This is a true story, that I can only start by saying, God knows your prayer, even before you do.
I used to be the reception/dispatch person in an interpreters’ office of a large medical institution. I was not an interpreter, but I could say, “No, so-and-so is not here now” in 6 different languages.
There was a man that would frequently come to my office looking for a Vietnamese interpreter. Since the only three Vietnamese words I knew were the names of our interpreters – and he only knew three words in English, being “no, thank-you” and “ok”, it’s easy for you to see why our conversations relatively short.
This went on for more than a year, probably two or three. He would come to my office, he would ask for a specific interpreter, by name (who we’ll call “Fern”, even though that’s not really her name), I would check for her, and say, “no, can you wait” and motion to the chair. He would then sit and wait, sometimes for over an hour, until she would come back from helping whichever patient she was with. After she had come to help him with whatever he needed (sometimes taking only 5 minutes), he would smile, wave goodbye to me, and say, “Thank you,” and then go home. This would happen 2 or 3 times per week, sometimes many days in a row.
Well – one Friday afternoon, he came in, we had the usual exchange, and he sat and waited until “Fern” came to speak with him. After they sat and talked for a while, she motioned for me to come over to where they were sitting. She then explained to me that he wanted to thank me for my kindness, and to say goodbye. He was in the final stages of stomach cancer and was going back home to Vietnam to die. And then – the most bizarre thing happened. This man, who I had the same redundant 4 word conversation with, who’s name, I am sad to say, I did not even know – hugged me.
If you are not familiar with the Vietnamese culture, hugging between men is NOT something that happens every day.
Shortly after that, I was done for the day. I had a few errands to run, so ran here and there –on my way home, my friend was still on my mind. As I was driving, I said, “God, I don’t know the man’s name, but you know who – I don’t know much about him, but I know he is a nice man and you know his heart. If there is anything you can do for him – I would really appreciate it.”
In retrospect, I realize that saying, “God, if there’s anything you can do” – is rather silly. However, that is what I said. It was 4:20 on Friday afternoon.
As if I were Paul Harvey, here - is the rest of the story.
I returned to work on Monday morning. Fern, the Vietnamese interpreter pulled me aside and told that my friend had returned on Friday afternoon. He had to ask her 1 final question. “Why are you and that man (me) different? What is it that makes you different from other people I know?”
“I can’t really talk about this at work,” she said, “but briefly, it is my belief in Jesus.” (isn’t it sad that you can’t talk about Jesus at work? That, however, is a soapbox that we can’t get started on now)
“Will you tell me about it later?” He asked. “I would like to know more about Jesus.” That was 4:15 p.m. God had begun answering my prayer, before I even asked it.
They got together after work and talked for a while. Then she took him to her Church to hear more about Jesus.
When they parted that night, he told her that he had a change in plans. Rather than stay in Vietnam, he was going to come back in a few weeks to hear more. “Pray for him while he is back home” she told me. “Because if they find out about his new faith, they will try to talk him out of it, and not let him return.”
Sure enough – 2 or 3 weeks later, he showed up at my office. And a short time later – he made Jesus Christ the master of his life.
I heard that he went back, again, to Vietnam – this time planning not to return. Needless to say, I have not seen him since. But I know that I will see him again, and I will hug him again.
I take away three points from this life event.
- Be mindful of your speech, actions and attitudes! Even those who cannot understand what you are saying, can understand how you say what you say, and the facial expressions you make. Do your words and actions show your belief in God?
- God knows what you are praying for even before it enters your mind to pray about it. If He can do that, certainly He knows your needs and will provide for you!
- I am placed in situations/places for a reason (see another post called “Why You Worryin’?”). God can cause my path to cross with someone else’s for very specific reasons. It may take months or years for the result to be seen, but if you allow Him to guide you, He will make great things happen.
For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.
Have a great day, and may God cause your cup to overflow.
Jeff
