Her name is Grace. We met her alongside the road as we were walking through the neighborhood in town, finding people to talk to as our original ministry was cancelled because of strikes on campus. As we walked down the dirt path, we didn’t have to walk far before seeing her and her grandson sitting outside her house in the shade. She had warm eyes, an infectious smile, and a heart that was full of love for the little boy on her lap. As we sat down next to her on the sandy ground, she looked at us with eyes full of questions. We asked her how she was, and then asked her the most important question: “Do you know Jesus?”
I asked her if she knew who Jesus was, and she responded that she had seen him in paintings and pictures. She knew he was the guy who the church seemed to talk a lot about. I told her about how he was so much more than that. That he was a real person, he was a gentleman, and that he still is alive and working. I told her that he’s my best friend, that he walks with me through brokenness, hopelessness, and pain. That he also rejoices in my joy and growth as well. That he is my savior, he has transformed my life and redeemed me from darkness. He has brought me into light. She looks at me smiling, her eyes yearning for more. My teammate Jess asks, “Do you know what it means to have a personal relationship with Jesus? Have you heard what he’s done for you?” Through our translator, from English to Setswana, this woman was told the story of who Jesus is and what he did to save the world.
“He came to die for you. For all of your past sin, present sin, and future sin. He came to have a relationship with you. He wants to know you, he already loves you more than you could ever imagine. He came and put his robe of righteousness upon you, your sin has been wiped clean: as white as snow.”
As Jess was talking, I noticed a lump on her arm. I felt the spirit telling me to pray healing over her body, but it wasn’t in the way I expected.
“Is it painful?” I asked.
“No, it’s just an abnormality.”
“Can we pray over you now?”
She nodded.
So, we stopped, laid hands on her, and prayed healing in the name of Jesus.
Jess continued to speak about what Jesus had done in her own life and asked her the most important question this woman would ever answer.
“Would you like to have a relationship with Jesus? Don’t feel pressured, it’s up to you.”
Waiting for the translation to finish, we looked at her with expectant faces.
“Yes! Thank you, thank you, thank you. My spirit is so joyful!” She proclaimed in Setswana. “There was pain in my back and now it is gone!”
I laughed, Jesse cried, and Grace was full of joy. We couldn’t believe what we had just experienced. We have a new sister in Christ now, and thank the Lord that he healed her in the exact way she needed it most. That is the simple gospel my friends. It doesn’t have to be complicated, it doesn’t have to be set up perfectly, the world is waiting with expectant ears to hear.
Her name is Grace, but now that name means so much more. The grace of the Lord is upon her, you, and I. Praise the Lord for divine appointments, new brothers and sisters, healing, and life that is beyond what any human could comprehend.
