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I just finished reading “The Furious Longing of God” by Brennan Manning. If you have not read it, you should. This is something that stuck out to me while reading it. It is a story Brennan shares about a woman by the name of Yolanda, who he was visiting at a leprosy colony in Louisiana. The story can be found starting at page 53 and ending on 56. As I turned to look back at Yolanda - and if I live to be three hundred years old I’ll never be able to find the words to describe what I saw - her face was like a sunburst over the mountains, like one thousand sunbeams streaming out of her face literally so brilliant I had to shield my eyes. I said “Yolanda, you appear to be very happy.” With her slight Mexican-American accent she said, “Oh Father, I am so happy.” I then asked her, “Will you tell me why you’re so happy.” She said, “Yes, the Abba of Jesus just told me that He would take me home today.” I vividly remember the hot tears rolling down my cheeks. After a lengthy pause, I asked just what the Abba of Jesus said. Yolanda said: “Come now, my love. My lovely one, come. For you, the winter has passed, the snows are over and gone, the flowers appear in the land, the season of joyful songs has come. The cooing of the turtle dove is heard in our land. Come now, my love. My Yolanda, come. Let me see your face. And let me hear your voice, for your voice is sweet, and your face is beautiful. Come now, my love, my lovely one, come.” Six hours later her little leprous body was swept up into the furious love of her Abba. Later that same day, I learned from the staff that Yolanda was illiterate. She had never read the Bible, or any book for that matter, in her entire life. I surely had never repeated those words (from the Song of Songs chapter 2) to her in any of my visits. I was, as they say, a man undone. (Manning, Brennan. 2009. The Furious Longing of God. David C. Cook: Colorado Springs.)

I just finished reading “The Furious Longing of God” by Brennan Manning. If you have not read it, you should.

This is something that stuck out to me while reading it. It is a story Brennan shares about a woman by the name of Yolanda, who he was visiting at a leprosy colony in Louisiana. The story can be found starting at page 53 and ending on 56.

As I turned to look back at Yolanda - and if I live to be three hundred years old I’ll never be able to find the words to describe what I saw - her face was like a sunburst over the mountains, like one thousand sunbeams streaming out of her face literally so brilliant I had to shield my eyes.

I said “Yolanda, you appear to be very happy.”

With her slight Mexican-American accent she said, “Oh Father, I am so happy.”

I then asked her, “Will you tell me why you’re so happy.”

She said, “Yes, the Abba of Jesus just told me that He would take me home today.”

I vividly remember the hot tears rolling down my cheeks. After a lengthy pause, I asked just what the Abba of Jesus said.

Yolanda said:

“Come now, my love. My lovely one, come.

For you, the winter has passed,
the snows are over and gone,
the flowers appear in the land,
the season of joyful songs has come.

The cooing of the turtle dove is heard in our land.
Come now, my love. My Yolanda, come.

Let me see your face. And let me hear
your voice, for your voice is sweet,
and your face is beautiful.

Come now, my love, my lovely one, come.”

Six hours later her little leprous body was swept up into the furious love of her Abba. Later that same day, I learned from the staff that Yolanda was illiterate. She had never read the Bible, or any book for that matter, in her entire life. I surely had never repeated those words (from the Song of Songs chapter 2) to her in any of my visits. I was, as they say, a man undone. (Manning, Brennan. 2009. The Furious Longing of God. David C. Cook: Colorado Springs.)


2 years ago 1 note
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  1. mattyfitz posted this