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November.06 |
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That is, until this past July when I heard Rodney Howell preach about missions in a completely different light. He challenged me (well, he challenged a whole church full of people, but I know he was speaking directly to me) to think in these terms: GOD IS BRINGING THE NATIONS TO THE DALLAS/FT WORTH METROPLEX and I have a chance to BE a missionary right here where I live. I do not have to get malaria shots and put all of my belongings in storage and travel far, far away to eat weird food and miss my family and be a foreign missionary... God has brought the mission field right to my back door. And that is EXCITING! Our church partners with an amazing Christian agency called “International Students, Inc.” which ministers to international students in most of the area colleges and universities in the metroplex. I presented the idea to my life group to “adopt” an international student through their partnering “LINK program” at UTA, and it was unanimous. We were blessed by God to become partnered with Saodat, from Uzbekistan, and will soon become “Texas family” to her 10-yr old daughter and her mother, who are scheduled to arrive on Thanksgiving Day, as well. Saodat is a Muslim, and she is a television journalist in her home country’s capital city of Tashkent, for UZTV channel 4. She is working on a masters degree in communications, and we have the privilege of her presence in Texas until May of 2007. From my first meeting with Saodat, my love for the Muslim people has grown, and I have learned that the majority of people in her country are Muslim not by choice, but by the mere fact that they live in “a Muslim nation.” I have been asked the question “how do we develop international relationships here in the metroplex?” and my answer is very simple. WE DO LIFE WITH THE INTERNATIONAL PEOPLE GOD PUTS IN OUR PATHS. Everyday life. Our love for God, which should be as evident and natural as BREATHING, is something we can share with any international person we encounter. Let me give you an example.
Our “Welcome to Texas Party” for Saodat was a big success and 14 women showered her with love and gifts that she did not “deserve.” She was overwhelmed and had never experienced anything like that. She kept saying things such as “but you don’t know me” and “I don’t know why you would do this for me,” etc. When we arrived at her tiny apartment with a car full of appliances and blankets and lamps... she asked me to come in and help her understand one more time why we would do this for her. It was an honor to explain God’s love to Saodat. We had become friends. It was as natural as breathing. I am excited about this relationship. Our life group is excited about this relationship. We now know that missions is not only a “far away venture”, but is available to us here. How do we develop international relationships here in the metroplex? We do life together, and we cooperate with God as He fulfills his mission through us. He is constantly working in the hearts of people. All He asks of us is to be willing to “breathe” His love to others. If you are interested in striking up an international student relationship, contact Gerry Watkins at istudents@121cc.com. ::Kathy Padgett |
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I’ve
always admired foreign missionaries. The missionaries I have had the
privilege of knowing personally are some of the bravest, godliest people
I have ever known. And because I have never felt inclined to BE a foreign
missionary, and because I know how IMPORTANT missions are to God, I
have tended to think that I have “let God down” in the area
of missions... 
Being
here only one year, Saodat did not bring many “necessities”
for living, and being on scholarship, she does not have much money to
spend on those things. Our life group decided to throw her a “Welcome
to Texas Party” and we asked her for a list of things we could
loan her or purchase for her while she is here. When I told her of our
idea, she asked me privately “Won’t the ladies be mad?”
I was puzzled and asked her what she meant. She said, “In my country,
we work for what we have. We do not give gifts for no reason. There
are no ‘undeserved gifts’. If I asked my friend to give
you something that they worked for, they would be mad at me.”
Wow. What an opportunity to explain how God gives us “undeserved
gifts” and to show her this in “everyday life!”