Four weeks ago, a few days after we arrived here in Jinotepe, Team B went out into the barrios. We divided up into different groups of 5 as we went. Kim was drawn to an older lady that was peeking out of her doorway as we passed. So we stopped and spoke with this woman who had tears in her eyes. This woman has know a lot of pain and heartache in her 85 years of life. She is a widow, has outlived at least one child, and her husband left her for another woman. I don´t know her whole life story, all I do know is that this woman was in pain…emotionally, spiritually, and physically. Our group spent awhile talking to Candida, just getting to know her and praying for her. She grew up Catholic and I believe that she would still consider herself to be. When asked she said that she has Christ in her heart and she believes that through God all things are possible. She believes in salvation and has been saved through the blood of Jesus Christ. After praying for her healing on various levels we said goodbye. Along with that goodbye was the promise that I would try and come back at least once before my team, Nessa, leaves Nicaragua.
This past week the Lord has placed this woman on my heart numerous times and I knew that I needed to go back and speak and pray with her before we left. I didn´t know why I needed to go back and see her and I wasn´t sure what to say, but I knew this was the Lords leading. Friday morning a group of us went with Manuel into the barrios for the last time. I asked Manuel if we could stop by Candida´s house to pray with her. We arrived at the house and it appeared that no one was home, although the front door was open. ¨Hola, Buenas…is anyone home¨ (of course this was in spanish said by Manuel). Finally Candida comes to the door with a cane in her hand. She welcomes us in and invites us to sit down.
We start talking, with Megan translating, and Candida tells us that four days ago she fell and injured her ribs, arm, and shoulder. She is in a lot of pain. We pray over her, then sit down again. At this point I´m still not sure that she remembers me and I have no clue what to say. Every time we have gone into someones home, I usually stay back a little bit praying. I tell her that God has placed her on my heart and that I wanted to come back and see her one more time. She said that she recieves us into her home because the Lord has sent us. She then tells me that she remembers me coming back the last time with another group. Since then she has been talking to the Lord a lot more and has been praying for healing in her legs and for strength to come back in them so that she will not fall anymore. She knows that the Lord is her provider and that He will take care of her. Shawna, Megan, Anne, and I talk to her a little more, shared some scripture with her and prayed. Manuel spoke to her some about how she needs to prepare for her life with the Lord and store up her treasures in Heaven, instead of getting things physically ready here on earth and worrying about where she will be buried.
I wish that I could say that the Lord completely healed this woman right there on the spot. And that she did not have any more pain in her bones and muscles. I wish I could say that her breath came back completely and that she had no more problems. I wish she no longer needed a cane to walk. I wish that she felt no more pain emotionally from things that have happened in the past.
But what I do know is that the Lord God Almighty has her in His hands. He is healing her even if it is not something that I can physically see. The Lord is working in and through Candida. I learned so much in that 20-30 minutes we spent with her. I learned about dependance on the Lord to provide even if that something that I ask is not evident right away. And the Lord does have the whole world in His hands. This makes me think of a song I learned when I was younger:
He´s got the whole world in His hands
He´s got the whole world in His hands
He´s got the whole wide world in His hands
He´s got the whole world in His hands
