The Jonah and Samsun Miracle

This past Sunday as we drove into our church parking lot I was given a gift that was and is amazing. There walking up the long sidewalk was Jonah and his walker. Jonah has not walked before this past few weeks. But now that he is walking – he insist that he walk. When he is told that he should come in or that it is time to go he stomps his foot – “No!” and continues to walk.

To understand you need to have followed the journey of this small family – the Van Spronsens. When George and Jessika’s little boy, Jonah, was born there were many problems. Lots of things inside of Jonah didn’t work right. He had many problems. When all the experts shared with George and Jessika the problems that their son was facing, it was overwhelming to say the least. As a friend and a pastor I stood with them – but truly I didn’t know what to say or do – except to pray. And pray I did. I prayed not knowing what would happen or when it would happen. To say this has been an inspiring adventure is putting it very simply.

You really need to read the link given below to catch the full impact of what his walking into church means to me. The whole story is clearly placed there for you to read.

Jonah has been the focus of much of my prayer. But there is another special one in this family that is Jonah’s buddy too. His name is Samsun – Jonah’s younger brother – that is as active and powerful as any child.

To set the scene for you… Jonah cannot hear and also cannot speak with his voice. He communicates with sign language. Jessika had learned sign language many years ago before the thought of marriage and babies were part of her life. It is amazing how God prepares us for what will happen down the road.

The following excerpt from Jessika’s email described what happened yesterday…
It's amazing how God works through Jonah to help others. He is an amazing testimony of God's goodness on a daily basis. This morning he woke up and asked if we would see butterflies in the sky today. Then he quickly moved on to wanting to kick a ball. FYI-We saw 3 butterflies outside today, and Jonah said they were beautiful up high. He is such a wonderful gift.

Samsun is just as amazing. Today, Jonah fell with his walker, and Samsun quickly went over, righted the walker and held it in place until Jonah stood up with it, then Samsun moved the object that had caused the accident to begin with. He then watched carefully to make sure Jonah was ok to go, and Jonah turned and said thank you, and in sign Samsun for the first time Signed back You're welcome! I have come to realize that I am so blessed!!!!

Oh – I forgot to tell you… Jonah is three and Samsun is two. That puts a different spin on this story doesn’t it?

I am calling this the Jonah and Samsun Miracle. These boys are buddies.
In reference to the ‘butterflies’ in Jessika’s email… there is more…

On Monday our church held a Labour Day Monday – Church picnic on the grounds outside of our church building. The sky was bright and a clear blue. There was a strong breeze blowing. It was a perfect day to fly a kite or two or three or even more.

I struggled to get the kites together and up. It takes some effort to keep them up and not to tangle the lines as they fly together. As I worked on one of the kites – a large and beautiful butterfly… Jonah walked up to where I was standing and stared up at the site in the sky. Jonah’s world was expanded a little further as he looked intently at the kite. He was fascinated – making my effort worth it all. His watching me was the best gift I have received for months.

In Jessika’s email describing what happened to Jonah….
Jonah kept saying all the way home Thank you beautiful butterfly up high...lol! He loved that kite!!

Thank you again for yesterday, you have no clue how much that meant to Jonah to see everyone interacting and those beautiful kites flying in the sky.

My prayer today…
Thank you God, for the really small blessings to the small people around me. Thank you for a big beautiful sky and the opportunity to fly a kite. Thank you for butterflies.. and the fact that Jonah loves them so much. Thank you for two buddies – Jonah and Samsun… bless them today and keep Dad and Mom close to yourself today.

~ Pastor Murray Lincoln ~

http://www.jonahevansjourney.com/latestnews.htm

Note: You can also do a search using the name “Jonah” at the top of this Blog to read more of Jonah’s story and the way that our church is interacting with this little fellow.