Unexpected Encounter

Our 7 yr old exploring the caves

We had someone new join us for our time together on Sunday.  She is not an islander. She’s a foreigner to the islands.  She’s been working here for a number of months.  She comes a country in the Middle East where there is a very strict government and very few freedoms.  Yet, when she heard two of our teammates speaking English a few days ago, she couldn’t help but introduce herself and in the course of the conversation it seemed like she couldn’t help but let them know about the good news that had changed her life.  From this chance meeting on the side of the road, she was invited to join our time together and share her amazing story.

She had always gone against the grain, she told us, always “swimming up the river.”  Yet, she had also tried to live a good life and to do what is right.  She had worked for some very religious people and seen the deception and the hypocrisy in their lives and found herself rejecting the things that they claimed were true.  Yet, still she tried to live a pure life.  She prayed everyday and tried to live as she was supposed to.  Then one day, she had a dream.  The dream was so real.  She was praying in the daily ritual way, and then in the midst of her prayer she stopped and left the building.  There in the street was a bright shining man.  He offered her a beautiful belt and a drink.  She took the belt and put it on and then drank the drink.  Then she looked up and saw another building across the street.  She went to this new building to pray and felt herself filled with joy.

She had found some friends to help her follow this new path, but they spoke a different language and it was very hard.  She wanted to go abroad to a place with more freedom, but she kept being denied a visa. Then she got a contract job that took her to the islands.  She had been here for six months and the contract was over she would have to return to her home country soon.

She wished she had met us earlier. She would really like to learn more—and even though her English isn’t very good, she wanted to learn as much as she could from us in the remaining week or two she has on the islands.  The only book she had was in her friends’ language and it was slow reading and hard to understand. That’s when one of our teammates reached over with his smart phone.  He started searching the internet for the book in her language.  In a matter of seconds, he had found it and handed it to her.  The look of surprise on her face was wonderful!  The whole book has been translated into her own language and she hadn’t even known it!  She immediately started to read it.  With a wide grin she said, “I don’t even need you anymore.  I can read it for myself.”  She spent the next hour (and probably many more after that) reading and understanding and asking our teammates questions. 

Our 5 yr old exploring too!

What a privilege to see something like this.  How strange that we should find each other in such a remote place as the islands.  What a great reminder that sometimes, all it takes is a dream—and that dreams happen!  What a great encouragement to see the joy of someone reading a book in their own language.  What a motivation to see more translation work done.  What a surprise! 

This young woman will not be here very much longer, but we’ll share what we can and she will leave with her own book in her own language and she will leave us greatly encouraged.  You will be a blessing and you will be blessed.  Yes, it’s true.

PRAYERS ANSWERED
We are thankful for this chance meeting and for the window it gives us into what God is doing around the world. Ma Imani is feeling better. Continue to pray for her health. Our team had planned a single-weekend music worship to get a few more songs in the local language/style, but it is turning into a weekly music club, which is better than our original plan. We’re excited to see the songs they create become embraced and sung by islanders. We had a visitor for most of this past week— he is visiting the islands and even considering working here in the future. It was encouraging to talk with him and share life with him.

PRAYERS REQUESTED
Pray for our new friend as she returns to her home country, that she would continue to learn, grow and be a bright light in that place. One of our teammates continues to struggle with debilitating allergies— pray for relief. She hasn’t found medicine that doesn’t knock her out and it has been going on for months.  It is really draining her. Please pray. Megan is still sharing stories in a local home but most of the family is not around to hear. Pray that they would share with each other and learn together. Tom has decided to continue to meet weekly with the two guys. Pray for wisdom about what to study and how he should push/encourage them.