The Egyptian people have been so accepting and loving toward us, and are part of a culture that truy practices hospitality toward strangers. I thought they might be aloof or even hostile - a misperception. The zebeleen, or garbage people,also showed us friendship and hospitality - but even more surprising to me - they have a joy of life, pride of workamanship and a hope for the future. As you look at the pictures we send from Zeriba (garbage city) perhaps you can imagine how the burden of my heart was made lighter by seeing how well the people are coping physically.
On the other hand, their spiritual condition is not so good. There are a few believers but most consider themselves Christians by birth and not by faith. But the Lord gave us tremendous freedom among the leaders and some of the seekers in the congregation. In our "training sessions" we began by investiagting their values and goals for life, and then taught them fom the Bible: What God's plan is, what man's part is in God's plan, that we cannot be part of God's plan unless we belong to God, and fineally, how to belong to God. In this leadership training we showed clearly the our salvation has nothing to do with our efforts, but only with God's grace. The simple truth of Romans 3:23 was absolutely life changing to both men and women who attended these sessions. It is a truth that is not taught by their leaders, but they see that it is in the Bible, and they hold the Bible in the utmost highest esteem.
I don't know what the future holds with regard to tcabc ministry among the Copts here in Cairo, but it seems that the Lord has opened a door of opportunity. The light of the Lord is shining forth in some very dark corners of this city of 20 million. Our enemy has had a stronghold here for so long that he will be difficult to dislodge, but as we told our Coptic friends, "Greater is He that is in me than he that is in the world". I am so grateful to God for putting it in my heart to come to Egypt, and for protecting my wife an family in my absence.
Dave
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