The Good Land

If I could, in this moment, I would love to pick you up from wherever you’re reading this post and set you down on the couch next to me. Together we could sit and chat in the stillness of this home…distant traffic sounds and the humming of generators, chirping birds and cooing pigeons, the clock ticking behind us.

Then we would get into the car with our hosts and drive to the church. On the way you would see things you might not see in your hometown – like high cement walls and razor wire – but you would also see busy restaurants, moms watching their kids play at the park, and dozens of people doing daily errands, stopping by fruit stands and pharmacies and grocery stores.

We would get to church and be greeted by smiling faces of people who are so happy to see us and welcome us into their community. If it was a Friday we could go across the street to the building the church uses for Heaven’s Joy, their weekly ministry to 100+ neighborhood kids and several moms wearing black abayas and head scarves. You could hear the stories that these women share and watch as the pastor’s wife shares truths from scripture. You could hear the children answer questions like Why did Jesus die on the cross? and be amazed that they are confessing these truths with their own lips.

Then our hosts would invite us to a restaurant on the river and we would eat eat kebabs that are made with perfectly-seasoned ground meat grilled crisp. The table would be covered with salads and local bread and hummus.

And as we drive back home, you would see the city in a different beauty – lit up streets and restaurants, families eating ice cream, young men gathered drinking tea in the park. Traffic would slow a couple of times as we pass by checkpoints where guards wave traffic past. We would get back home, go back to our place on the couch, and I would ask you to guess where you were (without knowing obvious signs like the flag and certain landmarks).

Chances are good you wouldn’t be able to guess the city. You would be sure you’ve never seen this place on the news. You’ve never experienced such satisfying friendliness or tasty kebabs or beautiful river views through the media. You would never believe that you’re in what is considered one of the most dangerous cities in the world.

It is also home to a lot of hurting people, people desperately thirsty for Living Water. It is the home to a people still suffering the pain of years of war and instability. It’s the home to a pastor and his wife and grown children who have decided that, even though their extended families have left, they have a purpose here: to lead a congregation to be salt and light in a difficult city. And they’re waiting for us to come partner with them.

It’s easier to consider the giants than it is to consider the fruit. It seems more logical to listen to the reports of ten spies than to listen to the report of two. And an entire generation of Israelites missed out on good fruit because of fear. May that not be our legacy. May we join Caleb and Joshua in saying, “Yes, we will go up into the land.”