Previously, in Part One: I told him if my previous prayer was a little bit colder (meaning more time had gone by) I would say no, but I did tell God whatever He had I would take it. Reluctantly I agreed. This friend went over and beyond his offer. He paid off my two bank notes and gave me both a credit card and a debit card for cash.
After receiving that phone call, I began the process of applying for a passport and researching airfare. I had never considered foreign travel as a reality. My friend, Leila, was not returning to Australia until August of that same year, 2004. I ended up booking my flight two weeks earlier than her scheduled return because the airfare was more affordable. My flight had to stop in New Zealand first, so that is where I decided to stay and wait for those two weeks. Again, I did not know anyone in that country.
Fast forward to August. It is time to leave and so I begin my journey of leaving home again, this time to the other side of the world. Once I arrived in New Zealand I took a taxi to the motel. I found a church through the yellow pages in the phone book. I had rang a few and ended up choosing one based on the conversations I had. Little did I know I had chosen to attend the largest church in Auckland.
I had to take a city bus from the motel to the church. That was interesting because I did not grow up using city bus transportation. I did make it to the service and afterwards went upstairs. They had a cafeteria on the upper level. As I sat there and ate my lunch I was approached by a lady. She had heard I was from the U.S. and decided to introduce herself. She told me her daughter was flying into Bowling Green, Kentucky that same weekend. It was for that reason that she approached me. Her name was Grace.
How beautiful that when I left my country to go to another where I did not know anyone, that the first thing the Lord gave me was Grace, literally and spiritually.
We spent the afternoon walking around until it was time for the night service. Afterwards, Grace made a generous offer. She offered to let me stay with her while I was in town. I declined and returned to my motel. A couple of days later we were chatting on the phone and again she offered me lodging. This time she sent her son to pick me up. Upon arrival, she gave me her room to sleep in and a key to her apartment and told me to make myself at home. She slept on the couch and worked everyday. During the evenings we would sit and share. Once again the Lord introduced me to someone with whom I had walked a similar life's journey.
Soon after I was heading to Australia, to meet up with Leila. She was a fantastic guide. She introduced me to her family and friends. We travelled the road in her little red Toyota Echo. If we saw any wildlife she would quickly whip her car off to the side of the road so I could capture the image. We chased sunsets, goanna lizards, emus, turtles and anything else that caught our eyes. It was hard to find any live kangaroos. Eventually, I started taking pictures of dead ones...roadkill roos, sheep and wild hogs.
The clouds looked different in Australia. I saw my first double rainbow in Australia. One time we had a quick hailstorm which, when it was over, made the road fill with instant, steamy fog. It was so neat to see.
So, how did Matthew and I meet? I used to be on Myspace back when it was popular and before Facebook. When I knew I was going to Australia I began looking up people that I could possibly become friends with. Matthew was one of those people. We exchanged emails and he told me if I ever made it to Victoria that he would show me around. This is a good place to offer some advice:
Be careful what you offer because someone may actually think you mean it.
Once I arrived in New Zealand I called Matthew and told him I wasn't far away. Only he can fill in his thoughts regarding that, so if you are curious, then just ask him.
Leila and I travelled a few weeks together. Matthew had a vacation coming up toward the end of September or the first part of October. I was suppposed to meet him and he was going to use that time to show me around. At the time, Leila's daughter, Julie, was dating a truck driver. We were visiting her in New South Wales. Somehow we determined I would just go to Victoria ahead of time but it was twelve hours away by car. Her boyfriend had a friend (also a truckdriver) who was taking a load to Victoria. He agreed to let me ride down with him, so I did.
I never once felt my safety was ever compromised. I did not feel that in Louisiana, New Zealand, with Leila nor with this man taking me on the road. Once we arrived in Victoria one of the young workers drove me an hour from Lara to Geelong, which is the town Matthew lived in. He made sure I got checked in at the motel and then I never saw him nor my driver again. I had door to door service in the safety of the hands of the Lord.
Once settled, I called Matthew to let him know I had arrived. After work, almost every evening, he would come around and we would chat. When I wanted to go to church he took me. He was not a Christian and had no real knowledge of who God was. However, he was kind and made sure that I had transportation in a city that I did not know. We went to a different church, closer to the city the second week. That church became home for me. Every Sunday the Lord would confirm through the message things that Matthew and I had talked about throughout the week. It only took three weeks for the Lord to draw Matthew to Him. He was saved on October 19th, 2004.
TO BE CONTINUED....
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