one life

As I was researching for our missions emphasis for the youth I came across these stats. How painful are they?- It seems so hopeless, but we serve a big God, who did give us one life to do something with...

HIV & AIDS in Africa
As the sun goes down on another day in Africa, more than 6,000 fresh gravesites show the day’s toll. And tomorrow AIDS will claim another 6,000 lives. The day after? Yep, 6,000 more. AIDS does not discriminate - it can kill anyone, and does, every day. It does not take holidays off, it does not spare the innocent.
 
In Africa, an entire generation is dying. Mothers. Fathers. Teachers. Farmers. Even pastors. Working men and women. Dead. In their shadow are more than 15 million innocent children who have lost one or both parents to AIDS.
 
Here are just a few of the real-life facts:
• In 2005, more than 2.8 million people died because of AIDS – that’s equal to a plague killing off the entire population of Chicago.
• 15 million children have lost one or both parents to AIDS. Think about it – that’s around the same as the total number of high school students in the U.S.
• By 2010, an estimated 20.2 million children worldwide will have lost a parent to AIDS.
• In Swaziland, one of every three people is HIV-positive. Imagine if that were true in your youth group? Your church? Your own family?
But this is not a hopeless situation. Not if people like us are willing to stand up and use their One Life to Do Something about it.