WOW....

I learned something about Uganda today at the World Vision Experience event.

• I learned that Aids was first discovered in Uganda 25 years ago and that it is believed that a fishing village off of Lake Victoria was the birthplace of the epidemic.
  
• I learned that medicine for AIDS/HIV only work if the person taking the medicine has a healthy diet and that while some people in Uganda have access to the medicine, their diets are so poor that it counteracts any benefit they should receive from the drugs.
  

I also had the opportunity to learn about two kids from Uganda, Emmanuel and Baibyre. These kids have been directly affected by the disease and their stories will touch your hearts.

So what is this exhibit like??

The experience is set up somewhat like an Alcatraz tour. It is self guided but you wear an ipod that guides you through the child's life. I went through three of the four children's lives and each one was AMAZING.

The hardest part of the exhibit is not just sitting on the children's beds or flipping through their bibles at their churches, the hardest part is taking the trip to the health clinic as you wait to find out if your child has Aids or not. I walked through 3, of which I was given two positive HIV stamps and one negative. Even though I do not have AIDS, It was weird how my heart raced and sadness hit me when I was given the positive stamp. Thoughts like "oh no, what do I do now?" or "Wow, now I am labeled" ran through my head. When I was positive I had to sit in a "restricted" area for those affected. I really felt like it was my life. As I was guided out of the health clinic, I had the opportunity to go through a chapel area with pictures of children and their families. Red plus signs were stamped on faces of those affected and verses from Matthew 25 were written on the wall:

"The the righteous will answer Him, saying, 'Lord, when did we see You hungry and feed You, or thirsty and give You drink? When did we see You a stranger and take You in, or naked and clothe You? Or when did we see You sick or in prison, and come to You?' And the king will answer and say to them, "Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these my breathern, you did it to Me."

I wish I could do more to help...I wish I could get ALL of my friends and family to go to this experience...The more people that are aware, the more help these kids in Africa will get! If you know someone that wants to do more than just "play church"...then go and be a part. God desires people that are doers and not just hearers. I know I can't sit by idly and do nothing, can you?

...if you haven't been yet, there are still three days left!