The realization came in the gifting of a simple pair of leggings. Unasked for. Undeserved. Certainly not expected.
I often times forget how simply being can create a ripple of impact on people I’m not expecting it to. To be raw and honest, this month in India has not been my favorite (and I swear it has nothing to do with not being home on Christmas). I never believed I’d have a month like this on the Race. If you are a racer currently preparing to go and thinking you won’t have months you’ll want to be done in the blink of an eye, I promise you there will be a month that comes and it’ll almost be like you’ve hit a barrier, a wall that won’t relent.
In the midst of feeling this huge barrier, I have been trying to get through it with the various resources I’ve been given (shoutout to the people who are investing in my growth this year, Jesus for putting them there, and iBooks, my notebook, pen, MacBook, and great ole mind of mine!). However, in the midst of getting through this personal barrier (it’s a process), I have forgotten the reason for the season. It’s easy for me (a contemplative by nature) to forget about others when I am engrossed in my own thoughts (I get lost in my head more often than I care to admit – but there’s my public announcement!). It has been so easy for me to forget about the gift it is to be 1) Under a roof and 2) To have such loving, giving, and hospitable hosts as we have been working with Rescue Pink for the first half of the month (seriously, they have done pretty much everything right). In my selfishness, I feel that I have been acting bitter, ugly, and definitely not in the way that Jesus would around this time of year (and I am so embarrassed to admit it because you’d think by now that I would have this “hands and feet of Jesus” thing all down pat). Ha, far from the truth! But the beauty in that is when we get to a point of realizing we won’t have it all together all the time is where Jesus has the power to sweep in and make His love and gift of life apparent in the most simple way.
And it came in the form of a pair of leggings. In India, we need to cover up a lot more than we would in America. The only leggings I own are ones that go down past my knees and ones that extend 3/4 down my shins (with a hole in the left knee because I fall all the time). Luckily, I also bought a pair of jeans before coming to Medak this month. However! I have been thinking about the leggings that extend all the way down to my ankles as I knew they were probably things I would need to wear for the remainder of my month here… But I put the thought to rest knowing there was no way…
When we got back from church, our translator, Celeste, pulled me aside saying that she had bought something for me. She then pulled a black pair of long leggings out of her purse, explaining how much she would miss me and that I would be in her prayers as we left Rescue Pink. I had never voiced my need or want of a longer pair of leggings once since being here. I certainly did not deserve this gift at all. It came out of left field, from absolutely nowhere. But I graciously accepted the gift, telling her leggings were something I had been thinking about to add to my Christmas Day outfit. I truly believe that God used her to gift me those leggings for Christmas. He also used her to show me a simple truth about Christmas that God has been whispering to me all month.
It’s the little things. The smallest gifts are the ones that touch our hearts most. And it’s most definitely the unexpected gifts, the undeserved in every way gifts, and the ones we don’t ask for that touch our hearts deeper than we could ever imagine. Celeste is our translator, and she is not doing this for pay, it is by volunteer. I don’t know what her home situation may be, but the fact that she thought to gift me with a pair of leggings with her own money touched my heart in a way I wasn’t expecting it to. It was almost like God was telling me “see, Ashley? I love you! I will take care of you, you are here for a reason. I will provide even for the needs that seem impossible. Merry Christmas.”
And the coolest thing is that He also offers a gift like this to everyone every moment of every single day. It’s unasked for, undeserved, and certainly not expected. It comes in the form of love and blood shed on a cross for our freedom from sin. Jesus is born on Christmas Day, a life lived to die for us.
Who knew that He could speak through the gifting of a simple pair of leggings?
Will you join Him by gifting me with the ability to stay on the Race this year ahead? My final deadline is coming up on December 31st and I am $3,100 away from becoming fully funded. I only need 31 people to pledge $100 in order to make it there.
I love you and am thinking of you all back at home this holiday season, but I am certain God wants me here for a very big reason and I am excited to see what He’s got in store next.
All my Love and Merry Christmas!!
~Ash
