I sat in a group with three of my team mates and four men we had just met.
One of the guys was a believer and was so grateful we were there. He spoke fairly good English and was very curious about what we were doing. He had a lot of questions and wanted to know more about us and about Jesus. He was open to anything and wanted to hear.
One of the guys was not about what we had to share and had a lot of hesitations. He didn’t speak a lot of English. He didn’t really want to have much to do with us and was pretty distanced.
The other two guys were quiet and didn’t say anything at all.
We started talking and sharing a little about ourselves. We asked about them and how they were doing. We wanted to hear more about their stories and asked if we could share some of ours as well.
We had been with them for a bit of time now and were at a place where the conversation could go a lot of ways. I asked if we could share some stories from the past few months. They said sure.
Right away, Liz began to share about a lady from Africa. She began to share about one of the grandmas we had met and how she had been in pain for a while and her knee was not great. Then she shared how Jesus still heals today. She talked about praying over this lady in Africa and how the Lord completely healed her. How she was struggling to walk and the Lord allowed her to dance.
She asked if anyone needed healing. The man that hadn’t said anything began to talk for the first time. He began to tell the person next to him something in their native tongue. He then began to translate and share that this guy couldn’t see well and things were blurry. He had a hard time reading and just wanted to read his Bible again.
We asked if we could pray over him. He said yes. We prayed over him and asked the Lord to heal him. We asked that the Lord’s will would ultimately be done. After praying we asked if anything had changed. He said yes it was better. Then he began to read. He had been healed. It was incredible!
Mean while, the guy who was a believer was so encouraged by this. To see someone healed and watch the Lord do it. He was in awe.
What was happening in the midst of all of this was also incredible. The guy that didn’t want to have anything to do with us and wasn’t up for talking. He began to open up to Caleb and ask questions. He saw someone get healed right in front of his own eyes and that got his attention. His curiosity was sparked. He and Caleb had a lengthy conversation after. No decisions were made but seeds were definitely planted.
So much happened in a matter of one hour. The Lord brought us to a group of four men. The Lord healed one of them. The Lord used that healing to encourage others. The Lord also used that healing to raise questions and increase conversation with someone who was opposed to everything in the first place.
I love that God is a God of details. He doesn’t just do one thing and it stop there. If we press into things and ask for His perspective, there might just be more than that one thing that is happening.
