I Wish I Had Chosen the First
What I didn’t say—and why it mattered
A few weeks after the 2004 tsunami in Sri Lanka—an event that claimed more than 30,000 lives—I accompanied a team of doctors and nurses from the United States as an interpreter. One day, during one of our medical clinics, a nurse I’ll call Jen asked me to help her speak with a man who only spoke Tamil.
At first, I assumed it was a routine conversation about his health. But as she began speaking, I realized this wasn’t about medical advice—it was a conversion attempt.
At the time, I was a Christian, so I understood Jen’s intentions and the logic behind them. But I was also Tamil, someone who had lived in Sri Lanka my entire life, and I knew the weight of the unspoken messages she was sending to this Tamil Hindu man.
Midway through the conversation, Jen turned to me and said, “Can you help me lead him to accept Jesus into his heart?”
I hesitated. But in the end, I translated her prayer.
The man repeated the words after us, nodded, and left. Jen was pleased, thoug…
