Silvia's Faith Journey- Part 15

Hi friends! Today I wanted to share how God moved in my life and introduced me to my husband, Jeff. In this post I also mentioned two fantastic mission groups. Please check them out when you have the opportunity! Manos de Fe and FSM. Enjoy!

I was at a good place.  God had broken my idol of marriage and kids and He was now squarely first in my life.  I was no longer actively looking for anyone to date or marry.  During the lent season our church was doing a sunrise to sundown fast on Wednesdays.  That also happened to be when there was an early morning 6AM beach run with calisthenics held by a Meetup group that I ran with.  It was a perfect time since I liked to run with my dog, Anza, and I would not have to worry about her overheating.  Additionally, while doing the fast I would be able to complete most of the run before I left early to eat before the sun came up.  

When I arrived at the beach for the run, it was just me, my friend Nyk, and a new guy, Jeff, that I had never met at any of the running events.  Mike, the organizer of the run, was unable to make it so he asked Nyk to lead that day.  It was not hard to notice that Jeff was very handsome and seemed nice enough.  Apparently, he and Mike played volleyball together and Mike had invited him to come running as well.  He showed up even though Mike was absent that day. Nyk, Jeff, and I ran together and talked about small things as we worked out.  About fifteen minutes before sunrise, Anza and I cut out of the run to head home and eat before the fast commenced. 

The next Wednesday, I went to the run and Jeff was there again.  Even though several people showed up, Jeff and I ran together with Anza and talked the entire time.  He was always very sweet to Anza, even though she was skittish, which was important to me since she was my baby.  When the run was switched to a bridge workout, we continued to run together.  There were times where Jeff would do small things that stood out.  For example, one day Jeff was pointing out puddles for me to watch out for while we ran.  His kindness toward me was shown in those little things.  As we talked during our runs we found out we had a lot in common.  I began to look forward to those workouts where we got to spend time together. 

During one run, I talked to Jeff about how I was excited to be heading off to Manos de Fe, in Panama, on a short-term mission trip with my church.  It turned out he knew exactly how thrilling that would be because he had gone on mission to Panama a year beforehand.  Funny enough, he went to work with the same exact mission group, Manos de Fe.  Jeff told me that he really enjoyed it when he was out there, but he would not give me any hints about what it was like.  He wanted me to experience it for myself. About a week later I headed off for the short-term mission trip .

Panama was amazing.  Manos de Fe worked to support the local community of Panamanians and the Ngabe-Bugle indigenous people, the latter of which were considered the least of the least in that region.  The hearts of the people in that organization overflowed with God’s love.  On one of the days of the mission we helped Manos de Fe organize a fair at a local school.  Everyone had a group of children that they watched over and navigated through the different stations of games held for the kids.  Although all of them were fun, there was one station that truly made the eyes of the children grow large with anticipation.  It was the bounce house. 

When we got to the bounce house the kids had to take their shoes off before entering.  It was the rule.  As I explained, “No zapatos.” in my broken Spanish, Enrique, one of the children in my group, looked at me full of sadness.  He began to hit the side of his leg. I did not understand what was going on.  I grabbed someone to translate.  It turned out Enrique could not take off his shoes.  I naively assumed the problem was that he needed help to untie them.  As I reached down to assist him, I understood the real problem.  His shoes were held together by thin strips of plastic that were likely repurposed from a garbage bag.  He did not have any shoelaces.  If I untied the plastic it would have broken.  He would not be able to secure his shoes to his feet when he walked home.  I quickly realized this was a time when rules had to be ignored.  I waved him into the bounce house with his shoes on and watched as his face turned from devastation to delight. 

That evening I recounted the story to Julie, one of the founders and leaders of Manos de Fe.  I was upset at myself for not thinking in the moment to simply remove my shoelaces and give them to him.  Julie not only told me that she would make sure that she would get my shoelaces to Enrique, but she also brought me to a room that had shoes of various sizes that they donated to families.  Together with the shoes and my shoelaces in hand, Julie made sure that Adriana, one of the wonderful long-term missionaries there at the time, found Enrique to deliver the items.  Julie was a perfect representation of how heartfelt their ministry was. 

There were so many great things about that mission trip to Panama.  From the people I met, to the ways in which God changed hearts, to a deepening of my relationship with Jesus.  I had the honor of publicly declaring my relationship with Christ through baptism in one of the streams in Panama.  Even better?  I was baptized by my friend Ron, who I met on my mission trip to Africa, and Mona, his wife.  They were both like family to me.  Each mission trip I have been on was different, but God showed up every time. 

When I got back from the trip, I was excited to talk with Jeff about Panama.  It was so different to engage in conversation with someone that also had enthusiasm for the Lord.  Jeff did not get bored and tune me out like many people would when I talked about the trip; rather, he wanted to hear all the details.  We shared stories about our experiences at Manos de Fe, the people that we met, what was similar, what was different, and how God continued to move powerfully through that organization to uplift that community.  Both of us were energized when we participated and served in something much bigger than ourselves. 

Looking back, the timing of when I met Jeff was perfect.  The seasons of life where I felt crushed by God as He disassembled my idols of Jared, marriage, and kids were all needed to prepare me for the next thing.  By the time I met Jeff I was no longer searching for someone to be Jared nor was I seeking to be with anyone just for the sake of being married.  I knew I wanted to be with someone that prioritized God, and even if I did not meet anyone, I would be fine if I was single.  God was number one.  Honestly, it took the pressure off.  I was not trying to fashion Jeff to be anyone or anything else.  Not Jared.  Not a future husband.  There was no tension of trying to change him and squeeze him into a specific category when we met.  I was able to enjoy Jeff for who he was. 

As it turned out, Jeff was also at the stage where he only wanted to be dating someone that had Christ firmly in her heart. Had I met him at any other point in my life, I would not have been the woman that matched the things that he was pursuing.  Neither of us were truly ready to meet the other until God had worked individually on both of us.  Though it felt so delayed, God’s timing was perfect.

A couple months into our dating relationship, Jeff proposed… that we go on a short-term mission trip together to Costa Rica.  (Ha!  Don’t get ahead of yourself, no wedding bells yet!)  He was headed down to serve at Faithful Servant Missions (FSM).  I thought it was a great idea and agreed to go.  We flew down to meet another couple, Wayne and Debbie, in San Ramon, Costa Rica to do some work.  FSM was run by amazing long-term missionaries and staff dedicated to serving the community that lived in the ghetto of San Ramon.  It was strategically located steps away from that neighborhood.  Literally, about ten steps away.  FSM opened their doors to those living in that impoverished region and provided afterschool care for the children, bible studies, and church services among many other things.  They loved that community well.

Our primary task was to help Wayne and the local handyman, Pabel, do construction work at the mission site.  We mixed concrete, reinforced support structures under the building, cut and installed corner bead, mudded walls etc.  Each day would be physically exhausting, but regardless every day was filled with laughter and joy.  The only issue we had there was a thief amongst us.  The pastor’s dog would steal our shoes if we left them outside and even tried to walk off with some electrical outlet plates (see photo below)!  

The pastor’s dog caught red handed trying to walk off with construction supplies!

The entire experience gave me the opportunity to not only serve with Jeff, but to see how he worked when he was tired and depleted at the end of the day.  What I witnessed was a man who was cheerful and kind, even keeled, had a heart to serve, and who remained positive even when he was exhausted.  Jeff approached each day with great gusto even though he never knew what it held.  He trusted God with each day.  He still does. Our time at FSM continued to show me not only who God was but also who Jeff was. It was a fantastic trip.

When we got back from Costa Rica, I received an invitation from my friend in CA to attend a party.  They planned on doing a small city hall type of wedding and then having friends over to celebrate.  It was very fun and casual.  I asked Jeff if he would like to go, and he said yes.  As I searched for airline tickets, it was like a miracle.  Even though we needed to fly out in less than two weeks there were very cheap direct flight tickets. Typically, it was astronomically expensive to get out there even when booking months in advance.  It felt like we were meant to go!  I quickly booked the flights and notified my friend that we would see them soon.   

A couple days after purchasing the tickets I got a message from another friend, Helen. She lived in CA about forty minutes away from where we would stay.  Helen was Charlie’s wife.  Charlie, as you may recall, was Jared’s boss.  When Jared was alive, he had welcomed me into his family as he did for his lab members.  After Jared was killed, Helen and Charlie stood with me in the sorrow.  They supported me and encouraged me.  Charlie even tried to help me get a job.  They watched over me as they did for so many. 

I had known that Charlie was battling cancer and would check in with Helen on occasion to see how things were going.  This time she reached out to me.  She texted that Charlie was not doing well and that she did not think he had much longer to live.  My heart sank deep into the pit of my stomach and tears came to my eyes.

When I finished reading the text, I realized the real reason God had opened the door to go to CA. It was not to celebrate my friend’s wedding as I originally thought; rather, God was sending me on a personal mission and His priority was Charlie. 

Although I instantly knew what God asked of me, I admit I was a little frightened to do it.