SEND magazine First Quarter 2007: On the Road with the Gospel
On the Road with the Gospel
As a group, women represent some of the most unreached people in Asia. Even in the midst of a rapidly growing middle class, women are typically not seen much outside of their homes. It is culturally unacceptable for male missionaries to visit them without their husbands present.
In early 2005, Gospel for Asia leaders in Andhra Pradesh, India, began to pray about assembling a women-only mobile team. The four men's mobile teams in this state have proven to be extremely effective in spreading the Gospel and encouraging pastors. The leaders believed the women's team would have an even greater impact than the men's teams.
Recently that prayer was answered as the very first women's mobile team was commissioned at a GFA Bible college. The story you read below is based on the report of a GFA field correspondent who traveled with the team members on their first missionary outreach.
Friday, September 8, 2006
At the Bible college, the first-ever Gospel for Asia women's mobile team is introduced to a crowd of cheering students and staff. Dressed in white salwar kameez outfits, five women—Ananti, Sarah Faith, Vina, Jyoti and Tavishi—stand beside their four-wheel-drive jeep.
Serious Ananti, the team leader, stands a head taller than the others. Sarah Faith, the cook and mother-figure, is the oldest of the group—at age 23. Tiny, bold, fiery Vina is in charge of literature distribution; she likes to get things done. Jyoti, the driver, is quiet but determined. In a culture where women rarely drive, she eagerly took up the challenge of driving school. And gentle Tavishi, who wears glasses, knows the audiovisual equipment.
After the leaders give short speeches and pray, Jyoti takes the driver's seat. The others climb in and they're on the road, down the lane lined with trees and waving students, to the villages of Andhra Pradesh.
For the next few days the team will stay with Pastor Peter and his wife and do outreach in five villages within a 10-kilometer (6-mile) radius of his church.
Saturday, September 9, 2006
In a village of red-tile-roofed houses, Ananti talks with an old man in a turban who sits on the steps of his house. Ananti knows this is culturally acceptable because he is much older than she. The man tells her that he is lonely. His wife is old, and his children have all left. No one cares for him. Ananti tells him about Jesus, who always cares.
Along one dirt street in the village, Vina and Sarah Faith talk to three women. They worship many gods, but have no peace. A male missionary couldn't have spoken to the women unless their husbands were present. Vina and Sarah Faith clearly present the message of salvation in Jesus, then pray with all three ladies to receive Christ.
The team visits an old lady sick with a high fever. They kneel around her as she lies on an old blanket on the cement floor. Sarah Faith lays her hand on the lady's arm as they pray. It would not be possible for a male missionary to touch a woman in this way.
Back in the vehicle, en route to the next village, the women are filled with joy and thanks. Eleven from the village have just received Christ. Pastor Peter will follow up with each one and establish a mission station there.
"Jesus can do anything," Ananti rejoices. "I am so happy."
Behind the wheel, Jyoti keeps her eye on the dirt track in front of her and doesn't talk. Chickens, goats, pigs—even water buffalo—can wander onto the road at any time. The jeep passes overloaded trucks, women walking, brightly painted buses and a man driving an ancient tractor.
In another village, a crowd gathers, curious to see the novelty of a woman driver and team. Along the edge of the main street, the women begin to set up for a film show. Tavishi plugs power cables from the generator into the sound equipment and projector. Using a sledgehammer, Sarah Faith struggles to pound pegs into the rock-hard ground; then she secures the white sheet that serves as a screen.
When it is dark, they begin showing Man of Mercy—an Indian-made film on the life of Jesus—to a crowd of about 300 villagers. Packed together, most of the people sit on the ground. Others lean against shop fronts or stand in doorways.
The faces of the crowd are intent. They can relate to the all-Indian cast and understand the dubbed-in Telugu dialogue. Some weep openly at the scene of Jesus being crucified. Afterward, the women pass out literature, answer questions and pray with villagers.
Praise bubbles from the women as they drive back to Pastor Peter's house.
"I am feeling proud of my Jesus," Vina exclaims.
Even at midnight, it is swelteringly hot; the team decides to sleep outside on the roof. In the humid, muggy night, mosquitoes buzz in swarms. No one sleeps very well, but there are no complaints.
"These are small struggles," Ananti says with a smile. "We can do it in the Lord's grace."
Sunday, September 10, 2006
After the Sunday-morning worship service, beneath a big tree outside Pastor Peter's church, the women spread mats on the ground beside the jeep, gather in a circle, hold hands and pray.
Then, before they leave for the next village, the team members recite in unison their mission statement—their purpose for living:
"Our mission in life is to glorify God by seeking to know Jesus more fully and intimately, to worship Him as He desires, to grow together in love and unity, to instruct and equip the Body for the work of ministry and to fulfill the Great Commission by all means, especially among the most unreached in our generation. Amen."
Amen. Travel with the women's mobile team and view more stories and pictures here.
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