Imagine for a moment.
Your daughter comes home from school running a fever. She lays on the couch and rests for a few days. When she’s sick to her stomach and doesn’t make it to the bathroom in time, you clean up after her.
A lady in your neighborhood isn’t feeling well. She does the thing she knows will work best: she goes to church and has the ladies in her congregation gather closely around and pray for God to heal her.
The son of your sister gets sick, and after a few days of getting worse, he dies. You spend time with your sister, grieving over the loss. You loved him, too. You help her prepare the body and bury him, because in your family, no one cremates.
These are normal everyday occurrences. Who would deny comfort and care to the sick, the suffering, the dying, especially if that person was a family member or friend? Yet sometimes—as in Africa these days—such actions allow disease to spread quickly.
In response to the Ebola crisis, LBT has made the difficult decision to bring home two of our missionary families. We’re monitoring other locations where we have missionaries. It’s not an easy decision to evacuate. Missionaries and their children are thrown into transition. They have to leave their friends and church leaders and translation partners behind.
Why does this virus continue to spread? This was illustrated best by one of our missionaries who just returned. In his town, people ignored the hand washing stations encouraged by medical professionals. When the missionary asked them why, they responded, “Well, I haven’t seen any Ebola yet.” Like many issues that plague our world, when it’s out of sight, it’s out of mind. It’s happening somewhere else, to someone else, and we think we’re safe. Until it arrives in our neighborhoods.
Even when the danger becomes apparent, it is difficult to take precautions. Would you turn away your daughter if she arrived home sick, even if it meant your family was exposed? If you believe in God for healing, doesn’t a prayer meeting seem like the best solution? Would you cremate a family member if your family had buried the dead for hundreds of years? The situations are real and practical, and the decisions aren’t easy.
Would you pray?
- Pray for those affected by the Ebola virus, which is spreading rapidly.
- Pray for our missionaries, who have left their homes, friends, and colleagues behind.
- Pray for local churches throughout West Africa. Pray for LBT projects which are being delayed.
- Pray for the wisdom of Solomon for medical professionals and government leaders.
Would you give? Your support will help LBT meet the expenses incurred by the evacuation.
To make a gift, visit http://www.razoo.com/story/Lbt-Africa-Emergency-Fund.