A New Friend is a Special Gift

"I can't believe you walked into the men's bathroom," Carol shook her head as she unlocked the door to their dorm room. "I thought you had more brains than to just go into a room without looking at the sign on the door!" Carol said all this with a chuckle. She was actually enjoying this little mistake her friend had made. It was a funny little memory they had made, and they would, in fact, remember it for a long time and laugh about it.

Once inside the room, they freshened up and decided to make a trip into the nearest town for lunch at one of the restaurant chains there. The town was thirty minutes both ways, and they were back in their room with plenty of time to take their afternoon naps. With the evening meeting coming up, they showered and changed, and with anticipation, headed out on foot to the meeting hall. It was a stifling hot Georgia evening, but the walk was short, and the exercise was good for them. The air conditioning was on in the big room, but it would get warmer when all the people filled it. Lana found a seat close to and air vent.

Soon they were on their feet, singing the good old southern gospel music and worshipping. Everyone around them was enjoying the moment, focused on worship. Lana noticed a woman a little older than she in the row ahead of her and over a seat. The woman was oblivious to her surroundings. She had a sweet smile and you could tell she loved the music, standing straight with both of her hands raised to the Lord. Lana saw her hands and could hardly sing another note, for the woman's hands were severely gnarled with arthritis. Every knuckle was bulging with huge marble-like knots. None of her fingers was straight, each one crooked and going in different directions. The pain that this woman must have in both her hands was obvious, and Lana could hardly bear to look at them. Then, she realized the embarrassment that she might feel if she were in the same situation. Yet this woman seemed to have no thought of who might be looking, who might be sickened by the sight. No. She had one thought, and that was to worship freely, without care about herself.

Lana remembered nothing for the rest of the service. She pondered the things that had crossed her mind at what she had seen. She felt the woman's pain and embarrassment, but realized that the woman had no signs of these. It was only Lana that had these feelings.

The meeting was over. Carol roamed about the room visiting with different acquaintances while Lana spoke with no one. She stood quietly, watching the people as they passed her. She smiled and said "hi" to this one and that, but ventured nothing else. The room cleared, and Carol was still talking. A little annoyed, Lana wandered to the outer room that was empty. Everyone was gone, and Carol was still inside talking.

One of the outer doors swung open, and a woman walked in, the woman with the gnarled fingers. Lana's heart began to speed up. She wanted to speak to this woman, but what could she say? The women glanced at one another, and surprisingly, the woman came over to Lana and began to speak.

"My husband is getting the car, and it's just too hot to stand out there and wait for him," she offered with her sweet smile. 

Lana was thrilled with this opportunity. They introduced themselves to one another, the woman was Gloria. Then Lana wasted no time to share with Gloria how her worship had affected her. She shared how she had felt, and that Gloria seemed to have no reservations of raising her hands seemingly because her only thought was to worship. Lana admired that, and said so. Gloria's faith seemed to be very special.

Gloria listened to her new friend and was flattered in a very humble way. She informed Lana that her hands had been like that for many years, and she had worked through the embarrassment long ago. As for the pain, yes, it was painful, but she had learned to live with that, as well. She was thankful that she had this effect on others, and was very happy to meet Lana.

The new friends laughed a little, cried a little, then hugged as Gloria's husband pulled up at the front door. Gloria was gone into the night, and Lana felt a love for this woman that she hardly knew. Carol emerged from the meeting room, and they walked to their dorm room, both wishing they had driven the car in this heat. Carol talked about her conversations with her friends as Lana listened and quietly walked beside Carol who didn't seem to notice. It was the next morning before Lana could talk to Carol about her new friend. 

Lana's thoughts were on Gloria and her hands as she drifted off to sleep. God had given her a very special gift tonight, not just a new friend, but a lesson about pride and worship with abandon. Jesus was more important than how we look, or if we're different. She learned that our hearts and minds cannot be on Christ and something else. He wants all our attention, all our love, all our being goes to Him in true worship.Yes, it had been a very special night with a very special gift.