Each month we get to join in with a new ministry in a new country, and I love seeing the world through the eyes of the people we are surrounded by. We arrived in Vietnam about 4 days ago and it has already been quite an adventure. For ministry this month we are going to coffee shops and meeting with groups of people to help them with English.
Each morning, Andy and I wake up early and walk for about 30 minutes through the craziest traffic I have ever seen. There are motos and cars and street vendors everywhere. The weather is much cooler here and is usually a little rainy. After we get to the coffee shop, we sit at table and people come and sit with us just to talk and practice English. Such a simple and easy idea! At first I was uncertain at how it would go and if we could think of enough topics to talk about for 3 hours, but the time flew by. We had a group of people ranging in ages from 16-35+, some are students and some have careers, but all want to learn English in their free time.
Sometimes our conversations are about their favorite music or movies, but sometimes they start asking deeper questions like why do I celebrate Christmas, or what motivates me to travel around the world volunteering. These seem like small questions, but the fact that we are in Vietnam make them huge questions. Only 8% of Vietnam is Christian and it is considered a closed country. This means I can not openly share the gospel as a foreign missionary without government approval. However, I can respond when I have students asking my why I celebrate Christmas and I can respond that I believe that God sent his son Jesus Christ and I celebrate His birth on Christmas. Or when students ask why I travel the world, I can respond by saying because I believe that God loves us and wants everyone to know of His love. I am in awe of how awesome God is and how He opens closed doors.
I am so excited that He chooses me to come alongside what He is already doing all over the world and this is just one example of how incredible He works through all things. Just a simple conversation over smoothies and coffee can turn into people hearing about His love in a country where it is not often shared. How amazing is that?!
“For I will proclaim the name of the Lord; ascribe greatness to our God! The Rock, his work is perfect, for all his ways are justice. A God of faithfulness and without iniquity, just and upright is he.” – Deuteronomy 32:3-4
