Should We Wait Until the Sun Comes Out?

When a dangerous storm approaches our community, the warning sirens go off and all of us will run for cover and a safe shelter. To preserve our lives, we will carefully follow all the instructions from the authorities and stay indoors until the wind subsides, the rain stops and the sun comes out.

The Lord Jesus has given the Church the command to make disciples of all nations. We all agree that this is an important task and we should do all we can while the conditions are favorable.

But how should we react if the political or spiritual climate in a nation or people group changes and the lives of those who preach the Gospel are in danger? Would it not be wise to put personal safety first and retreat to a "storm shelter" and wait until "the sun comes out?"

The problem with such an approach is that we do not know how many years it may be until things change in our favor. In the meantime, we could lose an entire generation.

Our national missionaries in India have experienced a sharp rise in unprecedented waves of persecution over the past 10 years. The brothers and sisters in Nepal are serving in a nation that has serious internal struggles due to Maoist terrorist infiltration. In Sri Lanka, the civil war that claimed the lives of 64,000 people trapped our missionaries in the middle of a nearly 20-year conflict.

Our brothers and sisters in these nations do exercise wisdom in sharing the Gospel in their difficult circumstances. However, they decided that for the sake of millions of people who are perishing without Christ, they would not retreat and wait for better times. Instead, they are sharing the Good News even at the risk of their own lives.

In this issue of Send! you will read how Sri Lanka's national missionaries have faithfully proclaimed the hope that is in the Lord Jesus Christ in the midst of war.