Ethan and his family are serving in a remote area in the islands of South East Asia. The first friend he made when they moved there was a young man named Abyasa. Initially, their relationship was sparked by their mutual love of soccer. Abyasa is one of eight children, and had always been a bit of a “black sheep” in his family. He did not follow in his father’s footsteps by getting a civil service job, and also spent a few years after high school living a bit of a wild life. However, shortly before Ethan met him, Abyasa had begun to turn over a new leaf. He now runs a small coffee shop in their town, and has become much more faithful at performing his local religious duties, which his family is very happy about.

One day, Abyasa and some of his friends were planning an off-roading trip to a mountain village they had visited earlier in the year. Before he and his friends visited that first time, that area of the island had never seen a car! For this second trip, Abyasa invited Ethan to come along. As they made their way, they found the road had become so eroded since their last visit that they had to make some repairs in several places in order to make it up the mountain; the last two miles took nearly two hours. Abyasa commented that it takes some of the fun out of off-roading when there are no challenges to overcome. As Ethan looked down over the edge of the cliff, he thought, “I would be willing to sacrifice a little bit of this ‘fun’, if I could!” In the end, everyone made it to the village safely, and they were warmly greeted by the people, who remembered the group from their last visit.

The purpose of the trip was to show care for the villagers, primarily by spending time with the school children. Abyasa and his friends had brought along a movie to show, as well as several crafts and games. It was very interesting for Ethan to be on this type of trip with a group of people who were not Christians. In the short time they were there, he was able to learn much about the local culture and worldview. Spending time among people who are so isolated from any exposure to the Gospel also reminded him of the need for men and women to rise up and bring the message of truth up the mountain to these people. As of right now, there is not even a local church nearby who could send someone.

Join with us in praying for people like Abyasa to respond to the Gospel and be given a new heart that is passionate about reaching their own people!

 

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