How Does A Nation Get Into Your Heart?

(Part two)


Exactly how fast can one build a house? One key answer might be in the form of two additional questions: How strong do you want it to be? How long do you want it to last?

From my vast construction background I can tell you that many excited homeowners exhibit signs of much impatience, because they want to be in that new home…yesterday. Can you blame them? However, if it’s a custom, quality-built home you’re after, impatience becomes the enemy. You’ve heard the expression: “Rome wasn’t built in a day”, such is the case when attempting to build relationships in another country.

Extreme flexibility must be present when on another’s soil. It’s been my experience that “what you planned” seldom works out exactly the way “you planned it”. Frustration will raise its ugly head – and our self-absorbed focuses will be rather quickly exposed.

Be careful not to push too hard – too fast. Building a lasting, eternal work (that will hopefully outlast you) does not happen by simply “snapping a finger”. To say the least, it has been embarrassing at times for my friends to say, “Please, do not bring that person when you return to our country” because of impatience, the lack of preparation, and inflexibility.

There will be much investment to make. Immediate results are not always the “lasting ones”. You’ll be dealing with hundreds or even thousands of years of unrighteous history, culture and taboo.

Please remember, that when controversial questions are asked (and surely they will be asked, just like Jesus), always remain in a biblical position. You are not there to colonize the country and make people conform to the Western Church. That kind of arrogance is often stomach-turning to the other nations of the world. Be careful not to enforce your convictions upon others. You don’t know the entire truth – you just know the One Who is Truth. He has promised to guide us all into the truth…together.

An example of this would be: strong drink. While I could never drink beer or wine because of my personal convictions, in Germany beer is more common than water; even among Christians. In France, wine is the accepted drink at the dinner table, again, even among Christians. I believe that in one of the Scandinavian countries, drinking coffee is considered a sin, but not beer.

If God calls you and me to one of these nations, are we there to “straighten them out”? God forbid! We are not the Kingdom enforcers. Everyone must work out their own salvation with fear and trembling. God desires for us to be an example, not a hindrance.

Do your homework. Do a demographical study. If you do some investigation before going to the nations, some of these potential “cultural traps” can be sprung ahead of time. The Lord can defuse any present indignation beforehand too.

Oh…yeah…eat what’s set before you. My experience has been that people will generally give you their absolute best. It is better to have to suffer regurgitation than risk offending a dear brother or sister in the Lord. If your stomach is just too weak to handle unusual foods, you’re better off to stay in the hotel room or not board the plane. After all, someone has to stay at home and help pray! Right?

While it is often unfair to be categorized as a “rich” person because we live in the Western world, we don’t want to confirm that we were born with a “silver spoon in our mouths”. If we can afford an airplane ticket to their country, they can view us as “rich”. So, if we refuse their food, then their judgments are confirmed. Hearts will be closed to the Gospel. What a sad thought. You don’t want the Lord to remind you of that on the Day of Reckoning.

Simply put, Open Hearts = an Open Gospel. This is why I am so convinced of building relationships. I am building for eternity. How about you? It’s much bigger than you and me. I believe that entire nations will bow their knees before the Christ. Surely, the families of the nations are being gathered to worship Jesus! Shall we build together – with the One who is the Master Architect, Jesus?