A Prayer for the Mommas and Babes
This realization pointed me to Jesus, and I had to thank Him for being so good to me, because I am no more deserving of clean water than a lot of mommies and babies in other parts of the world who don't get the same luxury. I have been blessed, and it is a gift of God, through no works or merit of my own.
Then I began to think of the other mommas and babies. The ones in parts of India, and China, and different countries in Africa, and other nations where poverty is the norm and "water" comes from a cesspool of dirty liquid used both by humans and animals for every imaginable task from drinking to draining waste. It brought me to my knees in prayer for every single momma whose heart must break every time she has to feed or clean her teeny tiny infant from one of these diseased water sources. I thought of how they must have to hope and pray every time they revisit the polluted water, that this won't be the time that their little babe gets sick from using it. How painful it would be to watch their baby with the bloated tummy, wailing from discomfort. How much it would weigh on them to try to suckle their infants, only to find that their own breasts are empty and their bodies are failing them because of hunger and disease.
And I thought of the babies. How frustrating it would be to have to go to Momma's breast and not be satisfied. How terrible they must feel when they get sick again from the same ailment, rendering them listless and lethargic yet unable to express their discomfort save through their cries. How painful it must be for the growing child who finally realizes that their momma is doing her best for them but still cannot meet their very most basic needs of hunger and thirst.
It humbled me when I pondered these things, and as I stared at my chubby-cheeked baby who was resting so contentedly in my arms. Surely I don't love my child any more than any other mommy loves her baby, but I am in a position to meet her needs and they are not. It made my eyes blur with angry tears that this world is so full of injustice, and death and pain and misery. It caused my heart to ache in compassion for so many others for whom, today, at this very moment, what I described is their stark bleak reality. And I wondered when Jesus might return, and when the sting of death and disease and sadness and illness might be eradicated forevermore.
Come, Lord Jesus, come. And while we wait for You, please bless the mommas and their babies in every corner of Your world right now. Watch over them and keep them from harm and illness. In Your compassion and grace, give them sources of clean water from which they might be able to feed and care for their little ones. And Lord, raise us up, here in our comfortable castles with clean flowing water, to do what we can to help provide something as simple as clean water to them. Give us open generous hearts, and help us be Your hands and feet until Your return. Amen.
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