Big and Small, God Uses Them All

Two weeks ago we were in Vijayawada, in a little thatch church with a dirt floor.  Monday, we were in one of the largest in the city—St. Peter’s Lutheran Church.  The altar area was

paneled in teak and the floors were marble.  Russ was asked to preach on this second day of Holy Week, from Mark 11:15-19.

It’s still hard to reconcile formal cassocks and chandeliers with indigenous drums and lizards

My Father's House of Prayer--for All Nations

on the walls.  Head Pastor Adam Kennedy (named in honor of JFK but definitely not Irish) and Assistant Pastor Santha Rao (our host this week) welcomed us. 

A lone woman prayed at the railing, the pastors began the liturgy, and then Russ gave his message on Jesus’ cleansing of the temple, His Father’s House of Prayer.  Russ spoke of the foundational need of prayer for the Christian life, and also the need for cleansing our lives before coming to God.

His message bore fruit.  People began coming up to the altar rail; old women fell on their faces, girls kneeled, men raised their hands in prayer.  The Lord moves in hearts and souls, whether they worship Him in a tent slum or in high church.  We are honored that He continues to use us in both places.

Tuesday saw us back in Bapatla, where Russ taught 20-odd pastors (they kept arriving) principles of Christian leadership.  Some were bivocational, either teaching at Bible colleges, or driving autorickshaws—besides their ministry—to support their families.  It seems pastors’ lives are similar all over the world. 

Pastors' Meeting, Bapatla

We spent time afterward talking with Santha Rao and James, our interpreter, who is quite an intellectual.  We discussed theology and eternity and evangelism.  Santha Rao’s deepest desire is to bring the Gospel to the unreached across India. 

And, they want us back for a three-day conference next year, and would like to include pastors’ wives.  So many local pastors have so little training.  Even though they have a great desire to serve God, they definitely need more grounding in both the Scriptures and in administration.  We are praying that the Lord will make it possible for us to continue this crucial work. 

 

Tomorrow we prepare for a long train journey toward Pithapuram and our next Pastors’ and Wives’ Conference.  We will spend Easter at Pastor Samuel Raju’s Grace Baptist Church and minister with him for ten days.  Then on to Orissa with Pastor Bihit to reach more tribals in the Eastern Ghat Mountains.  So much has happened, yet so much lies ahead.  Who knows what God will do?

Please continue to keep us in your prayers.  The steep stairways and long ministry journeys are not easy--and especially hard on Russ’ legs.  But we see the heartfelt response to the Gospel and Bible teaching, and it propels us onward.   

May the Lord be glorified among the nations!  --Alice Sharrock

Palm Sunday (Literally)

Palm Sunday means church to most of us, the start of Holy Week, and praises to our King.  It just feels a little different in India.

We started early, heading north toward Guntur from Bapatla, and found ourselves along the same mountains as our first week. Fields of red chili, cotton and rice kuppas (huge round stacks curing in the fields) slipped past us.  Men threshed seeds in the road, leaving the ripened plants for traffic to run over, then tossing the crop into the air for the wind to cleanse. 

Building materials changed from concrete to native rock. The village of Peddigothi Paddu appeared like a morph of an Irish village with stone buildings, narrow streets and thatched roofs.  Except the signs were in Telugu and barefoot men wearing lungis trudged along the road.

Palm Sunday, Peddigothi Paddu, India

A beautiful church came into sight, surrounded by coconut palms. Palm branches—decorated with flowers on the tip of each leaflet—were waving from the fencing.  It was a fitting place to worship on this Palm Sunday.  

Christ Lutheran Church was built in 1927 and has a congregation of over 300.  Most of them were here today to worship the Lord as King of kings—and as the Lamb of God whose death would become His destiny in a few more days.

Pastor Ravi Prasad, Santha Rao’s elder brother, had invited Russ to preach on this important occasion.  Church began with throbbing drums and jangling tambourines; hymns and prayers mixed the flavors of India and Europe, yet there was a sense of profound worship.  God desires to be praised by all nations, tribes, peoples and languages of His earth. 

"The Road to Jerusalem"

Russ spoke of The Road to Jerusalem—Jesus’ path of submission, fulfillment of prophecy, destiny and ultimately, our salvation at the Cross.  We had a skilful interpreter and the service flowed beautifully.  We were impressed at the large number of men present, and how Pastor Prasad involved young and old, men and women during worship.  It was a blessing to us.

Worshiping with Grandpa

India is a land of incredible contrasts.  We have brought the Gospel to people in thatched huts and in concrete church buildings; in village crusades where the mosquitoes outnumbered the people; in prayer meetings packed with sweaty bodies eager to hear about Jesus; walked through mud, buffalo manure and monsoon floods to reach the poor living in slums.  The lost are hungry for the hope of Jesus Christ, and God has given us the responsibility to feed them with His Word.  On this Palm Sunday, we truly experienced His reality as Lord of lords, King of kings, and the One True God in a land of a million idols.  Hosanna to the Son of David!

--Alice Sharrock