Me no English!

Editor’s note: In a world where migration is the norm, our ears may hear the sounds of a foreign language just down the street. Are we prepared to share the gospel in another language right in our neighbourhood? Here is one man’s story of how he did it.

During Easter, Jason* went for a walk around his neighbourhood. It wasn’t a casual stroll, however. Jason carried a bag loaded with tools that explained the gospel. He was on a journey to offer people in his community a chance to examine the Bible and learn its message.

At one house, he rang the bell and a lady answered the door. He smiled warmly at her but she studied him with narrowed eyes.

“Me no English,” she muttered.

“Oh,” said Jason. “What language do you speak?”

“Arabic.”

Jason smiled. “Well, I have something you might like,” he said, unzipping his bag. He dug in it and pulled out the Arabic edition of All that the Prophets have Spoken. He offered it to her.

The woman’s eyes lit upon the familiar script on the cover and grabbed the book. Without another word, she turned and walked into the house, her hands busy flipping through the pages, her eyes scanning the text with interest.

Jason stood for a moment at the stoop. Then he figured the conversation was over and quietly walked on. He went door to door, offering neighbours copies of By This Name, The Stranger on the Road to Emmaus, and their translations.

Further down the street, he rang the doorbell at another house. A second woman, of Middle Eastern descent, opened the door. She glanced at him and before Jason could greet her, said, “You have Arabic?”

Jason was taken aback. Then he realized that this woman must be friends with the first woman he spoke to. Perhaps the first lady had called her friend to tell her of the man going door-to-door handing out books.

He smiled. “Yes, I do have Arabic.” And with a flourish, Jason pulled out a second copy of All the Prophets in Arabic for the woman. She, too, accepted it.

Jason’s story reminds us that we live in a global village where right down the street are neighbours whose heart language may be foreign to us. At GoodSeed, we are glad we have many translators working with us to get our tools into as many languages as possible so believers everywhere can reach neighbours with the precious gospel message.

(*Name changed as per GoodSeed policy.)