SCRIP-BITS

1 Corinthians 4:11.    Even unto this present hour we both hunger, and thirst, and are naked, and are buffeted, and have no certain dwelling place.
 
Oh Friends, I sincerely hope that all of us who opened our eyes this still, cloudy, Saturday morning, with a roof over our heads, food on the table, clothes on our backs and all the other perks we enjoy, gave God much thanks for it yes, because we are truly blessed. And please don’t take that blessing for granted, because there are many millions in this prosperous world who will open their eyes today to nothing at all; no home, food, clothes, and worst of all probably, no future to talk about. Consequently, many will instead wish that they had not opened their eyes at all when they realize the cruelty of the day that lies ahead of them. Now see if you can answer me this riddle I this, riddle I that question: What do you do when the biggest refugee camp in the world is full…but more people come streaming in every day? The answer is simple; they just find space on the perimeter of the camp and the surrounding area. Oh Lord eh people! Man’s inhumanity to man is truly something else yes; so staggering in magnitude that it boggles the simple human mind! We’re talking in particular here of the three camps in north-eastern Kenya, known collectively as the Dadaab refugee camps. They were built some 20 years ago to house refugees fleeing conflict in Somalia. And though the border between Kenya and Somalia has officially been closed since 2007, people still stream through it everyday. Originally the camps were estimated to hold around 90 thousand people. Today though, they hold some 350 thousand unfortunate souls, and by year’s end, it’s estimated that figure will rise to 450 thousand. Wow! How can we justify refugees waiting 12 days to receive their first ration of food at the camps eh, and 34 days to receive cooking utensils and blankets from the U.N. refugee agency? We can’t. And what’s so sad about the whole matter is that the same scenario is being played out in numerous camps like those, in numerous countries around the globe, housing millions of displaced humans. Meanwhile we bitch and complain about trivial matters and inconveniences in our prosperous, pampered societies, mostly giving lip service, if even that, to the unenviable, deplorable situations of so many other unfortunate folks. And we boastfully call ourselves Christians! What a joke! What’s also sad about these situations is that most of these so-called refugees did not want to leave their homeland, but were forced to, either by natural disasters, or by man made wars and strife. Imagine how you’d feel nuh, if you were forced to leave your comfortable place of abode, due to matters outside of your control? Unfortunately, many of us in the Western Hemisphere are experiencing it these days with the numerous natural disasters taking place in our areas. I sure hope it will at last open our eyes to the terrible plight of many millions of humans around our planet living in total squalor, poverty, sickness, seemingly forgotten by their more prosperous brethren, without much hope of ever improving their lives. Yuh know Friends, I didn’t intend to make this refugee thing the main focus of the Bit, but once started, I just could not stop. The situation with displaced people around the world is truly heartrending. Then I had to find a suitable Bit, because the one I’d intended to use was totally unsuitable. That took me a fair amount of time to find, and is partly why the Bit’s so late. Eventually though, I was guided to the right one. These poor, unfortunate people literally know what Bruh Paul means, when he says: ‘Even unto this present hour we both hunger, and thirst, and are naked (poorly clothed), and are buffeted (beaten), and have no certain dwelling place (are homeless).’ Oh my brethren, many of us grew up poor, some even destitute, but I doubt if any of us experienced the horror and cruelty that our fellow humans are currently suffering in these squalid, forgotten refugee camps. Please, I implore us to make a concerted effort to first pray for them, then try to find some way, perhaps through an international agency, to help in alleviating their all-around suffering. It’s what our Lord and Saviour Jesus would do, therefore we ought to follow His example. Let’s reach out and show some of that LOVE we talk so much about nuh people. It will make Jesus right proud of us. Much LOVE!…the cruelty, injustice and inhumanity that’s destroying our world…can only be overcome…by the LOVE of Jesus…