Dinner with five

You know that gut-wrenching feeling you get when you are going to miss a time spent in your life?  Tonight at dinner the wrench was turning in all directions.

I had dinner with five students, who I will seriously miss because they represent the society as a whole here. We all met at the university cafeteria for some Chinese dishes and  conversation. Like always my beliefs came up, because of the girls at dinner was the one whom my wife and I have spent so much time with. This seeking girl asked me to tell her friends about my belief in the Son and how that impacts my daily life. So of course I told them the Story, prayed before we ate dinner, and sang “Jesus loves me”

Some would say this is all corny, but it is what they asked me to do. “Mr. *&$#@  will you sing us a song?” and  ”Mr. *&$@  will you tell us what your family is like and what you do together?” So I just did what I do at home.

As all of this was going on, I thought about all my conversations here, all my prayers here, and all the Spiritual moments we have experienced. I really have a heart for these people. Truly, as the Great Shepherd says, “They are like sheep without a shepherd.” It is amazing to hear people say, “What is the Bible?” and  ”Who is Jesus?” and “What is Christianity?” All questions I have heard recently, and many times over in the time spent here. It is sad that they all want to the same things, happiness, success, family, and long life. However, the Way, Truth, and Life road less travelled is only revealed to a handful of them because of the small numbers reaching out here. And of those hearing the story, it may take years for an even smaller number to reach rebirth.

Looking at these five 18-year old young ladies in a large crowd of other students eating dinner really broke my heart because the labor is so massive. I wish everyone back home could just get glimpse of what it is like to only have a few lit candlesticks in a land shrouded in only lantern lights. We are so blessed back home to have fellowships on just about every street, and here these girls have yet to even see one, except the one eating dinner with them this night.

One girl, she goes by Grace, told me she is from a village of about 300 people. I am the first foreigner she has have ever eaten with. And tonight was the first time she ever heard the song, “Jesus loves me”. I sang it, poorly I am sure, in both Chinese and English. I just pray that as I move on to a new city, that somewhere, someone will come along and water that little seed planted tonight planted tonight in Grace’s heart. It would be great if it is the other young lady that we have spent countless hours with sharing the Story with.

This may be seem like rambling to some, but it is just me processing.

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