"I see you driving a van. There are a lot of struggles on your road, but you keep going. Why? You know you don't have to be the one driving..."
she reaches for my hand + smiles. I reach for hers and force a smile, forcing the tears back. I wait for her to speak to me, but she just sits + looks at me with eyes full of joy.
today, I am having someone I never met before speak to me with words given to her by our Father.
as I sit in a wooden chair in the crowded room surrounded by soft music + familiar faces of local missionaries in town also surrounded by unknown faces + I start to feel nervous and unsteady. Not because they made me feel that way on purpose, but because I had no idea what to expect or do in the given situation. Is this normal? Did everyone else here with me feel the same way?
suddenly, the girl with her hand on mine says, "You are SO beautiful."
those four words. those four words everyone needs to hear to encourage them. I fight the tears + force a smile. I couldn't tell you the last time someone told me that, let alone the last time I told someone else that. It was so comforting + sincere + refreshing.
"When I look at you, I see a long distance swimmer. Strong, steady, and graceful. I can already tell that you have so much strength + endurance, + God is still making you stronger every day."
How could someone I never met before, let alone from Paris, know just the right words to say to me? There are things in my life that have caused me so much sorrow + pain. Times that I thought I couldn't endure anymore. I've felt so weak + useless for many years. Always thinking I was not strong enough to be here in the first place.
as she holds me tight, she continues to speak to me words of encouragement: "I don't know how you do it, but you love everyone you meet. You go the extra mile and are so sweet and sincere, even to those who turn away from you. God loves that. People see Him through that."
how did she know so much about me, and yet i know so little about her?
after meditating on those spoken words, i realized that's it! this is how God wants me to spread His word-- through love. It comes so naturally to me + now I understand why. I am sent out to be a light in the darkness. to show Him through love.
over the past two years, I went through some hard times. I endured so much hardship + struggle that I kept to myself. but, He took it all away in a matter of eight and a half minutes. He used her, a complete stranger, to tell me exactly what I wanted to hear + He knew that it was time I let go of everything I was holding onto + gave it to Him instead.
as my arms are wrapped around someone I hardly knew, the relief swept over me in the form of tears + I had never felt so refreshed + renewed. what a holy + wonderful relief.
for those that are wondering the question, "are you okay?" the answer is a resounding "Yes." I am more in love with my Savior than I ever have been before. I pray that each + every day will be filled with my growing love for Him. He is good to us, friends, + He doesn't ever, ever leave.
Katie Sandy
