Our family had the privilege of meeting Unus and visiting the shop she runs. She and her husband started St. Martha's Ministry in the heart of Kibera. They give hope to widowed women that are HIV positive. Through the smelly, crowded alleyways of the city, in the back of their cramped, hot, dusty ramshackle shop, the women of St. Martha's Ministry openly shared their stories of loss and hopelessness and the love and hope they found in Jesus Christ. Most of these women were sent away by their families after their husbands died of AIDS and they had been diagnosed HIV positive. Not having any source of income or trade to live on, they ended up in the slums with nothing but their children and their empty pockets. Each of them found their way to St. Martha's Ministry where they were taught beadwork or sewing and given the opportunity to sell the goods they make. They also participate in Bible studies and pray for each other regularly.
The women's stories were powerful. Once hopeless, they found hope in Jesus because Unus and her husband were willing to show them where to find hope. Although they have a terrible disease that will most certainly end in death, they know that the Lord is caring for them and their children and loves them just as they are.
It makes me think: the hope we have in Christ is available to everyone, so long as they are searching for it. And could I be the one to help someone uncover such an incredible gift?
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