Answered Prayers with Tita Ellen

 

Hello, I am your Tita Ellen.  I am mother to nine children: six boys and three girls, most of whom are married. To date, my husband, Eking, and I have 22 grandchildren. All these years, God has been kind to us.

Having such a large family and with a professional career to pursue, I had no other recourse but to constantly seek God’s guidance and blessings. As I look back, and with the aid of hindsight, I now realize that my entire life and the life of my family have been a series of answered prayers.

Life can be hard. We may not be able to comprehend immediately the meaning of the hardships we encounter in life; but this is part of God’s plan for us. Often, it is when one is weak that God is strongest in us (2 Cor 12:10). All we need to do is to trust God completely.

All of us have experiences of answered prayers.  Let me start off with my story. I invite you to share with us one or two stories of your own.  Hopefully, this would serve as an inspiration to others.

The first story has to do with my graduate studies at Fordham University in New York City. I was away from the family for the very first time and the youngest child was only five years old then. It was a very traumatic experience for me. Adding to my loneliness for the family, the lectures were so fast, I could hardly catch up with my note taking, not to mention the chemical equations which were like birds flying high with wings and legs outstretched.

Another of my worries was that the only boarding house I could find was located at Gunhill Street where one has to literally climb up a hill. Many of the residents there were of questionable character.  And at night, at the back of the boarding house, one would hear the crowing of a raven inhabiting a deserted cemetery that was more than a century old. It was quite a distance from school that I had to take one bus ride going there. 

The following week we would be starting with our evening classes up to 9:00 P.M. That meant that I would have to climb up the hill late at night since the bus stop was at the foot of the hill.  This would be extremely difficult during wintertime.

These thoughts occupied my mind while on a bus trip to the Port Authority one weekend, on my way to my sister’s house in Moorestown, New Jersey.  I prayed for God’s blessings for all the people aboard.  I also prayed for His help about my condition – that I would be able to get adjusted, that I would find better lodging, and that I would be able to concentrate on my studies and thus finish my course.

After I got off the bus and while I was walking on the sidewalk near Times Square, on my way to the Port Authority, I slipped.  The whole weight of my body was on top of my right ankle. Suddenly, somebody lifted me up and I felt intense pain on my right ankle.  I limped and dragged myself and my bag to the ticket counter and to the Trailway Bus bound for Moorestown.

During the trip I thought that this would be the end of my graduate studies. But on second thought, I told myself that this must be the answer to my prayers, painful as it was.

Upon arrival at Moorestown, my sister had my leg X-rayed and sure enough my ankle had a hairline crack which had to be put in a cast for one month. I could not move about and I had to stay at my sister's house. I then wrote to my professors at Fordham explaining why I could not attend our classes.  

Immediately, I got a reply that I am not to worry and that they would send me notes of the lectures and that I don’t have to report to the lab classes I was assisting.  True enough, every day I was getting the actual notes direct from my professors and I continued to receive my cheques.  This gave me time to relax and be better adjusted. I could also concentrate on my studies. 

After a month I wrote to my professors that I would like to attend some classes in preparation for our forthcoming exams.  I was still limping around in crutches, so I requested that I be allowed to stay in one of the dorms on campus. (Staying on-campus was not allowed for graduate students then). Everybody was so understanding and it was arranged with the administration that I could stay in one of the rooms at Spellman Hall.

To make a long story short, all my petitions were granted and I was able to finish my graduate studies with flying colors. Praise the Lord!

                                                            

Kindly send your sharing of answered prayers to: Tita Ellen at [email protected]

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