More lessons in trust

One thing this trip has done is to bring us into contact with people who really do live by faith. So often, when we have asked people why they think they are where the are, the answer has been "Because this is where God has called me to be." These are people who are completely sensible and down to earth, they are completely unself-conscious about their conviction that God is guiding them.

Over lunch today, Dorothy Tarrant told us a story. She got an email last year from a woman in Pakistan who is Roman Catholic, inquiring about coming to Sighisoara to volunteer. She realized, she said, that Veritas wouldn't normally get volunteers from Pakistan, but she believed God was calling her and she had something to offer. She said that relatives who lived in Europe had offered to pay her way.

Dorothy thought that having a volunteer from a country even poorer than Romania had some real positives and began to look into it. But immediately there were visa problems. Romania considers Pakistan a "negative country" and Veritas would be required to post a 2500 Euro bond in case they decided to deport her. Dorothy figured at that point that the idea was a non-starter because they didn't have that kind of money sitting around.

But then she said she woke up in the middle of the night with the story from 1 Kings about the widow of Zarephath in her mind. That's the story of Elijah visiting a poor widow who is not an ISraelite at the height of a famine. He asks her for something to eat. She replies that she only has enough flour and oil to make one last meal for her and her son, after which they will lie down and die. Elijah says "Make something for me first, and there will be enough." And miraculously the oil and the flour are replenished every day.

Dorothy said it was like God was saying to her, "I have plans to bring this woman to you. Who are you to say we can't afford to put aside this money. Do it and I will provide." So she got the money together. As it turned out, the Romanian immigration authorities didn't even ask for the money. The Pakistani woman came and was a real blessing to the work here.

This is one of the most important lessons I'm going to take home with me. I have realized how obsessed I have become with trying to eliminate every element of risk before I do anything. I'm going to take home with me not only this story of faith, but many others.