In the Right Place at the Right Time

I sat on the frayed rug covering cracked concrete, thankful for the sea breeze that gave my friend Rebekah and me a small reprieve from the Arabian peninsula’s dry heat. This was my first trip overseas since committing to long-term service with Frontiers, a short visit to learn about and pray for the people group that my team would soon be living among. Just a few days in, I began experiencing God’s ministry to the unreached.

After strolling the boardwalk for a couple of hours—our attempt to stave off the inevitable effects of jetlag—my teammate Rebekah and I were ready to call it a night. But just before we turned to go, two women renting out go-karts caught my eye. Something drew me to these women, and I asked Rebekah if we could go to them.

To our surprise, Rebekah was able to speak with the women. In a sea of Arabic-speaking people, these two ladies’ first language was a central African variant of French. Rebekah had grown up as a third-culture kid in their home country, and the three of them fell into easy conversation as we rested on their weather-worn rug.

“God has given me a new heart,” she shared.

Soon, Rebekah steered the conversation toward spiritual matters.

“God has given me a new heart,” she shared.

“How does a person have a new heart?” one of the women asked, brow furrowed.

Rebekah smiled. “What do you know about Jesus?”

They said they didn’t know much about Him. So she explained how, like Adam and Eve trying to cover their shame with leaves, each of us is unable to cover our sinfulness. But Jesus died to take away our shame and give us new hearts.

I was in awe that God had provided this opportunity to share Jesus so soon after our arrival. But there was still more in store for us.

God put someone on our team in the right place at the right time.

Toward the end of our visit, Rebekah and I and a few others from our Frontiers team had the chance to pray outside a large Muslim holy city. Unable to lodge inside the city, we found a place to sleep on a hill nearby.

When we awoke the next morning, we were greeted with the view of some shepherds taking their animals out to graze.

“Look how cute the lambs are,” I said to Rebekah. “Do you think anyone would mind if I bought one and took it home in my suitcase?”

“That small one might fit,” Rebekah joked back.

The herders, aware of our attention, flashed smiles toward us, which the men in our group took as an invitation to start a conversation. The two of them jogged down the hill to introduce themselves, even though there was no guarantee that they would have the linguistic skills to get beyond “hello.”

But once again, God put someone on our team in the right place at the right time. The herders were from Sub-Saharan Africa, and two of the men in our group had spent many years in that region and knew the heart language of our new friends.

God had a reason for bringing His truth to them.

“You are welcome in our home,” one of the herders told them. “Please, come in and talk with us for a while.”

While Rebekah and I acquainted ourselves with the sheep, the men joined the herders in a small hut and shared the Good News of Jesus with them.

“It’s amazing to see how God orchestrated our meetings with the women on the boardwalk and now these men,” I told Rebekah. God made a way for each of them to hear the Gospel in their own heart language.

While none of the people we spoke with committed to following Jesus while we were there, we are confident that God is faithful and will bring His work to completion.

Pray:

• Praise God for orchestrating appointments for Frontiers field workers to share the Gospel with locals and people from far away.
• Pray that the women with the go-kart business and the shepherds will continue to have encounters with the truth of Jesus and will choose to follow Him.
• Ask God to give these new field workers stamina and strength as they begin their ministry in the Muslim world.