Proverbs
and prayer In Sierra Leone, I felt helpless to change things
By Deb Karch L
ooking out over the beauty of Sierra Leone’s shoreline, I hoped and prayed God would use me
in some substantial way to help stop the Ebola epidemic in this West Afri- can country. Last fall, I volunteered to travel
to Sierra Leone as an epidemiolo- gist. Why? I wanted to help change the world. At least I prayed I could help change this beautiful corner of the world, where sickness, death and grief had ravaged the lives of so many individuals and families. Two weeks aſt er I arrived, I was
in bed desperately begging God for relief for a suff ering mother. Earlier that day her 4-year-old child had died—not in her arms but on the concrete fl oor of a thatch-roofed building in their village. Touching him might very well have infected her too. It was heartbreaking. I stood watching, powerless to change the outcome. T at night as I slept, my feelings
of helplessness replayed them- selves in nightmares during which my friends and family members died as I watched, unable to help. I struggled to understand why I had accomplished what felt like so little when I knew God had a purpose for this journey. What was I supposed to learn from this? At night I read from the Bible
In Sierra Leone • 1 percent of households have water pumped into their home.
• 85 percent have no means of water treatment prior to drinking.
• Only 10 percent use an improved toilet facility that isn’t shared with other households.
• Only 14 percent have electricity. Source: Sierra Leone Demographic and Health Survey 2013
38
www.thelutheran.org
with my headlamp. T ere was Prov- erbs 3:5-6 reminding me to “trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not rely on your own insight. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.” Reading those words from
Scripture renewed my hope. In ways beyond my understanding, God
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