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Stories & Blog
The Unreached Among Us: The Power of Love
Read the series: Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4
We conclude this series with a story illustrating the power of Christ’s love for the strangers among us.
“Come,” Bishal said, waving a hand for me to sit beside him. “How do we arrange a funeral in your country?”
“Your father won’t die today,” I said.
The son looked at me in confusion, as did the rest of the family overhearing our conversation. “How can you be sure?” he asked.
I continued to speak with more confidence than I felt until the family was persuaded ... with one condition.
“Our father won’t die today,” they said, “as long as you pray for him.”
Did I really believe God would heal him? I wasn’t so sure, but I prayed anyway.
My prayer, I must admit, began a bit faithless, until the mother of the family started yelling at me in their language. “Pray again, and this time much louder!”
So I did. I prayed loudly, and I saw on their faces deep faith in what I said. They believed that God was going to heal their father, so I did too.
Over the last few years, I’ve become friends with many families like this one who have moved into my neighborhood. Most have been in the U.S. for fewer than six months. Their struggles feel monstrous to me, and it seems like I have little to offer. But what I do have — the love of Christ — I give.
I pray for these families and speak of the amazing teachings and life of Jesus. I simply show up, weaving the fabric of my life into theirs, learning in every moment how to better love my new friends. I discovered very quickly that even feeble attempts at genuine love break down language, cultural, and religious barriers. Loving God and loving your neighbor creates an environment ripe and fertile for making disciples that make disciples.
By God’s graciousness, their father didn’t die that day or the next or even the next. Very soon, he became a follower of Jesus, along with Bishal. As their contagious Christ-like love spread throughout their family, more responded to the unending love of Christ. After several months, the father did pass away, but his faith had sparked a movement of new life. His entire household believed and was baptized.
All of us are created as image-bearers of God, to reveal the love of the Father to those who need His love. His unending, all-powerful, perfect love breaks through barriers. When we love as He loves, we see our friends’ hearts and lives being transformed, while at the same time, He transforms our hearts too.
Italicized names changed for security reasons.
We conclude this series with a story illustrating the power of Christ’s love for the strangers among us.
The Unreached Among Us: The Power of Love
by Dan, who serves internationals in a major U.S. city
It was 5 a.m. and the phone was ringing. It wouldn’t stop so I answered. Bishal, an immigrant from Asia that I had become friends with, asked me to come to the hospital to pray for his father. When I arrived, the entire family was standing beside the bed, waiting. The doctor’s body language implied that he had never experienced Asian culture in his American hospital before: When someone is sick, everyone comes. More than 35 family members crammed into that tiny ICU room.“Come,” Bishal said, waving a hand for me to sit beside him. “How do we arrange a funeral in your country?”
“Your father won’t die today,” I said.
The son looked at me in confusion, as did the rest of the family overhearing our conversation. “How can you be sure?” he asked.
I continued to speak with more confidence than I felt until the family was persuaded ... with one condition.
“Our father won’t die today,” they said, “as long as you pray for him.”
Did I really believe God would heal him? I wasn’t so sure, but I prayed anyway.
My prayer, I must admit, began a bit faithless, until the mother of the family started yelling at me in their language. “Pray again, and this time much louder!”
So I did. I prayed loudly, and I saw on their faces deep faith in what I said. They believed that God was going to heal their father, so I did too.
Over the last few years, I’ve become friends with many families like this one who have moved into my neighborhood. Most have been in the U.S. for fewer than six months. Their struggles feel monstrous to me, and it seems like I have little to offer. But what I do have — the love of Christ — I give.
I pray for these families and speak of the amazing teachings and life of Jesus. I simply show up, weaving the fabric of my life into theirs, learning in every moment how to better love my new friends. I discovered very quickly that even feeble attempts at genuine love break down language, cultural, and religious barriers. Loving God and loving your neighbor creates an environment ripe and fertile for making disciples that make disciples.
By God’s graciousness, their father didn’t die that day or the next or even the next. Very soon, he became a follower of Jesus, along with Bishal. As their contagious Christ-like love spread throughout their family, more responded to the unending love of Christ. After several months, the father did pass away, but his faith had sparked a movement of new life. His entire household believed and was baptized.
All of us are created as image-bearers of God, to reveal the love of the Father to those who need His love. His unending, all-powerful, perfect love breaks through barriers. When we love as He loves, we see our friends’ hearts and lives being transformed, while at the same time, He transforms our hearts too.
Italicized names changed for security reasons.
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