Once upon a time, our ministry host said, “Let’s create some artwork and then see who God wanted you to create it for.”
…And I thought… sounds cool but… this kind of stuff doesn’t usually work for me.
How foolish I was to think that God couldn’t use me.
As soon as we prayed together I knew exactly what I was going to draw with the oil pastels that sat on a table right outside the doorway. It was something I had seen before we had even left for Nepal and I heard God saying, “Now’s the time to use what I gave you.”
I’m not sure where my motivation came from. I had so many doubts but somehow they were shut off and Holy Spirit tunnel vision came upon me. No one else was there… just the Holy Spirit and me… drawing this mysterious picture feverishly.
When I finished it, I gave it a once over and I asked the Lord where on earth some parts of it had come from. Why did I draw an eye and why is there a blonde girl’s face in the corner? I mean… the rest of it kind of made sense but those parts made me think I was going completely insane. Somehow… some way… it was supposed to mean something to somebody.
Here goes nothing! I thought to myself as I met with my team. I felt like the pictures they got made much more sense than mine. Oh well, I figured I didn’t have anything to lose anyways, right?
My whole team and our Nepali companion felt the Lord leading us to an area heavily populated with Tibetan refugees. Buddhists are some of my favorite people to talk to about Jesus so I was excited to see who we would encounter there.
God timed it perfectly, we sat in a local tea shop for a few minutes but no one felt lead to talk to anybody. Why we went there, we weren’t sure until later.
My teammate and I felt lead to pray in the Buddhist temple across the street.
Daughter… someone’s daughter… as soon as we walked in, I felt that we needed to talk to someone’s daughter.
I hummed through the old Christmas song “Emmanuel” before making eye contact with my teammate to signal it was time for us to go.
Perfect timing. Beautiful timing. She prayed for an old man standing outside and as she did the older women in the temple slowly started to trickle out.
I felt a tap on my shoulder and I turned to look into the lost eyes of an elderly Tibetan woman. She motioned for me to pray over every part of her body that was hurting. It was as if she knew exactly what we were doing and exactly who we were. I felt the Holy Spirit tunnel vision come upon me again as I prayed for things I didn’t know I could pray for.
Miracles. Dreams. Visions. Radical Transformations. Restoration.
Daughter… where was this daughter?
Our Nepali friend came over at the perfect moment to help me communicate better. We talked only briefly but as she walked away I had an overwhelming feeling that she needed to see my picture.
“Do you know someone who looks like this?” I asked, pointing to the blonde woman in the corner.
“Yes, that looks like you,” she replied, confusion etched upon her face.
I laughed, “I guess it does, doesn’t it? Do you have sadness in your heart?” I had no idea where these bold questions were coming from. I was a bit surprised at myself for asking such a thing.
“Yes!” She answered emphatically, “I have a daughter who is sick in the head and a husband who is dying.”
Daughter… she had a daughter!
“I drew this picture for you. The one true God, Jesus, who I believe in wanted me to tell you that He is bringing color to your sadness and the sadness in your family. He is a God who restores broken hearts and brings light.” I handed her the picture.
“Will you come over to my house and talk to my daughter?” She asked.
That’s exactly what I did and I brought my whole team with me.
It turns out that 3 of our pictures fit together as if they were the missing pieces of the jigsaw puzzle that was this daughter’s mind and heart.
We talked and prayed for the whole family for over 2 hours. They welcomed us with open arms.
I began to see light enter in to the eyes of the mother. It was as if she had been waiting for us to come.
I knew in that moment that healing was about to take place in their lives. I felt the Holy Spirit changing the atmosphere with every word we spoke. I knew that soon they would have no choice but to believe Jesus because it was only in His name that we prayed.
I could almost tangibly feel the chains in their hearts and minds breaking one by one each time we spoke Truth.
How foolish I was to think that God couldn’t use me.
Listen to God’s voice. Trust it is His. Just start walking. Let that Holy Spirit tunnel vision take over. Let the sovereign Lord do the rest. He is mighty to use us. He is mighty to see what we cannot.
