July 1st ? Already?

I can't believe it is already July 1st! This month has flown by. We've settled into somewhat of a routine now. So everything that has been new and exciting has settled down a little more into normal. Yet nothing in really normal. We only have 2 weeks left here in this city, and the last week of the trip we will be traveling around the country. I can't believe it's half over already. After being here for about 3 weeks I do have some observations that are a little more in depth than all the new and exciting things I've been seeing for the first time. I'll focus on one today.

The variety of dress here is amazing. You have the staunch conservatives: the men wear the Islamic dresses and the hat, the women wear djallabas (i guess this might be how to transliterate it - the Arabic script is VERY different from our English alphabet) which are like dresses, head coverings, veils to cover their faces, and sometimes gloves to cover even their hands. The conservative women wear head coverings and the djallabas (with pants of course underneath in order not to show skin), the moderate (mainly single women) wear head coverings, long shirts that cover, long sleeves, and usually pants, and there are liberal women who wear short sleeves and sometimes even knee length skirts, and the ultra-liberal who wear low-cut shirts and and things that we see all the time in the states. The men for the most part just look normal - very European, but normal dress.

People who are friends here will walk hand in hand (YES! guys will hold hands, and girls will hold hands or link arms). You see people who are dressed differently walking together arm in arm. But usually only one, maybe two degrees away from their position (whether conservative or liberal) We know there are many divisions in Christianity, but there seems to somewhat of division in Islam as well. It's not as clear a line as we Christians draw, but there is one. Everyone still believes the same things and everyone we speak to (no matter staunch conservative or ultra liberal) says they are a good Muslim. You can almost draw a parallel because everyone in the States would say they are a good person. In order for a person to be saved, they must first realize they are lost. No one wants to admit they are a sinner. The same goes in Islam. I cannot tell people they are lost - that is the job of the Holy Spirit. We (really I'm speaking to myself first) need to pray that God will work on their hearts. I may speak to someone for 5 minutes, or maybe 5 hours, but God can work on their heart 24/7.