Amy's Testimonial

Friends:

This letter was sent to me and is used with permission. I think I need to also note that I don't remember using the words "living water," though I very much remember talking about the water theme among the three women. See how God works, and speaks directly to our hearts! Blessings, Anita

Dear Anita,  

Over the past months, my husband and I have been seeking God's guidance for our future, struggling to know what is next. As a mother of four active children, caring for two foster children and working at least 30 hours a week as a speech therapist, life is busy.

I experienced a particularly busy week, as my husband was away for three days. I was feeling like I did not have time to go to a women's meeting at church. There was laundry to do, children to be cared for, a house to be cleaned. I had also been listening to music for the purpose of developing creative movement for worship and found a song by the contemporary group "Mercy Me" which contained these words: "Word of God speak, won't you pour down like rain, wash my eyes to see Your majesty." These words were becoming ingrained in my mind and spirit as the week progressed.

Friday evening came, and I told my husband I was not going to attend the meeting Saturday morning. He encouraged me to go, to spend time with other women and to find living water, to care for myself. Interestingly, though, he does not remember saying anything about living water!

As I arrived at the church, the greeters, whom I knew, since this was my home church, commented that I did not look like I was happy to be there. I responded with a comment about all the things that were waiting at home to get done. As I listened to the business portion of the meeting, my mind was focused on work that needed to be done for Sunday School. I was tempted to get up and take care of my own business.

After the business meeting and refreshments, we returned to the sanctuary. I sat with someone who had to sit in the balcony due to health concerns. Anita Gutschick began her dramatic portrayal of Women of the Bible. There were three different women she portrayed that day: Rebekah, the Woman at the Well, and Ruth.

After the drama was finished, Anita came back out to give some closing thoughts. She stated that God had spoken to her to speak the words "living water." Anita stated that she had a clear sense that those words were for someone specific, that the person was present that day, and they had to be spoken. As she was praying about the characters she was going to portray, the common thread between them was water, living water. When she spoke the words "living water," it was like someone had called my name, thrown a ball in my direction, and I had to look up quickly and catch it. There was, and is now, no question in my mind that the word were for me.

I have never before experienced God speaking to me in this way. It was like God spoke to me in an audible voice. He gave three words to me that morning through Anita. He first spoke about releasing control to Him. The second word is to be willing to go and tell others. The final word is an encouragement to have faith, to be brave and courageous.

Ironically, it was not until I sat down to write this a week after the program that I looked closely enough at the program to see the title "Your Greatest Gift to God . . . You." I don't yet understand all that this experience means, what the three words mean, or what is next in my life. But I do know that God cares enough to speak into a busy life and grab my attention in a new way.

Amy