Traveling with an Unobtrusive Close Talker

by | Aug 25, 2011 | Uncategorized

 

During the summer after my sophomore year of college, I participated in a mission’s trip to Eastern Europe with a group of my peers.  What was then referred to as “behind the iron curtain.”  We worked alongside a ministry smuggling bibles into spiritually oppressed countries; where people lost their lives for believing in Jesus.

In Poland, I took a “bath” in a plastic bowl placed on the floor in the middle of a kitchen, prayed fervently with kind eyed people packed like sardines in a steamy hot church in Hungary, and inhaled black exhaust driving behind cars through Romania, so thick our clothes turned ashen.

During a souvenir shopping spree in a Romanian hotel lobby – our bodies pressed against a glass cabinet admiring trinkets – our attention diverted when we heard people speaking English.  A novelty in the countries we were travelling through.  We turned around to discover two Marines engaging team members in conversation.  They were as excited as we were to converse freely, without an interpreter. 

I told the Marines that I had an enlisted family member serving in the Marines and wondered if they knew him.  I knew the question was like a Canadian asking an American if they knew someone in North Dakota.  The chances were slim.

One of them said, “Yes, I do know him.  As a matter of fact, he is my roommate back home.”

I didn’t believe him at first, thought he might be having some fun with college girls, so I asked some questions about my cousin to prove he was being genuine.  Sure enough, his answers revealed they indeed knew each other.

What were the chances that I would bump into someone in Romania who happened to live with a member of my family?

For me, that incident illustrates the omniscience of God.  No matter where we are, despite circumstances, or how far away we feel from Him, he is infinitely aware of us.

Whether feeling like an insignificant dot among crowds of people or saturated

 in loneliness in your own home, experiencing joy in times of play, peace during times of rest, anxiety about things we can’t control, comfortable or insecure, He is with you.

He apprehends the inner nature of who we are,  understands beyond our comprehension and chooses to reveal Himself to us.

 Even when we feel distant from Him. 

Do you know He is with you today?

Subscribe for Shelly’s stories and free resources here: https://shellymillerwriter.com/free-resources/

2 Comments

  1. Helen M. Davis

    THIS IS REAL LIVING EVERY YOUNG PERSON NEEDS TO EXPERIANCE WHAT LIFE REALLY IS ABOUT.BLESSING

    • Redemption's Beauty

      Thanks for your comment Helen. Hopefully we can be role models revealing His blessing and they will follow!

Pin It on Pinterest