In his book Strangers Next Door, J.D. Payne argues that through immigration God has been moving the nations of the world right into our neighborhoods. Payne says, "We must continue to go to the nations, but we must also remember that the nations have come to us." He tells the following story about how God is at work through the immigrants in his neighborhood:
My wife Linda and I lived in downtown Toronto in a condominium for three years. When Linda needed to find a hairdresser she started going to a hair salon run by a Filipino lady. As they started talking, Linda discovered that this vivacious woman was a genuine Christian. A few months later, Linda ended up getting her hair done by a Chinese lady at the shop. When Linda mentioned that her husband was pastoring the English-speaking congregation of a Chinese church in the city, the woman exclaimed, "That's great! I'm a Christian too. My boss [the Filipino woman] led me to faith in Christ."
One day, when Linda returned to the shop, a new hairdresser was at work, and since all the other operators were busy, Linda ended up with the new lady. Linda knew enough about features to discern that this beautiful woman was Somali. She asked, "Are you Somali?" Surprised, the woman blurted out, "Yes!" Knowing that Somalians are, for the most part, Muslim, Linda was well into a friendly conversation that would lead to an opportunity to share her faith. But the Somali lady declared, "Don't worry. I believe in Jesus too. That lady introduced me to the Savior," pointing to her Chinese colleague.
