I Need Four Things

“Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God” (Colossians 3:16). Last week I attended a German service at one of our Hamburg SELK churches—as a parishioner. As I walked into the narthex, a German congregant came up to me and said, “Pastor, there’s a young man from Afghanistan here who needs help.” She introduced me. “What can I do for you?” I asked. Skipping nary a beat, he replied: “I need four things: I want to be baptized. I need a girlfriend. I need an apartment. And I want to be integrated in German society.” “What’s your name?” I asked. “’Rahim,” he replied. “Well, Rahim, I can definitely help you with the first one. But as far as those other three things are concerned…” I added with a grin, “You’ll need to talk to Jesus…”Our Persian ministry takes place in a different church, and I can walk you over there later if you wish. But for now, would you like to sit next to me during the service?” Rahim appreciated the offer and followed my lead as we stood up and sat down during the various parts of the service. Rahim even sang along to some of the hymns—softly. During Holy Communion, he knelt at the altar rail. I had explained earlier that he should fold his arms across his chest to receive a blessing, but after attending the 12-week class to learn the basics of Christianity and after being baptized, he too would be allowed to receive the Lord’s true body and blood. During the service, I prayed that the Lord would send a fellow Persian to accompany us to the other church, so Rahim might already have a buddy. Sure enough, the Lord provided. After the service, the three of us took the 30-minute walk to the other church. where I introduced him to my Finnish missionary colleague Rev. Pasi Palmu and some Persian parishioners. And indeed, Rahim attended the baptismal class. Praise God that the Lord is opening up the heart and mind of this young Afghan to His Psalms, hymns, spiritual songs, and even providing Christian fellowship! (Image: sitting in the pew; Rahim to my left).