"We're meeting with Hamid. He is the pastor of an underground church. He wants to thank you for your help!" (to Danish European Mission's improvers and donors, ed.) says my friend. "But do we support him or his work?" I ask, a little puzzled.
"Yes, in a way! Because what you do for us benefits others too!" my friend says. "We don't just think of ourselves, but love one another in the Lord, and therefore the blessings often reach further," he says.
We enter the restaurant, which looks more like a Danish work canteen. The place is packed and quite loud, and I notice that there are only male diners and that everyone is eating the same national rice dish. I greet Hamid and we sit down on the wooden benches.
After we have eaten and are drinking tea, I ask him: "Can you tell me a little bit about yourself, Hamid, and what you do? And what God is doing in your church?"
You are a model of good partnership!
Hamid leans across the table and says:
"I serve as a pastor and church planter here in the city, and God has given me the grace to plant several house churches in the area. I come from a different denomination than your friend, but as churches we have really good relationships with each other and we have a good cooperation where we try to help each other. So the partners of the Danish European Mission are our good friends," he smiles.
"In fact, their church has been much more important to us than some of our own churches that are further away. So it means a lot to us, and also to me personally, and that's what I would like to thank you for," he says, placing his right hand on his heart and bowing his head slightly, as they do in Central Asia to show deep gratitude.
"I know the work they do and the projects that your organization supports," says Hamid. "You are an example to me of how good a partnership can be and what a blessing can come from supporting and helping each other. What a heart you have!" he says, smiling happily.
Good fruits of collaboration
"Many have come to faith in Isa Masih (Jesus Christ) through their outreach work (Bags of Hope), and many house churches have been planted. I know this because we also sometimes send some Christians from our church out with them to serve together and help them. Likewise, they occasionally come and serve in our house churches, and once in a while they have also handed out bags of food to people we have contact with. So thank you so much to your donors," says Hamid.
"Many have come to faith in Isa Masih (Jesus Christ) through their outreach work (Bags of Hope), and many house churches have been planted."
- Hamid
"Have you seen any fruits of your collaboration?", I ask.
"Yes, we have. We have seen people come to faith in Jesus. Some of those who serve in our church have also received training and theological education in the Danish European Mission project, and this has helped equip them for ministry. It is an encouragement to us that you are looking beyond your own so that other churches will also be blessed. That's what I wanted to thank you for," smiles Hamid.
I ask: "Can you tell me a little bit about yourself, Hamid?"
"Oh yeah, I forgot," he laughs.
"God has blessed me with a wonderful family who all live with God. I myself have been a Christian for many years, since I heard about Isa (Jesus, ed.) through a friend as a young man. When I was a new Christian, I was very passionate and I wanted to serve God, even though I was sometimes persecuted because I was a Christian. After some years I became a pastor in a church, but one day the persecution suddenly came in a way that I had not experienced before, and I felt that I was very alone because our city is far from other cities and not many people came to visit us and I rarely met other leaders in our community. It was difficult and I was disappointed."
"But during the difficult time I went through, other churches and church leaders in the area supported me, and especially the Danish European Mission partner church helped me! Without them, I wouldn't have gotten through this difficult time."
The persecution I experienced made me put deeper roots in God
"Has it left its mark on you?", I ask.
Hamid thinks for a moment and then answers in a clear voice: "Yes it has. It has done something to me, because sincere love for each other is very important for us as human beings, and the persecution that I experienced made me put deeper roots in God."
I want to set myself aside, because God has set me aside for his purpose
"As a Christian, I want to set myself aside, because God has set me aside for his purpose: to live for God and serve him in holiness and love with a sincere heart and passion."
"These things are important to me! That I serve people in true love, because otherwise I am just like "a resounding ore and a tinkling bell", as the Bible says (1 Corinthians 13:1), because such bells only sound and make noise, but they have no beautiful melody! So what good does it do?
So I want to do things out of love for people, just like Jesus showed mercy out of a sincere heart!"
Passion for God is also being prepared to suffer for your faith
"For me, Jesus is my role model, and also the passion he showed. Because passion is also being prepared to suffer to do what you believe in! It's part of ministry that I have to be willing to pay a price to serve God, even if I have to suffer for it sometimes."
"Because that's what it's like to be a Christian here in Central Asia! It's a natural part of ministry that you can be persecuted for your faith."
"In those difficult moments when someone with a different faith than mine threatens me with this or that, I remember the words of the Bible:
'For to me life is Christ and death is gain' (Philippians 1:21, ed.) and then my fear disappears. Because I am with Jesus and always will be!", Hamid says happily.
