“The enemy likes to make hell seem comfortable.” These words were spoken by my friend Claire during a conversation we had with one of our taxi drivers. Upon getting in the taxi, this man had asked us why we were so joyful, and we’d simply responded, “Jesus.” I’ve found that the name Jesus often prompts people to divulge huge parts of their heart that they would’ve otherwise kept hidden or ignored. This man opened his mouth, and out came pain. This African man, who had previously been joking around trying to convince us he was Chinese, suddenly switched and began revealing his true identity. His story unraveled before us, and suddenly I didn’t see my funny 20something taxi driver, I saw a young, terrified, starving, uneducated boy who journeyed for months alone from Congo to South Africa in hopes of a better life and to save his family. And next came the anger, “WHY? WHY DO I PRAY EVERYDAY FOR GOD TO PROVIDE AND I SEEM TO ONLY GET POORER?” “WHY DO EVIL DISHONEST MEN PROSPER WHILE MY FAMILY STARVES?” “SHOULD I TURN AWAY FROM GOD? MAYBE I WILL THEN SUCCEED LIKE THESE OTHER MEN.” But the enemy likes to make hell seem comfortable, inviting even. How do you think he deceives people into turning away from the Lord? Not with promises of darkness, but with lies of light.
On this trip I have come face to face with poverty. When poverty is grasping at your throat, I’ve found that people’s salvation can become wrapped up in physical provision. My taxi driver went on, “THE BIBLE TALKS ABOUT THE END OF THE WORLD, BUT FOR ME THE END TIMES FEELS LIKE MY LIFE. AFRICA IS HELL. AMERICA, CANADA, EUROPE…. THAT IS HEAVEN.” I don’t know what it’s like to always feel hungry. I don’t know what it’s like to barely survive a winter because I don’t have a blanket or a home. I don’t know what it’s like to be denied an education. I certainly don’t know what it’s like to stand outside the window of a driving school and listen because I could never afford classes. What I do know is that God’s hand has not been absent from this man’s life. He has learned 3 languages. He has gone from pushing carts to being provided a car after he taught himself to drive a manual. He is the richest person in his family. But for him, it’s not enough. This man’s salvation is bound to physical salvation. For him, riches are proof God actually cares about His situation. How can I convince someone who has grown up living coin to coin, paycheck to paycheck and it’s “STILL NOT ENOUGH TO GET BY,” that wealth is not the answer? How many Americans hold a heaven-on-earth type mentality in which they pursue every comfort that catches their eye? How many lead empty lives full of stuff? How many will spend eternity in hell? Wealth is not the answer.
This life is but a shadow, a blip, and then it is over. Jesus does not promise us safety. He does not promise us health. He does not promise us financial security. HE DOES promise His presence. He promises joy that isn’t bound to our circumstances. He promises us peace that passes all understanding. He promises to be glorified in us if we are willing to give our stories over to Him. He promises to redeem our brokenness. He promises grace and mercy when we fall short. For my taxi driver, an eternity of Heaven can be found after this lifetime of hell. But salvation cannot be found in the comforts of earth. Our hope must be found in Christ alone. We have to believe that more than all riches, Jesus is better and He is enough. Every single one of us can be challenged not to name comfort as our destination. Jesus did not live a life defined by comfort. For the 30 years He walked the earth, He was misunderstood, betrayed, cast out, and impoverished. His greatest access to comfort was through the Father, the ultimate Comforter. We are beings created for residence in Heaven, and we are born craving Home. I don’t want to waste my life running after a false sense of heaven here on earth, which was designed by the ruler of hell to ensnare and distract us.
God’s heart for Samba the taxi driver overwhelms me. The Bible says that “The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit.” (Pslam 34:18) Samba believes in Jesus and he has faith; he has simply placed his hope in the physical instead of the everlasting. If we’re being honest, I think we can relate to Samba in more ways than we think.
