Lim Swee Choo is a ’dentist on the Thai Border’ for Mercy Teams International. For many years Swee Choo has left her home in Malaysia to regularly visits and care for children and families in the Border region. This is her generosity story (see the attached pdf file for a photo)

The minute I arrived at the clinic in JW on my first day back here, this elderly man was already waiting outside the clinic.
‘Bakyee (a respectful Burmese term for an elderly man), what can I do for you?’ I asked.
‘I want to make a set of dentures.’  He opened his mouth and I checked…he was totally edentulous (no teeth left).
‘Bakyee, the full set of upper and lower dentures will cost you 3000 B,’ I told him. (Although dental treatment is free but patients have to pay for lab charges for dentures.)
‘I cannot afford this.  All I have is this 1000 B that I have with me now,’ he replied. I called the lab technician if he could reduce his charges especially for this poor man.  After a while, he said, ‘OK the cheapest I can give him is 2500B.’
‘Bakyee, you will have to pay 2500 B.’
‘Ok I will,’ he answered.
‘How are you going to pay the balance of 1500 B,’ I asked.
‘I will get the money somehow.’
So I took impressions for his dentures and gave him an appointment to come back in 2 days time for the next stage.

Second Visit

Bakyee comes in and I do the necessary dental work for him.  Then he pays me the balance of 1500B.
‘How did you get this money, Bak Yee?’ I asked.
‘I borrowed it from a money lender’
‘How much interest do you have to pay for this amount?’ I asked.
‘I have to pay 100 B per day as interest until such time when I can pay back the whole sum.’
With just a quick mental calculation, this amounts to 7 % per day!!!  After reading about all the horror loan sharks stories in the newspapers, I shudder at the thought of this poor old man getting into the grip of these ruthless loan sharks.
‘No, no Bak Yee, you take this money and give it back to the money lender today. I will find a way to pay for your dentures. Make sure you give the money back today, immediately,’ I kept on reminding him.

Third Visit
‘Have you returned the money?’ was my first question.
‘Yes, but the money lender charged me 50 B interest just for the half day,’ he answered.
After treatment, he asked my assistant  Boo, ‘How does a person become a Christian?’ Boo shared the gospel prayed for him and gave him a DVD which is about Christmas and Jesus.

Fourth Visit
I fitted him with his new dentures.  Bakyee gives a big smile.
I asked, ‘Bakyee do you want to have Jesus in your heart?’
He nodded and told us that he has been watching the DVD about Christmas and Jesus every night.
‘Bakyee, would you like to pray to accept Jesus into your heart?’ I asked again.
Praise the Lord!!  He said yes and we led him in the sinners’ prayer.  What an encouragement to all of us in the clinic here today!

All glory to God.