Africa Chronicles, pt 5: to the least of these..

 This is Esther. Esther has diabetes and a few years ago had to have her leg amputated. Because of this, her husband banished her from the family and her children, and she was forced to move back home with her side of the family. She cannot get up from her bed during the day with the family gone and she often can't make it to the bathroom. Today we brought her a bucket of hygiene supplies and bed liners and she prayed to receive Jesus. She was so unbelievably happy. 

"Religion that is pure and undefiled before God is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction and to keep oneself unstinted from the world." -James 1:27 ESV

  It's hard to see pain like this on a daily basis and then go on and eat and drink and be merry. You learn to complain less. You learn to grieve more. But you can only grieve for so long because you go back to having a blast with these kids. They don't know any different, and you have to act the same. 

Because when you're driving down a highway in Swaziland and grown adults and children smile and wave, you can't help but do the same.