Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken. Ecclesiastes 4:12
A weekend highlight was spending some time with my brother and his wife on their return from a month-long trip to Turkey. Over breakfast Saturday morning, where Dawn added figs, dates and Turkish delight to our menu of cereal, toast and oranges, we absorbed, second-hand, the wonders of this exotic land.
Ken told about his many bus trips from Antakya (Antioch) to a city by the sea where he worked with a young man, showing him how to make furniture out of twigs and branches gleaned from pruning their orchard. He also told of his visit to a Turkish bath, and of how one Sunday they transformed a coffin-sized cardboard carton into a baptismal tank with a hunk of heavy duty plastic.
They spent much of their time trotting along behind the missionary lady from their church as she does her thing – encourages people, prays for them, but mostly just loves on them. It would not be unusual, they said, to be called out on a visitation as late as nine or ten in the evening. They would walk the twisty narrow streets to the home, where people would be gathered in a dimly lit room. On arrival there would be greetings and conversation and tea before getting to the business at hand. For them the month was an exercise in dying to the comforts of home (no hot morning baths or showers, no central heating, those late evening junkets etc.) and waking up to the power of love.
Some of the things that impressed them were:
- The physical beauty of the people.
- The huge numbers of young people
- The way all these youth are focused on getting a good education but then have no job prospects.
- The way families and friends and communities stick together. Split up families, with members living far from each other, are rare (although some families are separated when people have to go abroad to find work).
- The openness of people to be prayed for.
- The way love opens doors.
I must admit, I am just a wee bit jealous!
Photo: Three Friends - pen and ink drawing on a greeting card bought in Turkey
A weekend highlight was spending some time with my brother and his wife on their return from a month-long trip to Turkey. Over breakfast Saturday morning, where Dawn added figs, dates and Turkish delight to our menu of cereal, toast and oranges, we absorbed, second-hand, the wonders of this exotic land.
Ken told about his many bus trips from Antakya (Antioch) to a city by the sea where he worked with a young man, showing him how to make furniture out of twigs and branches gleaned from pruning their orchard. He also told of his visit to a Turkish bath, and of how one Sunday they transformed a coffin-sized cardboard carton into a baptismal tank with a hunk of heavy duty plastic.
They spent much of their time trotting along behind the missionary lady from their church as she does her thing – encourages people, prays for them, but mostly just loves on them. It would not be unusual, they said, to be called out on a visitation as late as nine or ten in the evening. They would walk the twisty narrow streets to the home, where people would be gathered in a dimly lit room. On arrival there would be greetings and conversation and tea before getting to the business at hand. For them the month was an exercise in dying to the comforts of home (no hot morning baths or showers, no central heating, those late evening junkets etc.) and waking up to the power of love.
Some of the things that impressed them were:
- The physical beauty of the people.
- The huge numbers of young people
- The way all these youth are focused on getting a good education but then have no job prospects.
- The way families and friends and communities stick together. Split up families, with members living far from each other, are rare (although some families are separated when people have to go abroad to find work).
- The openness of people to be prayed for.
- The way love opens doors.
I must admit, I am just a wee bit jealous!
Photo: Three Friends - pen and ink drawing on a greeting card bought in Turkey
0 comments:
Post a Comment