61 years later, woman's prayer is answered
KENNETH WHITE

Back in July of 2006 1 traveled to Vinnitsa, Ukraine, for a two week missionary trip that would include one week of children's camp or what we call vacation Bible school here.

The first Sunday I was asked by the host family I was staying with if I would rather go to the largest church in the town we were staying in or go to one of the little villages a few kilometers out of town and minister to seven elderly women and one man - all in the early 80s.

I felt I should go to the little village with the pastor whom I was staying with and his son Andrew, who was my translator. Andrew was about 24 at the time and spoke good English. The group sang a few old Russian hymns and then I was asked to speak for about 45 minutes.

The Lord had impressed on my mind to speak from the 23 Psalm. While I was ministering I noticed one woman crying the whole time I was speaking. Later, after our service was over, the lady who was weeping came to me and kissed my hands with tears running down her face upon my hands. She began speaking to me through Andrew and told me of the time when she was a little girl and the German Nazis came through her village and took all the small children back to Germany to work in their war factories during WW2.

She was in Germany until the end of the war when American soldiers came into the region and liberated her and all the other children who were with her. The Germans were defeated and the American soldiers gave food and candy to the children and doctored their illnesses. The children were returned to their homes by the Americans.

And now, for the rest of the story. This lady had been praying since 1945 that an American would come to her little village so she could express her gratitude to him. She wanted to express her thankfulness to all remaining American WW2 vets who were still alive that the people who were liberated by the Americans were very grateful to them for what they did. She told me she had forgotten to say thank you to them in 1945 so she had prayed 61 years for God to answer her prayer for an American to come to her village so she could personally thank him.

And who did God send? Me!

God hears and answers every prayer in his time and she never gave up on God. I was brought to tears as I realized I was the answer to her prayer. I didn't know that until that day that I would be an answer to a 61-year-prayer and be the fulfillment of it. I still tremble and cry when I try to relate this experience to others. It is awesome how God answers some of the simplest prayers. Her prayer was honest, sincere, and with a heart of gratitude.

I believe that kind of faith can shake the foundations of this old world system to pieces.