by Lewis Swann | Dec 26, 2017 | Beth, Blog |
Jesus healed the blind man in John 9.
He led him out of darkness and into light.
A few weeks ago, I was reading through a Bible study about Jesus healing the blind man in John 9. This Bible study described the common life of a blind man in Biblical times. It struck me that in Togo, the needs and circumstances of blind people are not so different from blind people in Biblical times.
“To be born blind was a debilitating handicap. Jewish men of this time were expected to take care of themselves and help provide for the family, and being blind forced one to depend solely on the charity of others.”
Not everyone we see in Togo is blind from birth, like this man was. But being blind at any point in life is debilitating.
In the United States, it is not easy to be blind, but there are many resources for someone with visual impairment.
In Togo, there are very few resources for the visually impaired.
Like the blind man in the Bible, blind people in Togo depend on their family to take care of them.
Often, we see young children taking care of a blind parent, sibling, or grandparent. These young children end up quitting school because they spend so much time taking care of their family member.
“He would have also been viewed as a second-class citizen—not able to perform his duties, a drain on his family and society, and possibly a sinner from in the womb.”
Like the blind man in the Bible, blind people in Togo are considered lower class.
Their outer appearance often matches the lower-class perception. Since they cannot dress, feed or clean themselves, they rely on others for everything. They often wear the same clothes every day and have poor hygiene.
Some people even fear for their lives because they worry that their caretakers will poison their food so they will no longer be a burden.
The blind man in the Bible was considered a sinner from birth because of his handicap.
Most blind people in Togo are considered cursed.
If a woman sells produce in the market and then becomes blind, her normal customers will stop buying from her because they think she is cursed. If a young boy becomes blind, other children will stop playing with him because they will think he is cursed.
“This man…did not look forward to a favorable future. And like us, there was nothing he could do in his own power to bring light to his darkness.”
Blind people in Togo do not have a favorable future.
The only eye doctors in Togo are in the city, often hundreds of miles away from the rural population. The majority of blind people live in rural villages. If someone is blind, they are resigned to blindness for the rest of their lives.
However, when the Sight.org mobile eye clinic arrives in a village, the blind have hope again.
Jesus is using Sight.org to restore hope to the blind in Togo.
This year alone, over 500 blind people have had their sight restored. We have seen these people rejoicing because they are no longer debilitated by their blindness.
They can take care of themselves again. They can take care of their families again. They are no longer considered cursed and outcast.
When we see them days after their surgery, they look like completely different people.
They have clean clothes.
They have beautiful hair and shining faces.
They are brand new and full of hope and joy.
They are no longer living in darkness.
“Jesus sought him out a second time, and when He identified Himself as the Son of Man, the blind man underwent his second transformation: he believed Jesus’ claim, and worshipped. He worshipped! Worship is the outward expression of the inward change. The man bore witness of the external change by telling questioners of the man of power, and then bearing witness to the internal faith transformation by speaking his belief and worshipping Jesus—even in front of onlookers who were hostile to Christ (John 9:40). What beautiful worship this must have been!”
People in Togo often want to know why we are doing these free eye surgeries. They want to know why we help them when we don’t even know them.
These eye surgeries fling a door wide open for the gospel.
We have seen hundreds of people instantly praise God when we tell them that we are there because Jesus wants us there.
Worship seems a natural expression of the joy they are feeling. They have been transformed physically and then spiritual transformation follows.
Many newly sighted people have become Christians because they know that God sent Sight.org to them.
Seeing newly sighted people worship God with all their hearts is a beautiful sight.
Before surgery, they weep because of their debilitating handicap.
After surgery, they weep for joy because of their restored sight.
And we weep with them every time it happens.
John 8:12
“When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, ‘I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.'”
Isaiah 42:7
“To open eyes that are blind, to free captives from prison and to release from the dungeon those who sit in darkness.”
Isaiah 9:2
The people walking in darkness
have seen a great light;
on those living in the land of deep darkness
a light has dawned.
Do you believe in a world without darkness?
A world where people’s physical and spiritual eyes are opened?
Will you be a part of leading people in Togo out of darkness and into the light?
by Lewis Swann | Oct 18, 2017 | Blog |
At Sight Night: The Joy of Sight, we featured local art in our silent auction. Each artist read through the Sight.org blog and then created art inspired by those stories. We are blown away at the talent of each one of these artists! They truly captured the heart and mission of Sight.org. Below, you can see each piece of art and the stories behind them. You can see more photos from the event here.
Cairo Reyes
“Being Free”
Resin / Acrylic
Inspired by the blog story, “Meheza Means “I Am Free”
Umeki Earl-Nelson
“Meheza: “I Am Free”
textiles/fabrics
Inspired by the blog story, “Meheza Means “I Am Free”
This is a painting of Meheza, the Togo Director of SIght.org. Meheza has been in the United States for three weeks. She attended Sight Night and got to see this painting of her. From the second she saw the painting, she said numerous times, “I wish I could buy that painting for myself!” The person who bid on this painting felt led to give this painting to Meheza, not even knowing that she wanted it. When she presented the painting to Meheza at the end of the night, everyone had tears in their eyes.
Rosemary Nichols Swann
“Elizabeth”
Gouache and acrylic on archival board
Inspired by the blog story, “Elizabeth”
Monique Dorsey
“In My Father’s Arms”
Oil on Canvas
Inspired by the blog story, “Story of an African Father”
Carrie McFerron
“An Infinity of Trees”
Digital Collage
Inspired by the blog story, “Hungry for Jesus”
The artist was especially inspired by the house church meeting under a mango tree. She said, “I kept thinking about how God put that mango tree in that spot so that people could learn about Jesus. The planting of a tree to enable the planting of a church seemed like such a perfect parallel. So I looked for a verse that conveyed the concept and came upon Psalm 96:12, ‘Let the fields be jubilant, and everything in them; let all the trees of the forest sing for joy,’ which made me thing of a forest of churches that could be planted as a result of the gathering under the village mango tree. Hence, I made an image with a wreath of trees, creating an infinite number of churches. When you read all of Psalm 96, you realize how missional this Psalm is, which is very rare for the Old Testament! Verse 3 says, ‘Declare His glory among the nations, His marvelous deeds among all the peoples.’ Verse 7 says, ‘Ascribe to the Lord, all you families of nations, ascribe to the Lord glory and strength.'”
Carrie McFerron
“Edem”
Paper Cutting
Inspired by the blog story, “Hungry for Jesus”
Edem is a popular name for Togolese boys. The name is derived from African-Ewe and means “God has saved me.” The little boy I have depicted in this paper cutting represents a future child who will be born to Christian parents, and who will also become a Christian, as a result of the Sight.org team planting a church in his village. Just as a tree is symbolic for Edem’s church, Edem represents one of the leaves on that tree. Each leaf behind Edem in the paper cutting is a reminder of the many new Christians in Edem’s village and in other villages across Togo because of Sight.org’s work.
Amanda Slaughter
“Grace Chairs”
Two Chairs with Seat covers that are hand painted by artist
Inspired by the blog story, “Weary of Serving, Give What You Can”
The artist stated, “I have sang and played music my whole life. It is one of the things I love to do. In the car, at home, in the studio, the grocery store. I sing everywhere I go and so do the kiddos. Song is free and a gift from God. I am made these chairs for two reasons. 1. Because just like our sight, having chairs to sit in is a luxury we often do not think about and too often take for granted. 2. Sitting and singing/harmonizing with someone is one of the most joyous events we can share with another human being. These chairs are fully functioning with actual paintings covering the seats. The original painting has the word grace written on it in many different ways. My hope is that these chairs are incorporated into someone’s home or business where song and laughter can be shared, stories can be told and meals can be eaten all while sitting on Grace.”
Mary Evelyn Tucker
“Farming God’s Way”
Watercolor on Archival Paper
Inspired by the blog story, “Connection Between Farming and Eye Surgeries”
“This piece was inspired by the training Sight.org is doing in Togo. Leaders are being trained in modern farming methods which produce ten times more produce than traditional methods for the area. My dad was a landscaper for over 30 years and I’ve grown to appreciate any and all forms of planting. God is so good to provide us with a simple way to provide for ourselves.”
Lisa Rachel Horlander
“Germination”
Oil on Canvas
Inspired by the blog story, “Connection Between Farming and Eye Surgeries”
Lisa Rachel Horlander
Plethora
Oil on Canvas
Inspired by the blog story, “Connection Between Farming and Eye Surgeries”
Becky Chelf
“Matthew: 18:20″
Oil on Canvas
Inspired by a story on the Sight.org Facebook page. “A woman named Sofoura came to us to look at her eyes. Her sister-in-law was very hateful to her and hit her in the eye. She hit her so hard that she developed a traumatic cataract. We told her to come to the April eye surgeries to see if our Sight.org medical team could remove the cataract. As we talked to her, she told us that she had an infection in her fingers that caused them to swell. They were so painful that she could not sleep. We prayed over her hands and then took her to the hospital to pay for treatment on her hands.”
Nicole Root
“They Once Were Blind but Now They See”
Charcoal and Color Pencil
Inspired by the general work of giving sight to the blind in Togo, Africa. The artist stated, “God has created so many wonderful things, one of which are eyes. The eye can express so many different things, pain, joy, anger, etc. I was inspired to give this piece because the eye stands out, and I take for granted the face that I can see. I want others to experience the joy I see every day. I thank our heavenly Father for this opportunity to shine the light of Christ.”
Stephanie Nickel
“Neighbors”
Oil on Canvas
Inspired by the blog story, “The Faces of Adjon” “They meet in the middle of their village, where everyone can hear them. Their praises cannot be ignored.”
In this abstract piece, shapes emerge giving an allusion of buildings-houses or perhaps a church. A grouping of muffled figures appear, gathered closely together. They are other worldly, seemingly floating in space. The title of the piece is “Neighbors.” Jesus tells us that we are to love our neighbors and have mercy on them, making it clear that we are all neighbors.
Ashlie Bailey
“Now I See You”
Watercolor on Archival Paper
Inspired by the general work done by Sight.org.
The painting above is of a blind harbor seal I met a few years ago named Porter. Porter was rescued and now lives at Moody Gardens. I believe that everyone deserves healing, and everyone deserves the gift of sight. I was so touched and inspired by this seals perseverance that I started a series of watercolor portraits of what he might look like if his eyes were completely restored, healed, and he were no longer blind.
Cynthia Mullen Hitchcock
“I Once Was Blind But Now I See, John 9:25″
Acrylic on Canvas
Inspired by the heart of the administration of Sight.org and the passion and compassion they have as a team for those that can’t. It just takes one to have a heart to make a difference. Can we all join in with that heart? In this painting it just shows a few of the lives they have changed from surgeries, to church plantings, prayers and nutrition. In the center of the painting starts from the hearts that started this program and how it spreads from one heart to another.
Angie Tellman
“Off Riding on the Road”
Watercolor on archival paper
Inspired by the early work of Sight.org. Before we had an ambulance, teams set out to remote areas on motor bikes in order to do eye surgeries. The lush foliage and red earth is abundant in Togo.
Angie Tellman
“Portrait of a Boy”
Watercolor on archival paper
Inspired by the Sight.org mission statement: All people are redeemable through Christ’s finished work on the cross, and we believe He died so that we could carry His light to the ends of the earth. By His grace, we have been redeemed to bring light to the BLIND, the UNREACHED, and the MALNOURISHED in Togo, Africa.
This painting is of one of the many faces of Togo where malnutrition causes cataracts. Sight.org not only performs cataract surgery, but also educates best farming practices.
by Lewis Swann | Jul 6, 2017 | Beth, Blog |
Get ready to fall in love with a group of people you have never met before!
During the month of July, there will be several volunteers traveling from Texas to Togo with Sight.org. We want to introduce them to you so that you can pray for them and follow along with their trip.
Steve and Helen Clark
The Clarks got connected to Sight.org last year when Wayne and Elaine Riley became missionaries in Togo. The Clarks and the Rileys have gone to church together for about thirteen years. The Clarks have been married for 34 years, and they are so cute together! They have four children and three grandchildren.
Steve started volunteering in the Sight.org office last year, and he has become our most beloved volunteer. He is a hard worker with a servant’s heart. He is a former fighter pilot, civil engineer, and public school counselor and administrator.
Helen is originally from England and was a British Registered Nurse. She now works in Tyler as a physical therapy assistant.
Helen will be assisting with medical clinics while Steve encourages our medical team and helps with the house churches.
This is what Steve says about their trip to Togo.
I want to go to Togo to serve but I also want to learn. I want to learn more about the people and the team so that I can serve them better here in Tyler. Since I am volunteering in the Sight.org office every week, I want to learn as much as I can about the ministry so that I can serve them better. Helen has a medical background, so she feels that she can easily walk alongside the medical team while they are there.
Joe and Becky Canal
The Canals also got connected with Sight.org through Wayne and Elaine Riley. The Riley’s go to church where Joe pastors. Joe has been the pastor of Tyler Christian Fellowship (TCF) for twenty-eight years. TCF is a tight nit community, so when the Riley’s became missionaries with Sight.org, the entire church became Sight.org supporters in one way or another.
This is what Joe has to say about their trip to Togo.
In April of this year Lewis Swann, Sight.org’s founder and president, invited me to become a member of their board of directors. Lewis felt that I would be a strength to the organization, based on my years of experience as a senior pastor. He saw great opportunity for me to encourage and disciple members of the Sight.org team as well as minister to the many individuals whose lives are being transformed through the work that they are doing in Togo. That’s why Becky and I are planning a short-term mission trip this summer to Togo, West Africa.
The main purpose of our trip is to minister to the spiritual needs of the leaders and full time workers on the ground. As the work is expanding the need for encouragement and discipleship is increasing for the team as well as those that they are reaching every month. We’re excited to help train and equip these dedicated people who are doing such amazing work among the poor.
Rachel Baber
Rachel is a Registered Nurse who went to Togo last year. She will be doing more medical clinics like she did last year. You can read more about Rachel and her last trip here.
Rachel has a huge heart for missions. She uses the gifts God has given her to serve everyone around her. She blew us away last year with her loving spirit when she went to Togo. We are beyond excited that she is joining our team again. The Togolese medical team can’t wait to see her again!
Lewis and Naomi Swann
The Swanns are the founders of Sight.org. They will be there alongside the rest of the team. You can read their story here.
Over the next month, we will be relaying stories from each member of this team as they serve alongside our Togolese team members. We are all excited about what God will be doing in and through them.
We ask for your prayers over each team member. We have developed a prayer calendar with helpful suggestions on how to pray.
Lewis arrived in Togo a few days ago, and he and the Togolese team are already facing spiritual warfare. The enemy does not like what God is doing through Sight.org and he is trying to stop it any way that he can. Please pray that everyone involved will have their spiritual armor on daily so that they can move forward in what God wants them to do.
by Lewis Swann | Jun 29, 2017 | Beth, Blog |
Take a look at these three faces.
These are not the kind of faces that are treated well in rural Africa. They are often isolated or looked down on. Many people think that faces like these are cursed.
However, in the house church in the village of Adjon, these faces are loved.
They are taken care of.
They are prayed for.
That is because the love of Jesus has changed the people in this house church.
Everyone in this house church are baby Christians, but they have been changed. They don’t look at each other the same way they used to.
In a way, everyone in this house church has become outcasts. They are looked down on because they are Christians now.
The rest of the village thinks they are crazy because they meet every week to pray, worship, and listen to the Word.
But they love anyway.
They are determined to be a light to their village. They forgive their neighbors for calling them crazy, and they keep meeting.
They meet in the middle of the village, where everyone can hear them. Their praises cannot be ignored.
One night, a man was sitting in his house while the church was meeting. He could hear them saying that God wants us to forgive others, no matter what.
The next day, he came to the house church, humbled. He could not ignore what he had overheard.
He and his sister live in the same house, but have not talked to each other in years because of a grudge they are holding. He was so convicted by what he heard the night before, that he talked to his sister and asked for forgiveness.
God is doing miracles in these new Christians. However, they are also experiencing a lot of hardships and spiritual warfare.
We told you last year about a woman named Malibow. She suffers from Epilepsy and has scars all over her body from falling into a fire during a seizure.
She is now a Christian and her heart has been completely changed by Jesus. She is also getting medicine for her Epilepsy, so her seizures have lessened. We praise God for all of these things.
However, she has asked for continued prayer, because Satan overwhelms her with fear and nightmares every night. Her sleep has been stolen from her.
We also told you about a woman who had not heard from her son in four years.
After the house church prayed for her, her son came home just a few weeks later. Everyone was overjoyed that God had answered her prayer so quickly.
Her son was excited to get involved with the house church and even started building a fish pond for the village.
Soon, however, everything seemed to be against him. He faced one thing after another that kept him from finishing the pond.
He has also started struggling with certain sins that he has never experienced before.
He has asked for prayer that he can continue the work God has for him.
These faces love Jesus.
But they wouldn’t love Jesus if it weren’t for the Sight.org eye surgeries.
This house church was started after Sight.org did eye surgeries in their region.
These eye surgeries are so much more than just giving physical sight to the blind.
These eye surgeries make people want to know more about the God that we serve. They become hungry for the Word of God and ask for more.
We praise God for how he is using these eye surgeries for his kingdom.
We ask you to pray for the beautiful faces in this house church as they continue to grow in their relationship with God and as they experience hardships in the midst of it all.
Please prayerfully consider supporting the Sight.org eye surgeries that open a doorway for the gospel in Togo, Africa.
by Lewis Swann | Jun 1, 2017 | Beth, Blog |
Last week, it was one thing after another.
Lack of funds for surgeries.
Bank transfer fail.
Being forced to get supplies in one day instead of the normal three days.
Electricity going off in the ambulance during surgeries.
We were sitting in our comfortable office chairs here in Texas, but we could feel the stress in Togo, from 6,000 miles away. This was not our easiest round of surgeries.
Several times throughout the week, we thought about canceling this round of surgeries. It just seemed like everything was against them.
Every time we talked about canceling, we immediately said no.
These eye surgeries are a doorway to the gospel.
We love giving sight to the blind. It is amazing to experience people go from blind to sight in twenty-four hours. But more than that, we love that these eye surgeries open a door for the love and truth of Jesus to be shared.
Many people who come to us are from a Voodoo or Muslim background. They have no interest in hearing about Jesus, until the lives of fifty blind people in their region are completely changed over the span of three days.
After that, everyone in the village is willing to listen to the word of God.
That is when the real miracles happen.
That is when real life change happens.
And that is when the church continues to grow.
Last weekend, in spite of so many challenges, we didn’t have to say no to this round of eye surgeries. Our dedicated supporters and prayer partners said yes to fifty life changing eye surgeries.
17-year-old Atakpa got her sight back this weekend. She has had a cataract since she was a child, but her family didn’t have money to go to the hospital. Last week Atakpa’s mother heard about Sight.org from a friend so they decided to come for help.
She said, “Please help me to get my sight back, I want to go back to school.”
Atakpa wants to thank everyone who gave to Sight.org to make her surgery possible. She says, “May God bless you.”
A grandma named Bluyema also got her sight back. She was a rice seller but she stopped selling because of her age. For the last 4 years, she has had a cataract. This cataract was preventing her from doing what she really loves, and that is taking care of her grandchildren.
This is what she said before her surgery, “I love playing with my grandchildren, I love watching them playing around me. But since I got this cataract, I can’t take care of them. Please help me to get back my sight, so I can see and play with them again before I die”
And now, Bluyema can see her grandchildren again!
After all the eye surgeries were performed, the team took the patches off the patients’ eyes. As they all realized that they could see, the newly sighted Africans broke out in song and worship. Jeanaway stood in the middle of the patients, leading them to praise Jesus for their sight. Just last year, this 17-year old got his sight back and is now serving on the Sight.org team as a ministry leader.
When you give to Sight.org, you are not just giving sight to the blind. You are also giving them the love and truth of Jesus. You open the door for the gospel.
This week, you are hearing stories of the big beautiful door of eye surgeries. Next week, you will get to walk through that door and enter the house. You will get to hear stories of what God is doing in baby Christians in the house church in the village of Landa.
