Motherless Makuni

Meet Makuni, a 4 year old boy who weighs just 8.5 kilos or about 19 pounds. He has an enlarged head, bloated stomach, and blotchy skin. His shoulder blades protrdue glaringly out of his back, his tiny body not more than skin and bones. He is from across the border in Congo and his father brought him to Nyahuka Health Center about a month ago in a severely malnourished state. Makuni's mother died sometime ago - its unclear exactly when and how but its likely Makuni's malnourished state has something to do with her death. He is cared for largely by his 10 year old sister, Annet, (pictured with him) and although his father stays with him at the health center at night, frequently during the afternoons when Stephanie and I tend to visit, he is noticeably absent.

Please pray for this little fighter! I first learned of him when Jennifer asked for prayer for him at one of our team meetings and then I discovered him one day early last month in the new pediatric ward when I was visiting the daughter of one of our Kwejuna mothers. He was sitting up in bed - alone - and crying quietly. His eyes were large and sunken and sad. In recent days, he has taken to keeping his eyes closed most of the time. When I first saw him with his eyes closed, I feared he'd gone blind, but when I gave him a small teddy bear to cuddle on Thursday, he felt it, then opened his eyes and screamed in fear. An unexpected response, but a good sign. He can still see! However, its likely he doesn't have the muscle strength to keep his eyes open all the time, but he continues to hang on. He doesn't talk but but responds to yes/no questions and seems quite aware of what is going on. We're giving him high energy milk - a mixture of boxed whole milk, diluted with a small amount of water, and a small bit of oil and sugar, and though he is largely spoon fed at this point, he takes the milk drink with relish. Another great sign. He is not rejecting food and has an appetite. Yeah! (Sometimes kids at this advanced stage of malnutrition lose all interest in food.) We've also provided his father with eggs but its unclear whether Makuni himself is getting them to eat.

Please, please pray for this child, and pray for this family. They are grieving the loss of their wife and mother, and struggling to care for a very sick child who needs to be fed small amounts 6 times a day. It is laborious and consumes much energy, and we see signs of them tiring of this. But we know God loves this child and he loves this family. Pray for God to bring him back from the brink of death. Pray for this family to be encouraged and strengthened to continue to care for Makuni. Pray for the health center staff to have hope too. Our God is able to do all this and more.