Hit the Beach

The movie "Saving Private Ryan" begins with a powerful and graphic portrayal of the D-Day Omaha Beach landing in World War II, as seen through the eyes of one junior officer.    When the gates come down on the landing craft, Tom Hanks' character is hurled into chaos and mayhem in an instant.   For several minutes he watches the carnage in a stumbling daze, unable to process clearly or move, absolutely helpless to stop the massacre that is happening right in front of him.  But then the moment comes when his senses return, he gathers his wits and resources, and resolutely re-focuses on the important objective at hand.  The very real trauma of the moment cannot be allowed to hinder the greater liberation that must come.

God woke me up at 4am in India on Monday morning, with this scene playing in my head.

For me, it’s been one thing to talk about and intellectually understand child prostitution.  Perhaps like you, I have felt the very idea twist my gut repeatedly in recent years.    But it has been quite another thing to actually look those beautiful, little, flesh-and-blood children in the eyes, see their souls, and stand in their hellish streets at dusk while the adult male customers descend.   You think you would never, ever let that happen to a child if you were there to stop it, maybe even at cost to your own life ... but then you’re standing there and it’s about to happen to dozens of children and you understand you are absolutely helpless to stop anything in that moment.  For me, a spiritual and emotional paralysis took hold for awhile.

But then God snaps you out of that daze and points you up the beach.   Liberation must come.   And the ground gets taken a dangerous inch at a time.   Yesterday we visited some locations of real hope.   One village was visited by the SEED Group for the first time just a year ago; a Folsom church committed to sponsor a school project in the village, and it is fully up and running and caring for hundreds of kids a year later.   It is providing education, food, and the gospel and creating avenues for children and families to have different paths.   I’m eager to share more of the details about it with you when I return.  (By the way, we have an India missions dessert scheduled for Sunday night at 6pm at Lighthouse.)

There are several other developments unfolding related to direct rescue - creating an “out” for girls and families ages 12 to 15, the age range where they’re typically carted off to Calcutta or other big cities to earn big monies for their families.   Some key meetings on these possibilities will take place today, so please pray for God’s purpose to be known and the hearts of local leaders to be soft.

I miss you all, but I am well and very much being carried in God’s palm.

God bless,