NYC: home of henna, hot subway stations, and hallelujahs

      Wow. Our New York trip was awesome. Pretty much because God was all over it. I learned so much... not just about how to reach out to a predominantly Muslim community, but also about God's power, His control, and the way that we should always, in whatever we do, live with a mindset to "make disciples" (Matthew 28:19).
      So each morning we met at a small Indonesian church with Brad Wall, a pastor living and working in New York and trying to motivate and mobilize church planting in the area. There are so many different peoples in NYC, therefore so many different languages. An English-speaking person can only do so much for Christians who speak Hindi or Bengali or Urdu or Spanish or.... you get it. So training someone from Bangladesh to lead a church, or even just a home Bible study, for people from Bangladesh is important. We were split into groups of 3 and 4 and were sent out into the neighborhoods of Queens to just talk to people, hopefully able to share the our story/testimony or the gospel at some point. This is a snippet of what our schedule looked like:

      One of Brad's suggestions to get to talking with people was to get henna tattoos. A great idea, really, because you're all just sitting there and no one can walk away or be busy with something else. So it's a great time to talk. To get to know someone from another country or faith background. And Trace, Jen, and I did just that.

      Long story short, (I'm still wondering if that phrase is even true) the three of us walked around Jamaica, an area of Queens, for over 2 hours Monday afternoon. We hadn't had any great conversations with anyone; we didn't feel like we knew what we were doing; I was tired and hot, and quite honestly ready to sit on the curb and take a break. But we decided to find a henna shop. That was our goal. The one we walked into less than a block away would be a meeting, I believe, ordained by God.

      By the end of the week, we met Rehmani, the owner of the store, his older brother, his cousin Hadiqa, and her two daughters and her son. Pretty much the whole family! It was really just amazing. As the three Jen, Trace, and I got henna tattoos, we talked with Rehmani and got to hear his story. He's from Pakistan. He's a Muslim. He's also one of the most generous men I've met! On Monday he drove us to and showed us around a mosque in Jamaica (we wouldn't have been allowed in without a friend like him); on Tuesday he drove us to a great lunch spot for some Indian/Pakistani/Bangladeshi food, which was DElicious; on Thursday he bought us lunch and we ate with him and some of his family. And we had just met this guy in Queens, NY!! Not something one would be keen about telling her parents: "oh yeah, I met this guy in Queens and we hopped in his van and he drove us around!" But really, it was awesome--just so cool that we had the chance to get to know him, to talk about faith, the differences in our beliefs, to try and share the truth about Christ with Him. And, for the record, it was a mini van.

      There were so many stories of cool things that God did in us and through us while we were there. It was pretty unbelievable. I want to share some of the things God did and taught me last week:

• God uses the weak. He doesn't have to display His power in the strong and important, in a king or even a prophet. On Monday we were weak, discouraged, and tired, yet He used us to build a friendship with Rehmani.
• Suffering is not pointless. God brought us low on purpose before He used us. If we had had an awesome conversation right after we'd been sent out that day, we may have thought, "we're good at this" or "this is easy!" Truth is, it's not easy. Think about Paul and how he suffered. If you put importance in sharing the gospel, the truth about Jesus our Savior, it'll be difficult at times, humbling and refining. Check out James 1: 2-4 (great encouragement sent to me). Joy in sufferings.
• Jesus said GO. He told His disciples, "as you are going out, make disciples." We, as disciples, are not to say, "come here to me, and let me tell you about this great God." We are to go, to meet people where they are comfortable. And we did that last week. We went where Rehmani was comfortable. In his shop, his mosque, his van!
• The way God orchestrates His plan is amazing. Earlier on Monday, around 1pm (we went to the shop around 3pm), some guy came and harassed the women in the shop. Rehmani wasn't there and Hadiqa called him, wanting to close the shop for the rest of the day. Rehmani said no, that he would drive over there. If they had decided to close the shop, we would not have been able to meet them and talk with Rehmani for 3 hours!!!! God is sovereign. He controls even the tiniest of details.
• Prayer is powerful. James 5:16 says, "Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power and produces wonderful results." (NLT) God tried to discipline me in this last week. As I'm praying hard for Rehmani, I truly believe that God will save Him, that He will soften Rehmani's heart and make Him receptive to the truth about Christ. Matthew 7:7 reads "Keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you." (NLT) In Ephesians 6:18 Paul says, "Pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints." (NIV, emphasis added). So, so important, obviously. Something that I definitely need God's discipline to do and believe.

I'm in awe that I can actually say that I made a friend last week. Please, continue to pray diligently!! For Rehmani, for my continued humility and belief that God will save him and his family, for the rest of the students with me, as we start our seminary class and our two internships!! Thank you, thank you for your prayers and your support and your love!