THE DOLL THAT JAZMIN RECEIVED IN HER SHOEBOX GIFT AT AGE SIX WAS AN ANSWER TO HER PRAYERS. YEARS LATER, GOD USED THE LETTER SHE RECEIVED IN THAT SAME SHOEBOX TO DRAW HER TO HIMSELF.
Jazmin had been longing for a doll of her own. When she received one at age six in an Operation Christmas Child shoebox, she thanked God for the gift.
JAZMIN NAMED THE TEDDY BEAR SHE RECEIVED IN HER SHOEBOX GIFT “HOPE” BECAUSE THAT’S WHAT SHE FOUND THROUGH THE LETTER INSIDE THAT GOD USED TO WORK IN HER HEART.
“It was very exciting,” Jazmin, now 17, recalled. “It wasn’t only a doll, it was a princess doll. I didn’t have anything like it. I thought it was the best gift I would get in my life. I was running around and showing it to everybody.”
She also received crayons, colored pencils, notebooks, a teddy bear, a yo-yo, bracelets, hairbands, and sunglasses in her shoebox gift.
Jazmin says she used the colored pencils and notebooks to practice sketching for hours on end, contributing to her later pursuing a talent as an artist.
“It was as if the people who packed that shoebox gift knew exactly what I wanted, what I needed, and what I had prayed about,” Jazmin said. “Later, I realized that it was God who has known all of that from the very beginning.”
‘We Hope You Give Your Heart to God’
Underneath some of the items in Jazmin’s shoebox was a letter and photo from the family who had packed her shoebox gift. The photo included a girl who was about the same age as Jazmin at the time.
JAZMIN HELPS DISTRIBUTE OPERATION CHRISTMAS CHILD SHOEBOX GIFTS TO GIRLS IN THE 10- TO 14-YEAR-OLD AGE GROUP.
“The letter said, ‘Jesus loves you. You are special. God will never fail you. Remember that God is always in control,’” Jazmin recalled. “‘The gift of what God has for you is greater than any gift we could give you. God loves you because He sent His only Son for you. We hope you give your heart to God.’”
Jazmin read the letter over and over again, amazed at the gifts in the shoebox as well as the message that accompanied it. She received the shoebox gift at the church in Mazatlán, Mexico, that she attends with her family. Both of her parents are believers in Jesus Christ. But Jazmin assumed that their faith automatically applied to her.
“I thought that my parents’ faith would get me to Heaven,” Jazmin recalled. “My parents always told me, ‘Follow Jesus.’ But I always thought if they’re Christians, then I am a Christian. I thought that I didn’t need what they have if I’m with them.”
A Crisis of Faith
Jazmin continued to rely on the strength of her parents’ faith until her sister’s illness caused them to relocate to another city for medical treatment. Jazmin stayed with her grandparents during this extended time.
JAZMIN AND FELLOW MEMBERS OF HER CHURCH PRAISE TEAM LEAD MUSIC DURING AN OPERATION CHRISTMAS CHILD OUTREACH EVENT AT ONE OF THE CHURCH’S FEEDING CENTERS WHERE THEY TEACH LITTLE ONES ABOUT JESUS.
Missing her parents and worried about her sister, Jazmin milled around her room and rediscovered the shoebox gift that she had stored away. The letter was still there, and its message seemed just as relevant.
“I felt that God was speaking to me through that letter,” Jazmin said. “In that moment, I realized that it wasn’t just the people who had packed the shoebox who had given me that shoebox, it was God who gave me that shoebox.
“It helped me to realize that God is always in control, and He puts all things together,” she said.