Ely- Salvation in the Tanning Salon :)

Ely, my friend :) 

This is Ely (pronounced Ellie). One could say that our lives randomly intersected, but I've known Jesus long enough to believe that there are no such things as coincidence. He had planned for us to meet long before I even had a clue. I hope this story shows you that God wants to use you wherever you go, according to His plan, not yours :)

  I met Ely exactly one month before my wedding. I know it was exactly one month before my wedding because that is when I had decided I would start tanning for the "Big Day." Ely works at the tanning salon. I remember walking in and seeing this pretty redheaded girl but was nervous about my first time in the tanning beds so didn't give her much thought. Honestly I felt super self-conscious about tanning for my wedding. "What a frivolous thing to do", I had told myself one hundred times. "I'm a missionary, what will people back home think?" I admit that I am one of those who teases others about "fake baking" and here I was about to  bake myself! However, I knew I didn't want to look like a ghost with my white skin in my white wedding dress on that "Big Day" and I surely didn't want to terribly stick out in the photos with my new Mexican family. So, there I was shamefully signing my name to a month of sessions.

When I'm nervous I just talk, doesn't matter the language. So I started talking to Ely as I signed my name and pulled out my lotion. I told her that I was marrying a Mexican man in one month and wanted to be tan for the wedding, even though it seemed frivolous. I told her we had dated for two years. I told her all about his proposal and all about the wedding plans... I only stopped talking when I noticed that Ely was crying. She brushed away tears as she told me that her and her boyfriend of three years had just broken up. ( Yeah, just call me Cruella Devil!) Well, that definitely shut me up! I told her I was so sorry, grabbed my lotion and headed for the back room.

After this first questionable meeting I saw Ely about 3 times a week as I stopped by to tan. Each time we talked more and more. I learned about her life, her parents, her ex... and in return shared with her my pre-wedding stress and joys. There were some days that we talked longer than I was actually in the tanning bed!

 Three days before the wedding (as I was on the way to the airport to pick up my parents) I stopped by the shop for one last tan. I noticed that Ely seemed really sad. I asked her what was wrong and in a fountain of tears she told me that she had hit the lowest spot in her life. She missed her ex like mad but was terribly hurt by him, she spent all her days sitting in the tanning booth which gave her lots of time to dwell on the negative things in her life. She felt hopelessly trapped. In this moment I sensed that nudging peace of the Holy Spirit to share. I had to tell her the Good News! So I did. I began by saying that God had a huge plan and purpose for her life, that it was not His will for her to live sad and defeated. I told her that our help comes from the Lord our God the Maker of heaven and earth.

Ely looked at me with tears in her eyes and said that when she had first met me (Cruella Devil day) she was taken by how much joy I had (had to be God!). She said I intrigued her and she knew that she wanted to be my friend. I told her that it really couldn't have been me mustering up the joy she saw that day (honestly, I was a wedding stress ball!). No, it was Christ dwelling in me that made me joyful. So there that day I shared with Ely the truth of the Gospel and the joy that Christ wanted to give her.

It was over two weeks before I saw Ely again. I had gotten married, gone on a honeymoon, moved into a new apartment, etc. Feeling urged by the Holy Spirit I stopped by the tanning salon one afternoon to say hi and to catch up.... It turned out to be that day that Ely prayed to receive Christ as her Lord and Savior!

Since then Ely and I have been meeting once a week at a local coffee shop to study God's Word together. She is so hungry to know more of the Lord. She came to the second week of discipleship with 20 chapters of Matthew marked up with pencil. Wanting to know that pharisees were and what the parable of the sower and the seed meant, and tons of other questions. I love it! Her heart is genuinely seeking the truth and devouring what it receives. Ely has also refreshed me with the joy of new salvation! She has helped me to see the scriptures as she does... with brand new eyes. I love to hear each week how God has showed up and surprised her, either through her morning devotional that turned out to be perfect for that day, or through strangers as church giving her a word that was right on. God is so taking care of Ely and rapidly teaching her. It is a delight to see her grow! Praise Jesus for salvation!

Praise Jesus who decided to use me when I least expected it and was by no means looking for it. Honestly, I thought my ministry was just to be to orphans and the poor and my frivolous tanning was just a guilty pleasure. At no time did I expected that He would have me ministering to the young girl in the tanning booth and sharing with her the joys of salvation. Praise Jesus that His plan is higher than ours and that He uses us wherever we go.