Middle East Trip: Day 6 Part 2

Day 6: Off to Damascus

During the morning service the worship time was sweet. As the week as progressed more and more of the service is in Arabic and sometime I am clueless what is going on around me. Apparently earlier some reconciliation took place between Algerian and Egyptian attendees whose countries had been at odds over World Cup Soccer qualification games last November, but I pretty much missed the significance of it. The music today reminded me of my early morning walk as we sang how the mountains will one day bow down to the Lord. Some of the Algerian attendees gave a presentation about how God is working in Algeria, with 32 registered churches and many more house churches and large number of Muslims coming to faith in Christ even as they keep their Muslim names.
At times there were long periods of what I assumed was housekeeping business in Arabic and my mind started to wander. I had felt the first pangs of homesickness that morning. While the streets are clean as far as garbage and such, there is an enormous amount of litter and as I headed back to the hotel I longed for the rural highways I cycle and the comparatively small amount of litter. I also reflected how God had gotten my attention, how I was experience numerous blessings, albeit some small and silly, but how back at home I probably experience the same thing but miss nearly all of them as I get wound up in my own agenda with emails, text messages and communicating constantly electronically and verbally and visually. I prayed I might stay as sensitive to God’s presence when I get home.
I missed Monica giving her testimony because we headed off with the young adults for our last session with just them. The concluding choice was to be taught to the combined group tomorrow morning. I have grown so fond of these young men and women. Most of them have such sweet tender spirits; a far cry to the anger and cynicism I demonstrated as a young man. In a way I wonder if our western culture isn’t in a way going to destroy something unique and special, that mass communication and mobility might weaken their love of tradition. I have to remind myself that I am probably in a bubble of sorts, being with Christian leaders, and that the culture they live in might present a surface peace but the people in the Middle East have the same sin nature as the rest of us and that perhaps hidden and not spoken of could be many deep and lingering hurts. At any rate I will not soon forget the soft gentleness of these lovely young men and women.
After lunch everyone at the conference loaded a couple of buses and we headed into Damascus, stopping briefly to snack on prickly pear cactus fruit (not a favorite with me). In Damascus the prime objective for everyone was shopping and I was fortunate to be escorted by C and E, the two Pakistanis. They helped me negotiate a good price for an outfit for my wife. I enjoyed watching them negotiate and tried to pick up some pointers. For all the emotion and gestures, the negotiation seems as much sport as seriousness, a game of social interaction with its own rules of engagement. When a bargain is struck everyone is all smiles and shaking hands. I am not sure I would enjoy the process every time I wanted to make a significant purchase.
From the Christian section we moved to the open market which was a scene out of a Hollywood blockbuster, just an overwhelming stream of sight, sound and smells. At time I am overwhelmed by the sheer number of people and how densely all the shops are positioned.
We also visited the Umayyad mosque, the largest in Syria which reportedly contains a sarcophagus that hold the head of John the Baptist. I found myself praying a lot for the men and women going into the mosque, that they might take a look at what John the Baptist said about Jesus, that God might reveal to them who Jesus truly is.
As Americans we have a certain notoriety. When people learn where we are from they are initially surprised; Americans have been few and far between in Damascus for the last 24 years. Our embassy had just reopened this spring for the first time since 1984, and still getting a visa for coming into Syria is not an easy process. But once they get over their initial surprise we are overwhelmed by their warmth and hospitality. An amazing number speak some English and to me it appears that the more educated on is the more English they tend to know.
We visited a church and walked a long distance and that many of us ended up at a coffee shop for snack and to rest. I don’t think I will ever forget my brief conversation with S. She was in our young adult group but I had not had any one on one time with her. At the coffee shop she told me about the work she did helping young women in Cairo. Then suddenly she stopped and looked right in my eyes. She said simply and purely “I love you.” To me it could have been the voice of God is was so sweet and pure and unpretentious. I told her I loved her too and marveled at a God who could allow them to so openly and innocently express their emotions.
Returning late to Bloudan I was surprised both by my hunger and by our meal: very close to chicken fried steak (sans the cream gravy), Cole slaw and French fries. Was this just another small blessing in response to my homesickness? I stayed up late, way past 1 a.m. knowing this was my last chance to visit with my new friends, that by tomorrow afternoon we would all be on our separate ways.