The meditations of my heart: Hope in suffering.

:: How marvelous, how boundless is your love. How wonderful, sacrificial, is your love for me.::

-Rend Collective Experiment

It seems that everyday here in Uganda I am hit with how much God loves us and how incredible that love is. It's easy to come here and see all the suffering and be angry at God about it. Your heart aches for the things you've seen and you think "in the states this wouldn't happen..this could be fixed.." But even in those moments Christ is there. He weeps for these same children. He weeps for their circumstances. But more than that he weeps for their souls.

Yes some of these situations wouldn't be seen in the states. We wouldn't see children coming in with dead bones sticking out from their legs because they couldn't make it to a hospital. Instead they were trying to flee the war in their country. We wouldn't see children coming in with sores that have eaten away at half their thighs because their village has dirty water. We wouldn't see children who have become wheelchair bound because their neighbors convinced them they could be fixed by the traditional healers. We could fix this things if they were elsewhere. But we aren't elsewhere. We are here, and here all we can do is to help heal their soul. We can show them a bit of Christ's love. We can bear in their sufferings but also help them see that even in their sufferings Christ is found. And even if their suffering he is weeping for them and loving on them.

It doesn't mean I stop being angry with God. It doesn't mean I stop questioning why these things happen. But it does give me hope. Hope that even through these situations Christ will be shown. Hope that He will make beautiful things out of the dust.

Romans 5: 3-5

Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.

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In an earlier post, I wrote about a little girl named Jemimah. Jemimah was a victim of a terrible taxi crash that left both her legs completely burned and left her mother believing she had lost her daughter. After multiple skin graphs and a fixator on her left leg, Jemimah is up and walking. Jemimah and her family had the right to be angry at God. But what did they do instead? They gave thanks to him. They praised him. They even gave a whole celebration to gives thanks to Him. We were able to be apart of that celebration.

On December 7th I left with the Acheru staff to attend Jemimah's Thanksgiving party. For the whole day we were surrounded by her family and friends celebrating her life and giving thanks to God for the work he did. Though it was a long day of listening to Luganda and only understanding a bit here and there, it was nice to be a part of this day. It blew me away to see how even after this terrible incident their faith has not been shaken.

2 Corinthians 1: 9-11

But this happened that we might not rely on ourselves but on God, who raises the dead. He has delivered us from such a deadly peril, and he will deliver us. On him we have set our hope that he will continue to deliver us; as you help us by your prayers. Then many will give thanks on our behalf for the gracious favor granted us in answer to the prayers of many.