Recently Tim Sharp returned from a village on the southern end of Palawan in the Philippines. To get there requires half an hour of rough motorcycle riding on the trail leading inland from the main road. His purpose in being there was to share the Gospel with the indigenous people. While he was there, he also wished to visit the wife of the local chieftain, whom he had heard needed medical attention.
The woman was indeed sorely in need of medical attention, and more! For two years her belly has been swelling, and her arms and legs shrivelling. Initially, she had been taken to a nearby clinic, where her abdomen was x-rayed. The “doctors” there said that they did not see anything abnormal and sent her home. Her belly continued to grow. She feels unloved and without hope; even her husband has given up. She talks of suicide, which is a typical “solution” locally for trouble. As they say, “It’s better to die and not suffer any more than to live with suffering.” Sadly, for many without hope, they are wrong. The next life without Christ is even worse. Tim’s heart weeps for her.
In contrast, when Tim first visited a woman and her husband in another village, (Decades ago, missionaries had come to their area and shared with them the hope that is in Christ.) and stayed in their house, he woke up before dawn to hear the couple praying and singing praise to the Saviour. Tim was in tears. What joy and hope were theirs!
The next time he visited their village, he found that the husband had gone home to be with Jesus, and the woman had become blind. Yet he did not find her to be discouraged or without hope. Yes, the cords of love drew her more strongly than ever to heaven, but she still felt a sense of purpose and knew love and hope. The couple’s faith, like a baton, had passed along to their children, who loved and cared for her.
Now several in the village where the first woman lives have come to place their faith in the Saviour. They now have that same hope and sense of purpose. Tim fervently prays that she will get the care she needs. More importantly, he prays that one day, that she will have faith in Jesus as Saviour and find that missing joy, love and hope. It would change her life.