Marie

I shared on Friday about my experience hearing from God, through Kat.

Well, just a few days later, we were hundreds of miles away from there, visiting family in Arizona. The first morning there, I went out for my usual walk. I was praying about all that I’d been processing over the past few months. On the one hand, this freedom from Mystic was really shaking things up. I knew I was to no longer just seek experiences with God, but to seek God. But with that, I also wanted to be careful that I didn’t swing too far the other direction, that I didn’t neglect walking by the Spirit and responding to the Spirit, that I would stay sensitive to God’s voice, no matter how quiet or unspectacular. Kat had taught me how profoundly we can impact people when we simply and gently relay God’s heart, words, and love to people in a supernatural way.

So that morning, as I went on my walk, I saw her: An elderly lady shuffling along with a walker. She looked up, smiled, and waved. I smiled and waved back and wondered if I should stop and talk to her, or pray for her, but it seemed weird so I just kept walking.

Forty minutes later, on my way back, I turned the corner and there she was again, this time sitting down on a park bench. This time I knew I could easily walk up to her and just say hello and be kind and friendly. So, as I walked toward her, I silently prayed, “God, give me your heart for her. Give me your love for her.”

And immediately, I heard it so crystal clear in my heart: “She’s lost a son.”

Oh. Of course immediately I felt for her, compassion and so sorry for what she must have suffered. But I also felt a tad nervous–was it weird to ask a lady a question like that? But I knew God wanted to use this word of knowledge to show her His love, to show her that He cared enough about her to tell someone else about her pain.

“Hi there.” It was bright so I came and kneeled down on the grass in front of her so I could look up into her eyes. Her name was Marie, and we chatted a little bit, about the sunshine and how nice it was to be able to walk.

“Marie, may I ask you a question.” She said yes.

“Did you lose a son?” 

Her face immediately grew sad. “Yes,” she responded. “He was only 19 years old. I miss him so much every day. Life is good but I feel so sad every day. I miss him.”

I hugged her.

“I’m so sorry, Marie. I can’t imagine how awful that would be. I just want you to know that God loves you so much that He told me about your son, so that I could come over here and hug you and pray for you. Can I pray for you?”

She beamed and said yes. We talked a bit more about her son, and I noticed the “I love Jared” pin on her hat. Yes, she said, Jared was her son. I prayed for her, and we talked awhile longer, able to instantly speak of hard things, deep things, real things. It’s amazing how simple it is to go from chit-chat to deep-down heart-stuff when there’s a word of knowledge from God that instantly brings everything to the surface.

Eventually, I left. We hugged several times, and the whole ordeal was over. I went back home and began doing my day–making breakfast, folding laundry, doing our usual routine. But I was different. I was touched by Marie, by her joy in the midst of sorrow, and by how good our God is that He’d be willing to speak to me, in order to encourage us both.

Two days later, I ran into Marie again. We talked more about her son, about our good God. We hugged, like old friends, and I asked if I could take a photo of us. She beamed. Yes.

And so Marie and I are friends, because God cared enough to speak and show His love for us both.

{Thanks for reading.}