Newsletter - March, 2016
| March, 2016 Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me." Matt. 25:40 Published by the Society of the Good Shepherd, P. O. Box 122, Amberson, PA 17210. (717) 349-7033 |
I was sitting in my office working on our March newsletter, which originally was going to be about one of our loan recipients. Suddenly my wife Deborah burst into my office with the news—Sister Mina had died. The news was rather stunning, as Deborah and I had seen Mina a few weeks ago when we were in Honduras. Although she was suffering a bit from the cold, but other than that she seemed normal—although as I’ll explain shortly, “normal” for her is anything but normal.
Upon hearing the news, I immediately realized that I needed to devote the March newsletter to her. But as I began, it suddenly occurred to me that even though I have known Mina for 10 years, I never learned her full name. “Sister Mina” is what everyone calls her, and it’s the only name by which Deborah and I have known her. If you’ve been reading our newsletter for a number of years, you may remember my talking about Mina in past issues. For our newer readers, let me tell you a little about this remarkable woman.
What we all remember most about Mina is her joyfulness, prayer life, and the fact that she was such an encourager. In itself, that may not sound very remarkable. However, what was so special about Mina is that she seemingly had so little in this life to be joyful about. For many years, she had untreated diabetes. Because of the lack of adequate medical care, she completely lost her sight in both eyes. Not only that, the doctors had to amputate one of her legs at the hip. That was the condition she was in when I first met her 10 years ago. A few years later, they had to amputate the other leg at the hip.
So there she was, blind and with no legs, stuck in a small adobe hut without electricity or running water. Her world was primarily limited to her bed and the hammock strung next to it. She had a few bags on her bed that contained all of her material possessions. She was totally dependent upon others for her daily needs. She had no husband, parents, children, or siblings to look after her. She had every reason in this world to be sad, self-pitying, and even grouchy. In fact, she once was. For much of her life, Mina was known as the village ogre. She was mean, grouchy, and spiteful. People went out of their way to avoid her. And that was when Mina had her eyesight and use of both legs! But what she lacked in those days was greater than what she had. She lacked Christ. However, just when her physical problems began, her spiritual problems ended. She found Christ, and He brought such a joy in her life that she bore all of her physical problems without complaint. She turned from being the village ogre to being the village angel.
A friend of mine, Gary Miller, a missionary and author, writes this about Mina is his book, Going Until You’re Gone:
There are two main activities Mina is involved in, and the first is prayer. Sister Mina is a woman of prayer. She prays for the discouraged mother across the street. She prays for the local believers who regularly bring food, water, and medicine. A couple of years ago while visiting, she shared a little about her prayer life. She wakes herself up in the middle of the night to spend time in prayer. Sitting up in bed she commits long periods of time to intercessory prayer. Sometimes she gets so sleepy she needs to keep her arms raised up in the air just to stay awake. But she prays.
The other activity Sister Mina is involved in is counseling. No, she has never attended a counseling seminar, graduated with a degree in psychology, or even read books telling how it should be done. But many discouraged individuals have found their way to Sister Mina’s bedside over the years. They shuffle in off the dirt road that goes by her house, share their struggles and discouragement, and then head back out with renewed purpose and vision. They sense in her an unconditional love and a desire to help.
It would be difficult to find a situation worse than Sister Mina’s, yet she is rarely without a smile. She loves to share how the Lord is continually blessing her life. Her positive and thankful attitude is contagious. Sitting there listening to Sister Mina praise the Lord for his goodness in spite of her difficulties, causes people to reevaluate their woes. If she can sing, pray, and continually trust in the Lord in spite of all of her ailments, perhaps we can do the same despite our problems.
One local pastor told me Sister Mina has never failed him yet. He pointed to the old beat up folding chair in her room and said, “Just a couple of hours sitting in that chair listening to her share the goodness of the Lord is enough to change the outlook of the most discouraged.” And the Lord has used it. Mina has a wonderful ministry among the local Hondurans. She has also blessed local church leaders when they become discouraged. The demands on leadership in many of these countries can be overwhelming, and these local leaders have confided that sometimes they find themselves going to Sister Mina’s bedside for encouragement.
And the Lord has blessed Mina in return. For the past 10 years, Mina has been one of the widows our readers have been supporting each month. Her neighbors help as well. When the local Mennonite church heard about Mina’s situation, a crew of brothers came out and installed an indoor bathroom in her little house. They brought in electricity and put a brand new roof on her house. As Jesus promised, “Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you” (Matt. 6:33).
Another Scripture that comes to mind when I think of Mina is 1 Timothy 6:6-8: “Now godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out. And having food and clothing, with these we shall be content.” We’ve all read that passage many times. But how many Christians do you know who are actually content with just food, clothing, and (presumably) shelter? Sister Mina is the only Christian I’ve known who truly was.
Many years ago I heard the British evangelist Leonard Ravenhill say, “The only time you can truly say, ‘Jesus is all I need,’ is when Jesus is all you’ve got! Sister Mina was one such Christian who could truly say, “Jesus is all I need.” Her life proved it.
The Society of the Good Shepherd, P. O. Box 122, Amberson, PA 17210 • (717) 349-7033
Click on the following link if you would care to make a donation to the work in Honduras: Donations
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