Contributed by Abbey Thangiah • Jan 14, 2025
When you think of extraordinary lives, what kind of people come to your mind ? We think of our parents (biasness) and other great kings or world leaders like Obama. Some also think of great businessmen like Steve Jobs or Bill Gates.
I learned 4 new words that are associated with extraordinary lives this weekend . They are Trust, Pray, Wisdom and Love. Instead of focusing on the achievements and successes, I believe that the attributes of a person supersedes their achievements. Many missionaries started their lives simple and ended their lives simple. Those who got the privilege to know them are blessed by their humility.
One of the early martyrs in the bible is Stephen. Stephen suffered the next in order. His death was occasioned by the faithful manner in which he preached the Gospel to the betrayers and murderers of Christ. To such a degree of madness were they excited, that they cast him out of the city and stoned him to death. Stephen, like Brother Yun, was persecuted for his faith only because he wanted to preach Christ to the others.
When Sadhu Sundar Singh told his parents of his conversion, his parents were enraged. His father, Sher Singh, held a ‘farewell feast’ where he publicly disowned Sundar, pronouncing him “dead.” Several hours after the feast Sundar was violently ill and realized he had been poisoned by his own family. He rushed to a nearby Christian hospital and his life was spared. Sadhu Sunder Singh, like Daniel, was also thrown to a well. A rope was lowered and his life was spared again. Once he was saved, Sundar didn’t take a holiday but continued to share God’s love with others.
Another example that I can think of is Reverend Edmund Chan who has visited DUMC a few times. He was serving his small church faithfully for over 20 years. Being in Christian ministry for so many years,he has earned a reputation of being a skilled Bible expositor and preacher, devoted to biblical discipleship and mentoring future generations of biblical leaders. His wisdom was only known by others after he was faithful to the few God had assigned him.
I met Pastor Marimuthu during one of the mission conferences in Bangkok back in 2009. He is the pastor of YWAM Mumbai . Since then, he has been regularly updating me on facebook and asking me to pray for him. He doesn’t have fancy photos or YouTube ads or sparkling videos of his ministry. His love for the people is beyond words. He converts abandoned buses to house street people. He serves the blind, the widows and the homeless. Seeing him share his ministry reminds me of Paul and the disciples. Sometimes I have the privilege to take him out for a meal or send him to the airport when he visits Malaysia. It’s the least I can do for him.
May we have trust, prayer, wisdom and love as we face 2025.