I will never forget this house in Granada, Nicaragua.
“House” is not a word that any American would use to describe this abode. It was hardly a shack. The outside walls were just rocks piled high. There were a few sheets of metal draped across the top to protect from the rain. An open fire warmed a big pot in preparation for dinner. There was a chicken with its leg tied to a tree- so that dinner wouldn’t fly away.
Humble. That’s the word I would best use to describe this dwelling. It was not anything to be looked upon or desired- much like Jesus when he was here on earth as a man. But it wasn’t the surroundings that drew my attention that day. It was the women inside.
We had come to visit on one of our prayer walks. Come to encourage, lift up. Come to share the good news of Jesus. We had come in our mostly clean (I mean, its the world race, you do what you can) clothes, our shoes didn’t have holes in them, our Bibles were neat, put-together, almost new looking, ready to give what we had to offer, never thinking that maybe we needed what they had to offer.
As we began to talk with these women about how we could pray for them, they first shared with us that they were Christians and then proceeded to basically have church right there. The older woman started to sing. All by herself. Just a beautiful song in Spanish to the Lord. Soon we all joined in. And we were just all worshiping the Lord together in her tiny home.
The younger woman shared about needing prayer for her husband who was in jail for a crime he didn’t commit. And the older woman kept testifying to the Lord’s goodness! She was like a facet! She just poured out Scripture after scripture, song after song. She had no hymnal, no books, no Bible. She had His word etched on her heart and it was the most beautiful thing I had ever seen.
As she continued to pour out God’s goodness and mercy through scripture and song, God gently nudged me.
“Look at the floor” He said.
I did.
Dirt.
Hard, dirt floor. Not pleasant to look at. Not soft to walk on. Undesirable.
“I love this floor more than all the floors in all the palace halls in all the world” He continued.
“It is more beautiful than any precious stone, gold or silver.”
“It is so very precious to Me- because I am welcomed here.”
“These women have made their home, My home“.
WOW.
I could not stop the tears from coming. What an incredibly beautiful picture the Lord had given me! I felt so honored and humbled to be able to share this word that He gave me with these women. The older woman had tears in her eyes as God’s words passed through my lips and into her heart.
These women had next to nothing by the world’s standards. But in God’s eyes, they were rich beyond measure. Simply because they had welcomed Him in.
Is God welcome in your home?
Has He been left standing at the door knocking?
Is He even allowed past the front gate?
Or is He inside with His shoes kicked off enjoying some chicken soup with you as you just sit and enjoy each other’s company?
Now that is #relationshipgoals.
“Hearken, my beloved brethren, Hath not God chosen the poor of this world rich in faith, and heirs of the kingdom which he hath promised to them that love him?”
James 2:5
Blessings from Rachel and Rachifa <3
