He Was There

After years of study, I was finally ready to present my master’s thesis to a board of teachers. A month before, I had made a reservation of the projector that I would need to use during my presentation. Everything was ready—almost.

When I got to the university and went to pick up the projector, it was not available. The person responsible for the equipment told me that the vice-rector, his boss, had taken it to use on the following day. He could not refuse to give it to his boss. I was devastated. There was another projector in the teachers’ departmental room, but it was so bad that it could not help in any way. Since I was to show how machine translation worked on the internet, the lack of a good projector would destroy my presentation.

After praying, I thought about going to the vice-rector to explain my urgent need, but there was no time to look for him. I had to choose between the worst projector—or nothing. To my consternation, when I got to the location of my public examination, nobody was there but the board of teachers and a secretary. My family had moved to the South, and I had had to stay behind to finish my master’s program. Friends, colleagues, classmates—nobody had come to give me support. I was completely alone!

Suddenly, one of my English university students came in and began recruiting other students to attend the presentation. I had invited them, as well, and now they came. When I started my presentation, the girl commented, “This projector is awful!” I agreed and explained that I could not get a better one. Then she told us that there was a good one in the teachers’ room. It had been used in their class that morning! One of the teachers had the room key. That projector was brought in, and it worked perfectly. I used it for my presentation. After answering all the teachers’ questions, I was awarded my master’s degree.

What was amazing is that months before, the projector I ended up using had been sent elsewhere to be repaired. It had arrived back on campus that very morning and had been used in only one previous class—so they could tell me it was available. God had found a way to tell me that He was there with me! I was not alone. He will be with us always.

Het Jane Silva Carvalho