Testimony Sunday

It was Testimony Sunday at our church yesterday. We've had it once a month lately. I think it was started by our pastor just as an experiment--would anyone actually have anything to share? I look forward to it and it's always a pleasant surprise to find that it's the Sunday where no one knows who might say what! 

 Our pastor is a structured type of personality, so this is a bit of a stretch for him, I think, and he really earns points with me for going there--opening the gates to the unknown. 

 There is always that slightly scary moment, when he stands at the front of the church with the mic in his hand and a hush hangs in the air; but then the first brave soul steps up and then another, and then a queue begins to form; and it's the opposite of the nightly newscasts--the stories of countries at war, rockets and hostage takings. To hear stories of lives turned in different and good directions; funny and grace filled stories, results in a realignment of the soul's internal balance. That's how it was yesterday.

 Right at the end two people got up to speak about Mish. We are having a special Sunday soon when we hope to get all 11 of us together at the church to share, but these two just couldn't wait; anymore than I've been able to wait to share in writing, I suppose.

Sharon was first. A petite woman with long white hair tied back in a pony tail. In Mish she kept the neatest bed on our classroom floor. It always looked like an immaculately tidy island in the middle of a sea of sleeping bags.
 She told how she was sitting beside one little girl at the start of one day, just hanging out, talking, and the little girl said longingly, "I'm so hungry...I haven't eaten anything yet today." 

Sharon said, "Don't worry honey, lunch is going to be here in just half an hour!"  

Then, she asked the girl that question adults always seem to ask children; she asked about her hopes for the future: "What do you want to be when you grow up?" 


 The girl said, "I want to be a Christian." 

 The story of that conversation touches my heart deeply, for what life ambition could be better? The little girl's name was Jourdan. I pray that she will always follow in the footsteps of Jesus and know his presence with her as I have known him in my life, and been so grateful.
Then Jamie stood, and with a voice choked with emotion, he said that he can't wait to go back to Mish. It sounded as though he left part of his heart behind there. He said that the Lord has been talking to him about moving there. Jamie is kind of a free spirit. I can imagine that he just might do it.

 More stories of Mish are coming, but of course they are just my perspective. Today I just wanted to share how two other people's lives were touched.

Comments

Brave Raven said…
Our church won't be the same without Jamie. Neither will Mish. He has a servant-heart that is rarely seen. What a blessing he could be to that community. When God puts a fire like that in your soul, it's only natural to follow it.
5:45 PM
Belinda said…
We could start "Hillside North" and have cabins in Mish. I would love that!
9:10 AM
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