The Cleaning Lady and the AIDS Patient

Jim, an IV drug abuser and a homosexual, was dying from AIDS. The nurses, medical students, and doctors all agreed Jim was an unusually obnoxious patient. When someone entered his room, Jim would turn his back to him. If he did answer any questions, it was with contempt. 

One day my husband, who was Jim's physician, saw him while on medical rounds with interns, residents, and medical students. As usual they expected the less-than-civil response. But Jim did not turn his back, and when they turned to leave, Jim said, "Thank you!" 

"What has happened to him?" Daniel wondered. He decided to return to Jim's room when they could be alone.

When he went to see Jim, he asked, "What has happened to you?"

"What do you mean?"

"The way you acted today was so much different from usual. You even said, 'Thank you.'"

"I asked Christ into my life," Jim quickly responded.

"How did that happen? Tell me about it," Daniel asked, sitting down beside him.

"The cleaning lady has been coming into my room during her breaks and on her lunch hours and reading the Bible to me." Then he quickly added, "Oh, I hope I didn't get her in trouble."

Daniel assured him the cleaning lady had his permission, and then added, "What does this mean to you, Jim, to have Christ in your heart?"

"You mean about my lifestyle?" he responded. "If I ever get out of here, I can never go back to that," he said. Jim lived only a few months after their conversation, but he remained a changed man because of the power in God's Word.

Help us, dear Lord, to recognize the power of Your Word that we share with others.

"I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes" (Romans. 1:16).