Jesus loves me...

It’s late but I have to share today with you…at least as much of it as I can get down before I fall face forward on to the keyboard…I’m really tired tonight.

Miguel asked us last week if we could help him transport a dresser to his house today so he took the bus in to the church (today was his day off) so we could go pick it up. He has been saving his money for a long time for this purchase. He was picking it up with mixed feelings as he and Elizabeth hadn’t spoken since she left and he had wanted to get the dresser to make their little house (about 10’ x 12’) feel more like a home. Jim and I had been praying that perhaps Miguel would agree to take us to Elizabeth’s grandmother’s house so we could try to talk to her. He was a bit rattled when he got off the bus as it was running late and he was worried we wouldn’t wait for him. I decided to wait until a bit later to approach the subject of going to see Elizabeth.

Miguel gave us directions to the furniture “store”…as we drove in unfamiliar territory, the realization hit Jim and me at the same time that we were starting in to the Oriental Market, reputed to be the most dangerous market in Central America. True or not, I wasn’t happy with our surroundings. We were just on the fringes of it but even so, neither one of us felt very safe being there. This is one of those places that we’ve been warned by every person we have met, Nicas and Americans, that we are to avoid. And where did we find ourselves? Naturally…

I’m sure it was my imagination but I felt like we might as well have had a loudspeaker attached to our car announcing that it was being commandeered by gringos! We got lots of stares and even people stepping out in to the street by the car to try to get us to stop at their little stalls. It was so congested. I told Miguel I didn’t like being there and he said we were just driving through that area to get to the place we needed to be. As far as I was concerned, we couldn’t get through it fast enough.

We finally found the furniture place…things must look different from the back seat of a car versus on foot as it took Miguel some time to get his bearings. No exaggeration, we went around one block 5 times! But find it we did and thankfully, there was a place to park right by it. Even though it wasn’t right in the Market, it was close enough to it that we felt we needed to be extra aware of our surroundings. I contemplated staying in the car with the doors locked but that thought only lasted about 3 seconds…there was furniture to look at! Even if I wasn’t buying any, it still fell under the category of shopping and we get to do so little of that these days that I just couldn’t resist. So, out I jumped with my purse held in a death grip under my arm and began walking with Miguel…giving my opinion on various items and asking how things were made and how much they cost. I don’t think the owner was too thrilled with my questions but he wasn’t sure I wasn’t going to buy anything so he tolerated my nosiness.

Miguel got his dresser and was thrilled. He chose a green Formica upright dresser mainly based on its size and the finish. It wasn’t something I would have necessarily chosen but I think it fit his parameters - it was the right size and it would be much easier to wipe down than a wood-finished dresser. The floor in Miguel’s house is dirt. Thankfully, we were able to fit his new purchase in the back of the car and leave one of the split back seats up so he didn’t have to ride all crunched up all the way to Tipitapa.

The next hurdle was to find our way out of that area without going back through the Market. Miguel asked directions and off we went. The problem with someone who doesn’t drive giving directions is they rarely tell you when to turn until you’re already halfway through the intersection. Poor Jim. Miguel was giving directions in Spanish and I was translating…that didn’t expedite anything. We had to turn around several times to get to the right road.
Jim asked Miguel which lane we needed to be in and he told us the left lane. Jim complied. But then, as we’re sitting at the light, several cars back and with our blinker on, Miguel suddenly decided we needed to be in the right lane. He asked Jim to roll down his back window so he could ask the guy in the car next to us. The guy confirmed we needed to switch to the right lane so we could go straight through the light.

Jim was going to go ahead and turn left and try to find a place to turn around but Miguel told him it was okay to go ahead and go straight. I looked behind us and the car was turning so Jim had the opportunity to change to the right lane. As we finished going through the intersection, what should our eyes behold but one of Managua’s finest motioning for us to pull over. Jim and I just groaned. We both knew exactly what the infraction was going to be and we deserved it. Oh, well. The officer was well within his rights to stop us and to write us a ticket and we were ready to receive it.

Miguel had Jim roll his window down again and thus began the interchange between Miguel and the officer. Of course, it was an exercise in debate with Jim’s license being firmly held by the officer. Miguel kept telling the officer that it was his fault that we crossed in to the other lane as he was telling us what to do and where to go. The officer said that Jim was going to get a ticket and we said we understood and we told Miguel it was okay. Miguel argued with us saying it wasn’t okay. He wanted us to “pay” the officer then instead of going to the bank as we would have to do. We told Miguel “no” that we wouldn’t pay the officer to keep from getting the ticket and that it was going to be okay. Miguel was distraught. We were fine.

The officer kept talking with Miguel, asking where we had bought the dresser, where we were going, where he lived, where we lived, if we spoke Spanish, and so on. I understood enough that I realized Miguel wasn’t getting anywhere. All of a sudden, the officer, who had already begun writing the ticket and had not smiled one time, handed Jim back our documents and his license. He told us that he wasn’t going to give us a ticket after all. We were stunned...but pleased and relieved.

We thanked him, put our things away and our moment came. The one we have been waiting for…the one I had told Mandy about last week. I was almost ready to burst with excitement. See, we have several little baggies already made up and put in our glove box. They’re our Policia Bags. Each baggie has a tract, an ink pen and 100 cordobas stuck in between the pages of a Gospel of John (of course, in Spanish). I reached in and grabbed one and handed it to Jim to give to the officer. The policeman was watching us very warily, not sure what we were up to. But the officer broke into a great smile when we told him we had a small gift for him. I asked him his name and he told me and thanked us for the baggie. He was looking at the pen. He would have been blessed simply by getting it. I told him we would pray for him and he thanked us. It was such a great moment but Jim was about to take it up a notch.

Jim showed the officer the money tucked in the Gospel and the look on his face was priceless! His mouth dropped open and his eyes widened twice their size. He couldn't believe it. He touched the money through the baggie in awe. Jim told him it was to help buy food for his family. He was astounded! I hope I never forget that face…it was the epitome of how we all should be when we realize how great the unmerited gift we have received in our salvation. That look…it made my day because we had made his with the equivalent of a $5.00 bill.

It was such an upside-down moment. Most folks give the police money to keep from getting a ticket. We had already planned that the next time we were stopped, we would wait until we had received our ticket before giving the policeman any money. We wanted to bless the guy not bribe him. So today, when we thought we were going to have our first opportunity to do so, he ended up giving us Jim's license back! We were not to be derailed from our plan though...it was too good to not follow through with it! So, we gifted the policeman after our business was through so there would be no mistake that it was a blessing from the Lord and not a plea from us for leniency.

We were on cloud nine as we pulled away, asking God to bless the officer and his family. Our goodbyes were more like friends saying farewell instead of pulling away from a traffic stop. I’m sure he was floating around on his own cloud and could hardly wait to go home to share his story with his family. We are praying he will take the time to read the Gospel and the tract…we know he’ll carry the ink pen and I hope it will remind him of that moment every time he uses it. It has printed on it, “Jesus te ama” - “Jesus loves you”. His love caught that officer by surprise today and we were all blessed by it.

Miguel was speechless. He apologized for his part in our getting stopped and I told him it wasn't his fault and there wasn't a problem...that it was good. He just shook his head. I know he sometimes thinks we're crazy. And maybe we are...but being crazy like this just can't be beat because God blesses us every time we think we're blessing someone else...wish you could have seen that officer's face...

It’s late and tomorrow is a school day so I’m quitting for tonight. I’ll share about our visit to Tipitapa later in the week. G’night.