Preparing for a Different Culture

A couple weeks ago, I was invited to have Irish tea at the home of a young woman from my church who has done ministry in Ireland with World Harvest. She also invited two friends who have served in Ireland, one with World Harvest and the other with Mission to the World (MTW). The four of us watched a short video on church planting in Ireland, and then they graciously answered my questions for about two hours. It was important for me to connect with local Christians who have a heart for Ireland and it was also huge in preparing me for what to expect culturally.
They described the Irish art of "slagging" (not to be confused with "snogging" from the Harry Potter books). Basically, slagging is extreme teasing which sometimes comes off as downright mean. One of the young women there told me she felt at first that none of the Irish young people liked her because they were so critical, but she later learned they were just giving her a hard time. She was told that if they didn't like her, they wouldn't talk to her. Because they liked her, they slagged her. They especially like to practice this on Americans, so I had better not be too sensitive to anything pertaining to myself. Apparently, they also respect those who can "slag back." So, I am left considering whether being a quick-witted smartass for the Lord can fall under the category of being all things to all people.
That night, I heard a story about a friend of theirs who is a pastor at an Evangelical church in Wexford (in the same county as New Ross). His church distributed 5,000 copies of a magazine about Christianity. The cover story was on a famous Irish surfer who has become a Christian. Each copy had information regarding who to contact regarding follow-up questions. The pastor received one call from someone who was really excited about Christianity. One response out of 5,000, and he rejoiced! This is the kind of trust in God that I need to have, a persistent faith that keeps me active in spreading the gospel even when "results" are scarce. Miles has told me before that he could not to ministry in Ireland if he did not believe God was sovereign over salvation. I was recently encouraged by a sermon by John Piper on John 10:16. The basic point was that God has sheep all over the world and they WILL come. This promise should not lead to inaction, but inspire confidence.
Another thing we talked about are the many Irish believers in this region who are so weary from the difficulties of ministry and the opposition they face. This thought has caused me to realize another part of my purpose at Grace Church, which is to be a shot of life to this congregation. Pray that my passion will be apparent and contagious.
All of this may have sounded dreadful to me if not for the fact that all three of these individuals want to return to Ireland to do ministry someday and, in fact, never wanted to leave in the first place. It is a different culture and sometimes a difficult one, but one which they all love. Pray that God would increase my heart for the Irish people.