Acting 101

One of the things we invited international students to was a game night. We played some fun games, then divided up into 4 groups.

Each group acted out the story of the Prodigal Son, from the Gospel of Luke in the Bible. The twist was that there were 4 different endings. Then after all the hilarious acting was over we got back into those groups to discuss what we observed and liked about the story.

It was an interesting night that led to some neat discussion. One girl in my group had come to the BBQ and she also came to Chinese church with us. Sunday night she called her parents in China and told them she wanted to become a Christian. Her parents forbid her to become a Christian because they are Buddhist. (Not a very common belief for that generation.) The next morning (same day as this game night) she cried over her parents decision and asked God what to do.

You may think to yourself, "Well she's in college now, as well as on her own in another country. Why can't she just do what she wants?"

That's where cultures are very divided. We come from a VERY independent culture. Once your 18, for the most part, you are free to make your own decisions and become the person you want to be. Which is a huge reason why Dave and I love working with college students!

However, in Chinese culture, parents are so respected and so revered that the son/daughter never really grow independent of their parents, but often make decisions to please them. There are great benefits to their culture, but also some drawbacks.

So we encouraged our friend, after she told us that night that if it was up to her, she for sure would become a Christian, to pray for God to change her parent's hearts. I don't remember her name, but lift her up in prayer right now.