Phyllis' request

At a church gathering we attended in Portsmouth this week I was touched by the sincere devotion given by a woman named Phyllis. Phyllis is 75 years old, has been blind for more than fifty years, has had cancer for over ten years, has had 2 hip replacement surgeries, and her back is so bad she can no longer stand upright. Yet this dear frail woman moved slowly but boldly to the front of the room to share with a group of 50 people what God had laid on her heart, a simple yet powerful message of His love. She shared her testimony and described how people in the congregation have been there to help her through all of her trials, cooking meals for her, giving her car rides, and doing whatever she has needed from them. They have been God’s love to her. She cited aloud John 3:16 and then asked people to consider how incredible it is that God loves the entire world so much that He sent His son to die for us… And then she asked everyone, and this is the part that touched me, “I want all of you to forget Phyllis right now and instead think of someone else who could use God’s love in his/her life right now, someone you should call or write tomorrow to tell them how much you care. It may be a brother, a cousin, a friend who you may not have spoken to recently. And don’t you wait because it may be too late…” Her words had an urgency about them, as though she knew this would be one of the last times she would be addressing a crowd of people this size.

There is just something about a crippled and blind woman genuinely pleading with you to forget about her problems and use that energy to show someone else Jesus’ love that truly reflects His sacrifice. Her words that said “forget about the pain this is causing me, just love others to reflect God’s love” remind me of another story…

Kelly