This month we’re talking about the power of community and the beauty of how God uses it to inspire, heal, teach, comfort, and encourage his people. In this case, he used the World Race community to share the Gospel without using words.
While in Malaysia, Olivia Maksymchuk of 2015 P Squad couldn’t openly talk about Jesus. So she couldn’t believe what happened after she left.
How can I tell people about Christ if I can’t say his name in public? I wondered as I arrived in Malaysia.
Because sharing the Gospel isn’t just frowned upon or politically incorrect in Islamic Malaysia. It’s illegal.
Last July my team taught English at an undercover Christian program whose main goal was to change the lives of their students simply by living in way that points to Jesus as much as possible.
Not long after we arrived, I met Gowry, a beautiful Indian woman, and her three sons. They were some of our best students and came to class every day. We laughed and smiled with them, and always demonstrated love while we taught them English. We never talked about Jesus.
My teammates and I cheered for the boys at their Track and Field day, and Gowry always brought us coffee and dessert for our days out of the classroom. Even the boys asked if they could buy our lunches or treat everyone to ice cream after a big accomplishment. I loved this family and I knew they loved me.
One day, Gowry invited our team to her house for a traditional Indian meal. When I entered their home, an entire wall was completely dedicated to their gods — an altar with pictures, offerings, and holy powder. Incense wafted about the room.
Gowry and her family were dedicated Hindus. Curious, I approached the altar and started asking Thanus, the oldest son, all about his gods and religion. The intensity of their beliefs struck me.
They were dedicated to serving gods who could do no more than collect dust. They worked hard for a god that couldn’t even hear them.
My heart broke; I wanted them to know my living God. My God knows me and loves me, and hears me when I pray and hurts for me when I’m in pain. A God who created the heavens and the earth, but still cares to give me the desires of my heart.
Leaving Malaysia and saying goodbye to that family was one of the hardest goodbyes of the Race. I had to say goodbye to my “mom” and “siblings” yet again. Unlike saying goodbye to my family when I left for the Race, this time I could only hope I’d see them again.
I continued to pray God would reveal himself to this family — my family.
Three days after we left Malaysia, God did exactly that.
After we left, Gowry actually called our ministry contact at the English school and expressed how much her family missed the World Race team. She told our contact, “There was something different about them that I’ve never seen in people before. They were always happy, had a genuine love, and always seemed to be full of life. I want what they have.”
Our ministry contact told her that we were Christians, and that the love and joy Gowry felt was from God.
To which Gowry again said, “I want that!”
Being Hindu is more than religious beliefs; it’s cultural as well. Gowry’s husband has a high standing in the Hindu community, and turning away from his religion would mean literally abandoning everything to follow Christ.
But Gowry has made the decision to take her sons to church and to find out more about the true living God.
How do you tell someone about Jesus when you can’t say his name in public?
Live out his love.
It’s like St. Francis of Assisi said: “Preach the Gospel. And if necessary, use words.”
*Photo via Brad Henke
Olivia and her teammates lived their faith so clearly it changed this woman’s life — and those of her sons. How can we do the same?
Do you feel called to live your faith through the adventure of the World Race? Click HERE to find out how you can GO in 2016!
