Editorial: Banish prejudice, a survivor urges us

‘I prayed for you” is a phrase Dr. Kent Brantly never tires of hearing.

Nor does the Christian physician and Ebola survivor tire of thanking all of us who prayed for God to spare him as he battled the deadly virus.

Dr. Kent Brantley talks with  The Christian Chronicle  about his life following his recovery from the Ebola virus.
Brantly, a member of the Southside Church of Christ in Fort Worth, Texas, spoke to The Christian Chronicle during a recent visit to Oklahoma City, where he preached during Oklahoma Christian University’s annual lectureship. [FULL INTERVIEW HERE] He urged believers to “choose compassion over fear” as we face the evils of this world — oceans away and at our doorsteps.

He talked about the long road to recovery in Liberia, where he served with Samaritan’s Purse in a mission clinic during West Africa’s horrendous Ebola outbreak in 2014. The virus killed 11,310 people and nearly took Brantly’s life as well. The outbreak devastated the region’s economy and infrastructure.
When we asked him what Christians here can do for the people of West Africa, Brantly’s answer was a bit surprising.

“I think if we pay attention to the prejudices and the stigmas that we hold against people in our own communities — and if we start asking God to help us overcome those stigmas and those prejudices — it’s going to change our community,” he said. “And so, as our community changes, communities around us will change.

“Just like we saw the interconnectedness of our world when there was an outbreak of an illness in West Africa that greatly impacted America, I think the breakdown of stigma and prejudice and racism in our country … can impact even places across the ocean.”

Lord, may we be the city on a hill that guides souls around the globe to you.

As we prayed fervently for God to heal Kent Brantly, let us pray with equal passion for God to heal our world.Related
• Dr. Kent Brantley: ‘We’re just trying to be present where we are.’ [FULL VIDEO INTERVIEW]
• ‘God has placed a call on all of us’

• Update on Christian physician battling Ebola

• Texas doctor with Ebola known for ‘compassionate heart’