How often do we read or hear “Love your neighbor as yourself”? How many times do we hear it and think of our actual, literal neighbor? Like boy across the street or family that shares a back fence with your yard? I know even with that we may know that when Jesus tells us in Matthew 19:19 to, “Love your neighbor as yourself” we know what He is telling us to do. We should love all people…but…be honest. You are still thinking about your neighbor. This time you are thinking about how Jesus is calling you to love those people you interact in. Jesus is telling you to love your neighbor, your friends, your family, you know those people who have neighbor like characteristics. Those people who are in your life are the ones who he is calling you to love, right?
What about the lady who checks you out at the grocery store?
What about the police officer who writes a ticket up for you?
What about the man who cuts you off on his way to work?
What about the bully at school (or at work)?
What about those people you don’t like?
What about those people you do like?
What about the stranger on the bus?
What about the person standing next to you at the hospital?
Well, the other day I had those last two questions become reality to me through a 60-year-old Romanian woman.
One day, a couple girls from my team and a couple of my squad decided to go find Jesus in the city of Brasov, Romania. We went at God’s calling to a hospital in search of finding babies to hold (maybe our own desires on that one). Our prayer for the day was “God bring us to your will for the day whether through an adventure or through holding babies.” I’ll tell you one thing, God is faithful to your prayers.
He answered our prayer for the day.
He brought us to HIS will for the day.
God sure answered our prayers in a tangible way right off the bat. God made our day an adventure. Since our hostel was at the other end of town from the hospital we were planning to go to, we hopped on the local bus that our hostel owner told us to get on. As the 5th stop came close, we hurried for the door and got off. As the bus was pulling away, we looked around and realized one of our teammates was still on the bus. We were separated and now we had officially started a once in a lifetime adventure. Once we all regrouped, we started to figure out which direction to walk. Well, we walked, and walked and walked and then finally found the hospital. We arrived at the hospital and marched up the welcome desk. We begin to ask about holding babies. From an outsider’s perspective, we probably looked like a bunch of crazy American woman with a skewed idea of Romanian child rearing. (But being on the race for 9 months now-nothing is crazy or out of the picture to try or ask) As we proceeded in this conversation, our hope began to dwindle when we arrived at the conclusion that we were at the wrong hospital. The nice nurse directed us to the nearest children’s hospital to help us with our search of holding babies. When she handed over the address and wished us luck we realized,
Small problem #1: We don’t know our way around Brasov.
Small problem #2: We can’t afford a taxi to get us to hospital = public bus system
Small problem #3: We don’t speak Romanian to get bus tickets or get on correct bus
Small problem #4: We are getting discouraged…
With our small problems circling around us, we are taken over with the power and will of God for the day. There was an older woman and her son in the hospital lobby at the same time as us. Suddenly realizing that,
God solution #1: Older woman and son speak English
God solution #2: Older woman and son are going to next hospital at that moment
God solution #3: Older woman and son lead us through bus system, Brasov city streets, and hospital halls
God solution #4: God gave us his will for the day!
Our friends leading us through the streets of Romania to find the hospital.
This woman and her son were walking out the Bible right in front of my eyes! This woman didn’t know us. She didn’t need to do anything for us. We didn’t ask for help, guidance or even someone who spoke English. These people stepped up to help us with nothing in return. This woman and her son gave up their entire day to lead us to this new hospital, bring us to their doctor friends, translate for us, and bring us home. In the long run, we never did find any babies to hold, but we did see our prayer answered.
God bring us to your will for the day
whether through an adventure or through holding babies
There is no doubt about it that we had an adventure that day through the streets of Romania following beautiful people God had hand picked for us to experience his will. There was more to be experienced that day though. I had a real experience with the Bible verse, “Love your neighbors as yourself”. These people loved their neighbors meaning God’s people, the random strangers at the hospital, the foreigners in the bus, and the crazy world racers looking for babies to hold. These people loved us by giving up their day, leading us through their city, going out of their way to bring us home, and it didn’t stop there. While we were with them during the day, this woman didn’t just treat us 5 random girls from America like lost tourist. This woman treated us with the love and care that a grandma would use towards a grandchild that they would give the world to. This woman cared over me as if I was walking the streets with my very own Granny. This woman didn’t just “love her neighbor” and leave it at that; She loved her grandchildren from America- or at least fulfilled God’s words in that way.
But that still wasn’t it all. That evening we all met up at the local city square where our new friends proceeded to give us gifts of hand carved statues of the famous Dracula from our very city in the district of Transylvania. Why did they do this, you might ask? For no reason other than to love us. That they sure did. We were blown away by their sacrifice, love and care. I still sit here and wonder if they know the truth of the Gospel in which I am saved, but I know for sure of one thing, they walk out the truth of the Gospel better than I do.
A challenge on my life indeed.
I will always remember my Romanian Granny for the lesson of how to
“Love my __everyone___ as myself.”
