By Robin Sam
Say to them, As I live, said the Lord GOD, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked; but that the wicked turn from his way and live: turn you, turn you from your evil ways; for why will you die, O house of Israel? (Ezekiel 33:11).
Every child of God separated by Him and every minister of God called out by Him for His work has the responsibility of saying this to the world around him. The question is how many of us are saying this.
The world weary with their sins and transgressions is asking us a question every day: ‘How should we then live?’ It may not be in so many words, but every time a family that got caught in a tangle of debts decided to kill themselves, every time an adolescent from a less privileged section ends up in jail for aping his father or mother with criminal antecedents, every time a girl who decided to leave her family to pursue a new life with a young man is abused and sold into the red light area the question that goes mostly unanswered is this: ‘How should we then live?’
The daily newspaper is full of sordid reports of murders, suicides, rapes, honour killings and drug abuse. Not a day goes without a child going missing, someone murdered for gain or to settle scores, a girl being raped or an old woman or man abandoned on the roadside by their own families.
To the doctors in government hospitals these are casualties, to the policeman on duty these are mere names in a crime record register, to the newspaperman they are merely headlines. And, to us these are merely numbers – statistics that we have ceased taking seriously. We give a cursory glance at them but do not give them much thought. But are we to live that way? Aren’t we supposed to be the light of the world and salt to the earth?
Don’t we have something to offer them? Can’t we shine some light in the darkness? Can’t we add some taste to the insipid world around us? We can.
MESSENGER MISSIONS is shining light in the dark and adding taste to the flavourless areas where we are working. For the past few months, we have been working closely with a group of children in a slum in Chennai. Our staff and volunteers offer the children tuitions every weekdays and in the weekend we offer them Biblical guidance. The idea is to offer them what they want and what they need. Once their needs are met, we point them to the real want in their lives – Jesus Christ. Pray for this ministry. Let the parents see a marked difference in their children’s scores and character. Let the children receive Jesus Christ into their hearts and take Him to their homes. Let the Kingdom work go on unhindered. We covet your prayers.
I remain your brother in Christ.
Robin Sam is a preacher, Bible teacher and missions worker. He works in Messenger Missions, a Gospel proclaiming ministry and edits The Christian Messenger magazines in English and Tamil.
