Generous

 

The 11 year old boy plops down next to me in the dirt and he looks into my eyes with a perfect white smile. We were sitting in a little brick hut with about 10 other adults and 18 children. As we sat together listening to the message this Sunday, I began praying for all these children. We are in Epsworth, 600,000 people with HIV+. We were there earlier this week playing with the children, joining in on their schooling and helping girls draw water from the well. These people are the poorest of the poor. They live in little mud brick huts. The father of multiple wives goes out during the day while the woman and children stay home.

 

During the church service P31 is able to share what God has been teaching us. They prayed over us going to Bulawayo. There is Jesus in this place. They have so much faith even though they have nothing. They compassionately listen to us and pray for us. Like always, it seem the people we serve are more of a blessing to me that I am to them. I sit down and the pastor calls the 11 year old up because it is his birthday. We sing to him and the pastor gives him a bag of what tastes like dried figs. The boy is thankful. He goes around and breaks the bag in half and hands it to a girl, then generously hands the children around him his present before he savors a few himself.

 

As I think back on the places I have been, it seems to be the people who have the least are the most generous. Why is this? Why don’t they covet what they have and only give bits to others? They know what it is like to live in true community, they know they need each other to live, they know what little they do have is a gift, and they know that sharing is more of a joy than keeping; A lesson I need to remember. Even on this trip, when I do not have much, but my teammates need things of mine that they do not have I need to give freely. What’s mine is yours! God let me use it and I sure can let them use it!