Me: I think it is going to be a nice day.
Prodigal: I agree! Why don’t you share a story
This comes from the book The God Who Hung on the Cross by Dois I. Rosser Jr. and Ellen Vaughn
In some parts of the world, building churches is not just a physical challenge, but a spiritual one. In the Gujarat state of India, militant Hindus set themselves against 40 congregations in a mountainous area where the Christian community had grown by 400 percent in the last few years, with new churches built all over the countryside.
Backed by fanatical sources, Hindu activists came to the area to intimidate Christians and halt the growth of the church however they could. The believers learned that the Hindus had called for 500,000 people to come to the rally for the purpose of identifying Christians and forcing them to become Hindus. Hindu leaders went to each home in the area and asked if the occupants were Hindus. If the people said they were, then a flag was put up in front of the house. If the answer was no, then they were told to denounce their faith in Christ and embrace Hinduism. If the Christians refused, the leader would pronounce a curse on the family and leave, with no flag in front of the house.
To those of us in the U.S., this situation sounded like a scene from the Old Testament. We joined together with Christians all over India earnestly praying for our brothers and sisters in Gujarat. The local pastors came together crying out to God to work in their midst.
The hours went by. In the U.S., we didn’t hear anything for several days after the Hindu rally. Then, finally, an anti-climactic email arrived from our partner in Gujarat, saying simply that the Hindu rally had been an absolute flop, and that no Christians had been forced to be re-baptized as Hindus. God had intervened!
John 6:51
I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. And the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.
Jennifer Van Allen
www.theprodigalpig.com
www.faithincounseling.org
