E. Extrovert, that’s me. I come by it naturally – my dad is an extrovert who can, and has talked to just about anybody, including talking to Zsazsa Gabor about our family dog, but that’s another story for another day.
Wherever I find myself, I like interacting with people. And since our lives revolve around working among different cultures and languages, I enjoy finding out where people come from and what language they speak.
I’m excited about a new internet tool that has been developed, thanks to the collaborative efforts of a number of organizations. Scripture Earth is a website that lists languages from around the world and provides links to Scripture-related resources in those languages.
In search for an authentic Navajo meal, we stopped at a restaurant in Gallup, New Mexico. A young Navajo woman waited on us and patiently helped us choose a couple of dishes; steamed corn lamb stew and posole lamb stew, Indian fry bread and roasted green chile.
Later, when she stopped by our table to check on us, we started chatting. She is a nursing student and is a Navajo speaker. I pulled out my phone and found the Scripture Earth website and pulled up the Navajo page. There we found a list of resources available – online Bible, audio recording of the Bible, and a link to the Jesus Film. With one click on the Jesus Film link, the story of Jesus came to life in Navajo. The young woman cocked her head and her eyes showed she was taking in the words in her language. The woman went and got her phone so she could find the website. I encouraged her to share the site with others and she promised she would.
I asked the waitress if she went to church. She said she did sometimes. One grandmother had taken her to the Catholic church. At one point she felt God calling her to be a nun, but she didn’t pursue that, much to her grandmother’s disappointment.
The waitress asked us what church we attended. I told her that denomination wasn’t as important as going to a church that believes God’s Word is true and teaches from it. I asked her if she had a Navajo Bible. She replied that she had one in English, but added that perhaps she should get a Navajo one as well. I quickly pointed out that with the Scripture Earth website – she could have one right on her phone! I encouraged her to read God’s Word and listen to it.
A few minutes later, the waitress was showing a Navajo woman at the next table the Scripture Earth website and how to find the Navajo resources. The next thing we knew, the waitress was writing down the website address for her.
As we finished our meal and prepared to leave, I asked our new friend if we could pray for her and she agreed.
Eating a Navajo meal was an interesting. Sharing Navajo Scripture resources was even better. Praise God for Scripture Earth and the way it gives people around the World access to God’s Word!
