Have you ever been to a foreign country, one where they don't speak English? Few Hungarians we met were fluent in English. It is easy at first to overlook this fact because of all the Western influence that permeates its capital. McDonald's, Subway, Kentucky Fried Chicken...even TGI Friday's can be found on the streets of Budapest. One Hungarian restaurant even touted a "Kentucky" burger lathered in BBQ sauce. We were not ignorant to the fact that English isn't their first language, however it became very evident one evening on our trip. We decided to venture out, just the two of us, without Jonathan's parents (our "tour guides" for the trip). We had our Budapest street map, our Hungarian phrase book, and forints (money) in our pockets. We were going souveneir shopping.Or at least, that was the plan. Several metro rides and a bus trip later, we realized we were not where we were supposed to be. We tried to take it all in stride, tried not to feel that panic deep down inside. We reviewed the street map, studied the bus schedule. But alas, we were lost. After several attempts to decode the clues to our whereabouts, we decided to find some assistance. We tried on several attempts to communicate with the Hungarian people...hand gestures, botched Hungarian phrases, confused looks...but we couldn't find anyone who spoke English. Finally, we ran into a young couple from Sweden who spoke English. They were kind enough to point us in the right direction. Ironically, we had been close to our final destination when we started our wild goose chase.
It's funny how what we were looking for was close by all along. We just couldn't understand the signs, or the messages of the people around us. Sometimes we make something very simple more complicated than it has to be. Christianity can be that way if we let it. We think we have to translate this crazy thing called religion into something we can understand. The thing is, God is standing right close by, waiting on us. Or rather, looking for us. He speaks our language. He knows the best way to communicate with each and every person. If we stop looking up at the street signs, the bus routes, the metro stops....tune out the noise of the world around us and just listen - we will hear a familiar voice. One that is out to find us, and save us from being lost.
