The Lord has such a unique way of expressing His love!
When I found out I was going to Nicaragua, I began to pray that The Lord would bring back to my memory all the knowledge I had in speaking Spanish. I reviewed a little here and there but for the most part reste my confidence in Him – that He would bring it back to me at the appropriate time. What I needed to be reminded of was that my idea of the appropriate time is different from that of His.
As soon as the plane landed in Nicaragua, I assumed my memory of the of Spanish language would return promptly. I’ll go ahead and get to the BIG kicker – it didn’t. I have had to be humble and reminded over and over that HIS timing is perfect! I know this is true; however, my idea of when and where was not the accurate one. .
I practice with teammates and allowed myself to get a little flustered and finally decided I would give it a rest and be patient. We have been visiting a nearby village to spend quality time with the families that live there. After a few days of group activities, the kids began to seek us out individually. One particular young lady, Ellen, has successfully clung to me everyday we are there.
She is such a precious person. Ellen is one of the more reserved children and has such tender heart for others. She’s so beautiful – inside and out. Ah, I just love her so much! 🙂 As we were beginning to get to know one another we exchanged the obvious “hello, how are you’s”. Until one day Ellen decided she wanted to talk. And, I had two options – ignore her conversation and drag her into a game with the other kids or listen and attempt to comprehend her words. The latter option would enable me the opportunity to reply – andI am so grateful to admit I decided to do so! At first I was a little concerned about stumbling over my words, but I remembered this quote, “Don’t let the fear of striking out keep you from playing the game.” Luckily, Ellen is very patient and understanding – and gets a good giggle every now and then by my mixed up words. She’s helped me remember so many things and has no idea the effect she has had on my life. I will never forget how awesome God is that He thinks so much of me to not bring the language back to my memory in the time I demand Him to do so. He loves me so much that He chooses to use the wisdom of a CHILD bless me back into the language.
The other day we were back at the village to visit, but it was so hot outside that many of the children were at their homes. A few of my teammates and I went to visit a local that we have befriended. About an hour later, we were in deep conversation and I was writing down some information when two little bitty arms wrap tightly around me. I looked up and sure enough it was Ellen. My heart was (and still is) SO Full!! How precious!
So, due The Lord and all of His Splendor, I not only started to attain my memory of Spanish back but I also gained a friendship that I will treasure forever!
