You're Going to Meet Jesus!

In December, I was talking with my friend's two young children and I told them that I was going to Egypt in January. My friend's 4 year old daughter immediately said, with excitement in her voice, "You're going to meet Jesus!" I was momentarily taken aback, but replied "Well, yes, I'm going to the place where Jesus' mommy and daddy took him after he was born." She said again to me, "Yes! You're going to meet Jesus!" To her, there was no question about who I was going to meet and what the purpose of my trip was.

I've kept those words with me since Decemeber. And I've thought about them often as we've traveled around Cairo these past two days. I've wondered what does it mean to meet Jesus at Giza--where we, with countless other tourists, are taken through the pyramids, temples, and other ancient sacred spaces in a way that allows us enough time to take pictures and hear a little history, and then get on a bus to the next place. I've pondered what it means to meet Jesus in the overwhelming, chaotic traffic of Cairo, where traffic laws are mere suggestions and cars, buses and bikes move in a frenzied pace on their way to their various destinations (prayer has become a part of my daily bus ride). And today, I reflected on what it means to meet Jesus in Old Cairo, in our visit to a medieval Coptic Church and our meeting with some of the faculty of Evangelical Seminary where we are staying.

And so far, I've come up with this. I've met Jesus in the wonderful hospitality of our hosts here in Egypt, with our delightful tour guide who has a wealth of knowledge about ancient and modern Egypt, and the people here at the seminary. I've met Jesus at the ancient pharonic sites, knowing that I am walking on the same land and seeing some of the same sites that our Biblical ancestors saw--and having a new appreciation for the sacredness of footwashing. And I've met Jesus in my fellow travellers, in the way we have started to get to know one another and learn from each other.

I know that I will continue to ponder and reflect about all that we are experiencing here in Egypt. But I know that when I return to Philadelphia, I will be able to tell my young friend that I did indeed meet Jesus, in all his various apperances.

Peace,
Sarah Clausen