Mising Youth Enter Ministry

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It has been a challenging day, and I think the struggles of the day illustrate a lot of the struggles that Pastor Dayal has faced in his work with the Mising tribe. I guess I am just experiencing them firsthand.
One of the things that make it a struggle here is the lack of ability to communicate. Land phones don't exist, while letters and email are practically nonexistent. Sometimes the only way to communicate is to physically go there, which in itself can be a huge task—the transportation system is pretty poor.
But the people are so open to the Gospel that it makes up for all the challenges of doing ministry here.
Right now the weather is great and the roads are solid, even if they are bumpy and dusty. By the time the monsoon season comes the roads are pretty much impassible to vehicular traffic. Driving in this area can be exciting—and hazardous.
Brother Sadurni, who drove the vehicle, wanted to make sure every bamboo bridge we crossed would hold up under the weight. Most of the time he asked us to get out while he checked out the structural integrity of the bridge. On one bridge he decided to take the long way around because of a large hole and broken bamboo poles.
There is only one bridge across the Brahmaputra River within 150 miles of the Mising tribal area. The only way to cross the river is by ferry. During the monsoon season the river expands by miles and is very dangerous to cross. Because of the mountains to the north and the river to the south, the Mising people are very isolated.
A deal was worked out with some cattle drivers for the ferry to pick up cows along the way. It took half an hour to load up the cows because they didn't want to walk across the planks to the ferry. The sand was very steep, almost vertical. Some of the cows would try not to get onto the plank and the edge of the sand would collapse beneath them. Men were pulling on one end with a rope, pushing on the other end, twisting the tails, and in some cases literally lifting and pushing the cows.
It was a pleasant ride with a gentle breeze blowing while the sun sank low on the horizon. The banks were steep and it was very evident that the river has been slowly eroding the bank because there were huge chunks of turf top falling down. When I got out of the vehicle, I grabbed my camera bag and my laptop just in the odd chance that the vehicle would plunge into the water. Everything else could probably get wet and survive, but not my laptop and camera.
This has been a good time. The Lord provided me with the images I've needed to illustrate the work taking place among the Mising people. Churches are starting left and right, people are coming to the Lord, and it's a very exciting work that's taking place here. I count it a privilege to have been here to see what the Lord is doing.
I pray that these photos will be a blessing to everyone who is praying for the Gospel to spread in this area. I pray that people will be encouraged to see how the Lord is moving in such a mighty way among the Mising.
date posted 07/05/06