Sent to Give Hope

"Many are the plans in a person’s heart, but it is the Lord’s purpose that prevails."

—Proverbs 19:21

One day, while walking home from another visit, we met a woman on the road. She asked, “Are you missionaries?” “ Yes,” we answered. She then told us, “I’m taking care of an elderly woman named Nanay Erlinda. If you have time, could you massage her?” I immediately felt grateful. It seemed that God Himself was leading us to another person who needed care.

At that moment, we thought we were simply responding to a request to help someone who was physically struggling. But God was leading us to someone who was carrying a much deeper pain. When we arrived, we saw Nanay Erlinda sitting in bed.

She had been unable to walk for eight years after suffering a stroke.“For eight years, she had depended on others even for the simplest things—getting out of bed, moving around the house, and caring for herself.” Watching life continue around you while your own world becomes smaller is a different kind of pain.

Yet when she saw us, her face brightened. We sat beside her and began massaging her. We listened as she shared pieces of her life, and slowly, the conversation revealed something much heavier than we expected. Nanay Erlinda had once reached a point where she felt that she could no longer bear the weight of her circumstances.

Years of illness, physical limitations, and the struggles that came with them had slowly taken away her hope. She reached a place where she no longer saw a reason to continue living, that she wanted everything to end. One day, in the midst of that darkness, she found some medicine and took 30 tablets, hoping to end her life. But the next morning, she opened her eyes.

She was still alive. And as she realized what had happened, she began to cry. For the first time in a long time, she began to wonder: “Why am I still here?” And somewhere in that painful question, hope began to return. She came to believe that God had allowed her to wake up. She was still here—and that meant her life still had a purpose.

The moment I heard that, it helped me understand my prayer in a deeper way. I had asked God to lead us to people who needed hope—and He answered by leading us to Nanay Erlinda.

The woman who once wanted to give up is now 85 years old, still here, still loved, and still carrying a story that can remind others that God does not abandon His children in their darkest moments. Sometimes, hope is simply discovering that even in the middle of our suffering, God still has a purpose for our lives.

Name: Sherry Jean Peros/66th Batch

Mision Field: Kaytitingga, Alfonso, Cavite