"But he was pierced for our transgressions,
he was crushed for our iniquities;
the punishment that brought us peace was on him,
and by his wounds we are healed."
Isaiah 53:5
I want you to meet Christino. He is 11 years old. He is sweet. He is gentle. He is strong. His smile lights up a room. His voice is faint. He walks with a limp. His grip is weak. His eyes carry so much weight. His heart need hope. His body needs healing.
When I first met Christino I was overwhelmed. I had to fight back tears, and for the first time I knew what it was like to be broken for others. I hate to say that it took meeting Christino for this to happen, but it did.
When our entire team met Christino, I think God shaved a Christino-shaped hole into all of our hearts. We desperately want to see Christino healed. We want to see him run and play and laugh and be able to be a boy. We don't want him to be bogged down with this undiagnosed disease. So we started praying. And praying. And praying. We prayed with faith. We prayed expecting. But Christino hasn't been healed. He still walks with a limp. His eyes are still heavy. His voice is still faint. And I became discouraged.
But discouragement is not from God.
Hope and life and joy and peace are from God.
I know God can heal Christino, but in the midst of this deep desire to see him physically healed, I forgot about his heart. I desire for his heart to be healed. I desire to see Christino know the love of his Creator. I desire for him to hear me say to him a thousand times "JESUS LOVES YOU!" because Jesus loves him so much! I desire to see hope and joy instead of burden and despair in his eyes. I desire for Christino to know the truth of Isaiah 53:5. I desire to see God's will be done and for His name to be glorified.
I won't stop praying for him. I will declare truth over him, even if he can't understand me. That's all my weak little self can do. God will do the rest.
