GAYATRI

She sat in front of me totally oblivious of the fact that her mom had brought her to me for a caricature to be drawn. I gave her a hard, long look and tried to figure out how I was going to draw her. She was beautiful and I trembled as I began the pencil sketch.

There was no symmetry to her face. But she was beautiful.

Her eyes were rolling up into the sockets. But she was beautiful.

She just wouldn't hold her head straight and looked heavenward everytime. But she was beautiful.

Her hands and feet were disproportionate and askew. But she was beautiful.

Her tongue darted out from between her cute little lips and drooled. But she was beautiful.

My hands trembled and I fought back tears as I drew the picture of the sweet little Gayatri. I'm imagining her now and tears are rolling down my cheeks as I write this article (Because there's just me and my God … and I'm lamenting the fact that I couldn't muster up enough faith to hold the little hands of Gayatri and say to her like John did to the cripple in Acts 3: 1 – 26, “I have no silver or gold, but what I do have I give you. In the name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene, stand up and walk!” (Then Peter took hold of him by the right hand and raised him up, and at once the man’s feet and ankles were made strong).

If only I had the faith of Peter, I would have seen Gayatri jumping out of her wheelchair, walking and leaping and praising God!

It was not a fluke that the Holy Spirit made me accept the request of AL NOOR SPECIAL NEEDS SCHOOL to be the caricature artist for a whole eleven and a half hours yesterday, to raise funds. I saw many parents with their 'special' children walk past me and I said a prayer for each one but I never expected a parent would get a caricature done of her 'special' child.

Guess what I drew … Instead of highlighting the imperfections of her face I outlined her features to resemble GAYATRI but more like how God would look at her SPIRIT and her PURPOSE on this earth and not her outward appearance.

The sweet Gayatri was sent specially to me by the Holy Spirit and challenge me in my faith.

 My favorite verse in the Bible is Mark 9:24, which ends with the phrase, "Lord, I believe; help my unbelief!" That pretty well sums up my spiritual journey.