Day 40: Complete and Utter Brokenness: Part I

The title of this post represents the theme of this day.

In the morning, we headed to the slums of Huruma to help serve at Mother Theresa's Orphanage. Huruma was actually the ministry site for 4 members of our GP team, and so they would actually be revisiting the place they had served and given their hearts for 3 weeks. Most of us served in the disabled children's ward. Needless to say, it was pretty heart-wrenching to see so many children with physical and mental disabilities. And the kids we saw were the lucky ones. They were the ones who were receiving care and attention from the people serving at the orphanage. I remember Kennedy who had problems breathing, because there was so much mucous in his nose and mouth as he laid down. I remember Sacramento who could barely eat food as I tried to help feed him. The main doctor there, Doctor Timothy, is an amazing dude, because he is constantly caring and providing for these children. It's tough to realize that these kids will most likely never be physically or mentally whole. They'll only ever be healed and wholly complete in heaven.

Later on, we were introduced to Viona who is confined to a special chair. It turns out that a GP member from the previous year who had served in Huruma actually raised money upon returning to the U.S. to buy Viona a specially designed wheelchair. It was an incredibly powerful moment as Dr. Timothy placed Viona in her new chair. We the GP team later learned that Viona has since gone home to heaven. I can only smile as I imagine her with her completely whole body and chilling with our Lord Jesus.

I take my physical wholeness for granted every single day of my life. Sure, I'm not 6'2" with mindblowing athleticism and a silky-smooth jumpshot, but I can speak my mind, move without handicap, and go wherever I want. It takes days like this one to realize how little it takes for a life to be turned upside down. How different would each of these kids' lives be if they weren't physically or mentally disabled? This question sounds so utterly stupid, but when I consider how these kids will always be confined to beds and never able to care for themselves, I'm heartbroken.

Physical brokenness is just one thing I learned on this day. As I would soon learn, there is so much brokenness beyond what just affects the body.

The GP team with Viona in the center