I do.This story was written by a doctor who worked in
> South Africa...
>
>
> One night I had worked hard to help a mother in the
> labor ward; but in
> spite of all we could do, she died leaving us with a
> tiny premature baby
> and a crying two-year-old daughter. We would have
> difficulty keeping the
> baby alive, as we had no incubator (we had no
> electricity to run an
> incubator).
>
>
> We also had no special feeding facilities. Although
> we lived on the
> equator, nights were often chilly with treacherous
> drafts. One student
> midwife went for the box we had for such babies and
> the cotton wool that
> the baby would be wrapped in.
>
>
> Another went to stoke up the fire and fill a hot
> water bottle. She came
> back shortly in distress to tell me that in filling
> the bottle, it had
> burst (rubber perishes easily in tropical climates).
> "And it is our last
> hot water bottle!" she exclaimed. As in the West, it
> is no good crying
> over spilled milk so in Central Africa it might be
> considered no good
> crying over burst water bottles. They do not grow on
> trees, and there
> are no drugstores down forest pathways.
>
>
> "All right," said, "put the baby as near the fire
> as you safely can,
> and sleep between the baby and the door to keep it
> free from drafts.
> Your job is to keep the baby warm."
>
>
> The following noon, as did most days, I went to
> have prayers with many
> of the orphanage children who chose to gather with
> me. I gave the
> youngsters various suggestions of things to pray
> about and told them
> about the tiny baby. I explained our problem about
> keeping the baby warm
> enough, mentioning the hot water bottle, and that
> the baby could so
> easily die if it got chills. I also told them of the two-year-old
> sister, crying because her mother had died.
>
>
> During prayer time, one ten-year old girl, Ruth,
> prayed with the usual
> blunt conciseness of our African children. "Please,
> God" she prayed,
> "send us a water bottle. It'll be no good tomorrow,
> God, as the baby
> will be dead, so please send it this afternoon."
>
>
> While I gasped inwardly at the audacity of the
> prayer, she added, "And
> while You are about it, would You please send a
> dolly for the little
> girl so she'll know You really love her?"
>
>
> As often with children's prayers, I was put on the
> spot. Could I
> honestly say, "Amen". I just did not believe that
> God could do this. Oh,
> yes, I know that He can do everything, the Bible
> says so. But there are
> limits, aren't there? The only way God could answer
> this particular
> prayer would be by sending me a parcel from
> homeland. I had been in
> Africa for almost four years at that time, and I had
> never, ever
> received a parcel from home. Anyway, if anyone did
> send me a parcel, who
> would put in a hot water bottle? I lived on the
> equator! Halfway through
> the afternoon, while I was teaching in the nurses'
> training school, a
> message was sent that there was a car at my front
> door.!
>
>
> By the time I reached home, the car had gone, but
> there, on the veranda,
> was a large twenty-two pound parcel. I felt tears
> pricking my eyes. I
> could not open the parcel alone, so I sent for the
> orphanage children.
>
>
> Together we pulled off the string, carefully undoing
> each knot. We
> folded the paper, taking care not to tear it unduly.
> Excitement was
> mounting.
>
> Some thirty or forty pairs of eyes were focused on
> the large cardboard
> box. >From the top, I lifted out brightly colored,
> knitted jerseys.
> Eyes sparkled as I gave them out. Then there were
> the knitted bandages
> for the leprosy patients, and the children looked a
> little bored. Then
> came a box of mixed raisins and sultanas - that
> would make a batch of
> buns for the weekend. Then, as I put my hand in
> again, I felt
> the.....could it really be? I grasped it and pulled
> it out - yes, a
> brand-new, rubber hot water bottle. I cried. I had
> not asked God to send
> it; I had not truly believed that He could. Ruth was
> in the front row of
> the children. She rushed forward, crying out, "If
> God has sent the
> bottle, He must have sent the dolly too!"
>
> Rummaging down to the bottom of the box, she pulled
> out the small,
> beautifully dressed dolly. Her eyes shone! She had
> never doubted!
>
>
> Looking up at me, she asked: "Can I go over with you
> and give this dolly
> to that little girl, so she'll know that God
> really loves her?"
>
>
> That parcel had been on the way for five whole
> months. Packed up by my
> former Sunday school class, whose leader had heard
> and obeyed God's
> prompting to send a hot water bottle, even to the
> equator. And one of
> the girls had put in a dolly for an African child -
> five months before,
> in answer to the believing prayer of a ten-year-old
> to bring it "that
> afternoon."
>
>
> "Before they call, I will answer"
> This awesome prayer
> takes less than a minute. When you receive this, say
> the prayer, that's
> all you have to do. No strings attached! . Just send
> it on to whomever
> you want - but do send it on. Prayer is one of the
> best free gifts we
> receive. There is no cost but a lot of rewards.
> Let's continue praying
> for one another
2007-03-14 22:34:35
·
answer #5
·
answered by Anonymous
·
0⤊
2⤋