The first day of training camp, I heard God whisper the word, “patience” in my ear. At first, I was hesitant to believe that it was really God speaking to me and not just a random thought that popped into my mind. But, throughout the past few weeks, God has continually been whispering (sometimes shouting) that same word to me, asking me to trust in Him with all of my heart and to patiently wait for Him to move in my life and the lives of those around me.
About two weeks ago, we traveled to Iganga to a school/orphanage called Hope Home. I have to admit that at this point of the journey, I was feeling discouraged. I felt like our presence in Uganda was useless and that we really weren’t making a difference; God made sure to wipe that thought straight from my mind! Within the first five minutes of sitting down, this precious little girl came up to me and jumped in my lap. As she was gently tracing the outlines of my hands and arms with her fingers, I noticed that her left elbow was swollen to the size of a baseball and she had to use her other hand to physically lift her broken arm. My heart dropped; this smiling angel had to be in so much pain! Kasandra looked to me and said that there was a reason this girl came specifically to me and reminded me of the healing power in Jesus’ name. God broke my heart for this child and I poured all my love, prayers, and energy into her and up to God. She sat on my lap the rest of the day, cuddling and hugging me and speaking in the only common language we knew: love. When we left that day, I was surprisingly overwhlemed with peace. If there was just one reason why I’m here, it was her and I knew it.
We didn’t return to Hope Home for another week and waiting that long to see if God had healed her the way I prayed he would was so difficult spiritually and emotionally! Trusting God with a prayer like that and truly believing in His power is much harder and more frustrating that I thought it would be. But sure enough, when we arrived at Hope Home a week later, I was greeted once again by that same smile; the first thing she did was give me a huge hug and high five with her once “broken” arm! I wish I could put into words the pure joy I felt at that moment. I have never personally seen God move in such a real, physical way; but He does and He did!
By putting our faith in our King, our Lord, our Daddy, this team has witnessed and experienced countless breakthroughs. For me, one of the most important lessons I am learning is that God works in His own time and in His own way; all He asks of us is to trust Him and to “cast our burdens onto Jesus,” and the rest is in His hands. This daughter of God at Hope Home is my number one example and reminder of why God is so good and so inexplicably faithful.
And did I mention her name is Patience?
-J
