Conversion
The last day of performance at the University brings anticipation and a sense of relief at a job concluded. The students again had good questions with many opportunities to share on faith, the Bible, and God's direction in the life of His children. One of the last questions was "what is the most difficult part of your job?" I answered with the images of the children of Taian Orphanage fresh in my mind. "Goodbyes are the hardest part - too many goodbyes."The performance was greatly enjoyed and the "morals" at the end of the day received with many sounds and nods of affirmation. One girl came up at the end and said, "I want to join your organization, how can I help?" My prayer for them in leaving is that hearts have been changed and spirits moved toward faith in the only One who can help, the One who can bring the Harvest, the One true God.
Our last evening was spent having dinner in the home of A, at the Communist Party compound. We were greeted by his wife and niece, who at 5 was quite taken back by the strange foreigners. She cowered behind her aunt and when J walked through the door - she started crying. Perhaps it was his height, or who knows maybe the cowboy hat he is seldom without?
She settled down after much coercion and reassurance by her aunt but remained quite shy and unwilling to come anywhere near us. At some point during the dinner (perhaps when she saw we ate food not children) she began to interact a little with the invited guests. She stayed away from J though still thinking he was a bit too tall, too different, just too...
The change in her demeanor came after dinner. We watched a DVD featuring Montana cowboys - she identified the cowboy hat J wore to the ones the fearless bronco riders were wearing in the movie, When it was over, she was jumping up and down on the furniture ready to be the next rodeo star.
She donned J's hat as we were leaving and gave us a big grin awaiting her photo to be taken. Thoroughly converted from frightened Chinese child to new bronco showgirl!
Our time is spent "exposing" the Chinese (young and old) to a new "culture" of believing. We look different, sound different and have our own "language" that is sometimes hard to understand. It didn't' take long before the little girl went from frightened child to adoring friend. In China, it's all about time invested into relationships and "sharing" (Good News or Cowboy Hats)- that will ultimately be what turns hearts to truth and "converts" lives!
