This is not the end of the road

Today, more than any other day of the year, you will be bombarded with stats, figures and facts. One of my many longings for my time in Africa is: you hear all the numbers, you think of lives and faces being affected and effected by AIDS. Then, as you begin to see their lives and faces, see the hope, not just as a distant hope, but as reality... because it is reality. Hope is alive and active. Hope is reality.

Today I went to the Forward Education graduation. Amazing. I had chills and cried. This day is a huge milestone in the life of the 6 students, in the life of Masoyi and in the life of Hands.

I have come away from this day with 2 quotes: "the road that we are on has many turns and potholes (road through masoyi) but it does not have to be the end of the road."

"It does not have to be this way."

You and I can see, as outsiders looking in, that there can be a way out. As we each come in, committing on different levels and staying for different periods of time, we speak into lives "it does not have to be this way." It is for moments like these. When something in clicks inside one person... or six, and you hear a voice coming from within the situation saying "it does not have to be this way!" AND believes it for themselves. That, my friend it what so much of what we do is all about.

Believing that I am a son or daughter of the King of Kings and he has a wonderful plan for my life. I can dream. I can dream BIG! I can follow those dreams.

As a result of this first forward education course, 2 of the 5 so far have received a 4 year scholarship to any university that they would like to go to. They are all waiting to hear back from their applications to university. Very exciting to hear their dreams. To see how loved that they feel. To know that their dreams can become reality.

We talk about hope, we talk about what we dream of doing and the effect we long to have on lives. Today it happened. Hope is alive in Africa, my dear friends.

It was a dream for my team to come and for me to see them smell it, taste it, see it. As they realize others are living the reality of HOPE all around them. Amazing. I am in complete awe of the Lord.

There is HOPE, but we must not forget there is deep pain as well.

The pain of AIDS and the effect that it has is great. Right now there are stories being published stating that the number of people living with AIDS and dying of AIDS have been seriously overestimated.

In response to that, I look to Mozy. The government party line for the infection rate in area that I worked in is 17%. In this same small area, I see up to 5 people dying a week. I see people who are so sick, they are close to death before they are tested. Many are not even tested, though they ARE busy dying.

There are many things that we could talk about... why do people wait to get tested until they are nearly dead? being one. This and many other questions are important. They need to be asked... and answered.

One thing that is essential to understand is that there are HUGE numbers of people who have HIV but have not been tested. While the world governments are busy taking away funding, people are living in fear and are busy dying.

I pray that through my experience here in Africa, you are able to see how what "they" are saying effects lives of people just like you and me.