Last month, I was on a plane departing from a tiny little airport in my hometown headed to a nearby state just a quick hour or two away by plane. I sat next to a Polynesian woman. We will call her Lanai. Lanai had some very interesting stories. She had many very interesting stories. In fact, I was so grateful the plane ride was only a short distance because if we had flown across the country I am sure her stories never would have ceased!
However, on of her stories was really incredible. Her father was a Christian missionary in New Zealand many years ago. When he had returned and raised a family of his own, he told the story to his children often.
During his mission, he was assigned to serve a small community high up in the mountains. At first, he struggled to accomplish the tasks to help the community in this area. He had high hops and big plans, but his offer was not received well by the local residents. Surely a little frustrated, he was humbled in prayer and concluded he needed to fast to witness a miracle and a change of heart. Lanai mentioned this particular fast lasted more than the typical 24 hours. It came to a point when the missionary was so hungry he did not have strength to do continue talking with members of the community. He was up in the hills, away from any house or person besides one other missionary who was with him. He prayed that God would deliver just one loaf of bread so he could end his fast and have renewed physical strength to continue his work. At the conclusion of the prayer, he opened his eyes to see a fresh loaf of bread on a rock not far from where he was praying. It seemed to have appeared out of no where. It was nothing short of a miracle. The man needed a loaf of bread and prayed in faith and God delivered. For many many years this was the end of the story.
We hear stories like this every once in a while. And quite frankly, I hate to be the scrooge of the day but I always am just a liiiitle bit skeptical of the reality of some of them. I do not doubt that God has the power to do something like this - absolutely not but they always seem so out of place. I don't know many of them seem too bizarre to be true. Perhaps it is a lesson to me to have more faith in modern miracles. I should have more faith.
Lanai continued on with a new addition in the story. She had recently met someone who lived in the very community at the very time her father had served as a missionary in. This woman had a story of her own. It was a story passed down from her mother. It was a story of the missing loaf of bread. The mother was busy making bread for her family one hot afternoon high in the mountains of New Zealand. Her house was far separated from her tiny town. As she was making the bread, she for some reason she could not recall, she set it outside on a nearby rock to cool off before bringing it in with the rest of the loafs she had just made. After a few minutes she returned to the rock but could never find the loaf she had just set out there. She didn't know where it had gone or what had happened to it. She said that she would always remember the story however because it all occurred on the same day she was introduced to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Later that day she was in town and had met the same missionary who had found her loaf of bread. They never connected the stories until both of their daughters met together in Utah and exchanged stories. Interesting isnt it?
The point I am trying to make with this story is that miracles can occur by everyday people. The woman making the bread never knew what happened to her loaf. The hungry missionary never knew how the bread appeared on the rock. The bread maker was a modern day angel. I am sure God directed this exchange. It was great. I love stories like this. If we do what we are supposed to and live the best we can, we will be put in situations where we need to be in order to help others and spread the light of Christ throughout the world.
No comments:
Post a Comment