We sat behind the house and listened to their stories.



She was brave and didn't fear to speak out.

"I discovered myself in 1993."

"I don't know when it happened.

I was a married woman.

"They told me I was positive.

I didn't know what it meant.

"My husband died two years later."

"The leaders of the church sent women to visit.

They said I had to stop coming because others feared me."

"They treated me so harshly but God told me to love my enemies."

"I had nothing to eat.

There was only porridge in the house.

God told me to give my porridge to the women."

"Someone gave me five hundred shillings.

It was the only money I had.

God told me to give my money to the church."

"They had turned me away.

God told me I could still bless Him."

"God told me to forgive.

I never carried their meanness in my heart.

I forgave them."

"I can't sell in the market.

People say I will cut myself as I prepare the sukuma and they will get the virus from me."

********************

She was just one member of the group.

All of them were HIV positive.

They meet monthly to encourage each other.

We were hiding behind the house because they keep their identity a secret.

They fear to openly share their stories.

They hide the truth from their children so they aren't bullied in school.

Still others find out.

When they come close they hear the whispering, "Those people are the living dead."

They forget that we are all made in the image of God.

One lady fell behind in paying her rent.

When the landlord found out she was positive he thought she might die soon.

He locked her out of the house because he feared he would never receive his money.

All of her belongings were inside and now she has no home.

She stays with a kind friend who also has HIV.

Because no one wants to hire them jobs are hard to find.

Now rising food prices have made life even more difficult.

It's not unusual to have no food in the house.

Asking God for daily bread is a reality.

One man told us "If we take the meds without food it tears up our stomachs."

These words of the brave woman were a beautiful end to her story...

"God promised to prolong my life if I keep His laws.

My husband died 32 years ago and I am still here today."



Hans Christian Anderson wrote "Every man's life is a fairy tale written by God's fingers."

Who doesn't long to see God's redemption woven into their story?

"For I will restore health to you, and your wounds I will heal, declares the LORD, because they have called you an outcast..."

Jer. 30:17

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