Miracle of the Lost Key

The Kenya Diaries (vol. 25)

July 18, 2006

Andy returns from Nyanza Province today! 

I asked Ania to get a bucket of water from the kitchen so that I could do laundry. On her way she discovered a cage in the grass with nine turkey poults and three ducklings inside. She came running back to the kitchen so full of excitement that we all came out to see the little birds. They were cute, and kept the kids entertained for quite a while.

I did laundry - only the shirts, underwear, socks and pajamas. My shoulder just can't wring out the heavier stuff, and will have to wait for Andy's return. As I was hanging the clothes on the line, wrapped up in my own thoughts of life in this strange land - a life that is full of unfamiliar customs, unfamiliar plants and creatures, unfamiliar food, unfamiliar ways of approaching life - I suddenly had a wave of homesickness and longed for something, anything that I would recognize.

At that moment I caught a glimpse of movement out of the corner of my eye, and I turned to look at a tiny green praying mantis tightrope walking on my clothesline. Yes! A regular, plain old praying mantis! It was so ordinary that it was spectacular! How big God must be to answer my heart cry with such a simple little thing!

If that had been all that God did for me today, that would have been more than enough. But, God was only priming the pump for what He had in store.

Andy returned home about 4:30, and Philip was the first to discover his presence at the school. We were all so happy to see him back from the interior of Kenya safe and sound.

About an hour later Fr. Johannes came to our home quite distressed over the fact that he could not find his key to his room, which also doubled as the church sacristy. He sat down at our table with his head in his hands, wondering out loud how he would ever get into his room. He feared that the key was left in Nyanza Province, a whole days' journey away. His room, which was next to ours, was impenetrable unless one was willing to take an axe to the door.

I offered Fr. Johannes to stay for dinner, but he was too distressed to eat and left.

A little while later, Father returned. He obviously had not found his missing key. I was doing dishes in the kitchen when I heard him tell Andy that he didn't know what to do.

"Dear Jesus," I earnestly prayed, "please help this man find his key!"

No sooner had these words left my mouth, when I heard an inner voice say, "Go look in the grass."

I finished the dish I was washing, stood up, and said, "Andy, I'll be right back."

I really had no idea where I was going, other than to "go look in the grass." When I stepped outside, I turned right, passed all the grass in the courtyard, walked out the front door of the school, continued across the gravel turn-around, and stopped right at the edge of the grass. When I looked down, the toe of my shoe was less than an inch away from a skeleton key. I stooped down to pick it up, almost in shock of what had just transpired.

"Thank you, Jesus," I whispered.

Fr. Johannes was astounded when I returned to our home and produced the key. He asked me where I got it, and I just said that I heard a voice tell me to "look in the grass," so I did.

"You people!" Fr. Johannes repeated over and over. "You people!"

The grins on the faces of everyone present were indicative of a deeper joy, as we realized we had witnessed a miracle through the power of intercessory prayer. God is so good!