This isn't the first time I've thought to myself that Turkish believers are some of the most amazing people to be around. My experience so far has been one of encountering passionate men and women in love with Jesus who really know their stuff. In a country where one faces the likely possibility of rejection from family members and friends (think excommunication), it takes a lot more courage, faith and commitment to be a believer. The common understanding is that to be a Turk is to be a Muslim--so becoming a Christian defies tradition and culture. They better know what they're doing.
The last couple nights I've stayed with a few of these men, and it's been a blessing. Actually, a couple of them were here from Germany, and it was encouraging to hear their stories. It also was a lot of fun switching between all three languages, Turkish, German, and English, sometimes mid-sentence. I had sat down to read after making a sandwich (on some good Turkish bread, with some slightly different-tasting peanut butter and jelly), but I was soon drawn into conversation with one of the guys. He was talking about spiritual gifts, in particular speaking in tongues, talking about how what he saw in the scriptures was people talking in "the languages of Babel", i.e. languages that people have actually used to communicate with one another.
He was saying that in his experience, he had never actually heard someone speaking in tongues where he actually recognized the language, even if he couldn't understand it. I would have to agree with him... while both of us have heard of it happening, neither of us had ever heard anything that didn't just sound like gibberish. Now, we both appreciate the idea of a prayer language and that there is a place for that (and not in a service where everyone is speaking in tongues--otherwise their better be as many interpreters present), but why aren't there more cases of people speaking in tongues where the speaker is actually speaking a recognizable language? Please feel free to chime in.
In any case, that conversation along with other meaningful ones made me once again very appreciative of my Turkish brothers, and I will miss talking to them and enjoying their sense of humor, which was very Turkish as well. They are heading back to their respective homes today and tomorrow, and who knows when we will next cross paths?
This morning I woke up late along with my roommates, and we got in a couple last sessions to close out our conference. I figured I'd be sticking around to help tear down, but before I knew it I was whisked off by my host along with the conference speakers to see the sights. It was a cold and blustery day, but we braved the elements nonetheless... but you will have to come back next time to hear my thoughts on that.
Unfortunately I can't even give you a teaser picture at the moment because my camera battery is dead and I don't have a card reader... I'm sorry. But soon, I will post pictures, and they are breathtaking--well, at least the sights themselves certainly were. I hope you'll be able to get a sense of that--and why you should come visit this beautiful country yourselves!
Thanks for reading,
Dan
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