A conversation today between me, my coworker, and a student couple:

Us: “If you could ask a Christian anything, what would you ask?”

Them: “Do you really believe in the Bible? Jesus? Why? Is there proof?”

(we continued with the questionnaire, learning more about them…)

Girl: “If people have families that educate them about a religion, then they will be religious. If not, then they won’t.”

Me: I shared a brief synopsis of my faith-rollercoaster when I was 18.

Guy: “Please tell us more.. What did you learn? What books did you read?”

Me: Surprised, I told them about my life: confusion, atheism, making my own slightly-Buddhist religion, and then my boyfriend who brought me to a church. I explained the Gospel in simple terms, and even how I was very skeptical of it. We conversed for a long time, and we told them how won-derful it was to talk to people with such honest questions.

Them: “I thought I knew what Christianity was, but I have never met people like you or heard a story like that.”

Just then, as we stood in a small kitchenette in the middle of a random wing of a random dorm on a huge campus, a familiar face walked in… it was B.  (I will call him B to respect his privacy.)  B was a student in our movement who, a year ago, started investigating the claims of Christ.  He seemed to be growing in faith and loving the Lord, and he had a plethora of questions about the Bible, which is quite normal.  At some point, his questions turned cynical, and then right before Christmas, he walked away from everything faith-related.  We were shocked.. and sad.

He and I had talked after Christmas, and it was a nice exchange.  My staff team had seen him on campus, and he came quickly toward us with a warm smile and some goofy comments.  So we are grateful to the Lord that he still remains friends with us, even though we don't see him often.  I pray for B quite regularly- he was a shiny gem in a dark place, and I still think there is hope!

So when he burst into this random kitchenette (I had no idea what building or floor he lived on) in the middle of our Gospel conversation, I couldn't help but see the Lord at work somehow.  I gasped and exclaimed his name while he basically did the same.  He bized me (a bisous is kinda like a hug-- it's the French air kisses on the left and right of one's face), bized Halle, made some small talk, grabbed some food, and left.  It was so random, but I think the Lord just wanted to connect us with him again.  And now I know there are three wonderful people I can talk with on this particular floor... three people who are open to God and the core message of Jesus Christ.  That's rare!

We continued to talk with the guy and girl.  She asked if it was more important to follow the rules of the church or to have a relationship with God.  They had lots of questions about heaven and hell. Then, the guy asked if really really bad people could go to heaven.  We told them about the criminal who was on the cross next to Jesus.  Yes, even he, through faith and recognizing Jesus as "Lord" was forgiven of all his sins.  At the end of the conversation, they thanked us.  The guy said, "I don't like it when people talk about a religion like it's absolute fact, but you are quite enjoyable to talk to."  I do hope to see them again!

This was my best day in France so far.  Praise God for "coincidences!"  I think I'll visit that kitchenette "bientot" soon.  :-)