Sophie Parker has lived and worked amongst Arabic-speaking people in Africa for over 10 years. She has a passion to reach unreached Muslims with the good news of Jesus in closed access countries. When not working, she can usually be found reading, bird-watching, or working out how to squeeze in another travel adventure.
Can you imagine anyone being offered a can of Coca-Cola and not being able to instantly recognise what was inside, how it would taste and where they could buy it? Coca-Cola says they can’t think of a country where their product can’t be bought. It takes an impressive drive and conviction to get your brand this instantly recognisable.
In the early days of living in the Sahara, I visited a tiny village some distance from the town I was living in. I saw one shop and two boys on a donkey. I think I’d seen all the entertainment the place had to offer! On the side of the tiny shop was a sign for كوكا كولا – Coca-Cola. Being new to places far from western influence, or so I thought, that Coke sign shocked me by revealing that they had arrived in this unknown settlement before I had. More importantly, Cola was available to these people before Jesus.
It may be a little crass to ask how the gospel fares against a fizzy drink, because certainly the Christian message is not as universally welcomed as a chilled Coke on a hot day, but there’s still something to be said about the drive to share a message.
The message we have as believers is infinitely more precious, isn’t it? How are we doing with getting the good news across the globe?
We’re actually only a little over half way there. There are still 3.44 billion people who can’t read the Bible in their own language and are unlikely to ever meet someone who can tell them how to get right with God.
Only 3% of all cross-cultural workers go to areas where none or few have gone before. What can we do about this?
Around the world there are people involved in getting the good news out to those who have little access to the gospel, and there are so many different skills that can be used in God’s big plan. Almost any training you might have could be used to go or send. I have wished to be skilled in media, finance, marketing and a dozen other things to help me on my own journey. What you already know could be used overseas or could help others who are already serving cross-culturally.
I used to think I wouldn’t be able to serve overseas because I wasn’t a doctor and couldn’t fly a plane. I made wrong assumptions about needing a professional career before thinking I had anything to offer. What things do you feel discount you from serving God cross-culturally?
When are we ready to go?
Not everyone’s situation allows them to make that move, but many more might go if they knew they were already sufficiently equipped to share the good news. If the love of God is in your heart, you are ready to start sharing it!
Maybe Coca-Cola did their research before expanding into North Africa, but I suspect the decision was made more because they had no doubt in their minds of their future success, whatever else those other countries had been drinking up until their arrival. In the same way, we absolutely should prepare before we head overseas, but we can go having no doubt in our minds of the future success of our message.
We might not see results quickly – we might not even see them ourselves – but the word of God achieves what it sets out to do (Isaiah 55:11), and God’s rule will last forever (Daniel 7:27).
