Inspiration. A picturesque landscape. A compelling story. A deep conversation. Possibly a tragedy. Sometimes it is from the sage advice of one who has experienced a host of life's blessings and challenges. For me, here at Shevet, the source is sharing an inner office space among young, passionate followers of Jesus. Six cubicles provide work space for some of the short and longer term volunteers here.
In one space, is the resident nurse who in her late 20's and has served for 2 years here learning all that is necessary to care for fragile cardiac cases. She prays with joy and trust in God, and often reminds us of His grace in our morning meetings. Her love for God and for the mothers and children is evident in how she often is able to relate a Biblical truth to a life experience. She radiates the grace of God.
A young Chinese believer, rises each morning and is often the first in the garden to savor time with the Lord. I see her sitting quietly, then singing praise music, then reading from her Bible out loud, surprisingly, often in English. Her role here is caring for the children for a couple hours in the morning and then again in the late afternoon. You will never see her in my photos. It is too dangerous for her. She is a picture of the Lord's loving kindness.
The young man that sits behind me, has grown up in a missionary family. Currently, his parents live in the Kurdish part of northern Iraq and are running a bookstore that sells a variety of books including the Kurdish translation of some good Christian resources. His Kurdish is helpful in relating to the families. He has been serving with Shevet for 3 months and was just able to get his visa extended for another 3 months. He was very happy about this. He began gathering the guys in this ministry to meet each Tuesday morning at 6am for prayer. He says he figures he can never have too much time before the Lord. He serves with a willing wherever he is needed. He is a gentle servant.
Another young man is away this week. I worked with him quite a lot on the calendar project, and have grown to appreciate his thoughtful way with words. He finished a two year Hebrew language course last Friday and had to leave the country 2 days later because his student visa expired. He hopes to re-enter this next week with a work visa. He is careful about laying his own plans, but rather wants to be sensitive to the Lord's leading with the language skill he sees now as a tool. When he was here, he was also up early in the morning in the garden for prayer and reading of scripture...his is in Hebrew. He is a diligent student for the Lord with a contagious smile.
Lastly in the office space I share, is a sweet gal who tenderly desires to follow the Lord with all her heart. She is doing much of the web site work this week, a skill she inadvertently learned a couple years ago. She sees God's hand in this and it encourages her to see how He equips those who follow him. We have had good chats about life. Next to her bed it looks like she is in the middle of a dozen different books. She is a joyful, willing servant doing whatever is needed on any given day.
I see the kindness of God in the space He has set me for this week. I could expound, and may in another blog about the other servants here...all equally as inspiring. Their desk spaces are just through doors in 3 different directions.
I am content to be in the middle of these new friends, who are an inspiration to me. Grace. Loving kindness. Gentle servant. Diligence. Joy. It is a taste of heaven.
I am blessed.
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