the offices of the Christian Veterinary Mission for his email address. With their help, I emailed Jim and told him how impressed I was with what he had done with his life. He emailed back and explained that he had done nothing and that God had done everything. After making initial contact, Jim and I stayed in touch for months, and finally, we were able to speak on the phone during a furlough back in the U.S.A.
His voice sounded the same as “before,” but his words were so different. He spoke with compassion for people and a love for God. He truly sounded as if he had been given the “Fruits of the Spirit” mentioned in the Bible. Eventually, he asked me if I would come to Bolivia and give advice to CVM on some of the projects there. Jim also wished for me to speak at the first Annual Bolivian Dairy Symposium and to teach some classes at the National Veterinary College. I was agreeable to do these things, but I hesitated to accept his invitation because I simply considered myself an expert in food supply veterinary medicine — NOT missionary work!
Even so, my curiosity and my desire to comprehend the change in this man compelled me to go. In opposition, before a final decision could be made, Jim and his wife, Randy, both found out that their parents were ill, and they were obligated to return to the U.S. Because I had heard nothing from CVM and Jim would not be there, I emailed him that perhaps I should wait to go until he returned to Bolivia.
Jim flew into action immediately. I received emails from CVM and Phil Bender, who was the director of the mission in Latin America. My approval for the CVM shuttle mission was in my hands before the people selected to write my letters of recommendation even returned their evaluations. The email received from Phil Bender was an urgent plea for my help with his own failing dairy farm. In a few days, I also received a postal package containing material to help prepare me for overseas mission work. Dr. Jim had a great influence on this whole process. (I found out later that he was a well-respected member of the board of directors at CVM.) Jim then telephoned and asked me again to consider the shuttle. His comment was, “Everything is arranged. You’ve got to make a decision.” I was unsure and asked for a little time. My prayer life was not strong at this point in my life; however, I reasoned it appropriate to pray about the mission decision.
I began to pray daily for a sign or guidance, and strangely, I gained confidence that an answer would be forthcoming. Meanwhile, I was advised by CVM to get dental and physical exam checkups before traveling to a developing country, so I delayed the decision until after these exams. Maybe there would be some small finding that would give me an excuse to wait until Jim returned to Bolivia, and I could study the changes in him.
I have been blessed with good health, so much so that I didn’t even know the name of a doctor. I had never been ill enough to visit a general physician since we moved to Raleigh nineteen years before. I asked friends and neighbors for doctor recommendations and began contacting doctors. None had appointments for months, or they didn’t take new patients. I even cold-called doctors nearby, but frustratingly, the answering machines would not allow me to leave messages. I called for three-to-four hours one day but could not get through to arrange a single timely appointment. Finally, exasperated, I called my wife’s female physician, thinking I could get a favor appointment, but found her office closed. I was completely frustrated at this time, so in one last desperate attempt, I selected a physician at random from the yellow pages of a more distant town.
The name sounded foreign to me, Dr. Arana. The lady answering the phone spoke with an accent, and when I asked for a physical exam appointment, she said, “This is OK, This is OK.” She followed these comments with instructions to bring cash because they did not do insurance. My wife was nearby, and on overhearing this, she waved her arms to indicate not to make the appointment. But, I decided that this was only for a physical, and if the doctor could see me within a month, I would go. I was completely frustrated by the inability to locate a single other physician in my nearest municipality who would see me at an acceptable time. Dr. Arana was able to see me the very next time I had a free day in my schedule- only five days later at the very hour I requested. My wife was incredulous, but I was astonished!
I fully expected to find a young foreign doctor who was not very experienced when I arrived at the office for my physical. Instead, Dr. Arana was very professional and gray-haired. A gray-haired physician was a good sign! He had practiced in the Cary, NC, area for over twenty-eight years. The physical exam he gave was the most thorough I had ever received. He examined everything, and all testing was done by him alone. He took all appropriate blood samples for analysis at a commercial lab. I was really impressed by his thorough exam, but not as impressed as I was by his medical history taking and medical curiosity. He asked and personally recorded (no history checklist form) everything about all family members, diseases, causes of death, my work, where I lived, etc. If only all practitioners of food supply veterinary medicine were that in-depth and comprehensive!
At the end of the exam, when I was re-dressed, I expected him to tell me to pay the receptionist on the way out. But no, he stood in front of the door and would not let me leave. He wanted some more answers. He could find nothing wrong with me, and my history indicated that I had not seen a doctor for anything except a physical for twenty years.
He asked me, “Why are you here?”
I answered, “For a physical.”
He was not satisfied with this, so he stated, “A man in good health with no history of an exam in ten to twelve years does not just decide to have a physical. What is bothering you? You must tell me so that I can determine if there is a serious problem.” He was truly concerned.
In response to his concern, I told him that things were not that complicated. I was considering going on a Christian mission shuttle, and the sending agency asked for the physical. Still not convinced, he asked about the location of the shuttle. I told him, “It is to Bolivia, South America, in the Santa Cruz area.” Looking shocked, he said, “This is my home; God bless you!” At that moment, my skin began to crawl up my back, and I felt a breeze on my neck. I realized that God had just answered my prayers about participation in the mission shuttle. The Holy Spirit was present in that room and made sure that I experienced His presence. The answer to my prayers was clear I was to go to Bolivia.
But, all was not finished. Dr. Arana asked if I had any problems with my trip plans. I explained that I could not decipher the CDC website concerning the recommended vaccinations to take before traveling to Bolivia. Dr. Arana escorted me to his private office, where a laminated poster entitled Vaccinations Needed for Santa Cruz, Bolivia, hung. He then personally called the Health Department and scheduled appropriate travel vaccinations. Once back in the exam room, Dr. Arana asked again if there were any additional problems. By this time, I fully recognized that the Spirit was in control of events, and I shared my greatest concern, that of my friend, Dr. Jim Nash, not being in Bolivia to meet me and guide me. In response to this concern, Dr. Arana picked up his prescription pad and wrote down the name and telephone number of his best friend, Lorgio Arteaga, an anesthesiologist in Florida.
He explained that shortly after finishing medical school, the two of them had flown together to America and practiced in different areas. Dr. Arana implored me, “Telephone Lorgio this very week because he is retiring and moving back to Santa Cruz to a dairy farm that he owns.” I was provided with a person who would later become a true friend, who would meet me in Santa Cruz in the absence of my friend, Jim Nash. Praise the Lord! Not only had God answered my prayers, but He caused me to realize that His Spirit was with me in this mission. I never felt alone, and I received help every time I asked throughout this mission!
So, there was nothing coincidental about this meeting with Dr. Arana. It was providential, not coincidental.
Contact Me With Questions About My Adventures In Food Supply Veterinary Medicine
Stay tuned — more excerpts from this mission and tales from the world of food supply veterinary medicine will follow in the next months. And I’d love to hear from you. Just use the contact form here and shoot me a note. In the meantime, God bless you.