On the U-bahn

Typically one does not talk to one's neighbor on the u-bahn, unless the neighbor happens to be a friend.  But riding the long stretch home from language class the other day was an exception.

Attempting to speak German with a friend from class, I fumbled articles, searching for the right one.  

"Die?  Das?  Der?"

In front of me, a girl around my age turned around with an amused look on her face to find me, the source of the butchered German.  And so I smiled, laughed at myself, and asked her which one was correct.  Now I can't remember what the word or the article was, but I appreciated her help.  

As I continued to attempt speech, now lost as to which conjugation was correct, a woman next to me spoke.

"You're doing fine," she said, smiling in understanding.  Turns out she's not from Germany either, and she too is learning the language.

After that, the four of us began a conversation in the train.  A conversation so enjoyable that one of our new friends missed two or three stops while talking, and we exchanged contact information in the end!

How fun to find common ground, helpful people, and good conversation.

This week, our team discussed John 14-17.  There's some great stuff there.

One of the things I noticed: Jesus kept talking about how when we ask for things in his name, they'll happen (Luke 14:13-14; 15:16; 16:23-24).  God will do them.  Whoah.

You know those things that you believe in the sense that you know they are true, but at the same time you don't believe, in the sense that you don't live like they're true?  This is one of those for me.

I know that Jesus is telling the truth.  That's what he does.  But if I really believed him when he says, "You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it" (Luke 14:14)... wouldn't I be asking him for things in his name all the time??

So now I've gotta figure out what I can ask in his name.  Somebody said that asking 'in his name' means asking 'according to his will.'  Which can seem daunting, until I'm reminded that he tells me what his will is in his Word.

As I was writing this post, I started copying down things that I found in the Bible that I could pray... and then I gave up, because that would be a lot of writing.  There's a lot in there that I could pray.  One wise woman called the Bible 'our prayer book.'

I can't get over it... If I pray stuff in his name, God will do it.  There's so much power there.  I'm really excited, because think of what will happen!  (I almost wrote, "what could happen" instead of "what will happen"... just goes to show that I'm still not fully believing.)  

He will do great things.