Meet Me in the Middle...East.

In the summer of 2011, I had the privilege of going to the Middle East for a summer internship with an Iraqi church for two months. It was a strenuous experience for me as I experienced a culture that was far outside the paradigm of my home culture. I had gone through an entire semester of studying and researching middle-eastern culture, but no amount of reading can ever come close to preparing one for the real thing. Experience truly is the best teacher. Up until this point I had very little experience with Arabs or Muslims, and I was a little nervous about being a American Christian in a Muslim, Arab nation.


 I was plagued by the stereotypes concerning the Middle East and her inhabitants. I went expecting hatred, prejudice, persecution, and a whole lot of heat! Yeah, I was even afraid of being kidnapped or killed, but I went with the attitude that God was in control of whether I lived or died so it didn't matter as long as I could go make a difference and try to learn about these people that I knew so little about. Besides, my school wouldn't send me head on into true danger right? 


My partner and I landed in Amman very late. We met up with our contact who had been in the Middle East for many years and he gave us a brief tour of the ballad (downtown) and took us to Cairo's, which is a hole-in-the-wall restaurant in the ballad.  It was there that we had our first Arabic meal...MANSIF! (See picture right). It was really good, but on the first night their I broke the first rule of traveling abroad which is.."don't get ice". Thankfully I didn't get sick because of it!

During my time there I learned a great deal about the hardships of ministry abroad. While ministry in States can also be difficult, its difficult in a different way. Just like in America, the church abroad struggles with unity and working together to reach the lost. Everyone just has their own agenda. Therefore, even though I grew in love for people and for culture and life, I found myself discovering a new found angry. A righteous fury within my soul at the disunity and  breakdown of God's holy, catholic (little "c") Church! One thing I did see about the church of the Middle East, that we in the West could benefit from, is the community that they have built within their individual churches. Even in the midst of the disunity, there was still far more unity and love for one another than can be found in the Church of the U.S. I was welcomed with open arms, and even though we were separated by language barriers, the members of the church always attempted to make my and my traveling partner feel welcome and a part of the church. The youth particularly did this well since they knew a good deal of English, as well as the international language of football (soccer for the American readers).

There are so many stories I could share, from foolish Americans coming in and attempting a foot-washing in the middle of a Sheikh's house to holding hands with an elderly religious leader as I'm led to a nearby Mosque for evening prayers. Instead I will simply say this, let God lead you and trust Him to take care of you. Do not let yourself get sucked in by stereotypes and allow yourself to show less love and compassion for someone just because of their race, nationality, gender, or even their religious affiliation. Besides, wouldn't you want someone to show you the same courtesy?