Friday, November 30, 2012

One Cup of Tea At a Time



by Bryn

Thousand Cups of Tea
It is hard to believe that it has already been 2 years since I visited South Asia for the first time and it stole my heart. During my first trip here I was sitting on the beach during a beautiful sunrise when my new friend began crying from her sadness that her people group do not know the truth. She began talking about how it was “a thousand cups of tea” before she became part of the Kingdom through believing in Jesus Christ. This statement has really stuck with me. Most of us in America believe that entering the Kingdom is an instantaneous call and decision to believe in Jesus to enter the Kingdom. In this country, from our experience and talks with many of the m’s here, entering the Kingdom happens over a “thousand cups of tea.” Relationships are built and the people not only hear, but experience what it means to be in the Kingdom. I love going to the mountains around an hour away from our house and driving near the tea fields that last for miles. Men and women go out and pick the tea daily for the ripe leaves and they pick them and take them to the factory where they dry for 24 hours or so and then are put through a process and ground. As I think about the name God called me, I realized that it has multiple parts and meanings. Sometimes I am to be the person picking the ripe leaves off and sharing with those people a sip of the tea, the good news of the Kingdom. But, I may only be giving that person their first cup of tea and thousands more cups need to still be had till they believe in the only way, Jesus and the cross, to truly enter the Kingdom.

James:
We have a lot of school holidays here… a lot! During my last two years as a teacher, the seemingly
random Islamic, Buddhist, Hindu, and Christian days out of school were synonymous with life— I desperately needed time to catch up on school work! This year, however, I have turned a page, and feel much differently about these days. On the one side, I love them for the extra time they give me to spend with Courtney. On the other, I don’t enjoy the inconvenience of lost time with students. Two weeks ago, however, the Lord had very, very special plans for one such holiday. James (not his real name) is a student I’ve known for three years now. He was a sophomore when I came to BAIS, and I mostly knew him through his 5th grade brother, with whom I immediately built a strong connection.
Last year I had the privilege of working with James in both praise teams and my Vocal Ensemble class, and it’s always struck me as funny how much he and his younger brother’s personalities remind me of me and my brother, Derrick. James is a senior this year, and he works as an assistant for me every day during first period. I teach every day except for Wednesdays, so I’ve tried to set that time aside to talk with him. See, James’ dad is not a Christian and doesn’t even live in the same city (though his parents aren’t divorced). It’s a less-than-ideal situation, in my perspective, and so I’ve always tried to be available for James and his brother. So a couple of weeks ago, James was talking about his uncertainty over college—whether to go to Korea or the States. When I asked him he seemed surprised. No one had really talked to him about it or encouraged him to.  James and I got together on a random Thursday holiday two weeks ago to pray—and what a time of prayer it was! God spoke so clearly and showed James a completely different path than what he was thinking. James has accepted it in faith, even though we still don’t know all the details. He was concerned his family wouldn’t approve, but the Lord seems to have taken care of that already. I’m so excited for him, though the journey is not over. Please pray for the Lord to grant wisdom to James as an immature Christian and to me as a mentor-figure in his life. Also please pray for us as we continue to share the love of Christ one tea cup at a time!