I want to piggy back off a blog
written by our friend here in Uganda, Smooth Via. The Via Family is working in Uganda doing amazing things for the Kingdom of God. You should really take the time to read his
story "When Helping Helps", it will be uplifting to your day.
I totally agree with Smooth on this point, sometimes helping does help! On
the flip side sometimes “helping” does hurt.
It is all about empowerment of the people and what they do with the help
you provide. Smooth’s example is a beautiful example of someone rising up and
helping themselves and it inspired me to share this story.
I want to introduce you to one of
the Jajas in the village we are currently serving in. She always greets us should
be free through the local clinic. However, the love of money and the struggle
for money has made the people at the clinic start charging her for medication
that should be free. For a one month
supply of medication for the two girls they are asking 3,000 Shillings, roughly
the equivalent of $2.50. That is a large
sum of money for someone struggling in the village. The other problem she faces is transport to
the clinic to pick up the medication.
The cost for a round trip is another 3,000 Shillings. In order to keep
her granddaughters properly medicated, she has to somehow come up with 6,000
shillings. She needs 5 bucks a month. The simple answer would be to give her $5
dollars a month to get the medication she needs. However, the solution for long term
sustainability is not that simple. Our
ministry could easily give her $5 a month; I know a donor would be happy to
know their support went directly to this sweet Jaja. with a smile and always
sends us away with some sort of gift out of her garden when we visit. She is currently struggling to take care of
her two granddaughters who suffer from epilepsy. She is doing her very best to
provide the medication they need to maintain a life without seizures. The problem is getting the medication. The
government is supposed to provide healthcare for the people of Uganda. The medication
The question is what happens to
her granddaughters when we are not around anymore? What if hard times strike and she needs that
$5 for food in the village? The long term solution is to find a way for Jaja to
help herself.
God presented that solution on our
last visit to the village. As we concluded our visit and time of prayer, we
noticed smoke coming from an area beside Jaja’s house and a big pile of wood.
She told us she was making charcoal to sell as a way to support her-self. Bingo!
There was our solution. God moved
quickly in our prayer life today. We
could buy charcoal from Jaja, a big sack costs 30,000 shillings. A solution
that benefits both of us, she supports herself and we have charcoal for cooking
at home. This is a way for us to help
Jaja support herself, obtain medication for her granddaughters and empower
herself. She will not be dependent upon
us for a monthly handout, but we are still finding a way to support her and to
help take care of her granddaughters.
Helping is about helping in a
beneficial way. Helping in a way that
benefits the people, while also empowering those same people in a way to help
themselves. It is about sharing and
educating people who are generous enough to want to give and have the desire to
make a difference in this world. When you partner those two things helping can
be a very powerful thing. We should not be paralyzed by fear and not help; we
should also not give blindly in our desire to help. There has to be a balance. Helping someone in their time of need is a
powerful thing and helping someone help themselves is even more powerful!
“Truly I tell you, whatever
you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for
me.” Matthew 25:40
Jason,
ReplyDeleteThanks for articulating the emotions of a problem and a response that sees the problem as an opportunity. The fact remains that this jjajja is old. She has made it a long time in this world without you. She has raised children and grandchildren. And charcoal sales, among other things, have sustained her family.
I think one of the struggles for us Americans is that we interpret the situation too quickly. The monthly $2.50 treatment/transport is definitely a hurdle. But I often interpret it as an insurmountable task or something that *I* should fix. But I wonder what God wants? Perhaps the struggle allows JJajja to see that God is with her. Or perhaps it is an opportunity for her to value her skills and gifts. There are times that our American desire to “improve” someone’s situation is really great, but at other times I really wonder if we are stepping in the way of the Christ.
I’m glad that this jjajja had an opportunity to sell charcoal to you at a retail price. I’m also glad that she’ll keep making charcoal to sell at a commodity price to trucks passing by or to others in a trading centre. I’m sure she was grateful to sell it to you at the retail town price, but she doesn’t expect you to show up every month. She’ll keep making plans for income generation that will keep her grandchildren healthy. And this posture is truly beautiful. Her grandchildren have the wonderful opportunity of watching their grandmother make sacrifices for them. Such a posture will surely make a long term impact on the way they live their life.
May God be praised for the faithful service of this grandmother to her grandchildren!