It’s been eight years. Eight years since I studied Spanish in college. That one semester plus a year in high school left me with enough knowledge to communicate basic words and sentences but not enough to hold a conversation without a translator. Unfortunately, I didn’t have time to refresh my Spanish before setting out on the World Race. Between the Google Translate App and trial & error, I’ve been able to communicate a little better than when I first arrived in South America. The good news is, language is not a barrier to God.
“And God is able to make all grace abound to you,
so that having all sufficiency in all things at all times,
you may abound in every good work.”
2 Corinthians 9:8
It’s been three weeks. Three weeks since my squad-mates and I were each given a hand-crafted cross at launch in Atlanta before we set out on our race. The intent was for us to use them as a tool to share the gospel and give them away. Last week when packing my bag to head out for our day off, I tucked my cross inside and prayed I would get a chance to use it. I spent the day with my squad-mates at a coffee shop while we blogged, caught up on emails & communication, and sipped on the local caffeinated brew. When it was time to head back to the ministry foundation, three of us hopped into an Uber to make our way there before curfew.
“Go therefore and make disciples of all nations,
baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,
teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you.
And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”
Matthew 28:19-20
It’s been twenty-nine years. Twenty-nine years since my mother started telling me not to talk to strangers. Now as a child this makes sense. It goes along with being instructed not to wander or get in a stranger’s vehicle. Because I am reserved and introverted, it’s been easy for me to carry these warnings into my adult life. I wouldn’t call myself shy, but normally when I’m out running errands, I keep to myself, avoid conversations, and enjoy the alone time. I’ve already abandoned two of these three principles by wandering away from home to join the World Race and hopping in countless Ubers here in Colombia. Giving up my hesitance to strike up a conversation with strangers is still a work in progress. I haven’t always spoken up when I should have but let me give you an example of where I got it right.
“When I was a child, I spoke like a child,
I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child.
When I became a man, I gave up childish ways.”
1 Corinthians 13:11
It’s been one week. One week since I got in the front seat of the Uber and started talking to the man next to me. His name was John. I asked him in English where he was from. He gave me the all too familiar look of misunderstanding. I whipped out my phone and opened the google translate app. From this moment on I spoke in Spanish with the help of the app. John said he was from Bogota, Colombia. I told him we were from the United States. He asked if we were on vacation. My teammate Aleesa explained that we were missionaries traveling to 11 countries over the next 11 months. I asked him if he knew God. He said he did but was not a fan of religion. He went on to tell us that he studied in seminary and had been a priest but left the church because he saw how it had been corrupted by man. At this point, we were stopped at a red light and we were typing back and forth using google translate. We sat there through two light cycles conversing about God and religion. There was a moment when the conversation paused. There was silence. He and I were both thinking. I prayed “what do I say next?” Then I told him that God still loves him and wants to have a relationship with him. John said he prays sometimes and asks God for strength. He said there is conflict in his life. At this point, we arrived at the foundation. I literally gasped when John said that he had eaten lunch in the café at the foundation earlier that day. Aleesa explained that the foundation also served as a church and told him about the services & times and invited him to join us there. I asked if I could pray for him before we got out of the car. As he started typing in google translate, I could see that he was typing an excuse, that his spirit was conflicted. Then he stopped and sighed and agreed. I prayed for peace and that God would show him that he is loved and wanted. I then remembered the cross in my bag. I pulled it out and handed it to John. I asked him if he would take it as a reminder that God loves him. He looked confused. I explained it was a gift. He thanked me with tears in his eyes. I hopped out of the car and over the barbed wire fence then ran up the sidewalk and stairs with the Joy of the Lord beaming on my face excited to share with my squad-mates what had happened.
“For the joy of the Lord is your strength.”
Nehemiah 8:10b
That night when I was going to sleep, for a brief moment, I saw a battle in my mind. I prayed for John, that he would come to have a personal relationship with God. That the enemy would not win in the battle for his life. I prayed that the seed planted during our interaction would grow. Then, I went to sleep. I woke suddenly at two in the morning, sat up in a semi-dreamlike state with a realization that it was John’s Birthday. I had a memory of balloons & confetti and heard the Happy Birthday song being sung in Spanish. I believe the Lord was showing me that John was reborn in Christ that night.
“For everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world.
And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith.”
1 John 5:4
