The
Last 5 Minutes...
I was out with the mission teams when a
drunk man stumbled up and asked me to be his girlfriend. Our
conversation went something like this: “Sorry Baba!” to which he
replied, “OK, maybe next time or later” and I happily said, “No,
never” and off he went. I can normally shoo the drunk guys away
with my abruptness (or better yet, Micah is with us and guides them
away) but this wasn't the case with the next fellow, Oscar.
Oscar rambled up next, he was
completely sober and spoke excellent English. He asked to take a
picture with me to which I said, “No!” and told him he could
speak to one of the guy missionaries who was conversing with another
man a few paces away. Oscar was not so easily persuaded and I told
him I didn't like pictures. Undaunted he started to ask me if I knew
a few missionaries and named some off, I didn't know them but I found
out that he had attended Micah's discipleship group and remembered
the teaching. Come to find out, he actually knew his Bible very well.
I eventually realized Oscar would not be coaxed to go away and he
seemed a bit smug thinking he was getting somewhere by holding my
attention, but I was just as stubborn as he and decided if he wanted
to talk we would talk about God!
He told me he had learned this analogy
from a teaching: life is like a 90 minute soccer game, and we are
playing in the last 5 minutes of overtime, we don't know when the
game is going to end (when Jesus is going to come back). I asked him
what he was doing with his last 5 minuets and he took three steps
backwards saying that was a tough question but that he was searching
for the truth. We talked about how the Bible is the truth, but I
sensed he was running everywhere but to the Author of truth. So I
used his analogy, “Oscar, you
are in the last 5 minutes of the game, you must go to the Coach to
find out the game plan … the Coach is the One with the plan! After
you go to the Coach you get with the team players to discuss and put
the plan into action. Oscar, God is that Coach! The team players are
church and discipleship. Stop going to the team players first, you
need to go to the Coach, to God!” Oscar answered matter
of fact, “Yeah, I know, I know” to which I replied, “Sometimes
people do know, they have gone to the Coach and yet they sit on the
bench doing nothing!” Oscar
heeded my words graciously, you could tell they hit him to the core
and had his thinker ticking. We were interrupted by a drunk old man
who was wandering through but I was still able to pull one of the
missionaries and we prayed over Oscar together.
I hope
Oscar goes to the Coach and gets with the team players! I hope he
allows God to use him as an influential player for the Gospel in Kya
Sands squatter camp. In the end Oscar wanted a picture with me still
so he could “remember my face to pray for me”. I told him he
didn't need a picture to pray for someone and for once he was
speechless and we parted ways on good terms. I
thank God for making the most of ever opportunity, for stretching me
to speak with Oscar and for the brilliant ways He brings the gospel
into the fibers of every conversation.
