Finally I feel we are breaking through. Maybe it was having Bob and Nancy Hitching from Croatia with me... the sheer encouragement of meeting with others who are working with the Roma. Two days ago I was helped by one Roma lady to translate another bible story ready for tonight's service. For the first time, it felt the Roma ladies present in the service were really following. Both with their ears and their hearts. If Jesus really is the one through whom all things were created, then he must be Lord of creation. If so, then he can feed 5,000 with 5 loves and 2 fish. But why did he do this? To show off? No, because he was full of compassion for the hungry. All his miracles emerge out of his compassion. All his actions show him to be "the good shepherd". Reading Psalm 23 had set the stage. Does Jesus also have compassion on the Luton Roma, for they equally were "like sheep without a shepherd". Yes! For now God has given them two shepherds: little Martin, and big Stevo!
However hard I may work on the language, everything hinges on the work of the Holy Spirit. I felt tonight that ears and hearts had been opened tonight. Any maybe a few mouths kept silent too! But key to the message is this: yes, Jesus can perform any miracle he chooses, and he invites us to ask for whatever is on our hearts, believing he will provide. But we pray as he prayed to the Father: "your will be done, not my will!" In that spirit all the Roma ladies came forward for Bob and Nancy to pray for them. Later some of the children came too.
On a practical front we are beginning to get our act together. A man at the door is preventing the kids running out of the building. A children's programme is now up and running, helping us get the message over in peace to the adults. The evening has become much easier now we are only providing tea and cake on arrival. Getting the minibus outside ready to go when we are finished has greatly helped too.
But we cry out to you Lord: "Bring in the Roma guys! This must surely be the will of the Father!"
No comments:
Post a Comment