The Arrival of God in My Life 3/23
I clean houses and it has been my experience that the interior of each house reflects something of those who live there.
One particular house affected me greatly; it was a small house, but very unkempt. At first sight, it strikes a person as abandoned, desolate. An elderly couple lived there: the husband had Parkinson’s disease, and his wife suffers from very advanced cancer.
As soon as I opened the door an overpowering odor of medicine plus lack of cleanliness made me want to run away. The rooms were so dirty that a person could hardly walk from one place to another. I had never seen anything like it before. There was food all over, and you could hardly see the floor. On the first few trips we felt sick just from the smell. Although it did take quite a while, little by little we did eventually succeed in leaving the house clean.
In subsequent visits, I came to discover that this poor couple was being severely neglected by the person hired to care for them as well as take care of the house.
I was 40 when I truly came to know the Lord. I have no doubt that He had a very similar experience with my interior when I invited Him in. The difference is that He did not feel repulsion and want to run away, but rather with much joy and a great deal of love, he began to clean up my soul, my mind, and my heart.
Lord, I am your unworthy servant. It is only because of your great mercy that my soul will one day become worthy of You, so that You, Lord, will come to live in me, and I in You.
--Maria Cabrera
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La Llegada de Dios a mi Vida 3/23
Yo me dedico a limpiar casas, y en mi experiencia, el interior de cada casa refleja algo de los que viven allí.
Una casa me impresionó mucho: era una casa pequeña, pero muy descuidada. Desde que la ves, da la impression de abandono y desolación. En ella habitaba un matrimonio ya mayor. El señor tiene el mal de Parkinson, y la señora, un cancer muy avanzado.
Cuando abrí la puerta, el olor a medicina y a suciedad me hizo querer salir corriendo. Además, todo estaba tan sucio que no se podía ni caminar. Creo que nunca he visto un lugar igual. La comida estaba tirada en todas partes, y el piso no se veía.
Nos tomó tiempo limpiar esa casa, y poco a poco lo pudimos lograr. Las primeras veces nos enfermábamos por estar en ese ambiente tan sucio.
En otras visitas, llegué a saber que esta pobre pareja estaba siendo muy abusada y descuidada por la persona que estaba contratada para cuidarlos y proveer algo de orden y limpieza en la casa.
Yo tenía 40 años cuando tuve mi encuentro con Dios, y pienso que Él tambien tuvo esa sensación conmigo, que yo tuve al entrar a esa casa. Sin embargo, a Él no le dió asco, sino todo lo contrario: con alegría y amor se puso a limpiar mi alma, mi mente, y mi corazón.
Señor, soy una indigna cierva tuya. Sólo tu inmensa misericordia hará que mi corazón sea digno de Ti, para que Tu, Señor, vivas en mi y yo en ti.
--Maria Cabrera