I remember feeling tired when Paq, Geo’s brother asked me to go with him to pick up his girlfriend – and pray for her grandfather. Apparently this man had taken a sudden turn for the worse, struggling with balance, strength, and endurance. I looked at Dave and Brad. Dave, who had been battling some kinduv sickness that was keeping him
just under the weather, quickly ducked out. Brad was wavering.

I decided to take one for the team. Sometimes I feel like I’m wearing out from nearly two and a half years of exploring and learning. The adventure is amazing, but I have to be careful to recharge. At the moment, I felt tired and under-prepared. I went to my room to grab a baseball cap and sunglasses, using the time to pray.

“God, I don’t feel like fighting anything right now. Can this be easy? I’m going to go, but I’m going to let you do your thing and stay outta the way. I really want to see this man get better.” I feel somewhere in me that He’s saying that I’m going to be surprised by what He does. I picture a successful trip in my head

The vistas in Yunguilla, Ecuador, where I was relaxing for the weekend with the Osorio family, were impressive. Paq and I headed through a wide-open valley backed by several enormous green mountains. I should have recorded as its not something you really see every day. I spent the travel time practicing my Spanish instead.

We arrive – another incredible view from the front of their house. The family is cheerful, the atmosphere feels good. After
introductions, we all go back to meet Carlos, the man of the hour

Carlos looks sturdy but tired as he’s resting on his back on a large bed in the master bedroom. His jeans, glasses, and flannel shirt make me think I’m back in East Tennessee for a moment. The room is a mix of expectancy and smiles as they start to pray.

I smile back and ask Carlos if he can sit up. By faith, I push the Holy Spirit into his hand as I help him. “How do you feel now?” I ask him. He said he felt about 70% better than he did a minute ago. “Can you stand up?”

Faith requires an action — I wanted Carlos to do something he felt he couldn’t do before. He decides to walk out of the bedroom and towards the stairs which lead into the living room. He’s unsteady and breathing heavily as he reaches the stairs, complaining of pain in his neck and upper back. I ask Paq to get rid of the pain. I love that guy – he immediately puts his hand on Carlos’ back and issues a short command. “Pain leave.”

Carlos wobbles back to the bedroom and I let him sit and rest on the edge of the bed. I’m making small talk with the family, already feeling in my spirit that the entire time, something fun is going on with Carlos. . Somehow I can tell he’s getting stronger.

A few minutes later, I ask if he’s ready to walk again. This time Carlos stands quickly and moves out of the room at double his previous pace. I have to move quickly to catch up with him and then get surprised as he reaches the stairs and keeps going .. down the stairs, into the living room, and then soon, outside. He’s definitely not wobbling anymore.

The family follows and Carlos just stands out there with us for quite awhile, something that he was apparently NOT able to do just the day before. He gets tears in his eyes as I have him do some balance exercises – crossover steps! I think its his daughter who is standing there with a look of thankfulness and wonder as she reports that he’s improved dramatically.

And that was it!

But that’s not all.. tonight Paq and Geo tell me that they’ve talked with the family. They’ve heard that last night, Carlos’ wife woke up to a man with bright-white hair sitting at the edge of their bed, right below Carlos. Another girl, in her 20’s, was sleeping in the room as well – in another, smaller bed. She also woke up and saw the man. That’s all the details I have for now .. more to come