I Can't Forget

I fell apart … literally lost control and couldn’t stop the tears from flowing. And, I didn’t do it privately! I was in a meeting discussing the needs of people most will never meet. Men and women who live in a different part of the world, whose lives are worthless to most others in their own culture ... even in their own families. Men and women who passionately and sacrificially touch the lives of countless other men and women with the Gospel. The weight of being the link between them and my friends and family, suddenly broke the dam that had been a slow trickle until suddenly it wasn’t. The dam had broken. The trickle suddenly turned into a flood. I fell apart. 

I can’t forget the number of those whose lives are forgotten and neglected while I live in a warm house, seated in a comfortable recliner, with the sweet (but noisy) dog cuddled at my feet as they relax on a warm carpeted floor, surrounded by family photos, Christmas tree lights, and the scent of dinner still lingering throughout our home.

I can't forget the fact that too many of us don’t often think of others living in perilous poverty with such enormous needs — men and women with hands but no fingers, feet but no toes, so infected with a disease not unlike the lepers we read of in the Bible. I've carried guilt for not sharing more openly and effectively so others would be led to pray and help those sorely afflicted with disease and poverty.

I can't forget about men who have surrendered their lives to preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ, no matter the enormous cost to them or their families, trusting God for the next meal, walking miles every day on calloused feet, in extreme heat and drought to pray for the sick; crossing through the rivers and navigating through forests, while on high alert for wild animals or insurgents that could appear out of nowhere, threatening their very lives. And the godly wives of these amazingly resilient men, who desperately pray for food to feed their children at least once a day.

I can’t forget. God has called me to be a link between these Kingdom giants and you — for a purpose all too often overlooked, a forgotten God-ordained purpose. 

I can't forget feeling like a white-skinned intruder walking through the villages sharing a message of love from the One True God (through an interpreter), challenging sacred tribal and cultural traditions and beliefs, speaking words of hope and mercy and grace available yet so indiscernible to them.

I can't forget the sights, the scents, the heart-piercing look in the eyes of those plagued with leprosy as they long for the slightest hint of acknowledgement of their physical and emotional pain, desperate for relief and a kind and compassionate physical touch. 

I can't forget the faces of innocent and unaware little boys and girls, their giggles and laughter as they ran and played, their feet bare, their clothing but mere rags, as their moms prayed over a kettle sitting on an open fire, boiling a few random vegetables in water literally unfit for consumption.

I can't forget the pain that tore my heart apart each time our mission was concluded, we said our goodbyes, and turned to walk into the terminal, board the plane, and fly 8,000+ miles to the comfort of our own country. The hardest part of these experiences was (and still is) knowing I would carry a burden to convey what my eyes, ears, and heart had encountered, not as a personal weight to bear, but one to be shared with others who would never have the opportunity to experience life so vastly different from our own. The task of conveying the sights and sounds and impressions with others is nearly as important as sharing the Gospel ... God wants us to unite in His love, to become ONE in Him, sharing and bearing one another's burdens. That's by His design! It's His plan and purpose!

And that's the key! It's His pure love! His LOVE pouring out from us to them as we fulfil our purpose as Kingdom ambassadors, as His heart, His hands, His mouthpiece proclaiming a matchless, boundless, and limitless LOVE toward each one of them ... toward each of us.

Serving as a missionary (short- or long-term) creates links, just like me and just like you, connecting people, strengthening the Body of Christ, and extending the Kingdom of God, as the bond of unity between all people, nations, cultures, and ethnicities brings glory to God and fulfils His sovereign purpose on earth.

To learn more about those in India who have left such a deep impression on my heart, visit www.bridgesintl.org/india. And, while doing so, please consider how you can be the Heart of God to those in need!

I can't thank you enough for taking the time to read this. I'm sincerely blessed.

Jan