Out of Season

November 29, 2021 | 3 minute read
keryn.w

A person running down a road

I went for a run on a nice spring day. An hour later I found myself in a place and situation I really did not want to be in.

While on my run, I suddenly had a severe allergic reaction and within minutes I was on the ground in distress. A kind passerby asked if I needed help. This is the first time this has happened to me, so I did not understand the severity of it. Besides, the last place I want to be in a pandemic is the hospital. I insisted that he should not call the ambulance, but I am so glad he did.

The ambulance arrived within minutes and transferred me to the hospital. I was very disoriented while in the emergency room. The doctors kept asking me what had happened, and in my confused state of mind, all the vocabulary and language that I had attained in the past year had all gone out the window. They searched the whole department and brought back a young doctor, Naya*, who understood English. Once she translated for me and got the situation under control, she returned to her own patients.

My condition stabilized and I suddenly became very aware of what a mess I was. I was sweaty and dirty in my exercise clothes, I had scraped my knee, and let’s not talk about my hair. That was when Naya returned. She said she had heard from my friends waiting outside that I am an English tutor. Even before I could respond, she asked enthusiastically, “Can you tutor me?” She went on to explain the reasons for why she really needed my help. Honestly, I was still in shock with everything that had just unfolded and very little of what she said registered. Another doctor on the other side of me chuckled. Enough of my language had returned for me to understand when he asked Naya, “Why are you talking to her about this right now?!” I also chuckled and gladly asked Naya to write down my number as I would love to help her once I was in a better state.

I tried everything I could to avoid going to the hospital, it was a situation I would never wish upon anybody, and I wouldn’t say I was in any condition to be meeting people. However, the Lord is powerful and sovereign and creates opportunities in surprising circumstances. I was on the hospital bed feeling vulnerable and weak when the Lord said, “Just stay put, I will make things happen now!”

Ten days later Naya and I met over some tea to get to know one another in a much more pleasant setting. We decided to meet weekly to converse in English and what a joy it has been, not only to help her with English, but also to share deeper conversations of life and faith.

The Apostle Paul exhorted Timothy to be prepared in season and out of season (2 Timothy 4:2). When we find ourselves caught in these “out of season” times, there will always be things we cannot anticipate. I have been studying a language for the past year to be prepared and equipped to communicate with locals. How humbling it was when all that preparation just completely escaped me. How do we prepare for the unexpected? The Lord knows our shortfalls and weaknesses, yet His strength exceeds our inadequacies if only we allow for Him to work through us. Sometimes, all it takes is to be present wherever the Lord chooses to take us and welcome whomever the Lord brings to us.

*Pseudonym

 

This is an article from our Fall 2021 edition of Alliance Connection. Read the full copy here.

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