Thankful

This morning I found myself thanking God for two very normal things; kids that hug and kids that play.
Brianna, my teammates' daughter offered me a sweet soft embrace this morning, and in the midst of that embrace I realized that I needed a loving touch from a child that was not fighting for life or suffering pain. As nurses we know that sick children need to have some positive, loving touch to counter all the painful, clinical touch that they get. Well I learned today that this nurse needs to give some positive, loving touch to healthy kids in order to balance out the clinical touch that she has to give to those who are suffering.
And just a few moments ago I heard a group of young Baka boys calling to each other from up in their playground of tree branches. Their voices were free of worries for the moment; they were simply enjoying some play time. After having listened so carefully, so attentively to the breath of a sick child, hoping to hear her call out to her mama or even gather up enough strength to cough, I was glad to hear the clear, pure voices of children at play.

Some other observations:
Treating a child in a hospital bed is very different from treating a child on your front porch, both logistically and emotionally.
Acting as a change agent among a group of people without hope is an impossible situation.
Instilling hope into a group of people who see death so often, who are oppressed and who experience suffering daily is impossible without Jesus.
Introducing Jesus to people can sometimes be a very slow and frustrating process and can only take place by carefully listening to and obeying the Holy Spirit.