I'm a University student in Toronto, Ontario. As a student within the Christian body on campus, we evangelize, and we pray for the people on campus - that they'd encounter God's love and accept Jesus into their hearts, being forever changed.
During our prayers, I couldn't help but realize that as I pray for students (Muslims, Hindus, Atheists, Lukewarm Christians, Agnostics, etc), there is absolutely no burden in my heart for them. I feel like I'm just saying prayers for the sake of prayer, yet deep down inside I know, and feel, that I don't care for them and love them as Jesus does.
As a Social Work student, I have a long walk to class. It takes about 15 minutes from the main University campus. So, as I was walking one day, I dedicated my prayer to asking God to help me love others as He loves them. God has always answered my prayers, but He always answers them on His timing - weeks, months, or years after I initially pray. So, as I prayed to God during this walk, I didn't expect Him to answer it anytime soon. Instead, I expected to look back on my prayer request a year later, to find that God indeed answered my prayer.
Anyways, I get to class, and my day is pretty normal. Now, at this point in the testimony, there's a few things you need to know about me. 1) I used to be (and still am a little) very anti-social. By anti-social, I mean that I'd rather be quiet/alone than to have company/speak. So, on bus rides, in the past, I'd stand for an hour and a half instead of sitting down because I didn't want to socialize with or be near anyone. 2) I'm a Latino male, but I'm as white as white can be. People mistake me for Italian, Portugese, White, Arabic, but very few people (maybe only 5%) know I'm Latino.
So, on my way back from class, I get on the bus, and I'm tired. So, I rest my head against the window, and begin to sleep. I wake up to a man yelling at me, in Spanish. This man is walking towards me quickly, pointing at me, yelling "HERMANO!" (which means "BROTHER!"). I wake up, very groggy, having no idea what's happening to me. I slowly open my eyes and realize yes, this man is shouting at me, and he is walking towards me. Even though there's space everywhere else on the bus, he sits down RIGHT beside me. I'm trapped.
The man then begins to hug me, rest his head on my shoulder, and rub my hands. At this point, a normal persons reaction would be to 1) Leave 2) Call the police 3) Ask him to stop 4) Punch the stranger. I just sat there. So, here's an absolute stranger, calling me brother, sitting beside me, and literally cuddling with me. People on the bus are staring at me, eyes wide open, asking me if I want them to call the cops. I tell them it's okay.
The man begins to tell me that he loves me, and I tell him that I love him as well. So, me and the man begin to speak. I ask him his name, and he says it's John. I ask him where he's from, and he says he's from the same place I'm from. I chuckle and I ask him "Where?" he looks at me with a huge grin on his face and responds "Colombia.". I am shocked. I ask him what city. He responds "The same city you're from". I say "Where?" he says "Medellin". I am shocked.
Now, even though I'm shocked, I'm so dumbfounded that I can't even think straight. There's a stranger. He knows I'm latino. He's from the same country and city as my family. He's hugging me, resting his head on me, and rubbing my hands. I have NO IDEA what's going on. So, I don't respond how a rational person would. I just kind of sat there in silence.
After a while, he starts to point at people on the bus. As he points at them, I realize they're staring at him with hatred in their eyes. They think he's a drunk homeless man who's too loud for his own good - it's written all over their faces. As he points at them, they quickly look away as if they hadn't been staring at him in the first place. Everytime he points at someone, he says to me "You see that person?", I respond "Yeah", he says "They don't love me like you do. They hate me.".
I just kind of nod, and he continues. Several times throughout the ride, he'll point at someone, we'll catch them staring, and he'll say "They don't love me like you do". Anyways, after a bit of this, and silences in between, there's a long, awkward silence, where he just rests his head on my shoulder. I have no idea what to say because I'm just dumbfounded.
Eventually, I decide to continue the conversation. I say "John, you know what, you seem very familiar." and he says "Oh yeah?" I say "Yeah, I feel like I know you from somewhere" and he says "Oh". I ask him "Do I know you from somewhere?" and he says "No, but I know you very well". I say "Where do you know me from?" and he looks at me, smiles, and he says "I know you from heaven". Again, I'm just dumbfounded. This isn't a normal conversation. So, in my stupor, I just nod a few times.
Eventually, he asks me to look into his eyes. I look into his eyes. He says to me "You have the love of God in your heart.". Again, in my stupor, I just kind of nod and say "Thank you".
So, my bus stop comes, and I have to go. I say bye to John, and he says bye to me. As I'm getting off of the bus, he shouts "I love you!" and even though the entire bus is staring at me, I shout back "I love you too!".
Anyways, I go home, and find the entire event to be EXTREMELY strange, and I know it isn't normal, or just a coincidence. This happened to me about 8 months ago. Recently, I was thinking back on the event, and I realized God answered my prayer, the very same day I asked Him for help.
Earlier that day, I had been praying that God would give me a heart to love others. All of the sudden, on my way home later that day, a stranger appears, tests me in EVERY way possible (Touching, affection, embarrassment, words of affection, and so on), yet I'm COMPLETELY comfortable. More so than this, throughout the whole ride, he tells me that I love him when others don't, and he ends off the whole conversation by saying he can see the love of God on my heart.
Now, I'm no expert on angels. But, I do know God can send angels to communicate a message to people, to warn people, and to test people (amongst other things, perhaps). In all honesty, I believe God sent me an angel that day. And I believe he sent that angel to communicate to me that He's given me a heart to love others.
I have absolutely no idea how this man knew I was Latino, how he knew I was from Colombia, and how he knew I was from Medellin. I have no idea why he said he knew me from heaven, or why he said he could see God's love in my heart. All I know is that I felt completely comfortable around this man, and I can honestly say, in my heart, that I love this man. As I sat with him, he felt like my father, and I felt no pressure or awkwardness in having him be so close to me, or in having a grown man confess his love for me, and vice versa.
In any case, this is just a testimony that God is good. He answers prayer. And, He answers them in His perfect timing (I expected months of waiting, as usual, but He pulled a fast one on me). I'm glad that God has given me a heart to love others, and I pray that I'll actively love others, and act as a light in this world - all for the glory of God.
God bless all of you. Sorry for the long post.
During our prayers, I couldn't help but realize that as I pray for students (Muslims, Hindus, Atheists, Lukewarm Christians, Agnostics, etc), there is absolutely no burden in my heart for them. I feel like I'm just saying prayers for the sake of prayer, yet deep down inside I know, and feel, that I don't care for them and love them as Jesus does.
As a Social Work student, I have a long walk to class. It takes about 15 minutes from the main University campus. So, as I was walking one day, I dedicated my prayer to asking God to help me love others as He loves them. God has always answered my prayers, but He always answers them on His timing - weeks, months, or years after I initially pray. So, as I prayed to God during this walk, I didn't expect Him to answer it anytime soon. Instead, I expected to look back on my prayer request a year later, to find that God indeed answered my prayer.
Anyways, I get to class, and my day is pretty normal. Now, at this point in the testimony, there's a few things you need to know about me. 1) I used to be (and still am a little) very anti-social. By anti-social, I mean that I'd rather be quiet/alone than to have company/speak. So, on bus rides, in the past, I'd stand for an hour and a half instead of sitting down because I didn't want to socialize with or be near anyone. 2) I'm a Latino male, but I'm as white as white can be. People mistake me for Italian, Portugese, White, Arabic, but very few people (maybe only 5%) know I'm Latino.
So, on my way back from class, I get on the bus, and I'm tired. So, I rest my head against the window, and begin to sleep. I wake up to a man yelling at me, in Spanish. This man is walking towards me quickly, pointing at me, yelling "HERMANO!" (which means "BROTHER!"). I wake up, very groggy, having no idea what's happening to me. I slowly open my eyes and realize yes, this man is shouting at me, and he is walking towards me. Even though there's space everywhere else on the bus, he sits down RIGHT beside me. I'm trapped.
The man then begins to hug me, rest his head on my shoulder, and rub my hands. At this point, a normal persons reaction would be to 1) Leave 2) Call the police 3) Ask him to stop 4) Punch the stranger. I just sat there. So, here's an absolute stranger, calling me brother, sitting beside me, and literally cuddling with me. People on the bus are staring at me, eyes wide open, asking me if I want them to call the cops. I tell them it's okay.
The man begins to tell me that he loves me, and I tell him that I love him as well. So, me and the man begin to speak. I ask him his name, and he says it's John. I ask him where he's from, and he says he's from the same place I'm from. I chuckle and I ask him "Where?" he looks at me with a huge grin on his face and responds "Colombia.". I am shocked. I ask him what city. He responds "The same city you're from". I say "Where?" he says "Medellin". I am shocked.
Now, even though I'm shocked, I'm so dumbfounded that I can't even think straight. There's a stranger. He knows I'm latino. He's from the same country and city as my family. He's hugging me, resting his head on me, and rubbing my hands. I have NO IDEA what's going on. So, I don't respond how a rational person would. I just kind of sat there in silence.
After a while, he starts to point at people on the bus. As he points at them, I realize they're staring at him with hatred in their eyes. They think he's a drunk homeless man who's too loud for his own good - it's written all over their faces. As he points at them, they quickly look away as if they hadn't been staring at him in the first place. Everytime he points at someone, he says to me "You see that person?", I respond "Yeah", he says "They don't love me like you do. They hate me.".
I just kind of nod, and he continues. Several times throughout the ride, he'll point at someone, we'll catch them staring, and he'll say "They don't love me like you do". Anyways, after a bit of this, and silences in between, there's a long, awkward silence, where he just rests his head on my shoulder. I have no idea what to say because I'm just dumbfounded.
Eventually, I decide to continue the conversation. I say "John, you know what, you seem very familiar." and he says "Oh yeah?" I say "Yeah, I feel like I know you from somewhere" and he says "Oh". I ask him "Do I know you from somewhere?" and he says "No, but I know you very well". I say "Where do you know me from?" and he looks at me, smiles, and he says "I know you from heaven". Again, I'm just dumbfounded. This isn't a normal conversation. So, in my stupor, I just nod a few times.
Eventually, he asks me to look into his eyes. I look into his eyes. He says to me "You have the love of God in your heart.". Again, in my stupor, I just kind of nod and say "Thank you".
So, my bus stop comes, and I have to go. I say bye to John, and he says bye to me. As I'm getting off of the bus, he shouts "I love you!" and even though the entire bus is staring at me, I shout back "I love you too!".
Anyways, I go home, and find the entire event to be EXTREMELY strange, and I know it isn't normal, or just a coincidence. This happened to me about 8 months ago. Recently, I was thinking back on the event, and I realized God answered my prayer, the very same day I asked Him for help.
Earlier that day, I had been praying that God would give me a heart to love others. All of the sudden, on my way home later that day, a stranger appears, tests me in EVERY way possible (Touching, affection, embarrassment, words of affection, and so on), yet I'm COMPLETELY comfortable. More so than this, throughout the whole ride, he tells me that I love him when others don't, and he ends off the whole conversation by saying he can see the love of God on my heart.
Now, I'm no expert on angels. But, I do know God can send angels to communicate a message to people, to warn people, and to test people (amongst other things, perhaps). In all honesty, I believe God sent me an angel that day. And I believe he sent that angel to communicate to me that He's given me a heart to love others.
I have absolutely no idea how this man knew I was Latino, how he knew I was from Colombia, and how he knew I was from Medellin. I have no idea why he said he knew me from heaven, or why he said he could see God's love in my heart. All I know is that I felt completely comfortable around this man, and I can honestly say, in my heart, that I love this man. As I sat with him, he felt like my father, and I felt no pressure or awkwardness in having him be so close to me, or in having a grown man confess his love for me, and vice versa.
In any case, this is just a testimony that God is good. He answers prayer. And, He answers them in His perfect timing (I expected months of waiting, as usual, but He pulled a fast one on me). I'm glad that God has given me a heart to love others, and I pray that I'll actively love others, and act as a light in this world - all for the glory of God.
God bless all of you. Sorry for the long post.
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