The "Peace" Medicine

Raimunda is a woman that came into clinic one day and started telling me of her heart palpitations when she was upset or stressed. In Rio, I saw many patients like her and since we couldn't do further tests on her heart or even prescribe anti-anxiety meds, I shared with her my “calmante” verse (calming or peace verse) - Philippians 4:6-7 “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and petition, present your request to God. And the peace of God that passes all understanding will guard your heart and mind in Christ Jesus.” I asked her if she was a Christian and she said wasn't yet but she had been going to church. So I began to share the gospel with her and told her of God's love for her and how we are separated from God because of our sin. I told of how God sent His Son, Jesus to die on the cross for us so we could have a relationship with Him. Many times we talk of how Jesus is the bridge but someone told me before my trip that people in the Amazon have no concept of a bridge but they understand about a boat. So as we are sitting their with a view of the huge Amazon river I talked about how our separation from God is like this huge river and many people think they can “swim over to God” by their own works or by being a good person. But no matter how good we are, we can never make it the whole way because the distance is too great. But Jesus is like a boat that takes us to God but we have to make that decision to trust Him and to get in the boat. After talking to her for a while, she said she wasn't ready to make that decision today. I shared with her how it wasn't by chance that she came to see me and shared her complaints, how it wasn't by chance that I began to share with her, that I really believe that God had a plan for her and that's why she came to see me. And I told her that the promise of peace, the only “medicine” I had for her problem, was only for those who are in Christ Jesus, that she could only experience that once she “got in the boat” with Jesus. I prayed for her and asked her to think about what I had shared with her. I ask you to pray for Raimunda and others like her who heard the gospel this week. Pray that God would continue to work in the hearts of the people we came in contact with. Pray that God would lead the Brazilian missionaries and pastors that continue to work in the Amazon region. May Raimunda and many others come to know the peace that comes only through Jesus Christ!