Our team made its way to Madina Charcoal grill. We were supposed to eat at a burger place, but after searching for a while and uncovering a lovely park we didn’t know was there, we landed at Madina. It was very small and at first glance, did not look like it would accommodate our party for seating. Amazingly, they had a hidden basement area, and it seemed like we would have the very small area all to ourselves, but that only lasted a few minutes.
Then two Indian couples came in, the women were both wearing saris. We said hello as they entered and carried on. When our food arrived, we blessed our food and ate and visited amongst ourselves, not long after, their food arrived, they ate and visited amongst themselves.
As we finished up, our team began to go off and wash their hands, use the restrooms and wait outside. Most of our team had headed back upstairs, I waited for Kasaundra, but also went up and grabbed a to go box because we had a lot of good food left over. I packed it up with the hope that we might encounter someone in need, so it would not be wasted.
As I packed up the food, the 2 couples were also starting to get ready to leave, but I sensed a lingering. One of the men seemed unable to resist asking us if we were from the “east coast,” I knew what he meant and said in my most silly Texas accent, “nope, we are from Tex-us, Dallas” everyone laughed and seemed to appreciate my silliness. I asked if they had been in London all their lives and he said yes, but east London.
He said they were getting tired of it though, because it was getting so busy. I said, I know what you mean. That was happening in Dallas. He said “really?” in a very surprised tone. I said, “oh yes, especially folks from California,” again I was being a little silly to keep things light. They laughed.
[My teammate] added that in Texas, we don’t have a property tax and our cost of living is reasonably low, especially compared to other parts of the country, like California, but I added “yeah, but folks seem determined to drive it up, supply and demand,” also in a lighthearted joking way that they seemed to appreciate.
He wanted to know if it was true that Texas wanted to be its own country. I said yes, but you can’t believe everything you read and hear. He asked if I thought that would ever happen and I said “no”. That seemed to help segue into what he really wanted to talk about, Trump. I had done my research, looking up American news interests in London, Trump’s latest conviction was at the top of the list of British/American news that day. He started talking about Trump and Biden, and I said, “yes,” agreeing with a lot of what he was saying, but I added that “we are Christians, it is our job to look to the Lord and trust God for our leadership above all, pray for our leaders, and keep our faith strong and our eyes on God.”
He knew his stuff, he asked if we were “evangelical Christians,” a group he seemed to know full well, Trump aligns himself with. I said “yes, but again, you can’t believe everything you read and hear in the news.” He spoke about how Trump was smart, manipulating voters, seemingly playing both sides, and I agreed, and I added “that that is what many politicians do, but again, we pray for our leaders and trust God.” He went on to say more about Trump and Biden, comparing their presidencies, death and war on each of their watches while in office and I listened, but ended as we were inching toward the door, knowing our team was all waiting outside, I reiterated “we have a strong faith in God as Christians, and the upcoming election and presidencies and government and so much more, is why we are desperately dependent on Jesus. These are all the things that we pray for and look to God to for help and guidance.” The conversation was pleasant and light, despite the potentially heavy subject matter. In the end, I am pretty sure that I had made the point that we weren’t on any side, but the side of our faith and trust in God. I believe I had presented a strong argument for Jesus, and that was all that I was led to do before moving along. I pray that God used my pleasant demeanor, filled with love for the Lord and the hope that I have in Him to be a witness, despite what this man may have heard or judged of Christians. They wished us well and we did the same.