An Exchange

A black cord was tied around her neck.

Our eyes were immediately drawn to it. Usually, symbolic of a witchcraft agreement the person made. Little did we know that murder, pain and a broken family were all wrapped up in this simple black cord.

She originally came to us for prayer for physical healing, but afterwards, we could see there was such deep sadness in her face. When asked where her true pain was coming from, she told us the story of her daughter being viciously attacked and murdered by her own father with a machete.

All the while the black cord hung from her neck...

She said that she had not made any witchcraft agreement, when we queried about the necklace, but that it was a reminder to her of her daughter. She was literally "wearing" the weight of her death around her neck.

I felt the Lord Himself was looking to make an exchange with her. I looked to my own neck to see if I had a necklace I could replace it with. Death to Life. Bitterness to Love. As I realized I was wearing no necklace, Donna was already taking off her own and handing it to her. She explained that the Lord was giving her joy instead of her mourning. I held my water bottle in my hand and explained that if someone wanted to hand me a gift, I would have to put down the object my hand was already holding in order to receive it. Would she be willing to give her bitterness and unforgiveness toward her daughter's murderer to receive the gift of forgiveness, peace and healing the Lord wanted to give her?

One simple word will now forever echo throughout her eternity...
"Yes."

She is pictured above with her new necklace. Cheerful beads of blue, red, green, black and white, where once hung a painful reminder.

She would later say to a village pastor regarding our encounter with her, "Those people told me things about my life that no one could know."  Hiking back from her village, I had tears in my eyes remembering what the Samaritan Woman said about Jesus- "He told me everything I had ever done." And it's true, whether it is next to Biblical wells, beside African mud huts, in ancient days, in modern days and all the days and places in between, he is still meeting with his kids, waiting with open arms for us to make an exchange.

His beauty for our ashes.