Persistence Beats Resistance

Last month, we as a family were scheduled to drive our 15 passenger van (with trailer) to Vermont (2400 miles round-trip) for a funeral/family reunion. Every stop was planned, and the date was approaching. Then the attacks came. First financially. Then scheduling. Finally after shrinking the trip down to just me traveling alone, and by plane, I throw out my back severely. I couldn't walk, turn my head, let alone carry a suitcase.

My non-refundable plane tickets were purchased, and here I was laying on the couch, praying quietly and wondering how this was ever going to happen. The very morning of the trip itself, I nearly blacked out from a pinched nerve at 5AM while alone in the bathroom. That's when I first started to think, maybe I am being told NOT to go. I don't remember if Pamela actually suggested not going, but we had several mutual glances that confirmed this train of thought. My children certainly could not see how I would ever make it to the car, let alone 2 planes.

The chiropractor after a vigorous adjustment, electrical muscle stimulus, and acupuncture, he said..."maybe Someone is telling you not to go on this trip." I left his office with my hands on his nurses shoulders, since I still could not walk on my own.

Was this an example of YHVH telling me not to go, or the Adversary discouraging me from travel. Or was the message, "be careful how you lift heavy things next time dummy." I was not violating any of YHVH's principles when I got hurt, nor was there anything "unholy" about attending my Grandma's funeral. I could only see His glory being spread on this trip, and was confident that my family would be safe and healthy while I was gone.

So, with only hours to go before my flight, I decided not to focus on arriving in Vermont, or the impossible vision of the entire trip, and just focus on each miniature step of the trip. I slowly packed my bag with bare minimum essentials and the walking stick that Elijah had made for Hailey, and started practicing walking around the house. If I bent my knees just so and breathed very specifically with my bag directly in front of me, I could mostly walk. I walked outside and around the house, I got into and out of my car a few times. I even took a test drive. I decided that I could get to the airport as long as no other drivers did anything unpredictable or dangerous (like driving injured and not being able to turn their heads).

I kissed everybody goodbye, loaded up the car, programmed the GPS, and headed for Nashville airport. Since I couldn't turn my head, I used the little mirror adjusting joy-stick to move the side-views before changing lanes etc... I made it to the airport, made it to the shuttle bus, made it to check in, made it to the metal detector, and made it passed the TSA (after taking off my shoes, taking of my belt, having my back brace swapped for explosives, having to stand with my arms outstretched and my palms facing up for what seemed like eternity...all while on display in a plexiglass booth while my back spasmed.) Finally, I made it onto the plane. I am 6 foot 5 inches tall, and this was a tiny puddle-jumper that required me to bend my knees and tip my head at a 45 degree angle just to walk to my seat at the very end of the plane.

Here comes the payoff.

After finally getting to my seat, thanking YHVH for the 10th time for all of these baby steps, I pull out my book on understanding Biblical Hebrew. The lady sitting next to me says..."is that Hebrew? I am an Israeli". Wow. She turned out to be a former Israeli Army Intelligence worker who just left the military and was working as a camp councilor at a Vermont Summer camp. She asked me a ton of questions about my faith, my Tzit Tzit, the Torah, Yahshua, etc... There was no altar-call moment, but I was sure that this encounter was at least one of the reasons the Adversary was messing with me and trying to stop this trip.

Soon after arriving in Vermont, my cousin who knows about muscles and physiology, did some crazy painful stretching moves on me and took away most of my pain and mobility issues. It was truly amazing, how I struggled to lay down, but got up unassisted. He lives in Panama if anybody needs treatment. Two days of virtually pain free family time followed.

The day of the return trip, the symptoms returned. Additionally, by bag was twice as heavy (70 pounds) due to several books that were given as gifts, and other assorted hand-me-downs. Just as the trip there, I just focused on the shortest most achievable goals, and eventually found myself on the plane with an empty seat on my left.

Then the payoff.

A nun steps onto the plane, and I knew immediately that this was going to be my neighbor on this trip. Sure enough, she sits down and starts telling me that she is about to go through her final ceremony to finalize her lifetime commitment to her Order. She says she felt at peace with her decision, but wanted to know if there was anything advice I had for her. She asked my about the Holy Sprit, and if I believed that people could still be healed today. We talked about my Tzit Tzit (which was a pretty amazing conversation since she was dressed all in white from her head covering to her ankles). We talked about the Torah and what Yahshua actually taught, we talked about the Feasts and the Sabbath, and the dangers of twisting the Truth into man made religions that oppress and control. She asked me to truthfully speak my heart, and not to be afraid of hurting her feelings...so I did.

She then asked me to pray for her. I said I would. She then said, no, I mean NOW. Her heart was so much in love with who she understood to be God, but in so many ways she reminded me of my youngest children who know the words to use, and love YHVH, but still cannot grasp the depth of who He is. We prayed together, using His Holy Name, and the Name of Yahshua Ha Machiach. Wow.

A week later, I am still wrestling with whether my tone was too loving and understanding of the way she was raised, and not forceful enough in preaching how much the One True Living God, hates so much of what she was about to commit herself to. In the end, however, I doubt that anyone had ever fire hosed her with the Truth in her entire life. I think I let the Holy Spirit do most of the talking unfiltered, and can only rest in peace knowing that seeds were planted.

Praise Him for each miracle leg of my trip, and the opportunities to be a light to The World. Praise Him for allowing little old injured and broken me to be used for His purposes. Pray that the seeds He planted take root and someday effect not only the lives of these women, but that seed forever continues to spread. Sister Mary's ceremony is on Saturday July 24th in Nashville. Pray specifically that she has the courage to follow the true leanings of The Spirit in her heart, and not be trapped by her Family or her peers. But then again...Who knows, maybe someday she'll be the first Woman Pope, and then YHVH will use her to transform the entire Catholic Church into a Messianic Congregation.

Ben