Posts by Caren Abraham, DDS

The cliché phrase that is our life’s goal: pearly whites for all our patients. But are pearly whites enough?

Working at a mission hospital in rural Africa, I try to do as much as possible before taking an x-ray. Much of my examination is done just visually, until I can convince a patient an x-ray really is necessary. With this style of examination comes a bit of guess work, and sometimes, it is the “tooth that looks normal” that is actually the problem!

Imago dei: the idea that each human being is made in the image and likeness of God. Now, more than ever, I believe we as dental professionals should be embodying this idea in our everyday lives—not only remembering who we are in the Father’s eyes, but also remembering that each of our patients was intentionally, uniquely and wonderfully made by a loving Father.

“And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid. And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, which is Christ the Lord” (Luke 2:8-11, KJV).

“Watch ye, stand fast in the faith, quit you like men, be strong” (1 Corinthians 16:13, KJV).

For most of us on the planet, life has been turned upside down over the last few months. An event that no one (or possibly very few) living today personally remember has taken the world by storm, and many are struggling to adjust to a new way of life. Society appears to be fragmenting, not just across the country but around the globe. Just before all these things began, I moved to Kenya to start a dental clinic in a rural mission hospital. This is something that has been on my heart for many years. I have been here a few months tackling Swahili, and now I am working to acquire materials and doing administrative groundwork for the clinic. There are many days when I feel like I’m running an uphill marathon.