And He took them up in His arms, laid His hands on them, and blessed them.
Mark 10:16 NKJV
Life is hard for women in Nepal. Girls are married very young and often are so unhappy that they try to end their lives. They long to move on to the next life, hoping it is better than their current one. I see this often at the hospital where I work.
One young girl was married to a man who was not faithful to her. To make matters worse, she bore him a daughter instead of a son. The baby girl died at birth. Then this woman was not treated as a wife in her husband’s home but as a slave. After a woman marries, she is no longer welcomed back into her parents’ home, even if something goes wrong or her husband is mean to her. Instead, she is blamed for any problems in the marriage and is thought to bring dishonor to her family. So this young woman stayed. Eventually, she died. Her death caused a big riot in front of the hospital’s emergency room. The girl’s family fought with the husband’s family; each blamed the other for her death. The police were called to help stop the fighting. My heart ached for God’s daughter, and I pray for others in situations like hers.
One day a woman came to the hospital to have her baby, which was not yet full-term. Yet she was happy after giving birth to a som, though premature and tiny. We put him, so small and precious to God, in an incubator and prayed for him. After several weeks, his lungs just couldn’t keep going, and he died. The baby’s mother was devastated and then suddenly left the hospital. Her deceased baby was also gone. We waited for her to come back. When she didn’t, we called the police to look for her. We never did learn what became of her or what she had done with the remains of her baby.
It is hard, sometimes unbearable, to see such sadness and evil in the world. I pray for these women and children and hope that someday they will know the God of life and His joy. My prayer is that they will know Him personally. I also pray they will know that He will come back someday soon and make everything new. Until then, I ask Him to help me be His hands and words and care for those who are hurting and struggling.
Dear Jesus, Lover of children, I know that You look after all children in this world. Today, please help us show even one person how much she is loved by You. Amen.
Susen Mattison Molé
Covered and Carried, Copyright ©2021 Pacific Press Publishing Association
Susen Mattison Molé was born to missionary parents in India. She currently lives in Nepal and works at the Seventh-day Adventist hospital there.