1. The lost come to the missionary; he does not have to go to them. He is not invading their privacy. They are seeking him.
2. The gospel can be proclaimed throughout a large geographic area from a single location. In Mozambique people come from all over the four northern provinces seeking medical attention. At the least, they return to their communities with a head-knowledge of Jesus Christ and the gospel.
3. People are being confronted at a time of personal crisis. Instead of trying to ignore God, they are acutely aware of their need of His help in matters beyond their control.
4. Mission hospitals provide conspicuous testimonies before entire communities of the transforming work Christ accomplishes in Christians. In primitive cultures, the kind of medical care Christians provide stands in marked contrast to the negligence and lack of compassion that characterizes non-Christian caregivers.
5. Medical care provides a tangible and dramatic way of showing listeners that the missionary is motivated by a concern for their well being, not only as he addresses their physical problems, but also when he begins speaking of their need of Christ.
6. The medical work lends credibility to the evangelist. It shows that he not only wants to help his listeners, but that he can help them. If he is able to resolve their physical problems, then what he has to say about the spiritual problem should be worth listening to as well.
7. The medical work opens a host of doors to the missionary team, gaining friends at all levels in the community. This in turn lets them negotiate with relative ease obstacles that could otherwise threaten the whole missionary enterprise. Though God can work any way He pleases, our experience has been that He often uses the medical card to trump the best efforts of the evil one.