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When were you born?
As soon as you read that question, a specific date likely came to mind, along with the city and state. You might even recall the hospital and the exact time of your arrival. Births are significant moments that deserve celebration, marking the beginning of new life.
My new friend, Henry Shakel, is 81 years old and recently experienced a new spiritual rebirth that is memorable as well.
Henry was born in Bethlehem 81 years ago. His family is Palestinian, and during his childhood, they moved to Honduras in search of a better life and opportunities than what Bethlehem could provide for a Palestinian family at that time.
Henry would tell you that he has always been a good person and has tried to do good things for people all his life. In fact, when I met Henry just a couple of weeks ago during River Bend's mission trip to the School of Hope in San Pedro Sula, Henry was there striving to do good things. He helped us immensely by translating Spanish to English and willingly worked with us as we painted areas of the school. One day, he even volunteered to clean our paintbrushes and rollers, dedicating over an hour to the task. Now that's a servant!
As we got to know Henry, we discovered that he was trusting in his lifetime of good works to get God’s attention and hopefully earn a place in heaven.
One afternoon, while Tricia Irwin and I were working with Henry, I felt the Holy Spirit urging me to engage him in a spiritual conversation. He responded warmly to our words and soon expressed his readiness to pray and invite Jesus to become his Lord and Savior. It was a glorious moment to pray alongside Henry.
Immediately after we prayed, tears of joy streamed down Henry's face, but with paint-covered hands, he couldn't wipe his eyes. Without thinking, I offered him a piece of my shirt (which was somewhat clean) to dry his tears. My shirt has never served a better purpose than in that moment.
Now Henry has a new birthday - a spiritual birthday he will never forget.
Originally born in the place where Jesus was born, Henry was born again into new life filled with fresh hope and the assurance of a Savior he never knew before in a school room smelling of fresh paint.
That’s truly something to celebrate!
Thank you, River Bend, for being aware of God's amazing eternal work.
Pastor John
Love God - Love Others
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