Aaron

You’ll never guess but Curt and I got away for 48 hours.  Yes, 48 hours kid-free.  A friend loaned us her beach house and off we went.  Sun (and storm), waves, beach, runs, Chinese take-out, naps, books, movies, and a little work (on my end).  What a huge gift.

It was a great weekend but the most memorable part wasn’t the rest; it was getting to be on the other end of giving.  Being on staff, we watch the Lord provide for us through amazing people.  These last 2 months have been especially impactful with watching the Lord bring people on our team over and over and over.  Well, this weekend, we got to be the givers.  And boy, did it feel good.

We left at 10 a.m. on Friday.  “Free!”, we said.  “We can do whatever we want!  We can drive for 20 minutes and stop for coffee.  We could not stop at all.  We could stop every 5 minutes, if we want.  The world is our oyster!” (I’m sure all you parents out there know exactly what we’re talking about.)

About 30 minutes into our drive, we pass a guy walking on the side of the highway...no bags...in the rain.  Curt stops (he has a very compassionate heart).  “Where you headed?” he asks. “North”, comes the response.  (Hesitation) “Hop in”, says Curt.  The first thing the guy says to us: “You guys believers?”  Why yes, yes we are.  Aaron (we come to learn) had been living in NYC, broke up with his girlfriend and returned to his family in FL.  He comes from a rough background with his family and returning to them was a mistake.  He got mixed up in his old ways of life but in the last month, had been turning back to the Lord for his strength.  Just that morning the Lord had told him to leave.  He said, “God just said to me, ‘Go.’  Go where, Lord? ‘Just go.’ So, I went. I just felt like I needed to head back to NY, since I have some contacts there.  So, I left everything and trusted what God told me.  I just went.”  So, we took Aaron to a bus station, bought him a ticket to NY, gave him a little cash for food and left.  I will never forget the look of humility and overwhelming gratitude on his face.  He sat at that bus station, all alone, and just smiled and waved as we pulled away.  

It was such a joy to be on the end of God using you to bless someone else.  To be an answered prayer to someone.  “Lord, give me more opportunities like that.  And help me to slow down enough in life to not drive by the Aarons.”

Walking!  Full on now! (and yes, this is his outfit most of the time.  Hey, he's the youngest of 6...)