Egyptian Church
I was standing in the hotel lobby waiting with most of the folks on our team to go to Applebees for dinner. Yes, Applebees in the
Applebees or
I asked Afshin if I could join him. So off we went in a cab with an Egyptian who had attended our conference and would serve as our translator. Two minutes into the ride, “George” looks at me and says, “They will want you to speak also, okay?”
I had no Bible and no preparation. In the lobby, I promise you, we had just been talking about being asked to preach or speak with no notice when you’re on the field. So I said, “No problem, I’d be happy to.”
We twisted and turned up a few winding streets into what you might picture as a big city alley when the cab stopped. We jumped out and entered the church. It was packed with Egyptians coming to worship. The pastor was close to finishing his sermon, then we’d be asked to speak. Afshin went first, giving his powerful testimony. He connects with many in this area when he shares about his father disowning him after he told him he was a Christian. He gave an invitation and one young guy raised his hand to accept Christ. Hallelujah.
One funny moment. Afshin begins by saying how much he loves the country we’re in, how beautiful it is, and so on. Our translator stopped him and said, “Hey, these are Egyptians.” It was sort of like the commercial you see and hear of the rock star kicking off the concert by saying, “Hellooo Chicago!,” which is met with total silence and one lone voice from the crowd saying, “This is
Afshin has spoken around the country as a full-time evangelist for several years. I’ve barely spoken a word from a pulpit. He had everyone stand and give me a standing ovation, a very nice thing to do. The great thing about not preparing is that you totally rely on the Holy Spirit. Between that and having to speak only for a little while sustained me. The first thing the Lord led me to say was that believers in
As I was speaking, the pastor was seated directly in front of me. I realized I hadn’t run any of this by him. Who knows if he was on board with planting a new church or not? After a bit I sat down and the pastor assumed the pulpit. He held out a small amount of money and offered it to anyone who could come up front and repeat the principles I had just taught. A bunch of hands went up and one young man came forward and repeated it perfectly.
After the service ended, we shook everyone hand and walked to the street. I had many pull me aside to urge to tell you that they love
7 Comments:
"WOW!"
"WOW!"
Relying on the Lord is a great thing to do especially when you are faced a situation you are absolutely NOT in control. "Amazing story of God's faithfulness." Prov 3:5-6
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