By Juli McGowan Boit | Published: August 20, 2013
Pauline Jepketer Wanyoni
1979 – 2012
Recurring Guest at Living Room from February, 2010 – September 26, 2012
On the morning I met Pauline, she was sitting outside of her home vomiting her morning dose of anti-HIV drugs. A young mother of three children, she was barely able to speak, and HIV/AIDS had left her immune system defenseless and her body wrecked. Her two-year-old son was playing next to his suffering mother. In so many ways, they were alone.
As I knelt down to wash Pauline’s hands and face, I was struck by the phrase written on her t-shirt. This may sound ridiculous, but it seemed as though God was speaking to me through the words on her shirt. In Kenya, second-hand clothing imported from the West is the clothing most people can afford to buy and wear. Crazy sayings and brands end up in villages plastered on t-shirts. Pauline was wearing a ragged Disney shirt with the character of Eeyore; the message said, “Thanks for noticing me.”
As I attended to the needs of this mother and looked her in her eyes, I felt like I was living the passage of Matthew 25 and Jesus was saying: “I was hungry. Thanks for noticing me. I was thirsty. Thanks for noticing me. I am so sick, and you came to visit me. Thanks for noticing me.”
As I met Pauline, I encountered the love of God once again. I saw His presence dwelling in her brokenness. Pauline’s suffering was Jesus’ suffering too. More and more, I pray that the Christ whom I have seen in Pauline and so many others will change me so I, too, can become the face of Jesus. I desire to have His heart of mercy and become His hands and feet. I want my words to become His words. I recognize this is undeserved and impossible apart from the Spirit of God; but for His glory and Kingdom’s sake, I pray it will become a reality.
- Juli McGowan Boit, Founder of Living Room Ministries International
Pauline is worth running for
This entry was posted in Blog. Bookmark the
permalink. or leave a trackback:
Trackback URL.
Category: Blog
Tags: No tags yet.
