Tonight, I heard from someone I hadn’t heard from in quite some time.
God.
This evening, my teammate and I accompanied her host family into the city of Granada. Amanda’s host parents spent the evening preparing for an all-day Saturday church event, while Amanda and I watched after her younger host sister. Not having been in Granada before, we unintentionally found ourselves in the not-so-great part of town (in terms of environment, not safety) as we searched for dinner. In our hunger and my post-car-sickness, we finally landed on a bar-and-grill type restaurant, and then quickly made our way back to the more family-friendly side of town for the next couple hours.
We did a tiny bit of walking, then sat down for some ice cream. As we wrap up our first month in Nicaragua, though we haven’t gotten to do much “work” yet, we have found the transition in-and-of itself to life in a new part of the world to be tiring. I was happy to sit down with my teammate and sister and just take a deep breath.
I wasn’t more than three bites into my delicious caramel ice cream when a man walked up with one of those big boards covered in jewelry that he was selling. As he started his spiel, without even really seeing him, I politely, yet directly, said “no, gracias,” as I have gotten in the habit of doing over the last few weeks and years with street vendors throughout Latin America.
He politely said “okay,” or something of the sorts, but with a defeated sort of look on his face. Internally, as nice as I am, I may have done an eyeroll here, thinking this wouldn’t be an easy one to brush off…
I eyed his jewelry and said that it was beautiful and that I was sorry, but that we are missionaries on limited budgets. I don’t always say this, actually rarely do I say this, but in a tourist town, it felt appropriate to let him know that we weren’t just wealthy vacationers like many seated at other restaurants nearby.
He thanked me for complimenting the jewelry and said that he and his wife make all of it, but something else that I said seemed to have sparked something inside of him.
He began asking questions about how long we had been here, where we were from, and how long we would be staying. We began engaging in conversation with him, and he asked us if we had always been believers. I shared with him that I gave my life to Jesus when I was 15. He seemed engaged and though jewelry did come up a couple times, it quickly became apparent to all four of us that the conversation had something more in store.
The man, Ramon, shared how long he has been a believer. He talked about his family, and how he has been praying for a home for his wife and three children for ten years now. He shared some trials that they have faced, as well as the ways God has provided. My ice cream and even the beautiful jewelry started fading into the background as I began honing in on the words he spoke and the pieces of his heart that he shared.
I don’t quite know how to explain it, but God used this man to speak into my life in a powerful way tonight. One of the pieces of truth that Ramon shared with us is the cost and sacrifice required of those following Jesus. “En la cruz, Jesús no dio solo un brazo,” he continued. (On the cross, Jesus didn’t just give one arm.) “He gave his whole body, spirit, and soul.” He explained that in the same way, we are to give our whole selves to Jesus.
He continued on talking about the cost of following Christ but with a reminder that doing so is worth it, and then started talking a bit more directly to me than to the group. God used him to share with me that the hardship I am experiencing will pass. He shared that patience can often be a test, and that when we rush things they go awry, an encouragement to trust in the perfect timing of the Lord.
My mind started to drift, only for a moment, determined not to miss a single word of wisdom the Lord was speaking to me through Ramon. I thought back to my shower this morning. Today as I got ready, I was contemplating my current relationship with the Lord, and recognizing that I need to spend much more time in prayer and in the word. It had been a while since I really felt God and experienced Him for myself. I couldn’t tell you the exact words that I prayed after I lifted up the requests of a few of my supporters and loved ones, but I know that they went something like this—“God, please make yourself real to me, just send me some sort of reminder that you are still real, that you are still working…I just want to feel you God.”
I jumped back into the present and started to tear up, realizing that God was answering my prayer right before my eyes in a way so clear that there was literally no way I could miss it. As if that wasn’t enough, Amanda’s host sister began sharing about a time when God proved to be incredibly faithful to her family through an extremely difficult time when there was literally no food. She recounted very specific moments of her family’s struggles and her Lord’s faithfulness as the three of us sat in awe of the wisdom and faith of this little girl. She is bold, brave, and confident in her hope in our Father in a way I desire to be. She is eleven.
Amanda’s host parents came walking up as we wrapped up the conversation, and I just sat in awe of God’s chosen mouthpieces. We go to church, and pay to attend conferences. We read books, and sometimes find ourselves praying prayers that we struggle to believe in. Yet God reminds us of his faithfulness time and time again in ways we never could have expected.
Tonight, more clearly than ever, God reminded me of some things I had so desperately been needing to hear. He did so through a humble street vendor (a true missionary in every sense of the word) and a precious little girl (with the faith and testimony of a bold lioness).
Friends, wherever you find yourself today, I need you to hear this:
God is still working.
God hears you.
If you don’t feel Him right now, SEEK Him.
He desperately wants your heart and YOU more than anything.
He didn’t just give his arm for you on the cross.
He gave his body, soul, and spirit. For you. For me.
I came home from Granada tonight, not only with a beautiful new necklace that I will always treasure, but also with a renewed faith and passion for my Savior that seemed to have been hiding in the shadows as of late.
Stop. Listen. See.