“And he made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined allotted periods and the boundaries of their dwelling place, that they should seek God, in the hope that they might feel their way toward him and find him. Yet he is actually not far from each one of us, for “In him we live and move and have our being…For we are indeed his offspring.”
A young boy, around the age of 10, is forced to leave in abandonment the comfort of his surroundings (that he has always known), the security of his family (that he has always leaned on), and the protection of his health (that he has always had food). A group of 25, with no bias toward age nor gender, experienced the same forced abandonment. A boy, named James, took the only shelter before him and headed across borders, amidst the scorching heat in order to save his life. Days became weeks, and weeks became months as this group attempted to embrace their freedom from war, and to secure protection away from a country that no longer they could call home. The streets were populated with dangerous schemes, as four differing times found James battling for his life in gunpoint. A young boy forced to face the outcome of life vs. death. The group’s plan to seek refuge was now being combated with the debilitation of suicide as they lost two people to its schemes, and two to the killings of evil men. Yet, the group moved forward and also had to question their afterlife as each had to accept their life was not promised the next day or even the next minute. Visions of the comfort of their homeland soon began fading shadows as they pressed on in a wavering journey across borders.
As this group is stretched physically, there are others in other parts of the world asking themselves “How do people on the far corners of the Earth accept Christ without having the “written Bible”? When death is knocking at their door, how will they come to know the One who can grant them eternal life? How can a good God expect someone to know Christ when they have not been given the chance?
“The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims his handiwork. Day to day pours out speech, and night to night reveals knowledge. There is no speech nor are there words, whose voice is not heard. Their measuring line goes out through all the earth, and their words to the end of the world. In them, he has set a tent for the sun, which comes out like a bridegroom leaving his chamber, and like a strong man, runs its course with joy” (Ps.19:1-4).
James finds himself awake in the night, stirred by a sense of something greater in the depths of his heart. Not knowing the name of Jesus and not knowing that the God who created Him, James’ heart changes that night through the acts of what some call the natural gospel. “For what can be known about God is plain to them, because god has shown it to them. For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made” (Rom.1:19-20).
James, ten years later, finds himself secured into the hills of Ngong and discovers the author of the voice he heard long ago in those foreign lands. He hears the Word of God and discovers that Jesus is the One who offers Him eternal life. James on that day accepts Jesus more formally into his heart and allows Him to change the course of his life. With no Bible in hand but a Swahili one that he cannot understand, James enters Vapor’s doors- in a position to be discipled, being shown the ways of the Lord. A young boy, once fearful for protection and for security, now as a grown man can be dependant on the One who led him through the dangerous bush and deserts years ago.
In the third world, hope is the only thing that pushes people on toward the next day. Questioning of How do I go another day when death is on my doorstep? Why do I continue running and live in constant fear when death would be easier? When all hope has disappeared where do we turn? When we finally realize and recognize that our struggling human efforts have limits, where do we turn? This forces individuals to come a point of their weakness and the time that God can speak into our hearts. The conviction and the stirring that we receive in the 1st world is the same voice heard in the Jungles of the 3rd world- as lost boys from Sudan search for a refuge. The hopeless life on the doorstep of death has now been transformed as a new believer, a new found hope. So, then one may ask why go into the ends of the Earth and share the gospel if it is able to be found? Because God also declares, “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age” (Matt.28:19-20).
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