A week ago in South Africa, one of our FYM participants, Naomi Hunter, wrote up an article for me and I would like to share it with you. Please keep out FYM’s in prayer as they face so many things while they are out there ministering.
During the two months that I have lived here in Jeffrey’s Bay, South Africa, God has provided my team and me with many opportunities to show Christ’s love in the black townships. Since January, we have been visiting Eunice, a 25-year-old girl suffering from the AIDS virus. When we first met her, she was so skinny and weak, she couldn’t even sit up, and barely acknowledged nevertheless speak to us. The five of us girls decided to take her under our wings, and befriend her. For two months, we visited her almost every day, painting her fingernails, drawing pictures, watching movies, bringing her flowers, taking her to the hospital, reading the Bible to her, praying for her, and just talking to her. Although she never verbalized it, we knew that she loved our company. We were the highlight of her day. I can’t even imagine lying in a bed alone every day. Eunice’s only hope was that around 11am or 12pm, five girls would be coming to visit her. Some days we would be late, and wouldn’t show up until the evening. This is when she decided that she could speak English, showing us her disappointment in us being late. She was quite the character!!!
One Tuesday afternoon, about two weeks ago, we felt God telling us that our visit with Eunice was long over due. The week before we had been busy involved in conference planning and decorations for the festival that was happening on our base. We had been unable to visit Eunice. Tuesday came around, and we brought two of our friends from the Swaziland FYM team, who were visiting, to meet Eunice. We arrived at her cardboard home sensing that something was up. Her whole family was there visiting, something we had never seen in the time we knew her. As far as we were concerned she had her son.. her mom.. and us. When she had come down with AIDS, everyone close to her left, leaving her very lonely. This day was different and unusual.
Immediately we were informed that early that morning, Eunice had passed away. We all knew it was going to happen sometime, but weren’t expecting it so soon. WE had seen her grow in strength, and now this…It was the first death that I had experienced since I had arrived in this HIV/AIDS ridden community.
Upon leaving Eunice’s house that day, I had the opportunity to talk personally with her mom. As I gave her a hug, through her tears she told me she loved me; she loved the way that five girls had come in and loved her daughter. She had seen Eunice’s spirits change during the time we had spent with her. It was at this time I realized the difference we had made in Eunice’s life, and the lives of the other girls and children we invest in.
Eunice had seen Christ’s love. We had given her hope and joy in the final days of her life. Through my time with her, I learned to understand the preciousness of life, and the value in it. My heart had hardened while seeing the poverty, pain and disease that has ravaged this country. Since then God has grown in me a passion for the nations, a passion for people, and a passion to reach out to them. I have hope in Christ..God has put me here in Jeffrey’s Bay to shine His light, His love, His hope to the searching here..and man, are these people hungry for Him!!
