Her name is Aina & she was standing behind me in the check out line of our local market. She looked to be about my age & she was wearing a shirt with succulents printed on it. Now I had JUST finished a watercolor of a bunch of potted succulents & it was a little bit of a big deal because it was the first painting I had done that I didn’t want to rip up & throw in the trash. So, I don’t know if it was her succulent shirt or her sweet smile, but something about her grabbed my attention & I felt the Lord nudge me to talk to her.
“Be interruptible,” I heard.
So… I told her I liked her shirt (every girl loves that compliment right?) & prayed that she spoke English. Her face lit up as she responded, “thank you!”
Next thing you know she’s introducing me to her family & inviting my team over for cous cous. That’s my absolute favorite thing about this culture. There are no such things as strangers. You exchange a couple of words here & there & you’re considered friends & the second you step into their home you’re considered family. It’s the most beautiful thing. Plus the cous cous is just unreal.
The day for meeting up with Aina’s family came accompanied by a beautiful storm. It was the first day this town has seen rain since MARCH & the first time I had seen rain since June, so I was already in a pretty good mood, not to mention I knew I would be eating a mountain of cous cous for dinner. With rain jackets on & hungry stomachs my teammates & I set off for Aina’s house. Right before we got there we happened upon a street completely flooded by sewage water. Watching us girls wade through that water must have been the most hilarious sight & to be honest it was so disgusting but hey, how beautiful are the feet that bring the good news, am I right??? I’m just thankful our Camino blisters had healed.
Immediately upon arriving we were embraced by Aina’s mother. I wish with all of my heart that you guys could meet this woman, but since you can’t try & picture a North African Mrs. Pots. I’m not kidding the resemblance is uncanny. She was lively & warm & sweet & her home felt like a safe place. I’m convinced she has the biggest heart in all of North Africa. She welcomed us with hot tea & almond cookies & the sweetest words saying that we are her daughters now & we are welcome any time.
Once the beautiful platter of cous cous was brought out we began asking them about their life, wanting to learn more about the culture & what daily life is like within a North African family. Aina’s mother hardly spoke any English so Aina did a lot of translating & getting to witness their beautiful relationship in this way was really special. As we were nearing the end of our meal her mother begins explaining how hard the life of a local woman is. “We do the cooking, we do the cleaning, we go to the market, we care for the children all while the men sit in a café & drink coffee.” You could literally feel the weight of her family on her shoulders & it broke my heart.
“Pray for her.” I heard God say.
I leaned over & placed my hand on her knee & asked if we could pray blessings over her family cause man she deserved all the blessings in the world. We gathered around & asked God for provision & abundant joy & an even greater strength than what she’s already been given. When we were finished she thanked us profusely & claimed that Allah had brought us here. Then Aina looked at me right in the eyes & asked
“Do you believe in an afterlife?” Umm what? Like hello, thanks for that layup God!
“Actually yes Aina, I do!” & from there I was able to tell her about heaven & what Jesus did to allow us to go there & the amazing life we get to live here on Earth knowing that we are fully loved by God & that I believe heaven will have a lot of cous cous.
She laughed & claimed she believed that in order to get to paradise you simply have to be a good person. Cue Joelle sliding into the convo with her beautiful testimony.
Joelle said she had tried for many years to be a good person & she failed & felt shame in her failure. She continued to share that when she truly allowed Jesus into her life, he transformed her, removed her shame & restored her to a place of honor. (The Middle Eastern culture is very shame & honor based & so I admire Joelle for meeting them in that understanding.)
After Joelle’s story Aina began telling us about stories of women in Islam doing good deeds. When there was a break in the conversation Kelsey all of a sudden says,
“Aina, can I ask you a weird question? Does your mother have pain? Is it in her lower back?”
We all whipped our heads around to stare at Kelsey & the room was silent.
Aina’s eyes grew wide as she immediately responds “how did you know that?!”
Kelsey just casually claims, “The Holy Spirit lives in me. Would you mind if I prayed for your mom’s back?”
She emphatically nods & translates for her mother & demands that she stand up so we can gather around her.
Kelsey laid her hands on her back & prayed the most beautiful & bold prayer. Every time I opened my eyes Aina would be staring right at me shaking her head in utter disbelief. To add to the dramatics thunder & lightening were shaking the house louder than ever.
After the prayer was over Aina asked her mother if she felt better & she nodded smiling the biggest smile & kissing Kelsey’s cheeks over & over again.
“I am shocked. I am just shocked. How did you know that? I am so shocked.” Aina claimed about 30 different times.
I looked at Kelsey, laughing in amazement, & said “Okay, but same.”
Kelsey then got to tell her that she believed Jesus has the power to heal & that He desired to see her healed. She kept pointing to the sky & proclaiming “Jesus!”
Aina responds with a joyful “Merci Jesus! Merci Jesus!” & we all wept a little inside.
One of the sweetest things is that the whole time Gina Marie was silently singing “Holy Spirit” by Francesca Battistelli, proclaiming His name over the meal, over the house, & over this precious family.
But the most beautiful thing of all was that the Lord was speaking the whole time. It wasn’t me, it wasn’t Joelle, it wasn’t Kelsey or Gina Marie. I had no idea that saying hello to the girl in the market place would lead to such joy. We had no idea that trudging through sewage water would lead us to such wild love. It was all Jesus. The conversation was as natural as breathing &, trust me that was NOT because of me. He wanted us there that night & He wanted to make Himself known & He certainly did, in the most powerful & beautiful way.
I don’t know what God has planned for Aina & her family, but I know that He loves them. He loves them so deeply & I am honored to have caught even a small glimpse of this love. I also know that He has an incredible & redemptive plan for their life. He has something wild in store for Aina & getting to be a little piece of her story is something I will treasure for the rest of my life.
*** It would mean the world if you could be praying for Aina & her family! Pray for blessings & followers of Jesus to come alongside her & show her more of His love! Aina has a passion for Karaoke (which just so happens to be a passion of many of my teammates) so we have invited her & her friends over to our apartment for a karaoke night so pray that that will be a joyful time! (There will be popcorn & lots of Adele sung so why would it not be???) Thank you so so much!
*Due to privacy reasons I cannot post any pictures of this beautiful family, but I can post pictures of the beautiful meal they prepared for us. I wasn’t kidding, truly a mountain of cous cous.
