This last week was rather difficult as we had a member of our congregation died – his name was John Sentonyga. I personally took this a bit hard as I was visiting him regularly in the hospital. His family for the most part abandoned him. So as a church we took on the responsibility. We paid for medical costs and formed a team of people to be at his bedside at all times. He was a young man in his thirties, he had worked for the church at one time as the janitor. He was one of the leaders of both our prayer and hospital ministry. Ironically he was the one who visited most regularly the hospitals in our area as an outreach ministry of our church. He died of either meningitis or a fungus on the brain, we were also told he was HIV positive.
Death in Uganda is common and in many cases it could have been avoided. From reckless driving to disease to war and famine many people lose their lives much too early. In the case of the John, at the time of his death the Dr’s were not even treating him. He was to go for a CT scan the following day of his death, but on the day of his death he was simply lying on his bed vomiting and losing his mind. Whatever the cause was, it seemed that the Dr’s had given up and were not communicating anything to us. It was a sad situation that grieved my heart wondering if there was something else we could be doing. But the Dr’s had been so causal and calm - they gave impression that the sickness was going to be a long term type of situation.
“Time waits for no one” and death knocks on everyone’s door. Of course John was at God’s mercy. But these days the question I am asking is “How do I fit into the plan of God in a person’s life?” What I am to do as person not a pastor. My answer lies in my conscious effort to get my eyes off myself and onto others. In the stress and business of life God gives us pleasures to enjoy – most of the time we look for them in the form of entertainment. Not many of us look at the Beattitudes for an answer as how to be happy or have pleasure - But Jesus said:
Matthew 5: 4 “Blessed are those who mourn - For they shall be comforted”.
Another way I might say this verse is. “Happy are those who mourn for others – for they get their eyes off themselves and enter a deep pleasure few ever find”. I have discovered that some of the comfort found in mourning for others is in pushing hard to simply “Suck it up” and get your attention off your own problems. When I do this – I feel as if I am actually getting a hold of life instead life getting a hold of me. It’s rather simple “God in you is bigger than all that life is throwing me” – I tend to believe this when I am actually lining up my life with the truth of the verse and I send a message back to myself “God’s word is true and it does work when I obey it and apply it”. I have been finding great strength in applying the Beatitudes in my life – though it is difficult – my baby steps are helping me to run the race with perseverance in a nation that many times is easy to despair in.
I hope I have made sense and I hope your passion in life is found in helping others and not helping yourself or might find yourself being swallowed by temporary issues that were meant to bless you instead destroy you.
Death in Uganda is common and in many cases it could have been avoided. From reckless driving to disease to war and famine many people lose their lives much too early. In the case of the John, at the time of his death the Dr’s were not even treating him. He was to go for a CT scan the following day of his death, but on the day of his death he was simply lying on his bed vomiting and losing his mind. Whatever the cause was, it seemed that the Dr’s had given up and were not communicating anything to us. It was a sad situation that grieved my heart wondering if there was something else we could be doing. But the Dr’s had been so causal and calm - they gave impression that the sickness was going to be a long term type of situation.
“Time waits for no one” and death knocks on everyone’s door. Of course John was at God’s mercy. But these days the question I am asking is “How do I fit into the plan of God in a person’s life?” What I am to do as person not a pastor. My answer lies in my conscious effort to get my eyes off myself and onto others. In the stress and business of life God gives us pleasures to enjoy – most of the time we look for them in the form of entertainment. Not many of us look at the Beattitudes for an answer as how to be happy or have pleasure - But Jesus said:
Matthew 5: 4 “Blessed are those who mourn - For they shall be comforted”.
Another way I might say this verse is. “Happy are those who mourn for others – for they get their eyes off themselves and enter a deep pleasure few ever find”. I have discovered that some of the comfort found in mourning for others is in pushing hard to simply “Suck it up” and get your attention off your own problems. When I do this – I feel as if I am actually getting a hold of life instead life getting a hold of me. It’s rather simple “God in you is bigger than all that life is throwing me” – I tend to believe this when I am actually lining up my life with the truth of the verse and I send a message back to myself “God’s word is true and it does work when I obey it and apply it”. I have been finding great strength in applying the Beatitudes in my life – though it is difficult – my baby steps are helping me to run the race with perseverance in a nation that many times is easy to despair in.
I hope I have made sense and I hope your passion in life is found in helping others and not helping yourself or might find yourself being swallowed by temporary issues that were meant to bless you instead destroy you.
