We had a 20 hour layover in India so 5 of us decided to apply for visas so we could go explore Mumbai for the day. I was thinking about the new culture, new city, and new adventure- not about the ways God would move that day. When I applied for the visa I had no idea that this day would become one of my favorites on the race thus far.
Here is a excerpt from my journal:
February 1st- Mumbai, India
We left the railway station. The beautiful, intricate railway station. My mind was blown by the beauty of the building and the beauty of the culture. I was soaking up the architecture and the people watching when I heard Kerry say, “Rach, want to pray for this man?” There sitting in the middle of the side walk was a man with a mat in front of him. Crowds of people were walking around him- he didn’t exist to them, he was invisible to them, or perhaps they were numb to all the broken people they walk by day after day. Serena, Kerry, and I sat down next to this man and asked him his story. In a bit of broken English he was able to tell us that he was in a railway accident. An accident that left his leg completely deformed and infected. Then with a huge smile on his face he says “I’m Christian!” So we did what we do best and we began to pray. We prayed healing over this man and I was truly expecting to open my eyes and see new skin and a new leg formed. I opened my eyes and his leg looked the same but that didn’t matter because the man had the biggest smile on his face and he picked up his mat and walked. What? Last month I preached about God’s radical grace and the man at the pool in Bethesda. Jesus heals him and then says, “Get up. Pick up your mat and walk.” John 5:8. This man did just that- he picked up his mat and walked. That was not the only thing I saw when I opened my eyes- I opened my eyes and saw that we were surrounded by a mob of people, mostly men. We were surrounded by a mob of people eyeing us with the look of hatred. We were surrounded by a mob of people who were angry that we would dare touch an “untouchable.” We were surrounded by a mob of people who were angry that we would dare pray for this man in public. But we were also surrounded by God’s guardian angels. The protection and the peace of The Lord was surrounding us. I opened my eyes to a situation that would have normally terrified me … Instead, I opened my eyes and felt love. I felt peace. I felt joy. I felt God’s presence. God saw this man just like He sees all of His children. He placed us in that exact spot in that exact moment so that we would also see His child. He placed us there so we could show love and grace. He placed us there so we could show this man and the huge crowd that surrounded us Jesus. That’s all He wants- He wants us to see one another. See one another as children of God and love one another because He does. He doesn’t give us labels. He doesn’t shun us because of our sins, our culture, our upbringings, our skin color, our parents jobs, our nationality, etc. No way… He just loves us as we are and He sees us. It’s about time that we start seeing and loving one another the way He does. So tell me someone is “untouchable” and my response will be “yah right.”
