Merhaba!
I just came back from spending 7 hours at a church function. It was pretty awesome, I must say. Actually, the first new people that I met were, coincidentally, from Canada. Yup, that’s right. Even in Turkey, Canadians still manage to find each other. =P I also ate more meat today at the barbecue than I have eaten the rest of the time I have been here in Turkey. It was good. 
For those of you who aren’t religious, or don’t care to read about religion you can stop after this paragraph since I will be discussing matters of faith. All you really need to know about my day is that I’m feeling very rested, I might have a sunburn, and I’m glad I went today. I hope you’ll come back and check out my blog tomorrow when I will be discussing something a little more mundane like, say, cats. Cheers to you!
Now, for those of you who are still reading, the service was a protestant service. We sang songs, they had a band complete with electric guitar, bongos, a violin and a tambourine. Actually, I now know how to sing “Come, now is the time to worship” and “Give us clean hands” in Turkish. (I kept the lyrics so I can actually remember the words when I get back to Canada.) It was very nice to be reminded that God is present everywhere in the world, and in the hearts of people everywhere.
Now, during the service (which was presented in both English and Turkish), there were scripture passages, and there was a sermon. There was singing, and praying. And the spirit of God was present in the testimony of one man. He spoke in English and had a Turkish translator so I was able to understand him, but he spoke about a dream he had about how he felt about coming to Jesus. He spoke about the feeling of being in a dark room, and then suddenly the door was kicked in and a bright light filled the room. He spoke of a brightly dressed figure striding into the room and offering to take him into the light. He spoke of how the figure took him outside and then destroyed the small little room that he was in and how he felt a deep sorrow about the loss of his home. And then he said something that really stuck with me. He spoke the words spoken to him in the dream, “Why would you ever go back to your old life?”
“Why would you ever go back to your old life?”
There is a rather simple answer to that, actually. An answer that I personally, find tempting. My old life is comfortable, quiet, familiar. I know that dark little room. It may be small, and it may be dark, but it’s familiar and familiarity, comfort, is what we all strive to find.
But when someone kicks the door in on your small, comfortable little world, when someone lets the light in… is the room still familiar? When you are taken outside of your small little house, and show the light, and the wonders of love, life and the world, can you really be comfortable alone in your tiny little room in the dark?
I know I can’t do that. Having seen the light, I can’t turn my back on it. Having seen the wonders of the world, I can’t just go back to my comfortable little room. Having seen the injustices in the world, I can’t just leave things the way that they are. Having seen God’s calling for me, I can’t just be content doing something less. It will be hard at times, I know, but knowing that I’m not walking the path alone will give me the strength I need to carry on.
I hope that when the door to your world is kicked in, that you will have the courage to step out into the light and live in the world with me.
Be brave, be strong. Live in the light of the Word.
- Mike
