Written by a Cafe 1040 Student
When we arrived in this city, it was the beginning of the biggest holiday this country celebrates. Restaurants, stores, businesses, and schools shut down so that families can celebrate together for this holiday. While this is an exciting time for the locals, this was one of the hardest events for me to experience.
On every doorstep of the local's houses and businesses is an altar built to worship their ancestors. The worship of ancestors is a practice that is engrained in the culture and the locals spend a lot of money and time creating altars to worship family members that have passed away.
The locals will buy clothes and items made out of paper and burn them in front of their houses as offerings to their ancestors. Inside their homes, they build intricate altars that display a set table with meals, fruit, money, and pictures of their ancestors.
Each day of this holiday (which tends to be celebrated for ten days including three main days of celebration), the locals spend their time and money preparing their altars, offerings, and cleaning their houses so that "bad spirits" will not enter their homes.
As I walked through the streets, my heart broke for these people. I witnessed men, women, and children literally bowing down to idols that they had created. Seeing these people put their hope and faith into these "things" instead of the living Father that created them was difficult to witness. I then realized that most of these people have no access to the gospel. No one has ever shared with them the everlasting love of God.
Romans 10:14-15 immediately came to mind as I watched the locals being blinded by these idols.
"How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? And how can anyone preach unless they are sent?
As it is written: 'How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!'"
Right then and there I thanked God for the opportunity to be in Southeast Asia, where there is little access to the gospel. God reminded me in that moment of my purpose here and how necessary it will be for me to abide in Him during my three months here. Even though there is a heavy darkness, the Holy Spirit is moving here. The Bible tells us that one day every tribe from every nation will be bowing down at the Father's feet and praising His name.
