I have sometimes thought that we are more of a hindrance than a help to God’s work. In moments of personal prayer I have surprised myself by asking God not to allow me to spoil what He alone does so well.
This is funny to me, now that we are getting out of lockdown and meeting our friends again. During our confinement, God has taken advantage of this time to work on people’s hearts, without us dancing around with our nerves, pressures and limitations of all kinds. This is something that Spain’s Communitas team has been praying for during this long quarantine, and once again His faithfulness has become evident. His faithfulness and His will, for not wanting anyone to be lost, encouraged our prayers in that sense.
When we began to go out into the street, I wondered what we would find. And what we found was that on the first day of chatting with some of our friends we had conversations at a level of transparency and depth that we had never had before.
After windsurfing, returning to the playful activities that occupied us before the confinement, sitting on the sand of the beach, two and a half meters away from each other, Lilly told me “the truth is that when you think about it a little, life has no meaning.” Giorgio, who was bragging about the board he bought recently, joined in the conversation and said, “isn’t that right? When you realize how false and rotten everything is around us, you feel disgusted. And even more so when you reflect on it and have to admit that you are not very different from those who disgust you.” I wanted to talk, but Javier did before to add “I think the only thing worthwhile in life is love.” “Yes, but what is love?” replied Giorgo. Pilar, who always speaks very sensibly, said “For me love is…” she thought for a few seconds, “…unconditional acceptance.”
I remained attentive, unable to believe what I was hearing. For two hours they (and I want to emphasize “they”) talked about love, religion, faith and truth. Even about the Bible. At some point I wanted to say something, but another one came before me. All I wanted was not to be a hindrance, so I let it go. It was clear that the Holy Spirit had been working and was working at that very moment.
In the end, when someone spoke of the truth, and we seemed to reach a dead end, I said, “Jesus Christ said, ‘I am the truth. Isn’t it incredible that someone would say such a thing? And not only that. He also said that if anyone is looking to go somewhere, He is the way. And for everyone who wants to live, He is the life. Ever since I heard those words I couldn’t look away.” Lilly looked me in the eye and put a hand on her heart.
The sun had just set behind us. Her departure, along with the cold that visited us, seemed to mark the end of our conversation. “Guys, this is something to follow,” said Lilly as she began to gather her things. Will you pray for Lilly, Javier, Giorgo, and Pilar as they seek truth and life? And please pray for Federico as he begins discipling relationships… and all our missional teams around the world as we start and shape communities of faith that love like Jesus in their neighborhoods. If God is calling YOU to join Federico or another team around the world, please CLICK HERE for more information!
Told by Federico, our leader in Spain
