Donna on the 2

I like encouragement. I thrive on it. I especially like it when it happens in the most unexpected moments, the most random times, by the people you least think would be encouraging you.

I was on my way to work today, sitting on the 2 train, and I took out my bible to read. I haven't been going through any specific chapter in the bible, just kind of flipping through the New Testament, seeing what God wants to tell me that specific day. Today I really had no clue where I wanted to start, so I began looking through the passage titles, trying to find something that jumped out at me. Next to me sat an older black woman, not extremely aged, but definitely an adult who had been through her share of life. I noticed that she kept looking at me and at my bible.

My first thought was that she was about to criticize me for being a Christian. I guess living in New York I've gotten really cynical about other people and their views on religion. I automatically assume that people are completely against what the Word says, and look at Christians with a distorted perspective.

Instead the woman asked "Have you read Romans 8:1-18? It's a really good chapter, you should read it. I've been really encouraged by it."

I was kind of stunned for a second, and then realized that this woman, was encouraging me because she was my sister in Christ. I had forgotten for a moment that by being a part of Christ's family, I also inherited the biggest extended family ever. And here I was on a train to Time Square, getting to meet a distant (although now not so distant) relative of mine, who had some encouraging words to tell me.

I told the woman I hadn't read it for a while and so I read through it, and then we finished our conversation. The woman's name was Donna, and she told me that recently she had been starting to get back into church, and had started seeking God again. She told me that she could have been in jail, killed, and that she'd done a lot in her life that she wasn't proud of. But ultimately it was God and his love that brought her back. Donna told me that the beauty of God is that even if we go far away, in our own directions, that he eventually calls us back to him, because he loves us so much. And even when the rest of the world, our friends, and family fail us, that he doesn't. That He is above all of it.

That was the first WOW. To hear her tell her testimony to me was such an encouragement. To see her faith, and how she talked about God with a sparkle of hope and graciousness in her eyes was an awesome thing. To see her honesty and passion, well it was so simple and trusting.

The second WOW was what I found through reading the Romans passage she told me about. In verse 15 it says:
"For you did not receive a spirit that makes you a slave again to fear, but you received the Spirit of sonship. And by him we cry, "Abba, Father."
The part that stuck out to me was that we no longer are "slave again to fear."

Fear is something that makes it sometimes so difficult to follow God. Sometimes the fear of failure keeps us from living out his Word. Fear of rejection prevents us from reaching out to non-believing family and friends. Fear of hurting or being hurt stops us from rebuking when we need to. Fear always seems to become an excuse for why we don't do the things we want to.

And yet in Romans it tells us we are no longer slaves to fear..........so why keep being a slave when we can be free? We have no reason to be fearful with the power of the most high on our side. There is no fear in us if we can only learn to just fear the Lord.

The third WOW was how God humbled me through my conversation with Donna. She told me about another verse in Psalms 141:3 "Set a guard over my mouth, O LORD; keep watch over the door of my lips." and told me that this was something she struggled with. But she said that verse always reminded and encouraged her to be careful of her words. To hear her being so open with her struggles was such a demonstration of humility, especially as I struggle with the same thing.

WOW is all I can say about Donna, about our pre-appointed meeting, and about the encouragement she brought me today.

It's nice when God does the unexpected.