I want to introduce you to someone. He is a hero of the faith. He is a man of God. He serves God in a hard place, and he’s just a man. He’s a man who has experienced the redeeming love of Christ. He saw the power of Christ when a doctor told him he had only months to live and a Christian family member prayed for him. This was 6 years ago. He tells the story of how God pulled him out of a destructive lifestyle via the faith of a family member. He preaches the Gospel in Bhutan. For those of you who are like me and have no idea where that is let me explain.
Bhutan is a tiny country sandwiched imbetween India and China. 800,000 people live there. It is very protective of it’s heritage and traditions. As a result it has closed it’s borders to the world. There are maybe 20,000 christians living in Bhutan, and they meet in secret.
The good news is that there are people like my friend Jeff (obviously that’s a fake name) who risk their safety and even their lives to share the transforming message of Christ’s love with their neighbors. Jeff is the leader of a series of house churches in Bhutan and one day as he was riding in a taxi and discussing his faith he was turned in to the police.
He was taken to a cell, stripped of his clothes, and beaten. For 24 hours he was humiliated and beaten in the bitter cold of the Himalayan mountains. Jeff’s story doesn’t end there though. After a day he was released from prison, drivien to the border, and told not to return. Jeff moved down into Manipur to recover and have time in fellowship without fear, but now he’s ready to go home. He says he has birthdays to attend and that the reward of bringing one countryman to faith is worth any risk.
