Explain That Again

There was a mixture of male and female at my table in the coffee shop, discussing whether male or female had greater verbal skills. In this culture I have learned to never voice your opinion first and if you do never go right to the heart of the matter, but step back and gradually work your way in toward that which is important through a good discussion.

For example, a group at a table one day asked me what I thought of the US being in Iraq. On previous trips I would not dare touch this topic, but this time I wanted to test my cultural skills. Let them start and assure them that whatever they say won’t bother me or offend me in any way. We had good conversation and I said very little at first. After awhile a told them I wanted to share a reason I thought it might be right to be there from a Biblical point of view; a point of view I was sure that hadn’t heard before and maybe you hadn’t either.

I mentioned the rebuilding of Babylon in the future and that it would be located in Iraq. I mentioned a future war as described in Ezekiel 38 and 39 and how God would destroy Russia and nations aligned with her in that war against Israel. I explained that Iraq could not be one of these nations to be destroyed in this war if it was to be the location for the city of Babylon. Possibly the US went to war against Iraq to set it apart from the other nations in the area so it wouldn’t be destroyed in the next greater war. This idea caused them to think very deeply and gave them a meaningful possibility and an idea of how God might be in the picture. They thanked me for some fresh insight and something to really ponder on. We were all well pleased at how well the discussion went.

Now, back to the issue at hand; who has better verbal skills? We kind of leaned toward the female. At this point the discussion quickly changed and two fellows started to debate the importance of wealth and power in a person’s life. I took a stand for being humble, meek, and gentle. My response caught the attention of a young lady and she pulled her chair up next to me and started a new conversation with me. She said it is obvious that you are a Christian. She further said that she didn’t believe there was a God. I said that I believed there was because his Spirit lived inside me and it was very real.

I said, “Let’s assume I have never had a head ache, so I have no idea what the experience is like.” I then asked her if she could explain to me what the experience was like so that I could understand as clearly as if I had one. She agreed that she could not. My response was, “Then you still expect me to believe that you have a head ache and that it is real?” She said, “Yes.” Then I said, “Then shouldn’t you believe me when I say that my experience of God is real?” She said, “I see your point.” The discussion about God went on for some time as she kept asking more and more questions.