Finding Strength In The Book Of Daniel

Rahab's Rope, India

      Coming to India has felt like I have been transported back into the Old Testament times as the culture here is saturated in idol worship. I felt like God kept bringing me to the book of Daniel in the months before this mission trip and now it is clear why. I found strength in the book of Daniel. Daniel was in exile in Babylon and was a minority there in his spiritual beliefs. He was often tested when it came to standing up for his beliefs despite threat of certain persecution or death. Daniel and his companions did not waver in their beliefs, but fully relied on God no matter the outcome. The believers here are the minority in this society. The non-believers here risk much to choose to believe in Jesus Christ; therefore, many are hesitant to accept Christ as their one and only Savior. They risk being beaten by their husbands, not finding a partner who shares the same beliefs, being treated as outcasts by their relatives for not following tradition, losing business, and being shunned in their respective communities. In America it is easy to take for granted the freedom we have to believe whatever we want. We face little persecution to follow Jesus in America.

      I cannot imagine being a non-believer here and being asked to change my beliefs to accept a new hope and salvation through Jesus Christ when facing so much adversity. It seems one would be desperate for this new hope and would jump at the opportunity to know Christ, yet I wonder if I would if I were in their place when everyone around you are Hindus and that is all you have ever known. Would you? I would like to say yes, but I honestly do not know. That is why it is so important for the body of Christ to be united in prayer and to be bold and fearless in loving others to Christ. We have to support the church worldwide. We need to be in constant prayer for our missionaries around the world and for the salvation of non-believers. It is a dark environment here. Sometimes it can feel very heavy when you see Hindu worship everywhere you look, in the buses we ride, mini temples on every corner, pictures of idols in the homes, the constant smell of incense burning in worship to idols, people who live in slums flooding into elaborately built Hindu temples to worship carved images, homeless half-dressed children in the streets, when we hear stories of spousal abuse often because a woman gave birth to a girl instead of a boy, when a mother asks you to take her daughter back to America with you to give her a better life and/or because she does not want her, women and children begging for food or money everywhere you go, homeless men with diseased skin sleeping in allies.  It is easy to be discouraged here and believe there is no hope for India.

      Despite this seemingly hopeless saturated population of idol worshipers, there is a strong body of believers here and their light is shining in their neighborhoods and growing.  As a volunteer here the past couple of weeks I was reminded of the early church and how Paul would visit and write to the new believers to encourage them in their faith. I believe that is what I and the other volunteers have been doing here; coming alongside the believers established here and encouraging them, letting them know that the universal body of Christ is alive and that we are all walking together in spreading God’s word, that we are here for them and believe in them. Rahab’s Rope is so involved here in a multifaceted approach from teaching preschoolers and their teachers about Jesus, teaching English and meeting hygiene needs of mothers, sharing Jesus with young women who are learning marketable job skills, discipling and fervently praying with local believers, tutoring school children who are from Hindu homes and teaching them Bible stories each day, meeting non-believers where they are in their homes and loving them, encouraging the local church and youth group in praise and worship, playing with and giving food to homeless children in the street who are most likely never shown love, to sharing testimonies and more. This is what mission work should be in my opinion; submersing yourself in the community and sharing daily the gospel of Jesus.

       Change might be possible without Jesus Christ, but I am convinced it will not be lasting or effective. There is no hope without Him; without losing ourselves and finding ourselves in Him. India is in dire need of knowing Jesus Christ, and the staff members and volunteers of Rahab’s Rope are working hard to make this happen. I am honored to have been a part of what is happening here. I don’t know that I have felt so alive in my faith before as I have while here. God is moving mountains in India and the seriousness with which the believers here take their faith in Jesus Christ is so inspiring and admirable.  It seems since there is so much at stake, the dependency on God is so much stronger. It is exciting to talk daily about your faith with other believers and what God is doing or showing you. There is a deep sense of community, relationship and passionate spirituality here in the local body of Christ that I feel is missing back home with our comforts and conveniences, and of which I hope to inspire upon my return. 

Blessings,

Rachel - Summer 2012 Volunteer