By Ted Miyaki

Ayak. I met her with the team, the first day in the compound. A beautiful slender girl of 13, with an angelic face. Her right arm was recently amputated at the elbow – bone cancer that went untreated. Many have prayed for her and visited her. Yesterday, after the entire team and local staff went to the clinic to pray for her, I stayed by her side with “Mama Nini” (Dena). Ayak was in constant pain, moaning, and saying it hurt. The medications are limited in effectiveness. We prayed more, sang to her and caressed her. She placed my hand on the swollen her right arm and motioned for me to stroke it. That seemed to help her. What a heart break.

Early this morning, before sunrise, around 4.30, I heard Ayak’s distinctive little voice crying out from the clinic. Sound carries far in the compound with open windows and doors. Dinka children rarely cry out like that, so I knew it had to be her. I was compelled to go over and see her. More heart break. By the time I arrived, she had been calmed down by the elderly security guard and was hunched over in a chair, rocking and moaning with pain. The overnight health worker eventually gave her a pain killer injection, the pain of which also terrified her. I held her and she squeezed my hand as the dose was administered. Thankfully, she agreed to lay down and rest after that. Please pray for Ayak as we seek a way forward. Lord Jesus, have mercy…