“You must never confuse faith that you will prevail in the end – which you can never afford to lose – with the discipline to confront the most brutal facts of your current reality, whatever they might be.” – James Stockdale
“Confront the most brutal facts of your current reality…”
We went from the rural mountains of Nepal to the hustle of Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. In two flights, we jumped back to the 21st century and had access to smoothie shops, wifi, and McDonalds. Drugs, drinking, and prostitution filled the streets. During our Leadership Development Weekend in Ho Chi Minh, we had a cultural debrief for Vietnam. Don’t gather in large groups. Keep your eyes open when you pray. Don’t lay hands on people in public. Code your words on social media and emails. Protect your host. (And more rules added by our host…) Split into groups of one or two people to go to the underground churches. Be cautious of spies and cut off a conversation if someone asks too many questions. We have been in countries with anti-conversion laws prior to Vietnam, but this was different. The missionaries in Vietnam have to enter the country disguised as NGOs and build their ministry behind another identity. This was our new reality.
On a personal level, I was a mess. Physically, I had not yet recovered from my time in the hospital in Nepal, and travel days are never easy on the body. Mentally, the reality of my experiences in Nepal hit me like a ton of bricks and I didn’t know how to start processing my month, and we were already in a new country. It’s the reality of being on the Race.
(Thankful for sweet teammates who helped me through travel day!)
After a few days, my team traveled to Da Nang and got settled in our new home and spent the first few days exploring the city.
(The Dragon Bridge over the Han River, a symbol of the city’s prosperity – yes, it actually spits out fire!)
(It rained almost every day in Da Nang, but we were able to see a storm rolling in from the East Vietnam Sea)
(Pho – my favorite Vietnamese food! I am also much better at eating with chopsticks now!)
(My favorite part of living in an industrialized city = coffee shops! Can’t beat walking the streets with ca phe sua da in a bag!)
(The Ancient Town of Hoi An)
The darling woman we lived with took such good care of us. She would send us out the door with a wave and a smile every morning, and she would greet us every time we came home, making sure each of us had a good day. She would wander into the kitchen while we were cooking meals and let us know how we could improve our meals. The catch? She didn’t know the real reason we were in Da Nang. She didn’t know we were missionaries.
Ministry looks different in a closed country. Ministry opportunities were not handed to us; we had to make them. We spent the majority of our time at a cafe, helping serve food, completing marketing projects, and teaching English to some of the staff members.
“Faith that you will prevail in the end…”
Throughout our time in Da Nang, we met some incredible people doing great work for the Lord. Their testimonies were inspiring. Men and women my age risk their safety and security to build relationships with the community in order to share the gospel. They don’t live in fear, but they live with an awareness of the reality that they can be persecuted for their faith. They risk losing their jobs, revealing other Christians, being put in jail, and/or deportation. The young adults that we met have their bags packed and are ready to leave at any time if the government discovers them. They face this risk day after day because they believe Jesus is worth the risk. Because making God known is their life mission. Because they have faith that God will prevail in the end.
(Teaching English to the cafe staff – One of these men wants to learn English so he can learn more about the bible and bring it back to the children in his village. The other man left his village so that he could find the story that God had written for him.)
(First dinner in Da Nang – We could not speak openly about our faith. However, we could encourage our Christian friends with laughter and love.)
(Our friends at the Cafe – Most of the staff at the cafe were deaf or hearing impaired. Therefore, our actions, rather than our words, needed to reflect the love of the Father.)
(Sometimes, ministry looked like baking Christmas cookies, serving coffee, and cleaning tables. Therefore, we had to be intentional about our conversations with customers and serve with a joyful heart.)
(English Class – Many people in Da Nang do not speak English, so it forced our actions to reflect our beliefs, because we could not hide behind our words.)
“Keep your eyes open when you pray.” When you can’t use words like “ministry” or “missionary”, you also have to keep your eyes open to ways you can make God known. It requires a more intense dependence on the Holy Spirit to guide your meetings and conversations. You have to be intentional with your actions. In a closed country, your faith is a lot less about what you say and more about the differences people can observe through you. It takes intentional relationship building. Being a believer in Vietnam requires boldness and stepping out in faith, trusting the Lord’s protection and provision.
Matthew 5:16 – “In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in Heaven.”
James 2:17 – “In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.”
James 2:22 – You see that his [Abraham] faith and his actions were working together, and his faith was made complete by what He did.
I have a question for you. If you could not speak to the people around you, would they know you are a Christian? Would they want the gift you have? Would they be able to see the difference that Christ brings to your life? Are you hiding behind the title?
I am not saying that our actions will save us, but consider this: If our faith does not drive us to act, do we really believe it?
(Please join me in prayer for this beautiful country – that leadership and laws would change so that people would be able to worship God freely. Pray for the missionaries and Christians currently living in Da Nang – that their ministries would continue to flourish and they would be able to live out their faith boldly. Pray for the non-believers – that their hearts would be open to receive the gift that can only come from God.)
And keep your eyes open.
