Life and Death in the Village

During one of our first visits to the village, a little boy listening to the Bible study began coughing. He continued to hack and wheeze until it became apparent he was in trouble. As a fellow asthma sufferer, I could tell he was having an attack, so I got my rescue inhaler out of the car and started to show him how to use it. One of the adults said I shouldn’t give it to him without permission from his parents, but his parents are Muslim and didn’t come to the studies. Just about the time John and I had decided we may have to ask for forgiveness instead of permission, someone showed up with his mother. She said she knew he had asthma but couldn’t afford the medicine. Within minutes after using the inhaler he was breathing freely, and I gave it to her in case it happened again. She thanked us, and though we didn’t see much more of her, her son Hassam kept coming to the Bible studies. We just got word a couple of weeks ago that Hassam died. We're not sure why. Nobody is. They say “it just happens in the village.”

Hassam (in the red vest)

Jessie came to us several months ago. She had terribly swollen glands all over her body that have been there for years. She had been to the local clinic but they said nothing could be done. We helped her to get an HIV test and cancer screening. Both were negative. With the help of a local doctor, we also got her some pain medicine that seemed to help quite a bit. The next step was another blood test to check for other diseases. Jessie said she was too tired and didn’t want to go back to the doctor. We pleaded with her and warned her that what she had was not normal and could be life threatening. She declined. We were concerned about her children and who would raise them if something happened to her. The baby on her back, she said, was a twin. Her sister died of dehydration. It was a tragic situation but there wasn’t much more we could do if she didn’t want help. Jessie died while we were in the States on furlough. Nobody will ever know for sure what was wrong with her. They say “things like that just happen here.”

Jessie and Baby Priscilla

Last week our friend Susan told us that her mother, who lives in a village three hours from here, was sick. She had diarrhea for several days and was now vomiting, unable to keep any fluids in her body. She went to the local clinic and was given the equivalent of Tylenol. We weren’t looking forward to hearing about another death that “sometimes just happens” so John went to our local pharmacy and explained her symptoms. He bought a medicine to kill parasites and a powdered hydration mix. We sent it by minibus to reach her the next day. After the first day, she slept for hours and woke to feel much better. She is doing well and is very thankful. So are we.

Much has been written about the white savior complex in Africa. We don’t presume to be here to save anyone’s life. We don’t think we have that power. We’re not even medically trained. We do know some wonderful medical professionals here who save lives every day. We’ve requested their help, sending photos and questions on countless occasions. If the country were full of these selfless people, surely there would be a higher life expectancy. As it stands there is only one doctor to every 40,000 people and the life expectancy is about sixty. We believe our main role is to teach and disciple so that the upcoming generation will know God and His world better. If physical lives are saved along the way, we attribute that to a divine plan, not our own devices. Likewise, when people die in ways we consider unnecessary, we just pray more diligently for the kids we’re teaching to grow up well and become answers to their own problems. 

We are so thankful for your role in this ministry that makes education for the children of a seemingly forgotten African village possible. We hope to be in your shoes one day, hearing from these kids about the first world schools and medical facilities they’ve created. We look forward to seeing them live longer, healthier lives, making better use of the rich resources God has blessed this country with.