Imagine a life in which your house was paid off, your utility bills were taken care of, you received a monthly income without working, and the city in which you live is a destination for tourists and vacationers seeking beautiful beaches and lots of sun. Sounds like a pretty nice life, doesn’t it? A life of leisure and relaxation without a care in the world? This is the life that the Aboriginal people enjoy in the Aboriginal camps in Darwin. At least it would seem. The truth is that the communities are ravaged by alcoholism, drug abuse, violence, addiction to gambling, and spiritual darkness.
Every single resident of the Bagot community (the place where we are ministering this month) struggles with an addiction of one sort or another, with the addiction winning out most of the time. The rate of suicide is high, as well as the rates of diabetes and a variety of other health problems. The average life expectancy is in the mid thirties. That’s my age. We spend our days cleaning up trash as an excuse to be in the community and meet people. This is the story of one of the women I met.
Her name is Esther. She came stumbling out of her house as Zac (my team leader and friend) and I were speaking with her neighbors. She was falling down drunk and desperate for prayer. As we prayed for her, she began to relate her story to us. Eight years ago she lost both of her daughters due to her inability to care for them. She is an alcoholic and doesn’t have enough money (even though she gets a monthly check from the government) to buy enough alcohol. The welfare system doesn't allow all the monthly income to be spent on alcohol (thank God). In order to get enough to drink, she has turned to theft. She has ended up in jail repeatedly because of getting caught. She is seen as unfit to care for her children and they stay in foster care (which is, by the way, a rather lucrative business in Darwin).
As Esther wept and pleaded with us (and God) to return her daughters, my heart broke for her. I have plenty of experience with addiction and can understand the darkness and despair it can bring. She is hopeless and without joy. We invited her to church (across the street from her house) and she said she might come, but she was worried that she drinks too much. We assured her she can come as she is and that we (and more importantly Jesus) will accept her no matter what condition she is in. We prayed for her for quite a while and she seemed to find some peace. I hope we can spend some more time with her and help her understand not only Jesus’ love, but also His ability to give her the strength to overcome her addictions. I am giving my testimony on the topic of freedom from addiction tonight at church. I hope she shows up.
(Sorry for not including a picture. The internet is very slow where we are. I will try to add some pics to the next one.)
