by Donna S. Thomas

I think I should get a chocolate malt. Hmmm, there is just the place to get one beyond this traffic light.  I’ll stop there.

You know how these thoughts jump into your head. So I pulled in, parked, and went inside. Short line. This won’t take long.  My turn, and as I was telling him my “urgent” need for a malt I noticed his name tag. 

“Your name is Alpha? OK, where is Omega?” That brought a quick laugh and he responded. “Well you know my name now, but I don’t know about Omega.”  

“Alpha, do you live around here? I’ve never heard that name before.”

“Actually, I’m from West Africa,” he replied.

 “Oh, really? Where in West Africa?” 

“It’s Guinea, you know where that is?”

“No, but I’ll find a map and check it out.”

That was my first encounter with Alpha. A few days later I stopped by again and when Alpha saw me he had a huge smile on his face just for me. He was so delighted to see me again and wanted to talk more.

 This was great. I had gone on Google and found a lot of information about Guinea. A most interesting country. Lots of history, and it was a major place for the slave trade back in those early days. Alpha certainly was pleased that I was there again and that I had learned about his native country. Our conversation continued and I asked him what the religions are in Guinea, although I had discovered it is 85 percent Muslim. 

“Oh, we are mostly Muslim and I am a Muslim too,” Alpha responded

“Interesting. Alpha, I am a Christian. We should sit down sometime and talk about our faiths, plus I want to know more about your country. Do you have any time next week? There’s a coffee shop close.” 

That’s how my friendship with Alpha started. I hadn’t realized how easy it is to gain an international friend like this. Now I have discovered there are internationals working in most every shop.

As believers, we can have two agendas when we go shopping: one to buy the item you are looking for and the second to see if the clerk just might be from another country. All we have to do is start looking and start a conversation.

Some initial questions I use are:

  • What do you do when you aren’t working here?
  • What country are you from?
  • My name is Donna, what’s yours?  Then talk about his or her name.
  • Have you lived in (your city) very long?

Alpha is a dear friend now. We have had many talks about Jesus and plan for more. I was honored  to go with him when he was sworn in as a US citizen. 

The key to being a twenty-first-century disciple is to first learn to see these internationals around you. Then start a conversation, develop a relationship, help them with their problems, and tell them about the love and mercy of the Lord. But remember, you are only to plant the seed. The Lord provides the harvest. We may not always be successful in bringing them to the Lord. Our job is to be obedient and share the good news of a special relationship with the Lord God Almighty.

Donna Thomas is the author of Faces in the Crowd: Reaching Your International Neighbor for Christ. For five decades, Donna has had the remarkable privilege of training church leaders in countries as far away as China, India, Russia, and Egypt. She’s been to more than 80 countries; she can pilot a single-engine plane; and, with her late husband, Chuck, she cofounded Project Partner with Christ. She more recently founded Christian Vision Ministries and speaks to numerous audiences across the US.