It's a New Day! - God's Direction part IV

It was three Saturday nights ago, less than 24hr from when I’d had those strange ideas about medical screenings (see the previous blog entry). It was a rare evening where I didn’t have any responsibilities, and I could finally catch up on emails and my blog. And then I thought, “I could go and show a DVD movie to the Strawn Boys.” For some reason, I acted on that thought w/o giving it too much thought. I did however, stop long enough to realize that neither I (nor anyone else as far I could remember) had ever shown a movie in Strawn House before and I realized that I may be setting myself up for a wild night since Strawn House has 13 super high energy boys between the ages of 5-11. Luckily, my cousin Amanda had loaned me several kids movies on DVD that were in both English and Spanish. I pulled out “The Land before Time, part II” (I didn’t have part I) and headed toward Strawn.

All the kids here LOVE to watch DVDs more than just about anything else. So the boys were thrilled at the chance to see a movie….and even better yet, a movie all their own, not shared with a bunch of others in the cafeteria as usual. They didn’t seem to care that they would all have to sit on the floor and watch the movie from my 17” computer. And they weren’t even acting wild. A couple of minutes into the movie, a couple of the smaller ones were restless because they couldn’t see the movie over the bigger boys. I motioned for them to come sit on my lap. I was on a white plastic chair…one of those really cheap Wal-Mart kind that are used on lots of outdoor patios. They’re very very common here. Anyhow, the 2 boys settled in, one on each of my knees.

Part way thru the movie, I began to pray for the boys on my lap, putting my hand softly on their heads. Then, as I lovingly rubbed/scratched their backs, I intentionally prayed for each individual boy on the floor. Suddenly another one of “those” thoughts occurred to me. “I’d do anything to stay here and love on these boys.” I immediately wondered to myself, “Where in the world did that come from?” And even thought….Deb, you’re having a psychotic break down- You must be crazy! Yet, there was something in my heart that new it was true. The thought was so sure and clear. My heart knew I’d just received my “new eyes” from God. I sat there in utter amazement at the new passion that was seemingly and suddenly birthed within me for these boys. Something that wasn’t there just 1.5hr earlier. When the movie was over and I walked back to my apartment, I felt like my heart would burst with happiness and I felt like I could jump up and down. Back at my apartment I got on my knees and with tears flowing from my heart, I thanked God for His faithfulness to me and His direction. I knew he was calling me to stay here, at least for now. Unlike my usual self, I decided to sit, ponder, and enjoy this new passion. I kept it before God day and night. It was two days before I would even allow myself to say the thought out loud, and then very slowly to those closest to me here.

How about that? New eyes, new passion, new direction. Isn’t God good?

Now, just before I close this entry, I should tell you, that God also spoke some other directions into my heart. He spoke to me about being a better servant, about me being more faithful, and a couple of other things. I committed to God to make these changes, and wrote “it’s a New Day” on my calendar.