My heart dropped into my stomach.

You know how you stupidly point at yourself and say “Me?” with your mouth but don’t actually make a sound when someone you don’t know calls you over to where they are?

That’s what I did.

And she nodded her head and said, “Yes.” Audibly.

So, here’s the scenario: I’ve just had a conversation with God and been challenged to have him prove to me that he is doing what he is doing with this lady. I’ve laid down a couple of criteria and he’s taken them up. I’m now standing in front of this diminutive woman, not much larger than my wife, and she’s looking up at me, staring at my eyes but not really looking at me, like she’s hearing someone talking to her.

To say I’m in a mixed state of emotions at this point does not do justice to the moment.

Then she is actually focused on me and begins, “The Lord says…”

It’s funny how your mind works. I’ve heard that when you are in a life-threatening situation that your whole life literally flashes before your eyes and that you are keenly focused, in slow motion, on all that is occurring around you. While I didn’t see my life flash before my eyes, I was definitely keenly focused on what was going down at that moment.

This little gray-haired, seventy-two year old, woman began to say things that only one other person on the face of the earth knew about me (and she was standing next to me), then she turned to my wife and began to tell her things that no one except me knew about her. She further said that God had several things in mind for us and that if I had any questions about them (she spelled them out, actually) I should take the matter up with Him. Almost as an after thought she turned back to me and said, “Oh, by the way, you are healed.”

And she was done.

I didn’t hear much else she said that night. I was rather preoccupied with my thoughts. In awe, to be truthful.

Guess who stopped in for a chat?

“So, Joe, whacha think?” (Yes, God does speak that way)

“”Um, er, well, you got me,” I stammered.

“How’s the ankle?”

Turning it in small circles I replied, “Better.”

“I see.”

“Um, you aren’t mad at me, are you?” I inquired.

“To the contrary. I’m tickled pink!”

“Good,” I responded. “I’m not used to putting you to the test.”

“That’s a shame. I generally do quite well when I am. So, are you ready for phase two?”

This is going to get interesting…