We spent the last 4 days out with a partner out in rural villages throughout Tanzania. I was with Sarah and we were about 4 hours away from our main ministry sight. No running water, electricity, a million degrees, and where for the first time in 7 months, first time on the race, I got sick..
We were hungry for miracles (as we have been this whole trip) but we prayed and did declarations before we left and were ready for them to come to pass. Well they did. I want to share with you two miracles that the Lord performed.
Maria:
One morning during our door to door (or hut to hut this weekend) we were at our third or so home and our pastor and translator were talking to these two men. In the back corner I see a few children pile up, peeking away at us and then more and more children. I asked the translator if I could go outside to play with them… he said no (as much as this irritated me I am working on my obedience) so I waited. The children even got scolded and hushed to be quiet and pointed to go outside. Well, then a little girl pushed her way through the crowd of kids and come right up to me, ready to sit on my lap.
So here she is bold little Maria, did not speak a word just came up to me and I plopped her on my lap. As I was looking at her sweet face I noticed tear like things on her eyes, I thought they were tears. I tried to wipe one away but it would not move, it was like a gel covering both her eyes.
A few minutes later Stephen said I could go outside.
After a few games of duck, duck, goose Sarah, Stephen and Pastor were done and outside. I asked them what was wrong with Maria’s eyes. They replied “she was born like that.” I asked if we could pray for her, they said yes, so I asked the other children to come around and pray with Sarah and I. We prayed for a bit and when we were done Maria blinked her eyes and the gel like coverings melted into tears and streamed down her face right in front of my own eyes.
With near tears in my own eyes I wiped them away, and we were on our way.
We ended up going to her home and I got to meet her mother, who was 4 years younger than I am. When we were finished there we started to walk back, Maria still attached at my hip. Her mother yelled out something and I look down and Maria shrugs her little shoulders and keeps walking with us. (I can imagine her Mom saying something like “when are you coming home?” and Maria being like “yeah, whenever I want mom, bye”)
To make a long story short she ended up coming back and spending the day with Sarah and I, we played with her, she got to eat a feast with us for lunch, took a nice nap on a big comfy couch, got her scraped knees cleaned and bandaged up, and came to church with us. She hung around all evening and it was near dark when I saw her Mom, who had to pick her up and carry her home, screaming and crying. Even the next day at church (which I was not at, due to the massive amounts of throwing up I was doing…) Maria was there in a beautiful pink dress
Lawrence:
In the same house where we met Maria we met a man named Lawrence. After talking with him, he informed us that he was “too lazy” to be a Christian. We still wanted to pray for him, so when we asked for prayer requests he said “Rain.”
It should be rainy season here in Tanzania, yet this village was not seeing any of it. Their crops were going to be ruined and they were waiting on the rain. Ok, cool, we can pray for that.
So we prayed for rain, and went out our way.
Well, wouldn’t you know that a few hours after we got home huge black clouds started to circle in. We prayed more and we also prayed at church. It started to sprinkle that night.
The next day Sarah and I were talking, and praying and I said, I hope that when he accepts Christ it downpours on his crops as well as his heart.
A few hours later the downpour was so strong we couldn’t even hear each other talk in the same room.
I have no idea if Lawrence accepted Jesus as his Lord and Savior.
What I do know is that the flood gates of Heaven were opened up that day… in more ways than one.