India: Day Nine

Imagine a successful fruit and vegetable business, buying fresh products at wholesale and then selling them to consumers who frequent the stores to purchase the products. Imagine the owners in their beautiful home, driving expensive cars, and living the American Dream. We see it everyday.

Now imagine a family of five in India, with a modest fruit stand along a main street in a small village, selling the few pieces of fruit that the father could afford to buy at the fruit market in the city and carrying on his bicycle. Then imagine a four-foot-by-six-foot hut right behind the fruit stand, right there on the street where all five of the family sleep every night because it is their home.

Today I stopped and prayed for this very family described above (see pic also). They are one of the few families of believers in this predominately Hindu town. They are seeking to be a light in this very dark part of the world, living with much joy amidst such challenging poverty.

After we prayed, they gave me their only watermelon they had for sale (probably 1/5 of their profit for the day). I had to take it, so as not to offend them. I silently prayed that the Lord would bless them one-hundred fold.

I gave the watermelon away to another family. After receiving it, the mother thanked the Lord, and told me this story: Just this morning they had bought a much smaller watermelon but some monkeys stole it and ate it, leaving them with none. Now, they had an even bigger watermelon! Isn’t the Lord good?

The morning and afternoon was spent visiting poor people in a farming and shepherding area. We went from house to house, field to field and prayed for people, encouraging them and sharing the love of Jesus. At one place, 13 women had gathered to pass the lunch hour in the shade of a big tree. Only one was a Christian, the rest were Hindu. Right then and there we had an evangelistic meeting and I shared the Gospel, and several gave their hearts to the Lord!

In the evening I spoke at a prayer meeting in a small rural church with just over 60 people present. They worshipped with passion, they prayed with fervor, and they received God’s Word with grace. They are hungry for God’s Word and His Spirit. God is doing great wonders here, but it is a difficult life for the people.