Testimony of Love
November 10
Reckless words pierce like a sword, but the tongue of the wise brings healing.
Proverbs 12:18
Now in her nineties, Martha had taught Second Grade. “Emma was a beautiful little girl, but I could tell there was something wrong that day.” She shook her head sadly, remembering how her heart hurt for Emma.
“She just sat there, gazing longingly out the window at the other children as they laughed and played. I asked, ‘Why aren’t you outside with the other kids?’ Her answer broke my heart. ‘They don’t want to play with me, Mrs. Stull. They think I stink.’
I sat her in my lap and hugged her tight. I remember telling her, 'You are beautiful and I love you.’ She looked up at me and smiled. The belt on her tattered and soiled dress was hanging loosely so I tied it in a knot and told her to tell the others it was a ‘love knot’ tied by Mrs. Stull.
I always wondered what happened to Emma. Then one day, some thirty years later, a woman called my home and asked, ‘Are you the Mrs. Stull who taught at Elmwood Elementary School?’ I said I was, and she said, ‘Oh, I’m so glad I found you! I wanted to tell you how much it meant to me that you cared enough to put me in your lap and hug me that day! You saved my life! You didn’t know it, but my brother was sexually molesting me at the time, and I felt so worthless… but you told me you loved me, and that gave me the strength to go on! I now speak world-wide, telling women my story, encouraging them, and assuring them that they are beautiful and worthy of God’s love!’
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We have the power to help heal wounds if we take the opportunity to say a kind word or do a kind act when it presents itself. Simple acts of kindness can heal a hurting heart, and far outlive the healer’s lifetime.
Emma was dealing with far more than any eight-year-old girl was ever meant to when Mrs. Stull saw a hurting child and acted in love. We can do the same when Holy Spirit leads us to those who are hurting
Prayer
“Lord, show me someone who is hurting today, and fill my mouth with words of wisdom, so they feel Your love. In Jesus’ Name, amen.”
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