Paige- He Provides

I know Tiffany posted about our language teacher Mika yesterday, but I really want to share this with all of you.  Every Wednesday we get together for our team Bible study and today, we invited Mika to join us.  We are going through the book of Romans and today we discussed Chapter 2 (the oh-so-convicting Chapter 2).  Throughout this chapter Paul reminds us of the sin we commit when we pass judgment on others and that “God will give to each person according to what he has done” (Romans 2:7). 

We sat around the table where we usually have our language lessons.  It is a big table with 6 chairs, one for each of us.  Mika usually stands and teaches us, but he pulled up an extra chair from the kitchen so that he could sit with us during the Bible study.  We opened our time together in prayer and we all shared what stood out to us from the week’s reading.  When I thought we were almost finished, Mika added something so simple but so profound-- Now, one thing about Mika, he is very unassuming.  He is so quiet and soft-spoken.  He is like that kid in the back of the class who didn’t say anything all year and then on the last day of school he just busts out with all this wisdom and knowledge.  Hopefully you understand who I’m talking about-- So before we closed, Mika asked us how we planned to share the Gospel since we don’t have a full grasp of the language yet.  We gave him our answers and he told us (in his own words) that we must be mindful of other people’s perceptions of Christ because as verse 24 says, “God’s name is blasphemed among the Gentiles…” (Romans 2:24).  These were very sobering thoughts and I was not expecting it, especially not from Mika. But then he gave some encouragement.  He said, “You came to this house and there are 6 chairs at this table…there are 6 of you.  This is proof God has been working and providing for you even before you arrived in Manakara.”  So simple, but so powerful. Despite all of the obstacles that we will face while on this mission, like language and people’s pre-conceived notions of the Gospel, God has already been at work and He is still at work.  He’s good.

For the Kingdom,

plc