World AIDS Day

I wrote this a year ago and meant to post it then, but never got around to it. It's a day before World AIDS Day, but who's counting?


A Prayer I Don’t Have To Pray

It is December 1, 2008, World AIDS Day. When I think of AIDS my thoughts immediately go toward the time I spent in Zambia, back in 2006. Faces pop into my head; my brothers and sisters who have HIV/AIDS.

There is little Agness, the little girl that warmed my heart in Kabwe. She is a free spirit that is broken inside. All she wanted was someone to talk to, so in her native tongue, she told me her life story. I simply smiled and nodded to tell her that I was listening, although not understanding. We took her to the clinic for HIV testing and prayed that it would come out clean. This is a prayer I don’t have to pray.

There is Jane, our trooper in Lusaka. Her body falling apart as a result of HIV/AIDS. On top of that, she also has TB. It hurts her to simply walk, yet she presses on. She even walked for more than an hour on our fundraiser walk through the city. Her smile lights up a room and she inspires many, including myself. We prayed for her body to be healed from two deadly diseases. This is a prayer I don’t have to pray.

Bergham. The little boy that broke me down inside and made my eyes well up with tears. His mother died of HIV/AIDS and his father lives in a different city. He is all alone. He prays to God that he would just get one more day to spend with his earthly father before HIV/AIDS takes him as its next victim. This is a prayer I don’t have to pray.

A little girl. A funeral. Her father in the coffin. One of the most heart wrenching experiences of my life. Having to physically hold back the little girl before she jumped in the coffin with her father, just wanting to be with him for one moment. She prayed her father would be healed from AIDS. This is a prayer I don’t have to pray.

A widowed mother praying for work in order to feed her children. This is a prayer I don’t have to pray.
A starving child praying for another meal just to survive. This is a prayer I don’t have to pray.

We all have different things that we pray for in our lives. It could be the healing of a loved one who has cancer. It could be a promotion at work. It could be finding work. It could be for a friend who has lost his/her spouse and is raising their children alone. It could be for money for school. It could be for wedding preparations.

Whatever prayers you may be praying for in this season of your life, I just ask you to put them into perspective. I am not saying that your prayers are not any less important that others, just be thankful that there are certain prayers that you don’t have to pray.