A Clinic Update

“Suzanne” arrived a little late to the clinic this past week. Her name was last on our sign-in sheet. Fortunately, our volunteer doctor had already agreed to stay as late as necessary to see everyone who needed to be seen. While she was in a patient room waiting to see the doctor, I went in to talk with her. Suzanne told me she’d grown up in a middle-class family. Her parents were missionaries in Mexico. Now in her mid-fifties, she found herself in a completely new situation. Due to health problems, family issues and the poor economy, Suzanne was without a job and homeless for the first time in her life.

The amazing part of her story is that, through tears, Suzanne spoke of the Lord’s faithfulness. She admitted that she had always claimed to have trusted God, but recently realized that in the past, she’d always had a safety net. With her current situation, she had nothing to fall back on, except Jesus -- and He was consistently supplying her needs! She spoke of having to trust Him for her next meal and a place to stay for the night, and of His tender care and amazing provision. Suzanne testified that although she was facing the toughest situation in her life, she was also growing more than ever in her intimacy with her Lord and Savior.

The short time I spent with Suzanne challenged and inspired me. Her testimony has been like a magnifying glass to my own lack of trust and misplaced priorities. I have thought of and prayed for Suzanne every day since our meeting, and I am still being challenged by her story.

Our volunteer team was able to give her some antibiotics for a painful infection she was dealing with, but what I received from her was far more valuable. I was the one who was supposed to be blessing Suzanne, but it turned out to be quite the opposite. Thank you, Lord, for your wonderful ways!