“Now this is eternal life:
that they may know you,
the only true God, and Jesus Christ,
whom you have sent.”
John 17:3
On Monday, the same day Giovanna got out of the hospital, she wanted to come to study the Bible... but her room is way on the other side of the city and by the time she went home to get a shower, it would be too late to get back to El Jordan on time... She wanted to come on Tuesday but her dad was out looking for people to donate blood to replace what they used in Giovanna’s surgery... and because she had never been to El Jordan, she was afraid of getting lost... Wednesday I was going to be out... so on Thursday Giovanna was “finally” able to come and study the Bible...
I was out... but two other volunteers took the opportunity to clearly share the gospel message. Giovanna opened her heart and life to Christ yesterday afternoon... I had more of a chance to talk to her today... to see if she understood the message... and I believe she has...
The Bible says she is now a child of God (John 1:12), that she has passed from death to life (John 5:24); she has been “sealed with the Holy Spirit” which guarantees her inheritance of eternal life (Ephesians 1:13) and Romans 10:9 says that she has been “saved”... She really liked the idea that Jesus had gone ahead to prepare mansions for those who believe...
Life... not for 20... 50... 70... 90 years... Eternal Life...
Late this morning Giovanna called and asked if she could come and talk to me... she had just gotten out of the doctor’s office – and was told that her tumor was malignant... very aggressive... they weren’t able to get it all out... Glioblastoma – grade IV – 6 months to live... maximum a year... The doctor would like her to go to the cancer clinic to see about chemo and radiation...
Giovanna wanted to me to help her tell her brother, sister and dad so that’s what we did over the lunch hour... The thing that saddens Giovanna the most right now is the thought of not seeing her son (12 years old) grow up... All of this hasn’t dampened her desire to study the Bible – if anything, it has strengthened it... She believes that God allowed her to “come back” in the operation to tell others about Him... and that she needs to know God and His Word better so she can tell her friends and family... she is well known in her neighborhood – for being a drunk, druggie and part of a “gang” there... people on the streets know her... under bridges... and people’s who life is the discotheque (she was a disk jockey/mc for a few well known dancing joints...) What she would like to do is to be a testimony to all those people... go to jail and other places and tell people about God...
She thinks that maybe she was so rebellious before – if something like this hadn’t happened, she might never have come to open her heart and mind to Christ...
What I told her was that something worse than a malignant tumor and facing DEATH – but knowing God and having the hope of eternal LIFE...
...would be to live a rebellious LIFE.... rejecting Christ’s offer of forgiveness and salvation... and DYING in that rebellion... not just a physical death... but a spiritual death – separated from God for eternity...
Giovanna has a difficult road to walk... I know she’d appreciate your prayers for His strength and provision in all of this... and for His hand on her body... She is starting to have more pain again in her head... problems with her vision... and lack of strength in her hand...
This afternoon she was back at El Jordan all afternoon – to study the Bible... Please pray that God will give her understanding... and that she would have the opportunities she desires to share that with others... that after so many wasted years (she is 28 now) that she’d be able to make up the time lost...
Appreciating very much your prayers...
Corina... for Giovanna...