Strong Abstinence Message
“It’s estimated there are about 100,000 cases in Venezuela with HIV and 10,000 cases in San Cristobal,” Sonnenberg says. “Those are the known cases,” he says, recognizing the fact that many cases are unreported. “The majority of these cases come through drug use — using dirty needles — and through sexual contact.”
Tragically, many women are unwittingly infected at home. “In the area we were in, the majority of women contracted HIV from their husbands who brought it home,” Sonnenberg says.
Sonnenberg observes different transmission routes for the disease in different countries his team visits. “In Thailand, the major route is sexual; in Malaysia, it’s IV drug use,” he says. “In Vietnam and Venezuela, it’s a combination.”
Part of Sonnenberg and his team’s mission is to correct misinformation. “There’s a lot of stigma and bad information about HIV,” he says. “We find it everywhere we go. People think you become HIV positive by hugging someone or kissing someone or a mosquito carries it.”
“We challenge the churches to see those with HIV as a mission field,” Sonnenberg says, “because society has rejected them. We go to the schools and educate them about what not to do. We encourage a strong abstinence message to youth,” he says.
“Speaking to the youth was excellent,” Sonnenberg says about the three-hour session they spent giving their abstinence message to 10-year-olds and another three-hour seminar to their teachers. “We spoke at the University of the Andes and the University of Techira,” he says, noting that the governor of the state of Techira is a Christian, and “strongly supports evangelical causes.”
Mission Field
After finishing one live television broadcast, followed by a radio interview, Sonnenberg was surprised to get an immediate response. “After we finished the broadcast, we came downstairs and went out on a busy street,” he says. “A woman walked up to me and said, ‘Excuse me — can I get a copy of your book? My brother is HIV positive and has no sense of anyone offering any hope’.”
During their visit, one of the He Intends Victory team members, Dr. Hendricks, had an asthma attack, which sent the whole team to a local hospital. “It came on slowly, but finally he couldn’t breathe,” Sonnenberg says. “They examined Dr. Hendricks for two hours.”
“He was all right, but one of the nurses asked why we were there, and we ended up having a whole session with six nurses,” he says. “They shared about a friend of theirs — also a nurse — who was HIV positive, and they requested a copy of our book, which we gave to them. That was a real blessing.” The book, He Intends Victory by Dan Wooding, chronicles the beginnings of the ministry, and is available in English as well as Spanish.
The city of San Cristobal is only 45 minutes from the border with Columbia, which leads to problems with rebel groups based in Columbia. “The rebels in Columbia have kidnapped many people from San Cristobal and held them for ransom,” Sonnenberg says. “They can make more money coming across the border than by staying in Columbia.”
The close proximity also allowed a positive benefit to the team members. “One person came across from Columbia and was so excited about seeing this as a mission field,” Sonnenberg says. “He said he knows many people in his country who are HIV positive. He was excited about what the Lord wants to do.”
Uncertain Future
While there is hope in Jesus, the medical establishment faces an uncertain future as new studies suggest current drugs are becoming less effective. “We knew from the beginning that 33% of HIV-positive people were resistant to the drugs,” Sonnenberg says. “Now the studies say 78% have developed resistance to one of the HIV drugs,” he says. “About 50% of people now will not be able to take the drugs any longer.”
“The implication is that people will die quicker,” he adds. “One researcher believes people may begin to die like they did in the 80s, one to three years after becoming HIV-positive.”
“There is no cure for HIV,” Sonnenberg admits. “There’s only a cure for the hopelessness of HIV — and that’s Jesus Christ.”
(This article courtesy of Agape Press.)
