Joy in the Morning
"Until the day break, and the shadows flee away, I will get me to
the mountain of myrrh, and to the hill of frankincense."
~ Song of Solomon 4:6 ~
Izumi slowly navigated herself through the hallway, checking each room as she went. At the end of the hall, lay a pile of suitcases, stacked against the right side of a closed door. Izumi turned the handle, and found it had been locked. Her mother was in there, she was sure. The night before, Izumi remembered that Anna said it was the room she had had as a girl. Her hurt voice broke the silence.
"Please let me in." The only reply to her plea, were the sounds of the waves on the beach. Loneliness filled her being, and echoed through every nerve of her body, making Izumi feel sick inside. Holding her stomach, she ran to the front door, and lost what little food she had, to the bush beside the steps.
Anna had heard her daughter standing in the hall, but said nothing. Hatred had grown inside of her heart as a tall tree, rooted in bitterness. She cast off her daughter's love as a dirty rag, as something to be despised. This had been the upbringing that Izumi's parents had given her. Surely, the poet David, had someone like Izumi Mizukiyo in mind when he wrote these inspired words:
"Oh that I had wings like a dove! for then would I fly away, and be at rest.
Lo, then would I wander far off, and remain in the wilderness. Selah.
I would hasten my escape from the windy storm and tempest."
~ Psalm 55:6-8 ~
Anna's hate drove Izumi into the night. She wandered onto the beach, rigidly staring at the waves. The thought crossed her mind to end it all, here and now. No more trouble, no more pain. "No one cares whether I live or die," she thought. Izumi slowly approached the water.
Suddenly, Izumi was aware that she was not alone. She saw someone standing beside her, looking down into her face. She turned to leave, but a familiar voice halted her retreat.
"What on earth were you trying to do?" Izumi looked up to see the young man who introduced himself as John Johannes on the bus. Izumi's mind and heart were numb. Silence was the easiest reply.
"Answer me!" John was becoming more alarmed by the moment. She hung her head. By this action, John knew he had guessed right.
Partly out of relief that he had been there to stop her, and partly out of anger for what she had just tried to do, he began to quickly pace up and down the beach. "Why is it, that every time I run into you, I have my heart broken?" His pace became slower, however, for Izumi began to cry. She sank to the sand, burying her head in her knees.
With a deep groan, John sat down beside her. "Don't cry. God hasn't forgotten you, even though it feels like it right now." John looked at the hidden head, still crying into her lap.
"Don't believe me? Let me tell you something. I was fast asleep, minding my own business, when a strange feeling woke me up. Do you know what it was?" John asked her, hoping to make her respond. The crying became quieter. Content that his distraction was working, he continued.
"I had the most acute attack of loneliness that I have ever experienced. The feeling was so strong, that I almost couldn't breath. (glancing at Izumi) I went for a walk to get some air, and found you here." Izumi had stopped crying and was listening to what he said, though her head was still hidden. "And glad I am, that I found you when I did. The world would have been a sadder place, if you were no longer in it."
Izumi peeked out from her hiding place. He smiled the smile Izumi had remembered so well at the airport. "You see, God sent me out here, at two in the morning, to stop you. He KNEW you were lonely, and pulled me out of bed to prove it to you. As Christ said: 'Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they?'" (Matthew 6:26)
Izumi was comforted by that thought, and wanted to tell John so, but she was still to shy to come out of hiding. John was content that the danger had been averted, for the moment. "You must promise me something, and I want to hear you say it. You must promise me never, ever, to attempt that again," he said sternly. John heard a muffled "I promise," come from her direction. "Speak louder," he half shouted, hoping to extract her head from the lap.
"I promise!" she exclaimed, forgetting to hide her face.
"That's more like it," said John, a bit more relieved. "You know, whenever you need help, you should ask God. I think He has proven to you that He can help, and is willing to help, if you will only ask. The Bible says: 'Ye have not, because ye ask not.' (James 4:2)" John continued, seeing the girl was listening. "But take care not to have sin in your heart, for 'If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me' (Psalm 66:18). God is only obligated to hear the prayers of the righteous, and if I were you, I would make sure that group included me." John paused, "Would you like to become a Christian? It's the only way to stop something like this from ever happening again."
Growing concerned that he was going too fast for her, he decided to remain silent, and give her a chance to speak. She remained quiet for so long, that with a disappointed heart, he turned his eyes to the bay.
Gathering all the courage Izumi could muster, she asked, "If I became a Christian, would that mean God would have to listen, and answer, when I ask?" John, more relieved than his face showed, nodded his head, and looked at the small girl sitting beside him.
"Confess all known sins to God, right now, and ask Him for the Holy Spirit. Then, believe that He will keep His word, for 'God is not a man, that He should lie'" (Numbers 23:19). John paused, "Do you understand what I'm talking about?"
Izumi understood. She had heard Anna curse God time and again, for doing- or not doing- something she had ordered. If God did not hear her mother, because she had sin in her heart, then Izumi knew what sin was. "I understand more than you think I do," she responded. John smiled again, "That's a good sign," he thought. They bowed their heads, and with John's help, Izumi surrendered her life to Jesus.
When they had finished, John looked up, and noticed a bright- eyed face staring back. "Thank you, I feel much better," she said happily.
"If she feels this good, then she did understand what I was saying," thought John, more relieved than he was before.
"Look," he said, pointing to the horizon, "a new day, for a new beginning."
"A new day, a new beginning, and a new year," Izumi revised. John raised his eyebrows. "Is today your birthday?" he asked.
