Seven years ago my husband and I heard the gospel for the
first time. It was dumbfounding that we
hadn’t understood or even wanted to understand before. I think about all of the decisions that I would have
made differently and praise Him that He uses all things for His glory.
Two years later, my
husband felt God impressing on Him a call to be a missionary. There was no
way I was going to let that happen. I had everything that I wanted and needed
wrapped up in a nice little bow. Although I was getting to know God, I had yet
to completely surrender my life to Him.
Three years ago, I flew to Panama on a
short term mission trip and while I was standing in the airport, I heard the
voice of the Lord. It was so distinct and clear that I stopped completely in my
tracks. He said, “Michele, this is where I need you to be.” I answered out
loud, “No way! Im only staying here for this week.”
The next seven days I
wrestled with Father about my plans verses His plans and ultimately, He won. It
was that week that I began to lift my hands, palms open. I told God that I
would follow Him wherever He wanted me to go and that I would do whatever He
wanted me to do.
Upon our return from that trip, we sold everything; houses,
cars and my husband’s optometric practices.
There is not a day that the sun
sets that I am not inspired BY Him and thankful FOR Him. He has kept His
promises! Not once has there been a time that we have gone without food and
shelter. My faith in Father and how He continues to bless have left me
awestruck and completely overwhelmed by His grace, mercy and love. Daily we
learn that He shows us His love in the most extraordinary ways and it is up to
us to slow down enough to be able to see it. The following is one of those
instances.
Yesterday held the most precious moment for me. It was only
a fraction of a second. So quick that had I blinked I may have missed it. In
that split second, God poured an incredible blessing that left me choking back
tears of joy.Everyone wants to feel loved; for a breath, for a moment, for a
lifetime. Some of us spend day in and day out searching for acceptance and love
without realizing that if we have not accepted the love from our heavenly Father,
that we cannot fully grasp the concept of giving and receiving love here on
earth. Jesus is love. Once we have experienced this unadulterated love, there
is no turning back because it is just too powerful!
I met six year old Alexa at one of our vision clinics at a
small church in Bejuco, Panama. She followed me around the entire day, holding
my hand and smiling. It was an instant connection. Within the first few moments,
I fell in love with her.
Throughout the day, we talked about different things, likes
and dislikes, school and family. We discovered that our birthdays were on the
same day. How faithful is God?! I love His switchboard. Alexa disappeared for a
bit but came bounding back in ten minutes later and began yanking on my shirt.
She was breathless, excited and speaking in Spanish much too fast for me to
understand, so I put her hand in mine and went to ask my husband what she was
saying.
Looking up at him
with those big, dark eyes, she repeated herself and I watched a smile form on
his lips. He turned and told me that she was inviting me to her birthday party.
I wondered if she had actually asked or whether she was just inviting me on her
own.
Joseph and I drove to visit Alexa two days before her big
day. We pulled up outside her house and I could see an elderly man sitting on
the porch. He looked frail as his eyes watered and he dabbed his nose with a
wad of tissues. A younger man stood up, I suppose trying to decide what to do
about us standing there outside the gate. I said hello and asked if Alexa was
home. He replied to wait there for a minute.
A couple of minutes later, Alexas’ mom, Mariana stepped out.
I quickly explained who we were and she smiled and invited us to sit on her
porch. She told me that she knew who I was, that Alexa had come running home
from the eye clinic and asked if she could invite me to her birthday party. It
made me smile that she had actually gone home and asked. It was absolutely
endearing. What are the chances of the two of us having the same birthday?
We sat and visited for a while and I listened to her tell
about her family. She has three children; eleven, six (on Wednesday) and the
youngest only eighteen months. The father left them to fend for themselves. Her
father is very ill so he now lives with her. As I peeked into the house I could
see a wheelchair and a walker. From the sounds of his cough, I wondered if he
has pneumonia. The baby, Marion, awoke from her nap and shuffled outside. Her
mouth was covered with sores and she was coughing. Despite not feeling well,
she was tickled to see visitors.
Alexa wasn't home, so we told her Mariana to not tell Alexa
that we stopped by and that we would surprise her on Wednesday. No sooner did
those words come out of our mouths, and I heard someone coming. That next
moment will be forever ingrained in my memory. I watched her walk toward the
house until she looked directly at me. That moment in time froze then began to
move forward ever so slightly. Her face changed from no recognition, to a
quizzical look, to a pause and then to a breath that grew into the biggest
smile that extended from her mouth to her eyes.
She began to run. I could feel the tears of joy begin to
sting my eyes. This little girl had stolen my heart.
She ran onto the porch and jumped straight into my arms for
a hug. My heart felt so huge that I thought it was going to burst right out of
my chest. It was filled with love for this child that I had met only once on a
day that Father orchestrated. I haven't
been able to stop that moment from replaying in my head. As I laid down to
sleep last night I was trying to pinpoint my emotions. I prayed for Father to
give me discernment and I do believe that He did.
Love is powerful.
It's something that we all desire. It's also something that comes in different
facets that are often times overlooked...a smile, a hug, a kind word, a
gesture. I wish that I could literally share thatintimate moment with each of
you so you could experience the love that came from Father through a six year
old. Mark 12:30-31 “And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart
and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’
The second is this: You shall love your neighbor as
yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.” I would say that
love is pretty high on His list. My prayer is that we would give and receive
love with an open heart. I pray that we can let go of all of our baggage that
gets in the way and creates distraction and static in hearing God. I have found
that when I want to bless someone, the blessing comes back two-fold as a
blessing for me. That's how much He loves us.
You can connect with Michele and her family as they continue to work in
the mission field. Join the group “Gods
Eyes Panama” on Facebook.
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