This is the end of my first month of the race. Woah.
I’ve learned some things. I’ve learned that compassion precedes the miracle. When we have the boldness to be led by compassion, God meets us. I’ve been learning to let my compassion guide me, to ask people if I can pray for them and to engage in conversations even when it seems easier to keep your eyes down and keep walking.
Because of this, I have befriended a family and another married couple who are from Venezuela. I have gotten to hear their stories, to laugh with them, and pray with them. One woman said that growing up in Venezuala, there were times when her family was able to provide housing and homecooked meals for foreigners. Now, eating a meal at Pan de Vida, she feels like God is giving that gift back to her. And as she was leaving, she said to me, “If I don’t see you again here, I know that I will see you in heaven.”
I also got to share my testimony in front of 6 women, and that’s something I never have done before. A year ago, I didn’t even think I had a testimony, and now I can pinpoint exact moments of the Holy Spirit‘s creative love changing my life. I never thought I could feel such freedom from things that were once so shameful and oppressive to me, let alone see my freedom lead others into experiencing their own. After I shared, all 6 women that we were ministering to shared their own stories. It was so powerful.
In the past, I had an unhealthy understanding of compassion. This month, I’ve seen it as a gift to be led by. I’ve seen it lead to miracles. I’ve seen it be the miracle.
Compassion is a gift. Compassion levels the ground for a shared experience of humanity.
