Living and Dying with Ebola

I felt compelled this morning to share with you an update from a dear friend and Young Life colleague who is struggling to maintain hope amidst the desperation and despair caused by Ebola. Steve Larmey, who nearly became a Catholic priest many years ago, now serves as Vice President of Young Life Africa. Please pray for Steve and for the many leaders and staff in Africa whose lives bear valiant witness to Christ’s hope and victory every day.

Our Young Life friends in Sierra Leone and Liberia are closing in on four months now of life/death with Ebola. They keep praying, going and hoping, but visibly they see a battle being lost. The numbers of infections and deaths are increasing -- the World Health Organization says that in two months there will be 10,000 new infections each day if some significant intervention does not happen. The death rate has risen from a low of 52 percent to over 70 percent now.

The Liberian government has run out of money to pay health workers who are threatening to strike if their $500/month danger pay is not increased to $700/month. President Johnson of Liberia literally begged the workers’ union to continue working, explaining to them the government has no money. In what has been called by some a surrender, the government of Sierra Leone is now just giving families rubber gloves and some hydration salts and medicine and is telling people to treat Ebola victims at home because they lack space at Ebola treatment centers.

Here are some updates from our Young Life family in Liberia and Sierra Leone:

•  Our teacher staff in Freetown, Sahr Kamasie, lost his wife, Victoria, two nights ago. She was 29 years old, fell sick and died a few days later. She has left behind a 2-year-old son, John, and a 3-month-old baby, Matilda, with Sahr. Sahr has been alone in his house with her body waiting for Ebola test results on her body to come back. The babies are at their grandmother’s house where they sent them as soon as Victoria was sick. Please pray for Sahr and the Sierra Leone team. The results will come back Thursday. If it was not Ebola (thousands of people are dying of many things other than Ebola every day because the healthcare system can only handle Ebola cases) they will bury her body with just a few friends. If it is a positive test, Sahr and the children will be under quarantine. 

•  Andrew Quimeh, one of our top volunteer leaders in Kakata, Liberia, died of Ebola yesterday. He was on the Leadership Tree of Area Director Yancy Dixon. A Campaigners kid from the same area – Greature Worr – was released Ebola-free from a treatment center after weeks of treatment, but she lost her father and her sister. Pray for Andrew's family, for Greature and for Yancy and his team.

•  Jeraline Johnson has two weeks left of her second 21-day quarantine. She is the only one left in the house as both her sister and brother-in-law have died of Ebola and her niece – 2 year-old Blessings – and Blessings’ aunt were both diagnosed with Ebola and taken to a treatment center eight days ago. I asked her what she does all day as she sits alone: "I pray and I read my Bible. I pray Psalm 91 constantly. I sing and praise and thank God."  Then she broke down in tears and sobbed with me on the phone for about five minutes and said, "Steve, I am so, so scared." There was good news today as Blessings' aunt was released after eight days of treatment from the Ebola center. At the end of the call she composed herself and said, "My hope is in Jesus alone. And He is faithful." We prayed Psalm 91 together.

•  Our area director from Robertsport and DGL graduate, Baccus Roberts, and two other leaders from Monrovia, Abraham and Gbeme, are all currently sick. We are praying that this is not Ebola. Pray for healing for them. 

James Davis, our regional director for Liberia and Sierra Leone, texted today, "Steve, I have to admit, I feel like giving up the fight, but if I do, who will help lead kids and leaders? We have no peace or freedom. Our people are dying every hour. Our hope is in Jesus, but we fear we may be the next Ebola victims. I can't bear this – Jesus we need you more."  He later texted back to the whole team of Senior African leaders who are here now in Colorado, "I promise I will NOT give up – the Band of Brothers do not give up. … I know that we are not in this alone – the Lord is with us. And so are you."

Dying you destroyed our death, rising you restored our life. 
Lord Jesus, come in glory.