From the age of four I was sexually abused by our neighbors’ son. I complied to his demands and being as young as I was, I could never imagine the trauma that it would cause in my adulthood. Due to the fact that everything was done in secret I could not discuss it with anyone, and it all led to me living a life filled with fear. I detested the activities yet, somehow, thrived on the secrecy of it all as it brought me a false sense of belonging. At night I would lie awake to hear the knock on my window, and obediently slip out to heed its demand.
My life of promiscuity lasted throughout my school career and continued thereafter, when, in 1987, I started living with my partner called Quintus in a flat in Centurion.
I had a life insurance policy with Liberty Life but a series of blood tests taken in January 1990 showed that I was HIV positive and my policy was immediately revoked. Attempts to obtain Life Insurance with Old Mutual ended-up with similar results. My partner, Quintis, was also found to be HIV positive and after a few years he passed away due to AIDS.
In those years little was known about HIV, and we were co-opted to participate in the research of the disease in the hope of finding a cure. Being part of the program, we had to adhere to a stringent diet and we had to go for blood tests at the Braamfontein Pathology Institute every two weeks.
My brother and I were running a computer business and two of my co-workers, Ivan and Andre gave me my first real exposure to Christianity and the way that Christians live. In being concerned about my well-being and semi-atheist behavior they Biblically brought my lifestyle of homosexuality and, substance and alcohol abuse in question. I would confidently respond to their inference by referring to 1 Thessalonians 5:21 that says to “test all things: hold fast what is good”. In my ignorance I perceived my lifestyle at the time to be the “good”.
At a stage I felt an urge to establish some kind of continuity in my existence and proceeded to convince my brother and his wife to have a child with the aim of replacing me, and they soon after conceived.
When my brother called me one morning with the news that his wives’ water had broken, I rushed to their house. While she was getting ready to be taken to hospital, my brother and I took the opportunity to smoke some cannabis and have some coffee. In the meantime, my siter-in-law had started to bleed and we urgently rushed her to a hospital. An emergency C-Section was performed as the placenta had torn away from the uterus causing the full-term child to start breathing inside womb.
Completely unaware of the seriousness of the situation I casually bided my time in the Reception Area waiting for the good news of the baby’s birth. I was rudely awakened to the situation when I received a call requesting me to fetch some blood, which the mother and child desperately needed, and which was not available at the facility we were at.
I was so overcome by the shock of what was happening that, in desperation, I reached-out to the Lord right there. Clinging to the Bible I fervently prayed to the Lord in an attempt to right as many wrongs as I could think of. As part of this new-found inspiration, I pledged to set myself apart from my homosexual living partner with immediate effect.
Baby “Zique” was born, with squint eyes and had suffered severe brain damage because of oxygen starvation. She sadly passed away within a month after being born. In some strange way her death struck me very deeply, it must have been due to a sense of expectation of someone with whom I could have a special bond.
My repentance was real and in my search for a deeper relationship with the Lord I started attending evangelic gatherings on a regular basis.
At one such gathering, hosted by Reinard Bonke, there was a call for people of ill health to step-up to be prayed for. I responded to the invitation and soon after the praying had started I experienced a sensation that felt like a strange warmth spreading through my body from head to toe.
Two weeks after the prayer experience, we went to Braamfontein Pathology Institute for our HIV blood tests. To everyone’s surprise this 29 November 1990 blood test, the 19th blood test taken since February 1990, that I was now completely HIV free.
It is with immeasurable thankfulness in my heart that I will celebrate the 24th anniversary of being declared HIV Free on 29 November 2024.
Praise the Lord who performed a miracle to cleanse me!!
No comments:
Post a Comment