Tea With Hezbollah

Welcome to Page Turner Tuesday book club 2016 with Life in a Larger Story! I just finished listening to Tea with Hezbollah Sitting at the Enemies' Table, Our Journey Through the Middle East by Ted Dekker and Carl Medearis. I enjoyed listening to it on Audible while being a free Uber driver for my kids. I fell in love with the teaching of Carl Medearis a few years ago while slipping into one of his talks at a Perspectives course offered at our church. Shortly after I read his book Speaking of Jesus, which is, also a fantastic read. 

 

This book, Tea with Hezbollah is fascinating. I highly recommend you give it a listen, or read. Ted does a fabulous job of narrating their travels and he even tells a side story that griped my attention. Carl and Ted set out on a journey in the Middle East to find out if it's even possible to live one of Jesus' greatest teachings, "love your neighbor" and your enemies. Ted and Carl had the opportunity to talk to very interesting people and they share the direct transcripts of their conversations. The reader is then able to draw his or her own conclusions. They have conversations with people many of us Americans would consider our enemies and interview them. They travel through Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Lebanon and Israel. They have tea with the Bin Laden brothers, leaders in Hezbollah, Hamas, Samaritans, Bedouins, muftis and many more. They ask everyone interesting questions that make you realize their humanity and eventually they get to this question, Jesus greatest teaching was to love your neighbor, and do you think this is possible? What about loving your enemy? They point out this teaching is something Gandhi, Dr. Martin Luther King and Jesus all had in common. This dangerous teaching of loving your neighbor and enemies could even cost one their life.

The book has left me in tears with my heart and mind open. This great love for all men and women inspires me. This teaching, to love your neighbor and your enemy is so great I think I could give my life to it, yet I am such a hypocrite like the rest. This teaching was difficult to follow in the day of Jesus and it proves to be as difficult today.

It left me wanting to know my enemies, my friends and my neighbors and to try to love them well. This will take practice.  I am thankful for Carl Medearis and Ted Dekker. This work of theirs has reached deep in to my heart, mind, soul and strength. Thank you for challenging me.