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The beautifully dressed family caught Ana’s eye every Sunday morning. She studied the parents and children from her apartment as they walked by the window week after week. One Sunday curiosity got the best of her. Ana called out to them, “Where are you going?”
“To church,” they replied. Her curiosity peaked. Born in Mexico, Ana was a devout Catholic and spent six of her childhood years living in a convent. At 19 she moved to London, England to look after he sister’s children. She adored her church family in England, but when Ana married and moved to Portugal she experienced deep loneliness and felt disconnected from the church. She longed for the relationships she had in London. The beautifully dressed family would offer her just that. As she came to know this family she learned they were missionaries doing language study in Portugal. When the time came for them to leave, new missionaries moved into the same apartment and continued a friendship with Ana. The relationship between Ana and the missionaries deepened, and loving-kindness was planting seeds of faith in Ana’s heart. As she studied their lives – patient, caring, and generous – Ana realized it was the kind of life she wanted to live. When one day the missionaries asked her if she would like to join them for a Bible study, she accepted. “This family was so kind to me. They never pushed their religion on me and they were always there with friendship and the ability to listen,” she says. The missionaries hired and paid for a babysitter to look after Ana’s two young children during Bible study. In time she accepted the Lord and was baptized. When the missionary family finished their language studies and prepared to leave, MBMS International missionary Marjorie Ekk was asked if she would step in to take the role of discipling Ana. Marjorie has had the privilege of watching Ana read the Word hungrily and share her faith with her friends. Marjorie now meets with both with Ana and her friend to read and discuss God’s Word. This small glimpse into Ana’s faith journey represents just a part of God’s steadfast pursuit of His people. With perfect grace, He lovingly wove Ana’s life together with three separate missionary families. As one family left, God faithfully carried out His work through the next, and what began as a simple glace through an apartment window ended with partnership in the Kingdom of Heaven.
“I have loved you with an everlasting love; I have drawn you with loving-kindness.” – Jeremiah 31:3
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