04 Dec Five Answers to Hard Questions about the Community Christmas Gathering

My husband was in Kenya, and I was in Charleston visiting family when I got a text from my friend. There had been an announcement at Grace about the partnership with Pastor Suhas, an Indian believer who would be hosting a Christmas gathering for the local Indian community.

I was ecstatic. It was the middle of the night in Kenya, but I was dying to share the news with my husband. As I’ve shared before, he and I have been getting to know an Indian man, Mr. K, and I was so excited that there would be an event we could invite him to and an Indian pastor to connect him with. Since my last post, we had lunch with our friend, and life has continued to be pretty discouraging for him. His deep grief over losing his wife has been relentless, and he’s had family members who have disapproved of his strong sorrow. At lunch he kept telling me that people don’t understand what he is going through and that he is hopeless. My mind instantly went to the hope I find in the Gospel and how badly I want him to experience this. I also felt the wide gap between our cultures. The truth and power of the Gospel is definitely stronger than cultural barriers, but I wished there was someone I could connect him with who could understand his grief from the Indian Hindu perspective. Hearing Pastor Suhas’ story and about his ministry in Greenville was such an answer to prayer.

The truth and power of the Gospel is definitely stronger than cultural barriers, but I wished there was someone I could connect him with who could understand his grief from the Indian Hindu perspective.

As I thought about inviting Mr. K to the Christmas Gathering, I had several questions arise. I had a chance to speak with Pastor Suhas to ask him these questions while running errands the other day. I was in Target and my next stop was to visit Mr. K.- perfect timing. I sat down on a giant red cube in the children’s department and scribbled notes as Pastor Suhas and I chatted.

Q: How much should we explain about the Community Christmas Gathering when inviting our friend? We don’t want to lose any credibility with him and don’t want him to feel like he was tricked into coming.

A: You should let him know this is a Christian event and a Christian pastor will be speaking. He may be disappointed if he realizes it when he shows up. Hinduism is a very broad-minded religion. Hindus believe in many gods and that all roads lead to the same place. Therefore, it’s usually not a big deal to attend an event for a different religion.

Q: It seems that the Indian community is pretty intertwined. Our friend seems to know many of the other Indians that we know. If he shows up at an event that is aimed at sharing the Gospel, will being associated with such an event bring shame to him within his community? If he is a believer, this shouldn’t matter, but as a Hindu, we don’t want to cause any conflict for him within his current context.

A: The other Indians who will be there will be in the same position as your friend, so they won’t be judging him. And again because of the broad-mindedness of Hinduism, it shouldn’t put your friend in negative position within his community.

Q: In the Indian culture, would it be inappropriate for me, a female, to invite a male? And vice versa (male inviting female?). Should my husband be the one to invite our male friend?

A: This is similar to American culture and would be okay for you to invite your male friend. As long as your husband will be attending with you so that the three of you can share a table at the gathering.

Q: Will there be Christian Indians at the event? Should we invite other Christian Indians that we know?

A:  It would certainly be okay for Indian believers to attend.

Q: If our friend initially says no, would it be considered impolite to encourage him to reconsider? How much “pushing” should we do?

A: Present the invitation in such a way that he will want to say yes. But if he does decline, don’t push him too hard to change his mind. Tell him he has so many days until the event and to let you know if he changes his mind.

We ended our conversation, and I had 45 minutes to both pray and visit Mr. K before getting my youngest from preschool. What really got me was that last part about presenting the invitation in way that he will want to say yes…. Eesh. I was feeling the pressure.

But the beautiful thing is that the Holy Spirit would be there to guide my words. It’s never about me, besides my obedience, my obedience to love, to invite. “Okay, Lord. Here we go,” I finished my prayer as I walked in to see Mr. K. We chatted for a while before I offered the invitation. And guess what? He eagerly said YES. He will come! I was thrilled. I’m pretty sure he sensed my excitement, but I managed not to cry until I got back in my car.

I know that Mr. K coming to this event doesn’t guarantee his salvation. But it will deepen my husband’s  and my relationship with him, allow him to connect with Indians who love Jesus, and give him the opportunity to hear the Truth of the Gospel in a context that is meaningful to him. While I am so anxious for our friend and the others who will attend that night to know Jesus, as Pastor Suhas concluded in his video, we have to leave the results to God.

“He is the One who will open their spiritual eyes. He will open their heart. And He will be the One who will help them to understand and receive the Truth that will be brought to them on that day.”

–Mary Beth Spann

Planning on attending the Community Christmas Gathering on Friday, December 11? You can find more details on our website, or complete your registration for yourself and your guest here.

You can also download this printable invitation to use when inviting your friends and co-workers. (Be sure to add your phone number at the bottom so that they can let you know if they’re coming!)