Holy Home Visits

Once again, I am amazed by the care workers and the dedication that they give to the children and the community that they serve. They are such inspiring men and women of God that give of themselves in such a selfless way to the community that surrounds them. I met Rose*, in the community of Share during a time of Holy Home Visits after community prayer. Rose* was four years old, and already had lost both her mother and father. I looked into her eyes and what met my gaze was that of sadness and loss. I tried to hold her hand, to do whatever I could in the couple minutes that I had with her, to let her know that I loved her and I cared for her. Unlike many of the children in community that come running to “mulungos”, she was hesitant.  Eventually she held my hand and when she smiled, I couldn’t look away. Her smile was so captivating. Rose’s* story is just one of many in the communities that we work in. Yet within all of the devastation, sadness, pain, loss, and tragedy there is hope for our children. There is hope because there is a group of care workers that have come together for the one purpose of caring for the most vulnerable within their communities.  Each of the care workers in all of the communities are different, with a different story to share, yet with that comes their love for God and the call to serve that makes them all unite for the children. I have learned an incredible amount about what it means to serve and give selflessly from the care workers. I am learning what it means to give with a willing heart, and what it means to serve whole-heartedly with everything that I have. 

Very often the care workers walk incredibly far distances to get to the CBO and then they walk to visit the children in their homes. These are Holy Home Visits and they are an essential part of the work that we do.  The care workers do HHV because it is the example that Jesus set . He visited the poorest of the poor in their homes, despite what anyone else thought. He visited the thief’s, the crippled, the weak and the sick, the prostitutes, and He did it because He loves us. Why should we not do the same for our brothers and sisters? The care workers visit the children to make sure that they are being taken care of properly and to talk with their guardian - whoever that may be - about whats going on in their life, but most importantly they visit them to support them and bring Jesus into their home. They act as an example of Jesus Christ and they show them that Jesus loves and cares for them. They tell them that He knows them by name and He knows every hair on their head and He has not forgotten them. They share with the family the good news of Jesus dying on the cross for us and sacrificing everything for us.

Holy Home Visits are exactly how they sound; holy. We sit and talk with the family. We hear what their struggles are, and what their life looks like, and we  stand in solidarity with them. We don't want the visits to be a simple 15 minute thing that we do. It can't be rushed; so we don't. We stay with the family as long as it takes until Jesus shows up.  I have experienced HHV where the family shares something very personal and then starts to cry and receives prayer, and I have also experienced it where we simply sit with the family and talk sharing about our lives, and then praying with them. It is an incredibly holy time where you can feel Jesus's presence. This is what He did when He came to earth. Jesus came to visit us, and so the care workers do the same. Going to visit some of the most vulnerable and broken children in all of Africa. It is a privilege to be welcomed into their homes and have the opportunity to share with them but more importantly to listen. It is a privilege to hear their stories; many of which have never been told before. 

The past couple weeks have been busy as I settled into my new role as a member of the communications team. As a team we say that “we are a voice to the voiceless,” and that is exactly what we do. We are there to be a voice for those that cant speak for themselves.  We tweet, post on Facebook, write stories, take photos, etc. We do a bit of everything which is great. I am excited to see what the next 6 months will hold and I wait in anticipation for what God is going to do.

*names have been changed to protect the identity of the individual