Gladly overwhelmed by the Gospel
The Thai, Northeastern, Lao Isan of Thailand are listed in the 100 LARGEST(mass numbers of people) unreached people groups over on the Joshua Project website. I read about this on the Joshua Project site last week from a Twitter update and have been trying to process it. We know that we need to be about sharing the gospel here in this area among the people, that has never been a question. However, this type of information verifies the challenges that we face and calls us towards dependence on the gospel and awesomeness of God as the Holy Spirit leads us.
This type of information could make one feel helpless and overwhelmed. Helplessness was my first feeling when I read about this, which soon turned into a faith-filled acknowledgment that Jesus has other sheep that he too must bring in and will do so through his gospel. I was looking over the Joshua Project statistics last week at a coffee shop and was not living in line with truth for a few brief seconds, I was feeling a little hopeless and then Git, a Christian Thai woman walked by with her kids! May the gospel go forth!
This information also calls us away from depending on good methods, good strategies, and ironically even revealing statistics as we use them. We trust in the Name of the Lord our God! Man, what great things to think about during the Christmas season! The Gospel and the mission of the Church!
I am overwhelmed by the Gospel today! It's also my bride's birthday and the day we received our little Sophie Mei from China. Watching this reminds me in some aspects of how God has adopted us through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus!
I think I saw a million people today.
Woke up and headed out into the streets of Bangkok.
Saw my wife, daughter, and some hotel workers. (5 people)
Got out on the street to catch a tuk-tuk.
Saw at least 30 people around our hotel and in the street.
Headed to the Bangkok Transit System.
Saw at least 200+ people
Rode the Sky train.
Saw at least 1000+ people on the train and in the city.
Went to Central World Mall.
Saw at least 2000+ people.
Went back to the Sky Train.
Saw at least 2000+people, walking, driving, standing, eating, selling, and singing.
Rode the Sky Train.
Saw at least 1000+ people on the train and in the city. (about two stations)
Walked back to the hotel from the Sky Train.
Saw about 1000+ people moving every which way, but out of mine. Didn't they know we were tired?
Walked around a small mall near our hotel.
Saw at least 2000+ people.
Read some of Death by Love, by Mark Driscoll in the hotel lobby.
Saw about 12 people. My back was to the window that faced the ever moving display of people.
Went back the the Sky Train, walked to a mall with a cool restaurant, had dinner with the family, watched a girl fall in the restaurants indoor mote as she disregarded some basic rules...she was OK it was only about 2 feet deep, danced with Sophie to some live music, walked back to the Sky Train, walked to the hotel.
Saw about 900,000 people give or take a few 100,000s.
Regardless of the exact amount it was a huge amount of humans. I probably used preacher numbers anyways. What was driven home to me is that the harvest is plentiful and the laborers are few! It is overwhelming. Pray for the people of Thailand and the 10/40 window. In our attempts to create the most perfect communities let us not forget the great commission in our cities and all around the world. Let us go and send. Those that have been sent "out" may not always stay "out", those that send my be sent themselves. Let not our fights be over styles of music on Sunday mornings, types of rocks for the kids playground, putting our names on a wall, what movies Jesus would watch, 5 points or not, and themes for VBS, but let us fight for those that have never heard of Jesus, let us fight against hunger, against slave trading and homelessness. Yes, let us fight! But let it be a good fight of faith, not something that a few folks can figure out at Cracker Barrel in an afternoon.
Regardless of my latitude and longitude, may I always be about the gospel and the causes of Christ in the most unreached places by going, sending and reminding.
