We have to go!

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   “But if anyone does not provide for his own, and especially for those of his household, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.” (I Timothy 5:8)

 

    In April of 2019 my wife, Miriam, received a phone call from her nephew, Eduardo, who lives in San Cristobal, Venezuela. His mother, Angela, Miriam’s sister, and their mother, Paula had been living together as widows for many years and he always checked on them and did small things for them after he had moved out and married his wife, Dahyana. The previous November, Paula had fallen down on the stairs and broke her hip. She had moved into Eduardo and Dahyana’s apartment and they had been taking care of them since that time. He was desperate! He said he could no longer take care of the two of them and was there anything Miriam could do to help him?

   We prayed and talked over the options we had. Then we prayed some more and asked others to pray for us. They could not come to the US, because their passports were to expire in two months and their government was in such a state of chaos that it would take 2 years to renew them. We could not go to Venezuela. Miriam is from Venezuela but has been a US citizen since 1982. She has not been able to visit Venezuela since 2002 when the Venezuelan government under Hugo Chavez decided that any former Venezuelan citizen who returned to Venezuela would not be allowed to leave the country under their new countries passport, and the U.S. State Department told us it was not safe for her to return there. Paula and Angela had received US visas and had last visited us in 2017. The only option we saw was to go to Cucuta, Columbia, a small town on the border of Venezuela, and find a place to live there either temporarily or permanently.

    That presented other problems. We didn’t know if we could get them across the border. Sometimes it was open and sometimes it was closed. Eduardo told us stories of swimming the river to buy supplies in Cucuta! We could go right away, but our visas would be good for only 90 days. We could get extensions for up to 6 months or we could find a way to get their passports renewed and bring them to the US. We prayed some more and the only thing we could understand God telling us was: “we have to go!” So Miriam and I started looking at the cost of available rental apartments in Cucuta on the internet, and the price of plane tickets. Our children told us they would support us and help in any way they could. Our youngest, Adam, said he would go with us the first week to help us find a place and get set up to bring Paula and Angela across the border.

    Before we could set up a date to leave, Adam found out that one of his best friends, who worked for an NGO, would be in Cucuta on a visit to the team they have there the next week and we could possibly get some help from people in that organization in getting set up. So we timed our departure to arrive a day before his friend was to arrive and we met him and members of the NGO working there in support of the thousands of Venezuelans who were fleeing the country and crossing into Colombia at Cucuta. They were very helpful and we quickly were set up with a place to live and a mobile phone to be able to communicate in Columbia. (non-residents can not buy and operate a phone in Colombia.)

    So after a week, Adam left and we arranged for Paula and Angela to cross the border to their new home! It was a happy reunion for us and we thanked God for taking care of us thus far. We still had many questions about the future, but God had provided a place for us to take care of these two precious “widows indeed.” We did what we could to provide good food, care for Paula, who has dementia, and activities for both, as we adjusted to the small living space, the heat, and the small refrigerator that required us to shop every other day. We didn’t know what the future would hold, but we explored options of getting extension to their passports and what we would need to do to extend Miriam and my visas. 

    In June, after 2 months in country, we received the most astounding news! Due to the chaos in Venezuela, the US State department was going to extend the expiration of all Venezuelan passports by 2 years! That meant that we could now take them to our home in the US! God had parted the Red Sea for us! We were all on a plane bound for Atlanta, GA on the 26^thof July and enjoyed a joyous arrival home greeted by our children and grandchildren!

     We had prayed for wisdom and God had told us to go. He had not told us that we would be successful in our mission, but He had provided everything that we needed to go and take care of those precious ladies, and to eventually bring them home with us. Not only had He provided the place to live, but, He had provided people to help us in a new country where we knew no one! He had also provided generous friends who gave us enough money to defray 100 percent of the costs involved!

  We were reading a quote yesterday by Samuel Logan Brengle, Salvation Army Commissioner that perfectly described what happened to us in this adventure that our Lord gave us:

    “Prayer you know is not meant to be a monologue, but a dialogue. It is a communion, a friendly talk. While the Lord communicates through His word, He gives me a great deal of comfort in a direct manner. By ‘comfort’ I do not mean cuddling or coddling but assurance—assurance of His presence with me, and His pleasure in my service. It is like the comfort given by a military commander to his soldier or envoy when He sends him on a difficult mission: ‘You go, put on your armor, I’m watching you and I’ll send you all the reinforcements you need, as they are needed.’ I have to be comforted that way a great deal. I don’t just assume that God is near me and pleased with me; I must have a fresh witness daily.” (Samuel L. Brengle, Portrait of a Prophet, p. 185)

   Our God provided for all our needs as they were needed. We went not knowing how it would turn out, but we had with us our loving Father, who had all the resources that we would need and would provide them when we needed them! ("He owns the cattle on a thousand hills!")

 

PRAY

 

1.     Lord, thank you for showing us once again, that You are Jehovah Jira, God who provides! Help me today, and everyday to “cast all my cares upon You, because You care for me.”

2.     Lord, forgive me when I am afraid to step out and obey the things you have called me to do. Help me today to forgive those who have wronged me and to be bold in telling others about You,

3.     Lord, be with our leaders in government, in our church, and in our families. We need to be guided by You and not our own desires and wants. We need You desperately O Lord. Turn us back to You today!