Prayer Requests

I was blessed to spend the day today with Jackie's mom. Although where we spent it isn't really my choice of where to get to know someone better, at least some trust was built.
We spent the day at the children's AIDS clinic at the national hospital. This is where Jackie gets all of her ARVs. We went to test the baby.
I know this was a huge step for Jackie's mom and she didn't want to take it alone. I'm glad that I was able to be there. The baby was tested and the results will be back on Jan. 4. Will you pray that miraculously the baby will test negative. As a precaution, the baby was started on septrin, the medicine that is given to every HIV+ person to ward off infections. If the baby is found to be negative, this will be stopped. If positive, it will be continued along with ARVs.
Jackie's mom was also tested and of course tested positive. She's been referred to the adult clinic and is to go on Thur. She has asked me to accompany her.
The whole day I was worried about interferring in her private life. At each phase of the day, I would ask her if she wanted me to wait outside or go with her. Every time, she wanted me to be there.
Jackie's mom is young, only 25 years old. Today, all the fear I had of her was wiped away. I just saw a scared young woman, trying to deny reality, who really needs someone to stand alongside of her. I'm glad God put me in her path and I pray that I can be someone she can rely on, a shoulder to cry on, and maybe that she will somehow see Christ's love.
Of course, each room we went to, the doctors and nurses asked about Jackie. What does this mean for Jackie? Was she going to take her? All of them expressed concern and shared with her mom how much I've struggled with Jackie. Each room, her mom expressed that no she wasn't going to take her back but just continue to visit her. This was bold as it's not seen in a very good light in this culture for a mom to abandon her child. I'm really proud of the way the nurses and doctors handled her, each one with courtesy and compassion, and seeking to show her what is the best next step for her life.
Please keep her mom in your prayers. This road is not going to be easy for her, especially if she and both of her children are needing to be on ARVs. Jackie's mom's name is Catherine and the baby is Sophia.
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On a different note, please also pray for Tom. Tom is one of my kids that I've suspected has some mental handicaps but because he manages to keep his grades up and has good manners, I've not really pushed the effort of having him psychologically tested. I probably should have.
You see, socially Tom's wires don't connect very well. He has few friends. Other teens pick at him and bully him.
He's been in a boarding school where they have really sought to protect him, teach him coping skills, and help him to manage daily life.
I was told that recently another mzungu had made some promises to Tom. Promises of sponsorship from America, taking him into a new home and taking care of him. Something of the story doesn't really add up.
There have been a lot of these stories in the last few years and the results are almost always nasty stories of abuse and human trafficking.
On Saturday Tom disappeared from the home where he lives with several of his cousins and his grandmother. He's not been seen or heard from since.
I'm also skeptical of what the real motive is behind his leaving. Was it really bullying at school as his grandmother and older cousin are saying? Or is it something more? Another one of his cousins that used to live there left a couple of months back and has refused to move back home.
Pray that Tom will return safely, that the real story be revealed, wisdom in how to handle him, and should he really be in a boarding school or does he need to stay at home and attend a day school?