God chooses the most unlikely times to work.
I finished voice class and, feeling more congested than ever, determined I'd better go see the campus nurse before choir, which is in a few minutes. Yes, I have a sound case of bronchitis and an ear infection to boot.
I took a seat in the waiting room and began reading an email from Karen Weinstock about her witnessing to their neighbor boy. I was wondering if/when I would ever have the opportunity or the forthrightness Karen demonstrates. In walked one of my new friends, Vanamali. She'd have to come back to see the nurse tomorrow since the wait would last into her next class period, but we were making small talk before she left, both sharing our distate for our respective religion classes. One thing in her favor is that she dislikes the postmodern worldview we're up against with this religion department.
"What's your religious background?" I asked, since both of us clearly had background with study of the Bible. I didn't recognize her answer, but I know it started with the letters V-(long)A-D.
I have expected since I first laid eyes on Vanamali that she was either a devout Christian or in a cult. The latter proves to be true. I knew it was a cult as soon as she said "I'd call myself a Christian if you asked, we believe....etc...but we don't believe Jesus was really God."
We began a wonderful, engaging, non-threatening, intellectual, logical conversation and I was amazed and excited as the moments ticked by that time and time again I was able to speak with such more clarity and understanding than I would have thought possible. This is the first conversation like this I've had here, and I'm encouraged that God was so evidently with me in it. She had to go but we agreed to continue later.
She believes that all religion is the same, that we all worship the same god, etc., etc., etc. That God is supreme being, first cause, supreme perfection, supremely desirable... She accepts the Quran as Scripture--basically any writing handed down by God. She thinks Jesus & Muhammed had the same mission. She tried to explain to me that I'd still be the same person even if she called me Susie. I countered that, despite sharing fundamental charecteristics with the desk clerk beside us, calling her Susan would not make her and myself the same.
Her three tests of truth are accordance with Scripture, accordance with your pastor (big red flag!!), and the testimony of your heart. That's when I discovered that she counts the Quran, etc., as Scripture. A lot of the things she said sound OK on the surface: "Our life purpose should be to serve God, not to seek pleasure, though serving God is the ultimate pleasure. We shouldn't want to go to heaven for our own sake, but so we can serve God." But things she said or how she said them were definite tip-offs that she holds to a lot of weird, cultish beliefs.
She is only 18, a freshman like myself, and was just married this summer, moving here from Arizona to attend St. Olaf. We will be sitting in class together every single day this year and working Saturday night shift in the cafeteria together. I wonder what God has in store. So, if you would, please be praying for Vanamali Medina.
I finished voice class and, feeling more congested than ever, determined I'd better go see the campus nurse before choir, which is in a few minutes. Yes, I have a sound case of bronchitis and an ear infection to boot.
I took a seat in the waiting room and began reading an email from Karen Weinstock about her witnessing to their neighbor boy. I was wondering if/when I would ever have the opportunity or the forthrightness Karen demonstrates. In walked one of my new friends, Vanamali. She'd have to come back to see the nurse tomorrow since the wait would last into her next class period, but we were making small talk before she left, both sharing our distate for our respective religion classes. One thing in her favor is that she dislikes the postmodern worldview we're up against with this religion department.
"What's your religious background?" I asked, since both of us clearly had background with study of the Bible. I didn't recognize her answer, but I know it started with the letters V-(long)A-D.
I have expected since I first laid eyes on Vanamali that she was either a devout Christian or in a cult. The latter proves to be true. I knew it was a cult as soon as she said "I'd call myself a Christian if you asked, we believe....etc...but we don't believe Jesus was really God."
We began a wonderful, engaging, non-threatening, intellectual, logical conversation and I was amazed and excited as the moments ticked by that time and time again I was able to speak with such more clarity and understanding than I would have thought possible. This is the first conversation like this I've had here, and I'm encouraged that God was so evidently with me in it. She had to go but we agreed to continue later.
She believes that all religion is the same, that we all worship the same god, etc., etc., etc. That God is supreme being, first cause, supreme perfection, supremely desirable... She accepts the Quran as Scripture--basically any writing handed down by God. She thinks Jesus & Muhammed had the same mission. She tried to explain to me that I'd still be the same person even if she called me Susie. I countered that, despite sharing fundamental charecteristics with the desk clerk beside us, calling her Susan would not make her and myself the same.
Her three tests of truth are accordance with Scripture, accordance with your pastor (big red flag!!), and the testimony of your heart. That's when I discovered that she counts the Quran, etc., as Scripture. A lot of the things she said sound OK on the surface: "Our life purpose should be to serve God, not to seek pleasure, though serving God is the ultimate pleasure. We shouldn't want to go to heaven for our own sake, but so we can serve God." But things she said or how she said them were definite tip-offs that she holds to a lot of weird, cultish beliefs.
She is only 18, a freshman like myself, and was just married this summer, moving here from Arizona to attend St. Olaf. We will be sitting in class together every single day this year and working Saturday night shift in the cafeteria together. I wonder what God has in store. So, if you would, please be praying for Vanamali Medina.
2 Comments:
Praying! It was so good to talk to you today. By the way, your schedule sounds crazy! I hope that you enjoy it.
coming into this a little late, but i've been thinking about it. i once did a study called Experiencing God, which is a cheesy title and the study was the best, most Reformed stuff I'd had up to that point in my life. The author made a comment that stuck with me: "watch to see where God is working and join Him in His work." but then there is the fiery Southern Baptist preacher who in a rampage against hyper-Calvinists who never share their faith says "it's funny, but the more I witness, the more people seem to get elected"
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