Annesley Writers Forum "A Really Big Wish" by Robin Jewett for Sunday, 18 January 2015
Palmer, who was nearly 10 at the time, read his fortune aloud, “Your dreams will come true when you least expect it.”
“So Palmer, what’s your dream?”
“I don’t have a dream,” Palmer shrugged.
“Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. would be so disappointed,” I winked.
“A dream — like a really big wish?” my husband clarified.
“Would you like to go to Disney World like your friend Brantley? Or what about a new video game system? Or another trip to the beach with grandma and grandpa?” I inquired.
Palmer shook his head, thought for a minute, and then replied pensively, “My dream is that there would be enough doctors in Africa.”
I knew immediately that Palmer’s response wasn’t merely spontaneous or hypothetical. He had been orphaned specifically because of a lack of medical care in Africa. When his birth family needed a physician most, there wasn’t one to be found. And while the tragedy of his story ended in the beauty of him sitting at our table, the pain has remained with him, just beneath the surface of his chocolatey, dimpled smile.
Palmer’s response was a poignant revelation for me, too. After all, I am a physician assistant, licensed to practice medicine, write prescriptions, read diagnostic imaging and perform minor surgical procedures. Ironically, had I been with Palmer on that tragic day, he wouldn’t be with me on this one.
“Mommy, why are there so many doctors in America, and not enough in Africa?”
I stuttered through several shallow attempts, but no answer was adequate. I knew the question wasn’t just coming from the mouth of my sweet African son, it was coming from the whispers of the Holy Spirit to my heart, as He spoke these words to me,
“This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters. If anyone has material possessions and sees a brother or sister in need but has no pity on them, how can the love of God be in that person? Dear children, let us not love with words or speech but with actions and in truth.” — I John 3:16-18, NIV
After months of paperwork, interviews, and miles traveled abroad, our family answered God’s call to serve with Global Partners in northern Ghana. While there, I hope to help keep families together through the provision of Christ-centered medical care. We will be dependent on hundreds of prayer and financial partners to get us to Africa, and we believe God has already called people to travel this amazing journey with us.
If I had only one prayer for this year, it would be to help make my son’s dream come true.
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