Where is God in the COVID–19?

March 24, 2020 By KP Yohannan

WILLS POINT, TX – Gospel for Asia (GFA World) founded by Dr. K.P. Yohannan.

Suffering is part of life—and it has a purpose.

C.S. Lewis once wrote in a letter to a good friend, “I could well believe that it is God’s intention, since we have refused milder remedies, to compel us into unity, by persecution even and hardship. Satan is without doubt nothing else than a hammer in the hand of a benevolent and severe God. For all, either willingly or unwillingly, do the will of God: Judas and Satan as tools or instruments, John and Peter as sons.”

KP Yohannan: It is dark around us with the Coronavirus crisis. But Jesus said we are the light of the world. — Gospel for Asia (GFA World) Founder and Director, Dr. KP Yohannan Metropolitan

We are all born into a world that is facing the consequences of sin, and we ourselves are not exempt. God is not the author of suffering and evil, but He does allow it. The question we ask ourselves is, Why?

Remember the waters of Marah from the Old Testament. When the people of God came to the waters of Marah, they were dying of thirst and yet the water was bitter. But when God told Moses to put the piece of wood—representing Christ and the cross—into the water, it instantly became sweet! When the Lord enters into our suffering, we are changed from the inside and He helps us to see the situation from His perspective.

We learn that lesson again and again as we look at the lives of people like Joseph, Daniel, Moses and so many others.

God uses our suffering to make us more like Him and to make us a blessing to others.

In his popular book, God in the Dock, C.S. Lewis says, “If we find man giving pleasure it is for us to prove (if we criticize him) that his action is wrong. But if we find a man inflicting pain it is for him to prove that his action is right. If he cannot, he is a wicked man.”

What Lewis is saying is that since God is good (His very nature is love), His actions also have to be good—even if those actions cause pain. Because of this, we must conclude that suffering has some beneficial meaning and purpose for us.

Suffering is like a piece of metal that is put into the fire. To an untrained eye, through the process of heating and melting it appears as though the metal is being destroyed. Yet in the end, it comes out as a most precious and beautiful creation. Similarly, suffering has the unique ability to change us on the inside. Kindness, sympathy and empathy for others can all be formed in the furnace of suffering.

St. Paul echoes this sentiment to the Romans when he talks with joy about the suffering he was enduring for the sake of the Gospel and the elect.

Think about the massive problems that Joseph faced in his life. Little did he know that the trial he was enduring would become the training ground for his future. How appropriate when he later says to his brothers, “What you intended for evil against me, God turned around and used it for good!” Over and over again we see this repeated in Scripture.

This is a different season.

God is a God of seasons. He gave us six days for working and set apart a seventh day for our rest. Yet we are so often disobedient in this area and instead just keep on going and going. Stepping away to pause and be silent is a difficult instruction for us to follow.

But look at Moses. With a massive number of people depending on him, surely the greatest need for him was to physically be with them and to lead them each day. But God essentially said to him, “Leave them there and come up here alone with Me.” For the next 40 days, Moses would spend time with God. At the end, when he finally comes down, he brings with him the answer to their problems: The Ten Commandments, which becomes the guide for future generations to follow.

Maybe this season of “isolation” during the coronavirus can be a time for us to be silent and quiet—a critical part of our spiritual journey. Let us be deliberate to change our mindsets to see this not as a massive inconvenience, but rather as God allowing us the gift of time to pray and meditate and spend time in solitude with Him.

Seek to be a light in the world.

If you look around, you’ll easily recognize we are surrounded by a feeling of darkness, fear and emotional distress. Look in the eyes of your neighbor and the people you pass by on the streets each day. Look at the suffering they are carrying with them. How are we to respond?

Scripture tells us when Jesus saw the multitudes, He was moved with compassion (Matthew 9:36).

Yes, it is dark around us. But Jesus said we are the light of the world (Matthew 5:14). And it’s only in darkness that the light becomes meaningful. The stronger the darkness grows, the brighter the light will shine. Let all of us look for ways to shine our light in any and every way we can.

How can we be that light today?

1. Use our energy and resources to help the poor and needy.

Some of our churches in India recently cancelled their major meetings in an effort to stop the spread of the virus. Not only did they cancel the meetings, but the churches decided to use the funds to help the poor and needy. The local media actually used the churches in India as an example, urging people to follow their example.

2. Cooperate with the government authorities and their recommendations.

Romans 13 encourages us that following the instructions given by our government is as if we are obeying God Himself.

Governments all over the world are taking steps to provide resources and guidelines to help people in need and protect as many people from sickness as possible. I’m especially grateful for the Indian authorities who did all they could to rescue stranded citizens, enforce the recent shutdown and provide massive education efforts among as many people as possible. I also thank God for U.S. government which is now giving finances to help people in severe need. Let us do all we can to partner with them and support the leaders of our nations.

3. This is an opportunity for us as the Church to be the hands and feet of Jesus.

This is an opportunity to spend increased time in prayer. The coronavirus can lead us to pray a lot more for those in need and those serving among them—doctors, nurses, family members.
This is the time, by the mercy of God, that churches at large everywhere, must not hold on to the resources they have, but rather give it to the poor and needy in their communities. This is an incredible opportunity—let us make the most of it.

4. Think about others.

These kinds of situations can lead us to respond in panic instead of faith. When I hear the news that the largest supermarkets have no toilet paper and other essential products, I thought about those individuals who fearfully bought those things all up without pausing to think about the rest of the people who would be left without.
While it’s natural to be very concerned about the virus and our safety (and it’s important to keep healthy), let us be aware of the needs of those around us.
Be others-centered at this time. When you are going to the store to buy things for yourself, take a minute to think about others and how your decisions might affect them. I heard about a group of people recently who went and bought groceries for elderly people who were unable to go out themselves. How wonderful!

Remember what Jesus said in Matthew 25:40, “Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me.”

Stay healthy, stay safe and be the light in this darkness.

Read more posts on Patheos by Dr. KP Yohannan Metropolitan, or on his blog at kpyohannan.org.

The One Thing

October 28, 2019 By KP Yohannan

In 1971, I was invited to spend one month in Singapore at a new institute that had been started by John Haggai. It was still in the formative stages then—a place where Asian church leaders would be trained and challenged to share the Good News of Christ.

Haggai was full of stories. In them all, Christians were overcomers and giants—men and women who received a vision from God and refused to let go of it. Diligence to your calling was a virtue to be highly prized.

Haggai was the first person who made me believe that nothing is impossible with God. And in Haggai I found a man who refused to accept impossibilities. If there were people in the world who had never heard the Good News, why not? If people were hungry, what could we do about it? Haggai refused to accept the world as it was. And I discovered that he was willing to accept personal responsibility to become an agent of change.

Toward the end of my month at the institute, John Haggai challenged me into the most painful introspection I had ever experienced. I know now it implanted a restlessness in me that would last for years, eventually causing me to leave India to search abroad for God’s ultimate will in my life.

A Personal Call: The Single Most Important Thing

Haggai’s challenge seemed simple at first. He wanted me to go to my room and write down—in one sentence—the single most important thing I was going to do with the rest of my life. He stipulated that it could not be self-centered or worldly in nature. And one more thing—it had to bring glory to God.

I went to my room to write that one sentence. But the paper remained blank for hours and days. Disturbed that I might not be reaching my full potential in Christ, I began at that conference to reevaluate every part of my lifestyle and ministry. I left the conference with the question still ringing in my ears, and for years I would continue to hear the words of John Haggai, “One thing . . . by God’s grace you have to do one thing.”

I left Singapore newly liberated to think of myself in terms of an individual for the first time. Up until that time—like most Asians—I always had viewed myself as part of a group, either my family or a ministry team. Although I had no idea what special work God would have for me as an individual, I began thinking of doing my “personal best” for Him. I returned to India to continue in the ministry I was part of there, but the seeds for future change had been planted.

One Sentence

Prayerfully consider Haggai’s challenge today. Write down the single most important thing you will do for the rest of your life to glorify God. You may not be able to answer this question in one day. Start by asking the Lord what one thing you can do today to bring Him glory.

This post is part of the Journey through Time series, which celebrates God’s faithfulness throughout the past 40 years of GFA’s history.

Read more posts on Patheos by Dr. KP Yohannan Metropolitan, or on his blog at kpyohannan.org.

The Visible and Invisible Battle

October 23, 2019 By KP Yohannan

I think it’s good to remind ourselves that the huge battles we face against hunger, poverty and suffering in Asia and around the world are in part spiritual, not simply physical or social as secularists would have us believe. It is through the love of Christ that we will effectively win the war against disease, hunger, injustice and poverty.

To look into the sad eyes of a hungry child or see the wasted life of a drug addict is to witness the evidence of Satan’s hold on this world. All bad things, no matter what country you are in, are his handiwork. He is the ultimate enemy of mankind, and he will do everything within his considerable power to kill and destroy human beings.

The Right Tools

Jesus stepped into this broken world to bring life to those in Satan’s grasp (see John 10:10). Throughout the Gospels, we see Him healing the sick, freeing people from demons and feeding the poor.

We cannot separate the visible and the invisible in this battle. If you see a dying man begging on the street, how can you share the Good News with him and not give him something to eat? At the same time, we must realize that fighting our powerful spiritual enemy with physical weapons alone is like fighting an armored tank with stones.

I can never forget one of the more dramatic encounters we had with demonic powers during my days as a young person serving with a missions movement in India. It was a hot and unusually humid day in 1970. We were preaching in a place called the “desert of kings.”

As was our practice before a street meeting, my seven co-workers and I stood in a circle to sing and clap hands to the rhythm of Christian folk songs. A sizeable crowd gathered, and I began to speak in Hindi, the local language. Many heard the Good News for the first time and eagerly took our Gospels and tracts to read.

One young man came up to me and asked for a book to read. As I talked to him, I sensed in my spirit that he was hungry to know God. When we got ready to climb aboard our ministry van, he asked to join us.

As the van lurched forward, he cried and wailed. “I am a terrible sinner,” he shrieked. “How can I sit among you?” With that he started to jump from the moving van. We held on to him and forced him to the floor to prevent injury.

That night he stayed at our base and the next morning joined us for the prayer meeting. While we were praising and interceding, we heard a sudden scream. The young man was lying on the ground, tongue lolling out of his mouth, his eyes rolled back.

We knew immediately he was demon-possessed. We gathered around him and began taking authority over the forces of hell as they spoke through his mouth.

“We are 74 of us. . . . For the past seven years we have made him walk barefoot all over India. He is ours. . . . ” They spoke on, blaspheming and cursing, challenging us and our authority.

But as three of us prayed, the demons could not keep their hold on the young man. They came out when we commanded them to leave in the name of Jesus.

Spiritual Deliverance

Sundar was delivered and gave his life to Jesus. Later he went to Bible college, and since then the Lord has enabled him to share the hope he found in Christ with many, many people. People now gather to worship the Lord in several places as a result of his remarkable ministry—all from a man many people would have locked up in an insane asylum.

This kind of miracle kept me going from village to village for those seven years of sharing Christ’s love, and our lives read like pages from the book of Acts.

Christ came into this world to bring life, and He is still working in powerful ways as He uses us to be His hands and feet to those around us.

The Battle Continues

What have you been rescued from? How has your story changed because someone was willing to be the hands and feet of Christ in your life? Decide today to continue that legacy and be a servant for Christ, rescuing others from the grips of sin and Satan.

This post is part of the Journey through Time series, which celebrates God’s faithfulness throughout the past 40 years of GFA’s history.

Read more posts on Patheos by Dr. KP Yohannan Metropolitan, or on his blog at kpyohannan.org.

How God Uses Us to Show His Love in Practical Ways

October 18, 2019 By KP Yohannan

During my early days of serving the Lord, I traveled all over India with the missions movement I was part of. In some areas where we served, it was so cold, and we slept outside every night. Thankfully we had these feather sleeping bags that kept us warm during the night.

I can’t imagine what it would have been like to sleep outside at night without even a blanket! Believe it or not, that’s the situation for tens of thousands of people on the streets in Asia.

Being the Hands that Show His Love

I remember one time when I was in Ajmer, Rajasthan, I went to the market with the bicycle we had to buy some milk for the team. (I was the one who was cooking the food).

It was winter time and so cold. I don’t remember what I was wearing, but I was warm enough and had a blanket-like shawl also. While I was going on the way, I remember so clearly this beggar just shaking and shivering in the cold. He barely had one whole piece of very thin clothing to cover him.

It hurt me to see him there so cold. I stopped my bike, got off and gave him my shawl. I remember going back with just my undershirt on my back.

Have you ever had an experience like this? Maybe it wasn’t exactly the same, but I think the Lord gives each of us opportunities on our journey to reach out to others in some way, whether it’s giving someone a blanket, some food or simply a kind word. He wants us to be the hands that show His love in these very practical ways.

God Works through People

God is all-powerful, and we can think that God “doesn’t need me.” But all throughout Scripture, there are so many examples of God using people to accomplish His purposes. God needed a Noah to build the ark. He needed an Abraham to start a nation and a Moses to deliver His people. He needed people to build the tabernacle, to rule, to judge, to fight.

The book of Acts is filled with people and stories of how God used them. Although Jesus met Saul along the way and revealed Himself to him, there still had to be someone to help him along in his journey with the Lord (see Acts 9:1-19).

And God has not changed the way He works. He needs us, too. We can be the one to bring that refreshing drink of water. We can be the one who says that word in season. We can be the one who says, “Rise up and walk” (see Acts 3:6).

We are part of God’s plan in reaching out to those around us who are suffering. We need to be careful not to assume that He is unable to use us and expect Him to choose someone else. No, He has called us.

I think of the 10 million people in Chennai, India, who are right now in the midst of a major water crisis due to drought. People are struggling every day to get enough water for their basic needs. The trucks they are relying on to deliver water may come only once in two days. The situation has become desperate, and people are crying out for rain.

When we’re confronted with situations like this, it’s easy to feel like we don’t have the power, influence or resources to make a real difference individually. But we must remember that we are part of a body: the hands do one job, the head does another job and the ears, nose, tongue and little toes each do another.

It doesn’t matter what sized part we have to play. Different people have different parts, but each of us must do the best we can with the part we have been given.

We must open our hearts and become involved in the needs of others, whether it’s reaching out to a homeless person on the side of the road or one of the millions of people in Chennai who are desperate for water. And as a team working together, we can see great things accomplished.

This post is part of the Journey through Time series, which celebrates God’s faithfulness throughout the past 40 years of GFA’s history.

Read more posts on Patheos by Dr. KP Yohannan Metropolitan, or on his blog at kpyohannan.org.

Trusting God Like Little Children

September 12, 2019 By KP Yohannan

When I was around 19 years old, I was in Bihar, India, along with my mission team. It was summertime, and there were several hundred of us young people gathered together. George Verwer shared with us from Hebrews 4:1-2:

“Therefore, since a promise remains of entering His rest, let us fear lest any of you seem to have come short of it. For indeed the gospel was preached to us as well as to them; but the word which they heard did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in those who heard it.”

This was the first time I had heard a message like this from George. He so often challenged us to a life of radical discipleship, to lay down our lives for the sake of Christ. But this new message, that “there remains a rest for the people of God” (Hebrews 4:9), stuck out to me.

George simply talked about letting go and not striving anymore. “Let it be,” he said, “Don’t hold on to your life. Don’t fight for anything. Let the Lord be God. And there is rest. There’s no strife.” And I never forgot that message.

Our Response to a Sovereign God: Trusting God

God is sovereign. No matter what, whether we understand what is happening or not, He is sovereign. We are His children, and He is watching over us. You never need to despair if you know Him, because He will never allow anything into your life that He is not in control of. He has a purpose in everything.

So how should we respond when things are difficult? The only correct response to a sovereign God is an attitude of trust and faith. And with that faith comes joy in knowing He is as He promises to be. No matter what situation you find yourself in, you can choose to remain joyful by trusting God.

We must come to the place where we say, “Whatever You decide, Lord, let it be. Your will be done. I will take my hands off.”

Where Are Our Hearts?

In 2 Chronicles 26, we read about Uzziah. He was only 16 years old when he became king of Judah. He didn’t know anything yet. He was totally helpless within himself, and yet the Lord helped him. But later in the same chapter we read, “But when he was strong his heart was lifted up, to his destruction” (2 Chronicles 26:16).

He goes into the temple to burn incense to the Lord—something only priests were allowed to do. The chief priest runs to him and says, “What on earth are you doing? You are not supposed to do this thing!” (2 Chronicles 28:18, paraphrased).

Uzziah doesn’t say, “Oh, I am so sorry. Please forgive me. I made a mistake.” No. Instead, he gets angry. And right there, as the priests are watching, leprosy breaks out on his body. Now, as the priests push him out of the temple, he himself wants to rush out. Just a second ago, he was furious. I can imagine what he might have said to the priests in his anger: “No way! Who are you? I’m going to kill you.” But then, in the same minute, he runs out of the temple.

I don’t know where you are in your walk with the Lord. But I think the Lord is always looking for us to remain in a place of total dependence and childlike innocence, relying on Him. It’s not about trying to figure out all the answers or being smart or clever. Instead, as earthen vessels, we look to Him and say, “Lord, let it be. I don’t understand all these things, but I can depend on You. I want to be an instrument used by You.”

I encourage you to take a moment right now to offer yourself to Him. God’s not looking for superstars or perfect people. He’s not looking for those who know all the answers. He’s not looking for a bunch of PhD’s who can write down brilliant theological explanations about Scripture. No. He is looking for little children who will turn to Him and listen. Our hope is in Him. Let us be trusting God completely.

Lord, thank You for Your grace and for Your mercy. Please help us to listen. Once again, help us to become like little children on the inside. Give us humility, Lord, that we will wait on You. We thank You so much and pray these things in Jesus’ name. Amen.

This post is part of the Journey through Time series, which celebrates God’s faithfulness throughout the past 40 years of GFA’s history.

Read more posts on the topic of Trusting God on Patheos by Dr. KP Yohannan Metropolitan.

Read more posts on Patheos by Dr. KP Yohannan Metropolitan, or on his blog at kpyohannan.org.

A Journey of Brokenness

August 15, 2019 By KP Yohannan

When I first started serving the Lord with the mission movement I was part of in India, I was so young and naïve. By my age and experience, I wasn’t even qualified for the team, and it was only because they needed one more person at the last minute that I was even there. At the beginning, I couldn’t do much. I hardly spoke a word of Hindi, the local language, and my main role on the team was helping to cut vegetables and make chapatis.

During that season as I continued to serve with this mission community of over 800 people scattered across the subcontinent, my burden for the people I saw grew. I spent hours and hours studying and reading. I cannot tell you how many books I read during those days or how many times I read through my Bible consistently, preparing notes and studying.

Within a couple years, I was being called upon to be a Bible teacher on the different teams they had. I started receiving so many invitations to come and speak in different places—even in England—that I became proud and arrogant and stiff-necked. I was so sure of myself.

Left Behind: Proud and Arrogant

My elders were aware of my ability and potential, and they decided to deal with me so I would not be destroyed. It was during our conference in Rajasthan.

At the end of the conference, each area coordinator selected the people they wanted on their teams for the upcoming season of ministry. But when the conference came to an end, I had not been chosen to be on anyone’s team.

Later, my leaders told me,

“You are so gifted and so able, but you are proud and arrogant in the way you deal with people, and rebellion is so evident. It seems the attention you are getting and your ability are destroying you.

We cannot have you on any of our teams. We love you and care about you and don’t want to see you make a shipwreck of your life. It is our decision that you stop teaching for a season and seek the Lord to know Him better.”

If I ever had a time that I felt I would never preach or teach again, it was that moment when all the teams had gone and I was left behind. I didn’t want to do ministry. I hated the whole world. I felt these people didn’t appreciate me. They didn’t know what I had done for them or how important I was.

That night, it was dark and the electric lights hardly worked. There was one bulb hanging down outside the door, barely giving any light. As I looked through the door screen, I could see pitch darkness out there. I was so depressed. I couldn’t eat and couldn’t drink. Nobody wanted me on their team, and I felt my future was totally destroyed.

The senior leader of the movement in that region called me and said, “I want to talk with you.” We walked out the door and found a place to sit down.

He didn’t look at me or touch me or put his hand on my shoulder or anything. He spoke very coldly and said, “All the teams are gone. Only five or six individuals are left. You are one of them. Nobody wants you. No one can help you. Only God can help you.”

Then he got up and walked back into the building. And I sat there weeping. There was no one to turn to. I didn’t know what to do. I felt like my life was so miserable.

Learning to Listen

After a few days of sitting on my pride, how arrogant I was, and coming up with arguments, God in His mercy began to deal with my heart. He very simply said to me,

“Unless you are broken, unless you give up, I cannot do anything with you.”

From there, the Lord began to lead me on a journey of learning, brokenness and repentance. My leaders were willing to speak hard words to me, and eventually I listened. Experiences like this are not easy. But I can tell you, humanly speaking, if it was not for God’s grace and the things I learned from my leaders in that missions movement, I would not be doing what I am doing today.

I cannot imagine where I would have ended up. They were not perfect people, and I had a difficult time with some of them, but they were the ones God used. It was God’s mercy that I listened to them.

It is so important that we make listening to those who have the courage to speak into our lives a normal part of our walk with God.

As we grow in the Lord, we can look at how much we know or how much we’ve already walked through and think, “What more do I need?” We can end up thinking we have arrived and can now do something great for God. But, as I discovered, this is a dangerous attitude to have. We must always leave room for others to speak into our lives.

Take Time to Think

Who are those people God has placed in my life to lead me? What is my attitude towards them? What relationships can I choose to build with godly individuals around me so I can learn from their lives how to yield to Christ and let Him live through me?

This post is part of the Journey through Time series, which celebrates God’s faithfulness throughout the past 40 years of GFA’s history.

Read more posts by Dr. KP Yohannan Metropolitan or visit his blog on Patheos.

Read more articles on the dangers of being arrogant and the need for spiritual growth, go here.

Learning to Follow Christ

August 5, 2019 By KP Yohannan

During my seven years as a young person serving in India with a missions movement, I lived and worked with people from around the world. I learned to follow Jesus by first following others who were already following Him. I learned what it meant to walk with God and how to be godly by observing the godly examples around me. I was taught to forsake all and to be His. I learned service and obedience by living in close community with others. I learned to die daily to my own selfishness and lust for ease and comfort.

Being placed in such a community of believers forever impressed on my heart, thinking and life this thought: “My Lord Jesus Christ spilled His own blood to purchase me. How can I live for Him with any less commitment—especially in light of so many around the world who are dying daily without ever knowing of God’s love for them?” This season of my life is the beginning of where I learned what Christianity is supposed to look like.

Practicing Spirituality

Sometimes, I think we have this expectation that spirituality should be instant, like putting something into a microwave. We press a button and out comes a steaming hot cup of tea in just a few seconds. We want everything to work that quickly. The Christian life simply is not like that. Think about it. Take prayer for example. How do we learn to pray? We can read books like Power through Prayer by E.M. Bounds and God’s Chosen Fast by Arthur Wallis. These are great books, and we should read them and be challenged! But understanding alone will never be enough. We can talk about prayer. We can preach about it. We can have people think about us, Wow, this person really knows how to pray. Yet day in and day out, we still don’t set our alarm to go off early enough in the morning to wake us up to spend one or two hours or more on our face before Him. The way we learn to pray is on our knees, whether it is by ourselves or with other people. We learn godliness not by memorizing theology and reading books about godliness, but by saying no to ourselves and to sin. This honestly is one of the missing jewels from so much of our theology in this day and age. We have learned to equate godliness and knowing God with knowledge. We feel justified by what we know and understand and our right theology. Meanwhile, God is whispering to our hearts, I don’t know you. You don’t listen to what I ask you to do in even small ways of dying to your flesh. Someone can be the greatest preacher of doctrines and holiness, yet have their own life totally fall apart. God is not going to change the world through doctrines. He is going to change the world through the humble, simple lives of people who walk with Him.

"I learned to follow Jesus by first following others who were already following Him." — “I learned to follow Jesus by first following others who were already following Him.”

It is through people who have surrendered their will and lives to God that God can move powerfully. There is a power you can feel in their lives that only comes through surrendering in the midst of hardship, whether in their flesh or outside circumstances. Being spiritual and godly and being like Christ happens when we learn obedience just as Scripture says Christ did—through suffering (see Hebrews 5:8). This suffering is all about saying no to our self-will. Over the years of walking with the Lord, I have learned we are all weak. I have no agenda to put us on a guilt trip. But what I want to put before us are some simple questions to ask ourselves: Have I practiced today what I learned this morning with Christ? Am I willing to be misunderstood by those around me for choosing Christ and His ways in my practical daily choices? Will I choose to suffer in the flesh for more than five minutes before I concede to the enemy’s temptations? And for me, in my brief journey with the Lord, I’ve found out that the safest thing in the whole world is just to follow Jesus and learn more of Him. Why is this so important? Because we can easily be drawn to this issue or that issue, and we will become the followers of issues rather than of Christ Himself.

Follow Others Who Already Follow Jesus

But how do we actually learn to follow Him? As I experienced in my early years of serving the Lord, there is an empowerment in seeing someone else walk out what it means to follow Jesus Christ in the daily hardships and difficulties. It is difficult to start out on a journey of truly following Christ in what He says without seeing someone beside you actually doing it. If you have not experienced this in your own life, look for someone who has gone further than you. Look for someone who is humble yet bold enough to follow Jesus at His Word, and choose to be discipled through the life you observe them living. The kind of situation I experienced living in close community with other godly examples is, I believe, one of the best ways to begin walking out authentic Christianity. But maybe for you it is through the life of an author who is no longer living. It could be one of the fathers of our faith or one of the desert fathers who sought God Himself above all else. But whoever it is, ask God to give you an example of someone choosing Christ above all else. And as you continue on this journey, keep in mind that our expectation of what we think God wants can have so little to do with His actual desires for us. So easily our steps to be discipled can become more about our own righteousness, which we seek to establish, instead of His. As He was in the world, we must also be, and He was humble. When Jesus described Himself in Matthew 11:29, He said, “Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart.” As He lived, we should now also live. So look to Jesus; follow Jesus and others who follow Him closely. May the Lord use our lives to glorify His name.

What Is in Your Hand?

July 31, 2019 By KP Yohannan

During my early days of serving God, I remember being asked to share my testimony for the first time. This was one of the very first ministry assignments I ever had. I was hardly 17 years old. I walked up to the podium and just stood there. I don’t know what exactly I said, but it was only about three or four words, and then I ran back and sat down. I had prepared in advance what I wanted to say, but once I was actually up there, I was so scared. It was a long time before I could overcome this fear…

I’m sure all of us have had some experience like this where we’ve felt inadequate and have had these thoughts of “I don’t measure up,” “I don’t think I have what it takes,” or “Surely, I’m going to fail.” I remember a story that came out some time ago in a newspaper about a young girl who committed suicide right after finishing an exam. They found a letter she left behind in her room, and all it said was something like this: “I can’t measure up. I will never be able to meet the expectations of my parents.” That’s all.

Feeling Unworthy, Don’t Measure Up

All of us have a natural tendency to feel like we don’t measure up. It doesn’t matter if we’re young, old, rich, famous, educated, spiritual or unspiritual. Even if we have 25 years of experience in our job or ministry, we still face feelings of unworthiness or lack confidence. Sometimes it has to do with something in the past: our childhood, our teachers or our friends calling us names. Regardless of where it came from, it affects us deeply and seems to follow us wherever we go. We respond to these feelings of inferiority in different ways. Some people project themselves as being superhuman, coming across like they’re always on top of the world. Others handle feeling inferior through sarcasm and cutting others down. They may not even realize what they’re doing; they’re just trying to make themselves feel better. Some people respond with false humility, saying that they’re nobodies and don’t know what to do, even when that is not actually true. Others cope by trying to maintain control in whatever situation they’re in. We can so easily be discouraged when we look at others and compare ourselves with them. We don’t realize our acceptance and usefulness to God has nothing to do with our abilities. We can only see where we fall short.

When All Seems Lost

Just think about Moses. After he killed a man and ran away from Egypt, I’m sure he went into a season of deep discouragement. He lost everything. Forty years later, God came to him and said, “I will send you to Pharaoh that you may bring my people . . . out of Egypt.” But Moses comes back with, “Who am I that I should go?” God tries to help Moses, letting him know that He will be with him, but Moses still says, “but I am slow of speech and of tongue” and makes all these excuses (Exodus 3:10–11, 4:10). Naturally speaking, Moses had everything going for him as far as his background. He grew up with a good education as the son of Pharaoh’s daughter; he was rich and powerful and all these things. But none of that really helped him when it came to this moment in his life. What an example that no matter how strong we are, we can still come to the place through some failure in life where we feel like we’ve lost it all, we can’t do it or we’re not worthy anymore. In the midst of Moses’ arguments and excuses, God asked him a strange question: “What is in your hand?” (Exodus 4:2). All Moses was holding was a simple, dry stick. But that was enough for God, and He used it to do miraculous things.

Honesty with the Lord

When we feel like we don’t measure up, the answer is not to try to compensate by covering it up one way or another. It’s just to honestly say, “Lord, all I’ve got is a stammering tongue.” Then God can reply by saying, “The weak, fragile, dry stick in your hand, that is good enough. I will make you strong.” It is when we come to the end of ourselves that God can work. Galatians 2:20 says, “I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me.” The more I struggle to find myself, the more ground I lose. But the more I lose myself in His grace, not depending on myself, the more I find life. Whatever the Lord has called us to do, I pray we will understand that our weakness plus Christ’s sufficiency equals absolute victory. This is the only equation that will work. Our weakness plus the mask we put on equals only emptiness. And our strength minus Christ equals total failure. Wherever you are in your walk with the Lord, I encourage you to speak honestly with Him. Maybe we need to be like Moses and need to pray, “Lord, I’ve heard what You’ve said to me, but I don’t think I can do it. All I have is a lifeless, dry stick that I have to depend on to walk through life.” And just like with Moses, I believe the Lord will answer us and say, “That’s enough.”

Lord, You promised us that You will never leave us nor forsake us. You are with us not only when we are victorious and do everything well, but when we are in the pits and don’t know what to do. None of us are strong in ourselves, Lord. Some of us are able to pretend quite well, but really, we are just like frightened little kids. Please, Lord, help us to acknowledge our nothingness and continue to draw strength from You and experience Your greatness. You are the One in whom we find everything we need. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Too Young to Be Useful

July 25, 2019 By KP Yohannan

I got my first rebuff when I applied to serve with a missions movement just after I finished my schooling. They first refused to let me join the teams going north because I was underage. However, I was permitted to attend the annual training conference to be held in Bangalore, Karnataka. At the conference I first heard missionary statesman George Verwer, as he preached, he challenged me as never before to commit myself to a life of breathtaking, radical discipleship.

Struggle to Surrender

Alone that night in my bed, I argued with both God and my own conscience. By two o’clock in the morning, my pillow wet with sweat and tears, I shook with fear. What if God asked me to preach in the streets? How would I ever be able to stand up in public and speak?

I knew myself only too well. I could hardly bear to look a friend in the eye during a conversation, let alone speak publicly to crowds of people on behalf of God. As I spoke the words, I realized that I was behaving as Moses did when he was called.

Suddenly, I felt that I was not alone in the room. A great sense of love and of my being loved filled the place. I felt the presence of God and fell on my knees beside the bed.

“Lord God,” I gasped in surrender to His presence and will, “I’ll give myself to speak for You—but help me to know that You’re with me.”

Burden of Love

In the morning, I awoke to a world and people suddenly different. As I walked outside, the Indian street scenes looked the same as before: Children ran between the legs of people and cows, pigs and chickens wandered about, vendors carried baskets of bright fruit and flowers on their heads. But I loved them all with a supernatural, unconditional love I’d never felt before. It was as if God had removed my eyes and replaced them with His so I could see people as the heavenly Father sees them—needy and longing for hope but with potential to glorify and reflect Him.

At the conference I first heard missionary statesman George Verwer, as he preached, he challenged me as never before to commit myself to a life of breathtaking, radical discipleship... - KP Yohannan — “Everywhere we went I preached in the streets while others distributed books and tracts.”

I walked to the bus station. My eyes filled with tears of love. I knew that these people were all heading toward eternity without ever experiencing the love of Christ—and I knew God did not want that. Suddenly I had such a burden for these masses that I had to stop and lean against a wall just to keep my balance. This was it; I knew I was feeling the burden of love God feels for the hurting and needy. His loving heart was pounding within mine, and I could hardly breathe. The tension was great. I paced back and forth restlessly to keep my knees from knocking in fright.

“Lord!” I cried. “If You want me to do something, say it, and give me courage.”

Looking up from my prayer, I saw a huge stone. I knew immediately I had to climb that stone and preach to the crowds in the bus station. Scrambling up, I felt a force like 10,000 volts of electricity shooting through my body.

Letting God Speak

I began by singing a simple children’s chorus. It was all I knew. By the time I finished, a crowd stood at the foot of the rock. I had not prepared myself to speak, but all at once God took over and filled my mouth with words of His love. I preached the Good News to the poor as Jesus commanded His disciples to do. As the authority and power of God flowed through me, I had superhuman boldness. Words came out I never knew I had—and with a power clearly from above.

Others from the ministry teams stopped to listen. The question of my age and calling never came up again. That was 1966, and I continued moving with mobile ministry teams for the next seven years. We traveled all over India, never staying very long in any one village. Everywhere we went I preached in the streets while others distributed books and tracts. Occasionally, in smaller villages, we witnessed from house to house.

My urgent, overpowering love for the village people and the poor masses grew with the years. People even began to nickname me “Gandhi Man” after the father of modern India, Mahatma Gandhi. I realized that if the village people were to truly find hope, it would have to be through their own people who loved them.

Supernatural Strength

Have you ever felt God calling you to do something but were too afraid to act? Afraid of what others might think or do? Afraid that you weren’t ready or you were too young? Ask God today to give you boldness to do what He asks and the words to say when the time comes to speak. Remember that God can use you no matter how old you are or how much experience you have.

Read more posts about the history of GFA in the Journey through Time series, which celebrates 40 years of God’s faithfulness.

Read more posts on Patheos by Dr. KP Yohannan Metropolitan, or on his blog at kpyohannan.org.

Journey Through Time: A Mother’s Prayers

July 19, 2019 By KP Yohannan

Gospel for Asia (GFA) celebrated its 40th anniversary on July 3, 2019. It’s hard to believe it’s been that long since we began this journey! God has been so incredibly faithful. Over the coming months, I would like to share with you some stories from GFA’s history in a series called Journey through Time. I hope you will be encouraged by looking back with me and seeing all the ways the Lord has worked, even in times when we couldn’t see the full picture of what He was doing.The Cry of a Mother’s Heart. It all began with the prayers of a simple village mother.

All her life, her heart’s cry was to see one of her six sons go into full-time ministry. Yet one by one, it seemed each of her children were destined for secular work. All my older brothers seemed content to live and work around our village of Niranam in Kerala, India.

Gospel for Asia (GFA) celebrated its 40th anniversary on July 3, 2019. It’s hard to believe it’s been that long since we began this journey. It all began with the prayers of a simple village mother.

One day, she cried out, “O God, let just one of my boys preach!” Like Hannah and so many other saintly mothers in the Bible, my mother had dedicated her children to the Lord. That morning, while preparing breakfast, she vowed to fast secretly until God called one of her sons into His service. Every Friday for the next three-and-a-half years, she fasted. Her prayer was always the same.

But nothing happened. Finally, only I, scrawny and little—the baby of the family—was left. There seemed little chance I would preach. I was comfortable on the edge of village and family life, moving in and out of the scene almost unnoticed. A Welcome Wake-Up Call Then, one day, my mother’s prayers were answered. A visiting team came to our village to present the challenge of faraway North India. As they explained the desperate need of the subcontinent, I felt a strange sorrow. That day I vowed to help bring the love of Jesus Christ to those mysterious states to the North. At the challenge to “forsake all and follow Christ,” I somewhat rashly took the leap, agreeing to join the student group that summer to minister in needy parts of North India.

My decision to go into the ministry largely resulted from my mother’s faithful prayers. Although I still had not received what I later understood to be my real call from the Lord, my mother encouraged me to follow my heart in the matter. When I announced my decision, she wordlessly handed over 25 rupees—enough for my train ticket. I set off to apply to the mission’s headquarters in Trivandrum, Kerala. And thus the journey began.

The Power of Prayer

Is there someone in your life who has consistently prayed for you over the years? Take time to thank them for the impact they have made on your walk with the Lord.

Read more posts about the history of GFA in the Journey through Time series, which celebrates 40 years of God’s faithfulness.

Read more posts on Patheos by Dr. KP Yohannan Metropolitan, or on his blog at kpyohannan.org.