He looked at me and smiled

Just when you start to wonder if what you are doing really makes a difference something happens.  It happened for me last week when I was doing our normal weekly visit to the hospital.  I had been visiting with 8 year old Justin.  He had been moved about 10 days ago to an isolation room so I had to wear a mask to go in to visit him.  A couple of our volunteers looked a little scared about the fact that I was entering and encouraging them to do so as well.  Until I explained that we were not wearing the mask to protect ourselves but to protect Justin as his already weak body with an almost non-existent immune system had an infection in his blood.  Any small sickness could be fatal to him.  Ever since he moved into the isolation room Justin has not wanted to talk.  He smiles and giggles almost the whole time but not a word.  I wonder if has anything to do with be stuck for days in a room with someone who continually places the blame on you.

He has been there for 8 months now and his mom right alongside him.  It is understandable that she is sick of being there but I don't think she realizes the psychological effect that it is having on her son.  "Justin we are still here in this hospital because you won't eat!" "I'm so sick of being here and sleeping on the floor every night".  It is hard on the whole family it seems, but even more so on Justin.  The mom seemed to suddenly have a change of heart a couple weeks back and started being positive and smiling again.  We were not too surprised though as we had been praying for this exact thing to happen.  Justin too has changed, he has started to eat more on his own.  He moves around more and bring out his old school books to study.  I saw his old school pictures from when he was 4, 5 and 6.  He was so chubby and healthy looking.  So completely different from this little boy with a swollen stomach and his skin stretched over bone.  This is effects of the indiscriminate HI Virus. I caught myself despairing, wondering if it even makes a difference these few hours we can spend with them.   Then I saw him.

I couldn't tell you his name but I knew his face.  It was so familiar.  His eyes caught mine as I moved toward him and he smiled.   I did know him though something was different and he knew me too!  When I was in front of his bed he started speaking and already my brain registered this as something unusual, as I don't recall having a complete conversation with him before.  He was excited because once again there were guys with guitars here with us.  Then I knew, he was the little boy from the isolation room that was here in the summer of 2010.  He would always watch from the window as we would pass by with our coloring pages and guitar.  Thankfully our volunteers were not afraid to go into his room mask and all.  As he started telling me with a huge smile that he remembered the songs that were played and the love that we gave.  Then it hit me, love always has an effect.  Maybe it's  an effect that isn't measurable and that you cannot weigh, but it leaves an imprint. 

But now faith, hope, love, abide these three; but the greatest of these is love.
1 Cor 13:13

Go give a little love!

Trust spoken - Do you dare to share?

Wednesday was an interesting day.  I was just finishing a 5 day sports and ministry conference and training.  It was the end of two weeks in a cold and rainy Quito.  Finally I was on my way to the airport to my beloved, warm, humid and sorely missed Guayaquil.  After being rather sick from a stomach bug the day before I was blessed to be traveling with a healthy and strong group from Guayaquil who helped with my suitcase.  In the hour and a half taxi ride from the campgrounds where we had been staying to the airport, I was seated next to a pastor.  We discussed the conference and some strategies that we would like to put into place in Guayaquil when he asked me how I got started in missions.  I shared my story with a lot of details as we had so much time.  When I got the current place of how I am trusting God to provide a full scholarship to study my masters that is more expensive than $40,000, the taxi driver could not hold back his disbelief.  I then realized that he had been listening to us share our testimonies the whole way.  So I asked him if he thought that these things were impossible.He seemed in awe of the things that have happened to both of us.  This opened the door for us to share the gospel to him and there driving to the airport he prayed to begin a life of trust and faith with Jesus Christ.  I was so excited.  How awesome it is that God can use a simple overheard conversation to change a life!  

We arrived to the airport and since I hadn’t eaten much in the last two days, Pastor Hector invited me to eat a sandwich with him.  He received a call while we were waiting.  After getting off the phone he said to me “Tabitha, I want to speak a word of prophecy over you.  You will receive this scholarship that you are waiting for. I know because I also applied for a scholarship to study my doctorate and I just got off the phone with the lady who informed me that I received this scholarship.” This made me think that I might have received word about it so I said “I would really like to check my email right now.” He took out his ipad and handed it to me.  So I got into my email and there was one message waiting for me sent earlier that day.  I RECEIVED THE SCHOLARSHIP!  There are a few more details to work out but there it is, ACU here I come.  How great is God!

Summary:  I see a masters program that is interesting and that I have peace about studying.  See the cost of studying at this university, momentarily freak out and start wondering why I had to choose one of the more expensive options to have peace about.  Find out that there is a full scholarship for those studying in my field.  Find out that being bilingual is a requisite.  Then that there is only one of these scholarships. Share with my friends and family and trust God.  Then have the opportunity to share the gospel because of sharing my testimony about trusting in this situation.  Someones life gets changed.  Then find out that I got the scholarship.  It blows my mind to realize how God is like this and always has been.  He just wants our trust.  Here is my story, share yours!  


More details to come soon on the plan!