“I have learned that faith means trusting in advance what will only make sense in reverse.” – Philip YanceyThere are pivotal moments in life that happen to each of us that will either alter us for the better or simply redefine our faith; I can honestly admit that I’ve experienced both. In December of 2011, our church held a service called “The Miracle Offering”. We were challenged to test God in the area of our tithes and giving. Growing up in the faith, I have always known that Malachi 3:10 is the only verse in the Bible where we can literally “test” God. Like any good Christian, I decided to take Him at His word. To say the least, 2012 was miraculous for our family. That simple step of faith and trusting Him led to our “Jubilee“. For those of you unfamiliar with “Christianese” or Christian lingo, Jubilee, simply means the year of restoration; where everything you’ve lost or was taken from you is restored. Now, only a handful of those close to me even know my family’s actual story / testimony. Due to a plethora of circumstances, of which I won’t bore you with all the details and logistics, my family and I were temporarily and geographically separated from our Dad for about 10 years, 1 month and 7 days. The journey that my family and I went through during that time could fill 3 novels worth and would probably take the same length of time to relay. So for your sake and mine, I will simply summarize it. In that time of separation, my amazing parents daily lived out their faith. I witnessed first hand the true meaning of “for better or worse”. Despite the distance, time difference and not to mention the waiting and uncertainty of them ever seeing each other face to face, their love stood the test of time. My parents communicated everyday, calling each other just to wake the other up to start their day (day time for Dad was evening for my Mom). In spite all that, they made it work. So you can only imagine, the overwhelming joy and gratitude we felt, when on May of 2012, we got a call from our Dad saying he was finally able to come and see us. I sincerely believe that Jesus stood on our behalf that day and granted our family’s beautiful reunion. In hindsight, He knew what lay ahead, He gave us a gift and I am forever grateful. I will always recount those days with immense joy because it had been awhile since I’ve seen my Mom that joyful. It was as if life and vigor had flown back to her. Most of our family that witnessed our reunion will attest to the fact that it truly was the happiest they’ve ever seen our Mom. Our parents were like teenagers who had fallen in love all over again. Our family felt whole and our faith remained stronger than ever. My father’s departure back to the Middle East was bittersweet but this time, we had the promise of an eventual return. So, once again we did our best to wait with anticipation. Flash forward to the 17th of December, 2012 just six months after our emotional family reunion — I still cannot quite fully put into words how that day has forever altered my life, but I do know in my heart that in the midst of it all, His grace was sufficient. He was with us from the minute we rushed our Mom to the hospital and even until the moment she passed, which was only 2 days thereafter. So in less than 72 hours my world was once again rocked. If 10 years of waiting and hoping for a miracle had taught me anything, it was that this life has always been and will always be about Him. He being Jesus, is the center of it all. My Mom’s passing though sudden made me realize that not only is life fragile but that life without Him is meaningless. My mother left my siblings and I an incredible legacy of faith. She was the first person in our family to have a genuine encounter with Jesus. It’s one thing to be a Christian in the free world where you can proudly profess your beliefs but it takes audacious faith to be a Christian in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia where you boldly live out your faith daily. It is because of her faith then that continues to impact mine now. And that even in her death, He was still glorified. In the days that led up to her funeral, I received a deluge of emails, letters, text messages and phone calls of encouragement and remarkable stories of how my Mom impacted the lives of those she met. Until now, I am still so touched by all those who continue to contact me and recount in detail how much my Mom meant to them. As her child, I at times have taken her for granted. Blinded by familiarity, I didn’t see then that in the midst of her busy schedule, she found and made time to care, call and go out of her way to help others. I am so impressed by my Mom, because in her own crazy way, she did her very best to live out her faith and make Him known. Growing up, I always looked up to my Dad; his accomplishments, strength of character and faith were larger than life. It was often my Dad that I admired and believed I took after. Now 2 months and 15 days have passed since my Mom got promoted to heaven and I have been repeatedly told I resemble my mom in physical feature and character. I have realized that this strong, courageous, short woman whose personality was just as large as her kindness and generosity was in fact all along, my hero as well. It’s good to know that I’ve got big shoes to fill. You will never hear of my Mom’s story in People magazine or Vogue or Time magazine or even the Guinness World Records but her name is written in the one book that matters most, the Lamb’s book of life. “Ma, I thank God for you and the life you’ve given me. Thank you for loving me. Thank you for teaching me and showing me what faith is.” I have been told that “grief is different for every person” and that “time heals” but each day as I try my best to pick up the pieces and move forward, I have learnt that His grace is sufficient. I have never known such sorrow but at the same time I’ve never had more hope in Him. To quote from my current song on repeat, “It’s always like spring time with [Him] because He makes all things new” 🙂 so I can always look forward to better days ahead. xoxo m.l.o.v.
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A Day in the Life of Me 