Today was our first ministry day at Hope Ethiopia. This organization is absolutely amazing, and I think this month will end up being one of my favorites. They have so many different facets to their ministry, and it all works so well. We are going to have such a huge opportunity to work in so many different parts of their ministry. One part of their ministry is bringing in medical teams to help the village. The doctors and nurses will be arriving next Sunday and running a free clinic for 2 weeks to help anyone and everyone.
Today, our ministry was to go around the villages and let all the people know about the clinic, see if there were any people who probably wouldn’t be able to make it to the clinic, and just get the word out in general.
We were about to turn back and go home after talking to a group of men when they asked us to follow them to a house of a woman who was blind and wanted prayer. We walked into this home made of sticks and mud to find a woman sitting on her bed with sunglasses over her eyes. Her home was like most here, one small room, which acted as her bedroom, kitchen, absolutely everything. We started talking to her through our translator and found out she is 35 years old and has been blind for 10 years. This woman went blind at age 25, I will be 25 in a few months, this is unreal to me. Learning more about her situation, they don’t really know how it happened, so it was no particular trauma. We were told that most likely she had an eye infection, was never treated, and it led to her losing her vision.
One of our translators was a nurse, so we asked her to take off her glasses to see if the problem was fixable at the clinic through surgery or anything else. The nurse looked into this woman’s eyes and informed us there was nothing medically that could be done. The only chance this woman had for healing was a miracle by our God.
We started asking her about her relationship with Jesus, and her thoughts. Her response was incredible. She said, yes she was definitely a believer. Jesus was her Savior, and her hope was in Him. He was what had kept her alive this long after becoming blind. We then asked her if she believed Jesus could heal her eyes. She responded very confidently, yes and that is what she longs for so bad.
We then laid hands on this woman and began to pray. A fellow teammate prayed for her first. I could feel the Holy Spirit’s presence in the room while she was praying a very powerful prayer of healing for this woman. I knew in my heart that when the prayer was over, I would open my eyes and see that woman looking around at us, seeing for the first time in ten years. After she finished praying, we opened our eyes and looked at this woman…absolutely nothing had changed. Her eyes still looked exactly the same, and she could not see. Our translator decided she wanted to pray for her too. Once again, we opened our eyes but she did not open hers and see. Finally, I decided to pray one last time before we left. I prayed a bold prayer proclaiming that by Jesus’ power, she would be healed. We opened our eyes and saw the exact same woman with the exact same eyes with no sight.
We said our goodbyes to the woman and the men, and as we left I became angry. I became frustrated. I became deeply saddened. I left this house with tears in my eyes because I wanted that woman to be able to see, and I also just wanted to see God work in this way. I believe one million percent that the God we serve today is the same God from the Bible, and He will not change in the future. I believe the God of today is the same God that healed people on this earth through His Son and disciples all the time, so why wouldn’t He do this for this particular woman? Why didn’t He heal this woman right here in front of us when the Holy Spirit was so clearly present? Is there something wrong with me? with my faith? What am I doing wrong?
As we were leaving her home, my teammate and I had the same exact thoughts and frustrations. I do not understand. I became so angry and frustrated. In discussing it, someone said that even though God puts these people in these situations, He blesses them in other ways, maybe by the beauty of the land. BUT SHE CANNOT SEE.
Her life consists of her sitting in her hut all day every day alone because she never was married, she didn’t have children. This woman has one sister who will come and help her when she can, but she has a husband and children back home, so she cannot stay there with her sister. She sits in her hut, in the darkness, alone, ALL DAY. How is this fair? Why did she have to live in this community? Had she been living in America, her eye infection most likely would have been treated, and she would have sight today, but instead, she is blind in Ethiopia, living alone in darkness.
But then God spoke to me tonight. He informed me that she is by no means alone. God is right beside her each and every day of her life in that dark, one-room hut. She is filled with the hope of Jesus Christ. She is filled with Him each and everyday. She praises Him and worships Him through her blindness, through her situation. Yes, this woman longs and begs to see, but her faith is not altered. She does not waver, but stands strong and firm in the Gospel of the Lord knowing this life is temporary, but eternal life with the Father is forever.
I don’t know why God did not heal that woman today. It’s something I will never understand. It’s one of those hard questions that will be answered in heaven, but most likely not before then. However, like this woman, my faith will not waver. Yes, I am still frustrated, annoyed, confused, and my heart is hurting, BUT I serve a good, good Father who loves His people unconditionally and ultimately knows what is best for them, each and every single one of us. His plan has no faults. My heart hurts for this woman, and I will continue praying for her, but if anything my faith is only being strengthened.
