It was the second night of our mini-debrief in Zimbabwe at worship when a stranger that I had seen around the hostel sat down next to me. She sat down and started to just listen as we were singing about “How great is our God”. She is swaying back and forth and just listens.
Once the song is over I leaned into her and introduced myself and asked for her name, it was Elite.
She tells me how she is from Israel and that she is Jewish, but she could hear us singing on the patio from her room at the hostel. She said “something told me I needed to come out and listen to the music.” So she came out and joined us. She didn’t know any of the words or even understand what we were singing about but she was there.
Then the music stops.
On the inside I am thinking come on John keep playing music….but he didn’t and our sermon for the night began.
But Elite did not leave she just started asking me questions, like:
Why would you leave your home and family for a year?
Are you on this trip because you are lost?
Do you as Christians have to pray three times a day?
How do you earn Heaven?
Do you have to worship your God every evening at 7? (we had worship every night of the mini debrief at 7pm)
Do you have 3 God’s?
I sat with her and missed the entire sermon that night talking to her and answering her questions. I discussed how God called all of us to leave our comfort zones to not only grow closer to him but to also help others around the world. I told her that being lost in not a requirement for being on the Race but while being on the Race you sometimes find out just how lost you are. I told her about how I can talk to God at any time of day or night and that he will always listen to my prayers. I discussed with her how getting into heaven is not earned that all you have to do is believe that Jesus Christ is your Lord and Savior and that he died on the cross to save us from our sins. I discussed how worshiping at 7 pm every night was only because we were at mini-debrief but that I can worship God wherever and whenever I want i.e. a field, a road walking home, sitting in bed, a church, a beach, a car, a bathtub, the outhouse, I can worship God wherever I feel his presence. Now, explaining Father, Son, and Holy Spirit is a hard one. I told her how they are all God but just different aspects of God…..basically same same, but different.
At the end of the conversation Elite left saying she would come back the next night at 7 for worship and I leaned to my squad mate Emily and asked what were doing and she said “if you have any beef with a teammate you are supposed to tell them about it and then get communion.” So I sit back and chill because I love my team and had no issues with any of them.
But I hear “Leslie can I talk to you” from Katherine…I am thinking oh poop what did I do to her…turns Emily also missed the instructions because she was praying over my conversation with Elite. The real instructions were to pray over your teammates and then share what God tells you to tell them and share edifying words about them.
The next night I took my seat at worship and quickly got swept away with the presence of God that I almost forgot about Elite. Then I saw her walk down the path and sit on the outskirts of the squad. SO I walked over and sat down next to her. Tonight she just wanted to listen to the music.
She asked if our organization taught us how to harmonize when we sang?
I told her “no, God puts notes on our hearts as we sing and we sing with the Holy Spirit and he loves to make harmonies”.
She giggled.
We sat in silence most of the night but I prayed for her as I sat next to her I prayed that God would continue to work in her life. That the next time she introduces herself she does not say “Hello, my name is Elite. I am from Israel and I am Jewish.” But introduces her self as “Hello, my name is Elite, and I love Jesus and so should you!”. I prayed that even though we were leaving he place another person in her life to show her the light and the truth.
I know God loves to answer prayers and I believe that one day I’ll see Elite in Heaven and there I can give a big hug to my sister in Christ.
