Learning to Love

"I know that the Lord will maintain the cause of the afflicted, and justice for the poor." Psalm 140:12.

Sunday, July 06, 2008

Missing the Kids


Well its been almost a month since I last went to the Umuarama ministry. I haven't blogged about my last day there because things have been absolutely crazy since I left Brazil (I went off to New York, then Idaho to see my little brother get married, then Seattle to hang out with family, and for the next three weeks I am in Germany working on my masters degree on International Education). I did manage to go the day before I left, and I do have a lot of fun stories about things that happened that night.

First of all, I was pleasantly surprised by a new girl called Taina. It was her second time there, and the week before I had told her about the plan we all had to memorize the books of the Bible. Whoever memorized the OT first would get a prize. My spirits rose when she came in this Thursday able to recite ALL of them! I was so excited and definitely not prepared, for I hadn't brought the prizes, assuming that no one would memorize the books that fast. (A lesson against low expectations, thats for sure)

I actually only had three girls come that night, but I think that it was the best night of all. The girls felt more comfortable to ask questions and we were able to discuss true saving faith in a deeper way than if the room had been crowded. One girl told me that she has recently been feeling a lot of pain in her heart. She said that her mom has taken her to the hospital several times in the middle of the night only to hear the doctors tell her that there is nothing wrong with her.

The previous week, she had been in school and had been singing "God songs" (as she put it). All of a sudden her pain increased quite a bit and she heard a voice saying to her: "I am going to kill you." She fainted and when she woke up she saw a Christian teacher of hers standing over her and praying for her.

She says that the same thing has happened several times since then and that every time someone prays for her she feels better. I asked her if she had ever tried praying about it to God. She said: "No, I am afraid of that voice that I heard." I told her that that voice wasn't God and that she shouldn't fear God's response to her prayer. I told her I would be praying for her and that she should seek God (especially since we had just finished talking about saving faith and true repentance).

Now for all of you theology buffs out there, I am not hear to discuss all the theological implications of spiritual oppression and demonic interaction with the natural world, I am simply stating the account as she related it to us. There is food for thought there and definitely a place for the realization that these girls are starting to think about the spiritual world around them. We did pray for her and I was thankful that she felt comfortable enough with the group to share this with us.

My prayer for them now, as I am far away, is that God will reach each of their hearts and their homes with the peace that so many of them seek and need.

4 Comments:

  • At 7:26 PM, Blogger Justyne said…

    My, my, you have been a busy girl, Grace!! Thank you for taking a little time out to share about your experiences with these kids and our Lord's work in their lives. I so wish I could do this ministry with you. It sounds like it's right up my alley :o).

     
  • At 1:18 PM, Blogger Cristine said…

    Hey Grace! I just found your blog and am very happy I did!! I loved reading it!! You have an amazing ministry going on it is very inspiring! God bless you so much!

    Tine

     
  • At 1:19 PM, Blogger Cristine said…

    Esqueci de perguntar se eu posso colocar um link do seu blog no meu?

     
  • At 3:49 PM, Blogger Grace Portela said…

    This comment has been removed by the author.

     

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