Questions

Sometimes helping A__ with her English feels trivial. Am I making a difference? How does this have any eternal value? Is she even learning? 

I brought one of my discipleship girls along to A__'s house because Mimi also wants to learn English. After introductions were made, I started reviewing the basics. A__ excelled. She answered every question. She explained a few things for Mimi. While A__ sang the alphabet song my ears picked up the background notes of the trickling creek nearby.

I felt encouraged by the end of the lesson. A__ has made great progress since I started working with her in June. Hopefully Mimi will too. Mimi and I stood up to leave, saying goodbye to the grandparents A__ lives with. 

"Stay and eat a meal with us," they said, "it's almost ready." These grandparents, raising a swarm of grandkids, have very little, yet the grandmother is always hospitable. They insisted to the point I knew it would be rude to refuse.

A few minutes later they brought us to where they had laid the food out for us. Mimi, A__, and I sat down. I enjoyed the aroma and flavor of the rice and beans as I listened to A__ talking with Mimi in Makua.

Mimi translated their conversation for me. "She said what she believes and what we believe is the same. She said the Jesus Film you showed her said the same things she's learning in her religious classes."

Mimi and I both tried telling A__ in Portuguese about the differences in what we believe. To us, Jesus is more than a prophet, He is God. Mimi proclaimed her faith with boldness. Somehow the conversation turned to end times, A__ saying she thinks the end is near.

Our time had also come to an end. The delicious food had long disappeared and dusk had settled over the neighborhood. We said our goodbyes and went home.

Yes, A__ is learning and making progress in her English. Yes, teaching English can serve an eternal purpose. It can even lead to a spiritual conversation about who Jesus is and end times.