“The fireworks woke us at 4 am; by 5 am, the lamas were chanting lines from the Buddhist holy books. This was day three of the week-long funeral rites, so I ate breakfast quickly then went down the hill to the deceased family’s home.

At 6am, they began the cremation ceremony. Words can hardly describe the the vivid colors of the coffin and the prayer flags, the intense aromas of the incense, fireworks and burning wood mingled together, and the heart-wrenching cries of mourners, chanters and funeral singers all intertwined. My senses were overloaded as I tried to take it all in- my first funeral in this village.”

Liam and his family live in a remote village in Central Asia with two other Global Serve families. Together, they all run an agriculture business that provides employment for the local people, as well as giving them a secure way to stay in this area. They’re progressing well in their language study, and are continually working to understand the culture and worldview of the local people, so they can know how best to share the Truth of the Gospel with them.

When they first moved to this village, Liam befriended a man named Kai. Kai agreed to meet with Liam regularly to teach him the local language. Eventually, Kai became a Christian, and they continued to spend time together studying both the local language and the Bible. Through his work with the agriculture business, Liam also met the deceased and his family. One of the sons, Fen, is also a believer- making him and Kai the only two in their village.

Liam has been discipling both of them for some time, and is trying to use this time to encourage Fen as he deals with the loss of his father. He is hopeful that this will open up doors for deeper spiritual conversations in their Bible study, and maybe even give Fen opportunities to witness to the rest of his family.

At the end of the day of ceremonies, Liam called his wife, Ava, to tell her, “The road to deep cultural understanding just got a little longer!”Although their family have come very far in their understanding of the local culture, events like this make them realize that they still have so much learn about the people’s deepest spiritual beliefs. Being able to attend a funeral ceremony like this is invaluable for cross-cultural workers. 

Join with us in praying for Liam, his family, co-workers, and the few believers in this village. Ask that God would give them opportunities to share truth in this community that is still trapped in darkness, and that they would continue to progress in their understanding of the culture. Ask for protection against discouragement, and that God will open peoples’ hearts.

*Names and places changed for security purposes.