Photo courtesy of RHM

After 130 years, reservation sees unprecedented response to Gospel

Processions of religious leaders dressed as spirits greeted the On Eagles' Wings team as it arrived at the sixth reservation in its summer tour. Some members of the team from Ron Hutchcraft Ministries wept as they remembered the impact of traditional religion on their own lives and families, reports MNN.

"I saw the people in the middle of all this, and it was like I saw my father, my brothers, my family - and what used to be me," said one of the team members. On most Native reservations, followers of traditional religions practice their beliefs more privately. On the "Andaro" reservation (all names and locations changed for safety and privacy), however, the religion is in your face.

The team also learned that the fifth person in six weeks -- an 18-year-old man -- had committed suicide early that morning. Clearly, the OEW team had entered a community that needed the Gospel, even though there had been a church on the reservation for the past 130 years.

Resistance to the Gospel was not as stiff as expected. On the first night, 160 youth participated in the event on the basketball court in the church compound. The team was surprised to find them open and receptive. The group listened in absolute silence as "Lance" shared a testimony about the impact of suicide on his family and the hope he found in Christ.

"The Gospel has been presented here many times and in many ways over the years," said the pastor who has been serving on the reservation for 20 years. "But every time, there is some major distraction. Not tonight. Something was different tonight. In twenty years, I have never seen this kind of peace here, this kind of total attention to what was being said about Jesus." He believes the youth were responsive because the message came through their peers - other Native youth.

The OEW team shared testimonies and ministered to the youth for three nights. On the third night, three of the most prominent religious leaders in the community watched from a far corner. When "Greg" presented the Gospel message and called for the people to publicly make a decision for Christ by walking to the center of the court, no one moved for a long minute. Finally, a young mother walked to the center with her baby, and one-third of the audience followed.

Christians who have ministered in the community for years rejoiced over the response and celebrated the salvation of people who no one had ever thought would receive the Gospel. "There may have never been a night like this in all the 130 years this mission has been here!" one said.

New iPad POLL! VOTE NOW! Will you buy new iPad?

TAGS: North America religious leaders sixth reservation Ron Hutchcraft Ministries traditional religion suicide

[08/08/2009]

Print Version