Lillian and Juliette are two friends and both single moms who share a room the size of most of your walk in closets. Lillian has a son Abraham who calls me Mommy. Juliette has a daughter Amaya who speaks no english but has played at our house with Hannah a few times and has the sweetest smile. On Monday this week Amaya ran away from her mom when she was caught skipping school. She is seven years old. Juliette, her mom is about 25 years old and divorced. She married a Muslim man and the marriage was bad and Amaya was the only good thing that came from it. Juliette just recently got Amaya back from her ex-husband who lives about an hour away.
On Monday we were all mildly concerned about Amaya. It is common here for children even as young as three to wander the streets free from their parents. Amaya running in fear of a beating from her mom was disobedient but honestly we thought nothing of it. By nightfall however, we were all beginning to worry. Juliette called to see if Amaya had come to our house to hideout. Juliette and Lillian spent the evening searching the neighborhoods for Amaya to no avail. They even went to the police office to report her missing. The police officers almost arrested Juliette. You see when children go missing here it is usually due to someone stealing them for child sacrifices or even worse, their own parents sacrificing them. I know my friends in the west may have a hard time believing this still happens. It does. Since January there have been 100 kids abducted for sacrifices. So the police were skeptical of Juliette's story and accused her of sacrificing her daughter for material gain. They eventually let her go but obviously they will be of no help.
Today is Wednesday May 6th. Amaya has been gone for almost three days now. Daniel and I decided to go to Juliette's house and pray with her. She and Lillian live just a step up from a real slum by Ugandan standards but by western standards their house is lacking. The corrugated metal roof was blazing hot and heating the brick and mud walls to an almost unbearable degree. Juliette met us at the doorway with a smile and welcomed us in. Juliette speaks very little english and like most Ugandans she doesn't show a lot of real emotion. We knew she was terribly worried yet she still smiled when we came in. Her smile soon faded and she dropped her mask as we asked if we could pray for her and Amaya. I sat on a couch with her and put my hand on her back. The air was stifling. Dan asked me to begin the prayer and he would finish. I bowed my head and couldn't hold back the tears as I interceded for Amaya's safe return. Juliette also began to cry softly and I could feel her back shaking as she tried to hold back the tears. I have never felt such an urgency to plead with God as I did today. It was so very real when you hold the hand of a grieving mother whose child is lost.
Dan finished the prayer in a halting voice not knowing even what to say. Juliette wiped her eyes and I hugged her. We tried to convey our sorrow for her and encourage her to hold fast to God. The language barrier was there but I know she understood. We left her in her sweltering room to sit and wait with a dreadful longing for Amaya to return or to receive word that she had been found. I couldn't imagine the agony of waiting as we left and went home to our kids.
Hannah, Aiden and Ben prayed for Amaya tonight. I hope and urge you all to do the same. I know that God is good and everything is for His glory so I have to exercise faith and trust He has it all worked out. For now we continue to search for Amaya in every crowd. She was last seen wearing a dress I had sewn for Hannah but had passed onto her since it fit her better. Please please pray for her and for her mom Juliette. And hug your kids a little tighter tonight and thank God for the time you have with them.
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