So it is no shocker to you all that as I come here I have fallen in love with the little babies.
I wrote before about a baby named Benjamin who I love! He had gotten discharged but I saw him again in the outpatient clinic. He is not doing well and has continued to lose weight since going home but his mother denies his malnutrition and will not readmit him. The American doctor asked if I wanted to start taking care of him. It took everything in me to not say “of course I will”. Realistically, I cannot take care of him, but God can… a harsh reality as they talked of his closeness to death. I have been waking up every night around 2 or 3 and my heart is heavy for him. I spend anywhere from 10 minutes to an hour praying for this beautiful boy. I haven’t seen him again but God has clearly been asking me to intercede for him. Feel free to join me : )
I also have some new babies in my life here. JAt the Mbabane hospital we go to each Saturday I have been loving on a set of twins for three weeks now. They are almost 3 months and weighs about 5 lbs each. They are so sick and their mother in the in the woman’s ward and the doctor’s do not expect her to live much longer. My time has been spent with the babies and pouring into Pumzile. Pumzile takes care of the babies and now the mother as well. She works at an orphanage in Mbabane. She has an amazing heart and radiates love in her actions and words. Each week I go to see them Pumzile will tell me of how close the babies came to death that week. They just cannot seem to gain the weight for their body to function. As I sat in the hospital holding the precious little girl I couldn’t help but have tears stream down my face as I ached for her realizing the reality of her mom being HIV positive so she has a high possibility to be sick with it. And just the closeness of death each day here is so common. Ahh—My heart is being stretched in so many directions, it hurts for the people here.
” Lord, You reign in every situation. You are so good. I trust in Your perfect plan even when I don’t understand it. Give me wisdom in how to pray and serve and love the people I come in contact with. Bring Your healing power over these babies. Claim them as Yours that they may grow to be women and men of You. Let them be lights in this country that seems so dark. Bring peace to my heart. Amen.”
** Some of us on the team are memorizing Romans 12. It is only 21 verses. Try to challenge yourself this week to even memorize one. : ) Or pray through the verses for us and our team.
