Jennifer writes on her blog that the Babwisi people are going on with their lives; children dancing, women cooking, men socializing around their homes as day turns to evening in the Ebola-zone. I can believe that. The Babwisi are choosing to keep on living. I wrote last time that sometimes this waiting life seems more like an existence, but I’ve realized more deeply over the last few days that we too have chosen to do more than exist, we have chosen to live; deeply, fully, well.

Today we headed back into DC where Naomi learned to ice skate and Quinn and I explored the sculpture gardens. Cities are such energetic, vital places. I felt renewed with life by the atmosphere.

I try to imagine Christ School reopening next year, female staff members like Betty, Theopista and Rosalind coming back to join almost 400 students living, learning, growing within the CSB gates. I’m afraid that some won’t come back, afraid, that school won’t be able to reopen, afraid of the long-term consequences of this tragic disease on a place that has struggled so hard to come as far as it has. To me, even more destructive than the disease itself, than the death and disruption and fear it has already caused could be it’s effect on the long-term growth of the district and people. A people already ostracized becoming more so. A people already steeped in witchcraft, immersing themselves deeper into futile attempts to control their destiny and lessen their misery.

Yet I see God’s supernatural power at work, as I look at the circumstances and imagine how very much worse they could be. When we got the call that Jonah had died, life seemed to be ending. Our greatest fears just beginning to come true. We could not imagine how many more friends might die, children might be orphaned, a place as we know cease to exist. Today, we still haven’t seen anything close to the end of this saga. Yet I see it as remarkable and not coincidental that this ebola-epidemic, having received so much prayer, has a fatality rate of only about 25% as compared to 90% in all other epidemics. Scott and Jennifer and Scott Will are thus far safe and healthy. Our team was evacuated well and reinforcements in the form of Dan and Ginny have hit the ground. Jonah’s wife and mother and children all remain healthy to this point – all of these seem miraculous to me.
So keep praying and living life to the fullest. Immersing as deeply and well as possible into the relationships and situations that God has given all of us to pursue, right here, right now. And realizing that this window into suffering, destruction and death that has been opened through Ebola was given to you because you and I are intended to effect a true difference through prayer.