The Lady who said Yes - 5 Jan 2016

A prayer room is just the beginning. You spend time there; you behold, as in a mirror; catching just a glimpse of God. And then as you become a little more like Him, it’s similar to two like poles of a magnet; you’re repelled out into the great big world to change it.

A group of us had been repelled from the coziness of the prayer room into some of the world’s largest mountains, to pray and see God’s kingdom come. We didn't really have a plan. Well, that’s not quite true; our plan was to follow the prompting of God, so He had a plan that he was letting us know bit by bit.

As we drove the several hours from the large, smoggy city that's home to more than 12 million people, we burst through a tunnel into a gloriously different world of fluffy white clouds, winding roads and steep, stony valleys and came to a rest stop.

We unfolded ourselves from cramped cars, stretching to the sky and squinting in wonderment at how blue it was: something you do when you live and work in a city that’s usually covered in a blanket of grey.

We noticed a little old woman make her way to us, her tribal blue dress as blue as the sky we were looking at, a woolly hat on her grey hair, and a beautiful smile on her weathered face. She had a metal tray of various snacks, from preserved meat to quaint looking buns. She must have hoped this was her lucky day: a group of foreigners who she anticipated would have money.

We chatted to her for a few minutes. She wasn't from this part, she had moved here after her husband was killed in an earthquake several years ago, when it destroyed her entire village. She said her son didn't work and so they had no money, apart from what she made selling snacks.

We discovered that she had very little hearing: her right ear had no hearing in it since she was a girl; her left, a hearing aid. And so we asked if she would like us to pray for her. 

She said yes.

So we gathered together with this woman from the mountains, and placed our hands on her ears to pray for God's healing. And God healed her.

By the end of our time of prayer, she had her hearing aid in her hand, and said she could hear even the faintest whisper that people said through both ears! This woman had gone from having the smallest amount of hearing to being able to hear even the smallest sounds. 

We shared that Jesus had healed her, and asked if she wanted to accept him as her Saviour.

She said yes.

She asked how she could remember his name, and what had happened to her. And so we prayed that the Holy Spirit would fill her and guide her. 

And then, for me, probably the most profound thing happened; she looked worried, and with a tear in her eye said, “I’ve nothing to pay you; I don't have anything to give you.” This is common, for many ‘healers’ and religious people to want money for preforming healing rites. We hugged her and said that Jesus didn't require anything, and then proceeded to buy everything from her tray.

As she walked away with healed hearing, an empty tray (except for a now redundant hearing aid) and eternal life, I got a fresh glimpse into the extravagance of God. He really does leave the 99 for the one.

This day the one was a little old lady in a very big mountain range.

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