CONTINUED… (hint: there’s a “part 1” to this “part 2.”)
also I apologize in advance that I can’t post pictures, the WiFi is a bit too slow for that hahaha
Saturday morning we woke up at 4 am to catch a bus to Accra in order to catch another bus to go to the border. We hopped off the bus at the border then had to walk a short distance to customs and immigration. I was carrying my big pack in front of me, my ukulele, and my small pack on my back. I was waving to my squad leader, Leticia (Tec), because I was super excited to meet her at the border. With the combination of my big pack in front of me and me waving at Tec, I didn’t see a dip in the road, fell, and twisted my ankle badly. My team quickly wrapped my foot and elevated it for me. My teammate, Hannah, carried me over the border while Jen and Paige carried my other packs like champs. I can’t forget Kim either, who provided stellar emotional support. It was a few days before I let my stubbornness go and went to get X-rays (really because my mom insisted that I go, and well… she’s the boss). For those days, my team and the two other teams that are living with us in Togo took care of me so well. People had to carry me EVERYWHERE and help me with multiple things that probably are weird to mention in a blog…. Anyways, I wasn’t fond of not being able to do things by myself before I got some crutches, but I felt and still feel so entirely loved by the people around me. I went to the hospital with Tec and it turns out I tore some ligaments while trying to cross the Ghana-Togo border (it’s impossible for me not to laugh at this ridiculous sentence hahaha)
Some of my squad mates prayed for God to heal me; He didn’t heal my ankle, but man- He has been healing my heart. Everyone that I live with has shown so much care and love to me that it’s hard to not feel loved. Every time someone prayed for or helped me, I couldn’t help but smile.
Even though I know my situation can’t be compared to his, tearing my ligaments and the love that has been so freely given to me makes me think of the man I prayed for on that Friday in Ghana. I don’t know his story; there’s no way for me to know if I’m the only one to stop and show him care in months or maybe even his whole life. It’s not my job to know all of the answers, it’s only my and our job to love. It makes me think that maybe God wanted to heal a bit of his heart first. I’m no expert on healing, but I know that God cares about our inner healing just as much as our physical healing. I feel that when we love people well, we can partner with God in healing little pieces of their hearts. Love is so powerful, and we shouldn’t limit healing to only physical healing although it’s a good thing to ask for. I’ll be in a cast for 3 weeks, so all of my time in Togo and some days in to, our next country, Thailand. It’s not the most ideal situation, but I have felt God draw so near to me and I’ve known His love in such a tangible way by how my squad has cared and continues to care for me. God healed my ankles in Puerto Rico almost three years ago so I know He can do it, but this time my heart has little pieces that God wanted to heal before my ankle and that’s okay with me. Maybe God showed His love the same for the man I prayed for, but I trust that He’s good whether He did or didn’t. I know that I’m loved (and if you don’t believe me, I have 7 hearts with signatures and a carefully drawn cat on my cast to prove it??) and I hope you feel so so loved today.
I bet you‘re really wishing that I could post pictures now, because I look hilarious in this cast
