Death and Camp

Death is so common here. It seems as if the Swazi people we work with are always going to funerals. This is an exhausting reality both because of the emotional weight of constantly losing people and because of the funeral rituals and customs of Swaziland. Funerals are all night affairs and can include a multitude of people because it seems as if everyone is somehow related in Swaziland.

The lady we prayed with a couple of weeks ago got better for a couple of weeks. She went from lying all day on a mat to sitting up and smiling. Then this past week we heard that she got admitted to the hospital and then yesterday we heard that she passed away. She died, she’s dead. It is sad and it rips you up and it frustrates you. That lady didn’t have to die; there are multiple things you can point to. She could have gotten ARVs to prolong her life, but even before that, she could have avoided getting HIV. The morality of this Swazi society is non-existent. There is no character, righteousness, purity in this society. It probably wasn’t this lady who went out and got HIV. Her husband most likely brought it back to their marriage bed. The need for Godly men is huge in Swaziland.

I’ve kind of had some time to be silent before the Lord lately. I’ve realized the awesome responsibility that I have for setting up this camp. It truly is a life or death situation, I say that not to prop up what I’m doing or scare up images for y’all. I say it to get it in my head how important this camp will and can be. The camp can save lives; it can keep 130 or so young people from getting HIV/AIDS or spreading it. It can be a foundational turning point where these kids learn to value themselves and their lives. So much of the problem here in Swaziland is apathy and a lack of self esteem. These kids don’t have hope and so they don’t really care if they go out and get HIV/AIDS. I hope our bible club leaders, volunteers and camp counselors can get across the message that God loves each and every one of these kids. Hopefully we can build the love of Christ into their lives. Most of the kids here don’t understand just how much God loves them. We in America think of God the father and it conjures up images of a loving Dad, caretakers, the strength of the family. Most of these kids cannot translate that image of Father because in Swaziland fathers are usually absent (getting that way in America, sad to say) or cold and distant. So these kids are afraid of God and view him as a Father that is ready to beat them. It is so opposite the true nature of God…a God of love, grace and mercy. Hopefully we can reach these kids with some practical stuff about sex and puberty but more importantly, hopefully we show these kids the restorative and transforming power of Jesus and a life lived for him.