*For the first part of this post, click here
A Person of Peace
Less than five minutes after leaving our hotel and taking to the streets, we were surrounded by swarms of people. Young people who spoke English initiated conversation, while others simply stared. One young man pointed us in the direction of a friend’s shop and we decided to go. Coming to the end of the road, however, we stumbled upon an even more curious--the city’s prominent mosque. While the men went inside, the three of us women stayed outside and prayed (silently, as we were already attracting dozens of eyes to our fair-skin-foreignness).
Fifteen minutes passed and then, quite unexpectedly, we were summoned to come into the mosque. What??!! Women in the mosque? Absolutely unheard of for such a conservative Muslim culture in India! Talk about open doors!
After taking off our shoes, we greeted four Muslim men who had befriended the men in our group just minutes before. Three of the men were young leaders-in-training of the mosque (dressed very conservatively) and one was a devout Muslim studying to be a doctor. The leader of our group connected with this med student right away. In no time at all, it had become clear that this man was our “person of peace.”
Being educated and able to speak English with the unexpected foreign guests, this man seemed quite well-respected both within the city and the mosque itself. Such was the favor upon him that we received favor from the “mosque interns” (forgive me, as I don’t speak Urdu to know the specific term for the other men). These men not only allowed us into the mosque, but invited us to go on the roof in order to see the entire city.
Climbing up several flights of narrow stairs, it took me a few moments to process everything that was happening. “I’ve never been up here,” our med student friend told us as we were making our way up to the top. Clearly, this is a rarity for anyone in the city, let alone foreigners. I knew this was an incredibly significant moment....
When the stairs opened up to the roof, the sight nearly took my breath away. We were, no doubt, at the highest point of the city--able to see 360 degrees all around us for miles. We were sent to scout out the land, and a half hour after our arrival, we ended up here. I silently mouthed “Wow!” to one of my teammates--she herself having tears in her eyes. There were no words for this moment…
Back in our hotel room that night, I simply wrote one sentence in my journal about the experience.
Having done dozens of prayer walks of strategic locations around the globe, I knew the Biblical significance of such an act. In some places in Scripture, the high places symbolize the location of idolotrous worship to false gods. In going to such a location to pray, in the name of Jesus, we are able to pray for God's power to rise up against such things (Ephesians 6:12).
Yet conversely, when I think of high places, I consider the power of God to show Himself in a powerful way. How many times do we read of mountaintops in Scripture? Moses went up on Mount Sinai to experience God and intercede for his people below. Jesus brought his closest friends to a mountain to watch him transfigured, beholding his Glory in a way they had never seen before. When we go to the high places, there is inexplicable stirring and excitement within us. We sense that God is about to do something big…
Praying in high places also allows us to have a bigger picture perspective of the area. We see things that cannot be seen on the ground alone. Standing above everything else, it seemed a symbolic act of Christ’s supremacy over this place, and the authority we had as believers to go and share the good news of Jesus’ love and incredible sacrifice for them.
So, we stood there on the roof, silently praying as the Muslim men talked to our team leader. It was a powerful moment of beauty and redemption, knowing that even here, the top of a Muslim mosque, the Lord was powerfully present through his Spirit residing inside us. He had indeed led us here. No logical explanation could explain the favor we had…
As for the rest of the story, this man we had met, our “person of peace,” spent the next two and a half days with us--taking us around the city and to the nearby villages, serving as both our translator and our guide. He was the source of much information about the land and the people of the city. This well-respected man introduced us to key Muslim leaders in the area, as well as other well-respected members of the community, including doctors and prominent businessmen. We broke bread with new friends when the sun went down (this was all during Ramadan) and learned more about this new city than we ever thought we would.
When we parted ways with our friend, all of us were still reeling in shock.
Did God really just do that?
A Person of Peace
Less than five minutes after leaving our hotel and taking to the streets, we were surrounded by swarms of people. Young people who spoke English initiated conversation, while others simply stared. One young man pointed us in the direction of a friend’s shop and we decided to go. Coming to the end of the road, however, we stumbled upon an even more curious--the city’s prominent mosque. While the men went inside, the three of us women stayed outside and prayed (silently, as we were already attracting dozens of eyes to our fair-skin-foreignness).
Fifteen minutes passed and then, quite unexpectedly, we were summoned to come into the mosque. What??!! Women in the mosque? Absolutely unheard of for such a conservative Muslim culture in India! Talk about open doors!
After taking off our shoes, we greeted four Muslim men who had befriended the men in our group just minutes before. Three of the men were young leaders-in-training of the mosque (dressed very conservatively) and one was a devout Muslim studying to be a doctor. The leader of our group connected with this med student right away. In no time at all, it had become clear that this man was our “person of peace.”
Being educated and able to speak English with the unexpected foreign guests, this man seemed quite well-respected both within the city and the mosque itself. Such was the favor upon him that we received favor from the “mosque interns” (forgive me, as I don’t speak Urdu to know the specific term for the other men). These men not only allowed us into the mosque, but invited us to go on the roof in order to see the entire city.
Climbing up several flights of narrow stairs, it took me a few moments to process everything that was happening. “I’ve never been up here,” our med student friend told us as we were making our way up to the top. Clearly, this is a rarity for anyone in the city, let alone foreigners. I knew this was an incredibly significant moment....
When the stairs opened up to the roof, the sight nearly took my breath away. We were, no doubt, at the highest point of the city--able to see 360 degrees all around us for miles. We were sent to scout out the land, and a half hour after our arrival, we ended up here. I silently mouthed “Wow!” to one of my teammates--she herself having tears in her eyes. There were no words for this moment…
Back in our hotel room that night, I simply wrote one sentence in my journal about the experience.
“They took us to the high places…“
Having done dozens of prayer walks of strategic locations around the globe, I knew the Biblical significance of such an act. In some places in Scripture, the high places symbolize the location of idolotrous worship to false gods. In going to such a location to pray, in the name of Jesus, we are able to pray for God's power to rise up against such things (Ephesians 6:12).
Yet conversely, when I think of high places, I consider the power of God to show Himself in a powerful way. How many times do we read of mountaintops in Scripture? Moses went up on Mount Sinai to experience God and intercede for his people below. Jesus brought his closest friends to a mountain to watch him transfigured, beholding his Glory in a way they had never seen before. When we go to the high places, there is inexplicable stirring and excitement within us. We sense that God is about to do something big…
Praying in high places also allows us to have a bigger picture perspective of the area. We see things that cannot be seen on the ground alone. Standing above everything else, it seemed a symbolic act of Christ’s supremacy over this place, and the authority we had as believers to go and share the good news of Jesus’ love and incredible sacrifice for them.
So, we stood there on the roof, silently praying as the Muslim men talked to our team leader. It was a powerful moment of beauty and redemption, knowing that even here, the top of a Muslim mosque, the Lord was powerfully present through his Spirit residing inside us. He had indeed led us here. No logical explanation could explain the favor we had…
As for the rest of the story, this man we had met, our “person of peace,” spent the next two and a half days with us--taking us around the city and to the nearby villages, serving as both our translator and our guide. He was the source of much information about the land and the people of the city. This well-respected man introduced us to key Muslim leaders in the area, as well as other well-respected members of the community, including doctors and prominent businessmen. We broke bread with new friends when the sun went down (this was all during Ramadan) and learned more about this new city than we ever thought we would.
When we parted ways with our friend, all of us were still reeling in shock.
Did God really just do that?
Wow...
Humble Labourers
Humble Labourers
A Christian worker who lives in India said to us just before we went home: “The word pioneer comes from the word peon or pawn. Like in a game of chess, it’s just a small piece, but it’s the one who goes first.”
As I sat down to write this post, I Googled the root of the word “Pioneer.” What I found was this…
Pioneer is a word with a complex military etymology. It has the same Latin root as peon, meaning a “humble labourer.”
I had never thought of it that way. When you pioneer or pave the way for something new, your job is simply a “humble labourer.” This experience so powerfully proved to me that it was God’s power at work in the midst of our own inability and weakness. We stepped into that city with no translator, guide or plan, just prayers to a God we were convinced would lead us exactly where He wanted us to go.
And He did…
Please pray for this city in Northern India. Pray that the Lord would send laborers to this place of great need. People of peace are there--they are the “grapes” we are bringing back to prove that there is much hope for this land (Numbers 13:27). There are obstacles to be overcome, for sure, but it is clear that this place is ripe and ready for those whom the Lord sends.
"...therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.”
Matthew 9:38
1. Google reference:
http://www.answers.com/topic/pioneer#ixzz24g0nhA40
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