This month, in Vietnam, we were CRIMINALS! We broke the law. Vietnam is a closed country; meaning that we are not allowed to preach the gospel. We broke the law by doing just that! This meant we had to be creative with our ministry on finding ways to preach the gospel around our lessons. We taught English to college students that were Christian and non-believers. We would have to be meeting the students in different cafes and we couldn’t meet in groups larger than 15 people at a time. The team split into groups of 2 girls with a host attending our meetings the first two weeks. We weren’t able to meet any of our squad mates unless we were going to church. It wasn’t scary! Yes, we weren’t allowed to say words like “missionary”, “Jesus” or anything of that sort but it was exciting to be a “Criminal” for Jesus. One thing our mentor told us was that we would have to find creative ways to have them ask. Make them ask what’s different about you!
What I’ve learned about Jesus is that adventure comes with you giving Him your BEST Yes! We lived next to the beach. It was about a 5-minute walk or less. It reminded me so much of home. This country filled me with love and joy the entire month. The people were loving and friendly. The month pushed me in so many ways. Never in a million years would I think I would be riding a motorcycle; especially with a stranger overseas. I felt so alive and so scared at the same time. We tried different foods that were new to me: yogurt with beans, mini snails and seafood. Exploring the city on our off days was beyond words. God always goes above and beyond what we expect. God gave me the word JOY for this month and it was nothing short of that. Some countries can have hard conditions and ministry can be tough. This month was different; we did work but there was rest in it.
I realized so much comes into play when you fall in love with a country; this country had all of the things on the list. Our Host took care of us like we were her children, we made friends along the way, we were immersed in the culture and there was a mission statement behind what our host was working towards. The schedule was busy; we would teach about 2 classes some days or up to 3 classes. However, God gave us the energy to keep going and the coffee wasn’t bad!
In the beginning of the month we decided that we wanted to see 10 people come to Christ. Again, Jesus goes above and beyond. We saw 44 people come to know Jesus through the organization. During church I heard that 88% of Vietnamese don’t have a father figure. My amazing Team Leader has a powerful testimony that reached this demographic. This month came with it’s challenges but God is not surprised by the things that happen to us. I’ve learned to TRUST the Creator and “history belongs to the intercessors”(Walter Wink). Prayer for salvation was so important before we came to know the people that gave their lives to Christ. It’s not taken lightly to switch your traditions or go against what has been normal for generations in your family. Salvation become so important and so highlighted with our ministry. My Squad Mentor, Erika, stated how Jesus died on the cross for the potential of us to say YES! It makes His death worth it.
