Today, God revealed himself to us amidst the most vulnerable at AHOPE — an orphanage for HIV positive children in Addis Ababa. We arrived at AHOPE with the intention of sharing Jesus and we did just that. However, in the faces of our new found friends like Dagim and Jonas, God revealed his true identity, to each of us in new ways.
In the gospels, Jesus could always be found among the least of these: the poor, the sick, the outcasts, and the marginalized. Today, Jesus was present once again in the orphans who welcomed us with hugs that could only be outmatched by their smiles. As I played, laughed, and taught these children about Jesus, they ended up teaching me a lesson in his grace. Walking through the gates of AHOPE, our own backgrounds, circumstances, or personal struggles did not matter. All that mattered was our willingness to love and receive their love.
What we discovered in those moments were glimpses of the true nature of Jesus, “who being in very nature with God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made Himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant and being made in human likeness” (Phil 2:6-7). Like Spiderman removing his mask, the mystery of God was clearly revealed to us today as we loved, were loved, and celebrated our common humanity with these truly beautiful sons of daughters of the King.
“The mystery of the poor is this: that they are Jesus and what you do for them, you do for him.” – Dorothy Day
— Patrick Craig