Suffering, Starvation, Depravity, Hopeless, Thankfulness.

Suffering. A noun. A noun I remember hearing when I was little to describe an animal that was in pain, or old and dying.

Starvation. A noun. A noun I am not familiar with because I grew up in a country where we have too much, and eat til we are full. I always remember people telling me about it or seeing images about it on a commercial. Really, people can die because they don't have enough food? I had never seen them.

Depravity. A noun. A noun that describes human corruption due to sin. Something I saw on the news and in toddlers :)

Hopeless. An Adjective. A feeling when you have no options. Something I have really never known. Not only did I grow up in country where people are full of hope, I grew up with resources. If I needed medical care quickly I dialed 3 numbers, and within minutes help was there.

Suffering is all around us. You can't get away from it. You can smell it. Death. Need. You can see it and you wish you hadn't. It is in my backyard. Literally and figuratively. It knocks at my gate. Lingers. Its in the streets, in the land, in the animals, in the village. It is inescapable and indescribable.

Starvation I have now seen. It is like nothing you have ever seen, nor want to. It is no longer an image from a commercial but lives among us. It is twins that came to our gate, it is a woman who is all alone.

Depravity at its finest, is what we deal with. Women using their starving children to get food to only sell it for their addictions. Unnecessary tribal fighting. People oppressing people for their own gain.

Hopeless is what these people are without Christ. The people will never change without the hope of Christ and the knowledge of the Savior. The NGO's around here are a perfect example of working in vain. Have some of their efforts worked? Maybe, but they are not lasting. The only thing that is going to change the suffering, the starvation, the depravity, the hopelessness, is God. That is where I am finding hope to move forward.

Sometimes I feel overwhelmed by the suffering. At times I feel I am in a small rubber life boat, and there are thousands of people in the water who can't swim and want in my boat. I am only able to pull a few in. But God is good in spite of all of this and He has a purpose and a plan even if it doesn't always make sense to me. I am thankful. I am thankful that we are able to help. I am thankful that we have made a small difference in a small group of people. I am thankful for the people who are living with us. I am thankful they are receptive to hearing the word of God. I am thankful for God's hope. I am thankful that I am His child. I am thankful for what God is going to do with the Karamajong.

Thankful. Adjective. Description of being grateful. Something I haven't always been good at, but something God continually teaches me to live by.

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There is a lot going on at our house right now (hopefully next post). I don't have time to explain all of the situations but will ask you to pray for a family that came to our gate 2 days ago. The mother has a set of twins that are around 8 months old. They were starving and the mother was desperate for help. She had gone to the local clinic and they told her it was too late and there was nothing that could be done. We are now helping the mother but we ask you to pray. My biggest prayer is that through all of this God would get the glory regardless of the circumstances. The baby girl is in better condition than the boy. She weighed 8 lbs. 13 oz and so I am not sure what the boys weight is, and I don't want to know. We have been helping the mother keep the baby girl at night. The mother has been very grateful and will be staying at our house until the kids are healthy. I am excited that she will be able to be a part of the Bible study we have at our house with the 3 other women living here. I am excited to see what she thinks about Jesus and the gospel.