India Report #25, Sabbath, November 19, 2011, 4:48 p.m., Lawngtlei, Mizoram
Dear family and friends:
This will be our last email from Lawngtlei because we leave so early in the morning. It may not go out unless we can get on line again.
The meeting last night was very well received by a large attendance in spite of all the efforts to defeat that by Satan. We handed out a paper for each to sign if they wanted to learn more about SDA and 40 did so. This gives names and addresses for the follow up. But there are very many more than those who are likely to become SDA in the days and months ahead. Mizos are slow to make decisions that mean so much in terms of loss of family support and church support, but their decisions are very firm when they have prayed it through.
We remember that our first series in India in 1998 that raised up the Maubawk church had 1000 attending each night and only 48 were baptized at the end. Twenty of those formed the nucleus of the Maubawk Church. Last year when we were here they had grown to 249—more than tenfold. They are very active in helping raise up other churches too. So, we are NOT discouraged.
In the final sermon this morning to the little (50 members) SDA church here I challenged them to demonstrate God’s love by receiving it and nurturing it and living it so the world around them will know they really believe what we have preached. What we want them to become, we must be ourselves. The sermon was based on John 13:35.
After the service the translator and another team member who also translated for me said how much my sermons have meant to them personally. Both were in SDA Pastor or Elder homes at birth and grew up in the faith. They learned the doctrines but did not see Jesus in them. Their school experience including Spicer College in Theology programs through the M.A. Degree did not improve their relationship to God. But God reached them and my sermons emphasizing Jesus in every doctrine and God’s love as the foundation of every doctrine we believe and teach have confirmed them in the faith. Both at one time were ready to leave the church because they didn’t see Jesus in it. We in USA can learn from their experience also.
Sabbathanga’s little boy was in the hospital for a bit. He tried to jump over an open flame just outside their house and his slipper came off and he put his foot down on the fire and got burned. He is ok, but has learned something. The worst about it is that Mahoo, our driver, had built the fire and jumped over it and asked the boy if he thought he could do that too. He did and he didn’t. We had admired the judgment of our driver. He is a very good driver and knows every inch of the road and just what the car can and cannot do, but his judgment surely failed about the fire. We all have strengths AND weaknesses.
Biaka is not translating for me now because he is resting his voice for an upcoming week of meetings he is to preach. But we have noticed that he talks incessantly when given a chance almost anywhere. At any rate, two other translators for me are doing very well. They came to the room this afternoon to go over the sermon and get the visuals for tonight. They were also asking questions about the Communication Department of the church. I served as Communication Director of the Michigan Conference for 9 years. It seems that the churches in Mizoram do not do anything about communication with the area where they live. So we shared some things. They would like for us to return and conduct some seminars to upgrade what is not happening here.
In the sermon I emphasized again that we should keep our promises. It is a part of Christian living. And I pointed out that sometimes people try to extract a promise from us to return next year but all we can say is “If the Lord opens the way and we are in good health, we are willing to come.” So, it is up to the Lord to indicate one way or another. It takes a lot more than a desire to come to make it happen.
Yesterday I had a phone call from Tripura. The Tlangsang school students and faculty are eagerly waiting for us to come to be with them for a bit. Also they mentioned the Bru village we visited last year (Chhimlaung) where we saw 35 baptized in the river. They tried to extract a promise from me that we would give them a church. I said last year words to the effect that we would like to see a church there and would help if we could. So they think we have money now to build that church. My task now is to show them that I do NOT have money left to build that church and did not promise to do it this time. They have something to do to get ready. They must have the land set aside. (I think they do) And they must know how much it will cost and who will do the building and how much they can put into it by money and/or labor. We don’t plan to just “drop a church in their lap.” So, we solicit your prayers that the Lord will enable us to communicate clearly and kindly the facts about it.
Biaka was telling how you never see beggars in Mizoram, just in the rest of India. And we have not seen them here like in Andhra Pradesh. So in the sermon today I told about that and said we heard that in Mizoram the people do not beg. Then looking at Biaka on the platform (who was awake by this time) I added, “Only for Video Projectors and churches.” The congregation chuckled over that.
After the service the young people had a meeting. They wanted us to attend at least the first part. There they presented us with a small gift, a book on the History of the Mizo people in English. We sincerely thanked them for it. I told them we were happy it was a SMALL gift because we have to carry it back in our suitcases. In spite of all we use up and give away it seems that space is still a problem. We expect to have two suitcases less going back than when we came, but we have the Evg. stuff minus screen to take back and the Sanctuary robes. So, what do we leave out? It is a discipline we constantly face and it is good exercise for us to do it.
It seems that the people have really bonded with us even with this short stay. And it is hard for us to leave them in spite of our desire to get back home to the things we enjoy there and the family and friends we have left behind.
About the time we are on the road back to Aizawl for 11 hours, David and family will be heading to the airport to go on a mission trip to Guatemala. We are glad that mission outreach runs in the family for all of our children have experienced mission trips and extended stays.
I’ll cut this off now and try again to get it on its way. Otherwise we will try later whenever and wherever it can happen.
With love,
Dad and Mom (Glenn and Mary Alice)
P.S. at 9 p.m. The closing meeting was well attended. The Goodbyes were difficult and the many expressed they wish we could stay here forever. They presented me with beautiful shawl and Mary Alice with a Mizo skirt as a token of appreciation. We have room for them in the suitcases. Now we are at our room and have the equipment ready for leaving tomorrow morning. The workers here in the building are very busy preparing for the visit of high government officials who postponed their visit until this renovation could take place. So right now they are painting over the freshly replaced cement and plaster to fill in the horrid gaps. We should be at least that diligent in preparing for the coming of our King Jesus!
We met and thanked the lady who brought us vegetables and 2 eggs. We gave them to the Sabbathanga family. We also thanked another lady tonight who brought us bananas and oranges. They will go well for our breakfast tomorrow.
At the meeting some came up and told us they were planning to be baptized SDA. Many wanted photos with us before we left.
Here at the room we have had a lizard, our front line of defense against the insects. While doing laundry on the roof the other day Mary Alice noticed a “bunch of dragon flies”. They are expert at gathering mosquitoes. Maybe that is why we have not seen them in our room very much if at all.
Sunday, 5 p.m. Nov. 20, 2011 from Aizawl, Mizoram
We did not get out and still can’t here with the on line unit I purchased. It runs out today anyhow so I may be able to send this from Mizo Conference Office. We left at 5:30 a.m. from our Circle room and had an extra passenger, Sabbath, with us on the ride to Aizawl. With stops that were shorter than when we came down, we made it in 10 ½ hours. Sabbath’s wife got up at 2 to prepare warm food for us all. We ate it at Biaka’s sister’s house at 11. Mary Alice and I had our own breakfast in our room with the usual stuff including those wonderful corn flakes, at 3:30. Tried again to get out on line but failed as we did here also upon arrival. The road is still as rough and dusty, but we had a good ride. The back end was fully loaded with the equipment for the meetings and suitcases for 2 team members who returned by motorbike, plus a case for Sabbathanga and Biaka and all of ours with our equipment. It will be a plus to be home and living out of drawers rather than suitcases and things spread on the extra bed.
Melody was so glad to see her daddy again (Biaka). He brought her a little whistle and back scratcher toy. She misses him so when he is away. He told someone that he wants his wife to close her shop and come with him when he goes for meetings, like we do. We are a role model for many of the folk here it seems.
We are learning more and more about the Mizos and sub tribes and it is all very interesting to us. Based on the book, there are only one million Mizos in the whole country, but the SDA church is doing a great work here in spite of a late start in missions here. We are glad we have been able over the past 14 years to make significant contributions here in their growth.
Biaka told us today that he was the only young person baptized SDA (along with one other family) when the message came to his village. But he has been able to help raise up about 30 churches with more than 2,000 baptized over his years in ministry since then. It just shows how little things can make a significant difference. His sister told us that even from a small child he had a burning desire to preach and spent a lot of time in prayer to prepare him for that.
We also passed near the village where Sabbathanga was born and where his mother still lives at age 85. He has been a strong evangelist and pastor and we are glad we could help him on several occasions with equipment. We plan to buy him a video projector here tomorrow to compliment his laptop now being repaired so his strong evangelistic and pastoral outreach will continue and be of help in following up the meetings we just concluded.
One stop on the way was back at Lunglei (second capitol of Mizoram). We checked out the Guest House just in case we do come back. It is much cleaner and seems to have very little mold. That is very important to us. The price is not too great either.
We also visited a strong Baptist family there that Sabbathanga is trying to win to the SDA message. The daughter is 21 years old and has a singing ministry which took her to Malaysia and Singapore this year. They wanted photos with us. If we do hold meetings there we might involve her in the singing which would bring the family to the meetings. The grandfather was a government worker and 3 of the children are teachers in the school system here. They live in a fine home and are very outgoing. Who knows what all the Lord might have in store for us here if we do come back?