by Roberta Updegraff, Frontier Fellowship Vision Trip Participant
In the land of 330 million deities, seekers stand on street corners and in the shade of the rudraksha tree. They wait for the “sent ones” promised in their visions. In Himalayan villages, shepherds and farmers—identified by prayerful church planters as men and women of peace—look to the hills for pastors and encouragers to strengthen their witness in their communities.
I’ve traveled with these “sent ones” in the foothills of the Himalayas as they retraced the steps of their initial prayer walk when they sought God’s leading for future ministry. Since then, they’ve launched over 100 house churches in just a few years. They, like the apostles Paul and Barnabas, delighted in their reunions with disciples to recount miracles and the growth in numbers of new believers.
In our land of 330 million subtly seductive deities in the West, preoccupations, money and self-sufficiency often trump reliance on the Lord. Trusting God to lead them, my South Asian brothers and sisters shared Christ with others and provided them with access to the one true God. Could my witness do the same? Could I provide access to Jesus for a seeker through my faith? Would I one day be able to re-walk the path of my faith and celebrate with God?
Maybe you, like me, long to feel your integral part in God’s plan for the unreached. Let’s walk together, you and I—first through our own neighborhoods and then on to the dark spiritual alleyways where the effects of sin yield consequences of brokenness. Let’s meet desperate souls standing beneath streetlights awaiting messengers of Good News and come alongside weary loved ones praying for spiritual reinforcements. Let’s hold in our hearts our counterparts doing the same throughout the world.
Lord, make us Your sent ones—those who create avenues of access for people to hear the Good News. Empower us to strengthen beleaguered believers throughout the world. Equip us to embody the reality that You are Emmanuel—God with us. Amen.
Follow along with our daily devotional series for the Advent season.
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