In planning my second trip to India, I made some changes that I hoped would make things a bit easier. I decided to avoid Calcutta, which had been a major challenge for me the first trip. I would also be accompanied by one of the other pastors from our church, so I would not be traveling alone.

     I thought Will would make a good travel partner even though he had never flown before. For that matter he had not eaten anything curried before either, but at least he was willing to go with me, even after hearing about the first trip. I tried to prepare him for the challenge, but there is nothing anyone can do to adequately prepare for India.

     Leaving the airport to make the 12-hour drive to the jungle area, we began to drive through the city of Bhubaneswar at night in a hired jeep. As the vehicle sped through the maze of people and animals, narrowly missing bigger vehicles and forcing smaller ones off the road. After just missing one vehicle by an inch, I looked over at Will. He glanced back at me, as if to say, “What have you gotten us into?” Driving in India is like going full speed in the worst video game you can find.    

     As expected, the first few days were a real adjustment for Will, but to his credit, he kept one foot in front of the other. For some reason, the middle of the night was always difficult for both of us. Jetlag kicks in and all you can do is lie awake under your mosquito net and grow more homesick by the hour. Then one night we found some candy our wives had hidden in our luggage. We had a Skittles party at 3:30 in the morning. We shared scriptures together and tried to encourage each other in some way. Getting use to the food for was hard on Will, but he was able to appreciate the fact that it was prepared with such love. Hemant and his wife had worked hard to ensure that our stay was as comfortable as possible, which greatly ministered to us both in body and soul.  

THE GOOD HAND OF GOD WAS UPON US 

     Early one morning, when sleep was eluding me, I began to pray about the week ahead. Even though I was eager to see the tribal people again, I had to fend off many apprehensions. I wasn't looking forward to the arduous jeep trip needed to get to where the remote villages were. As I looked to the Lord for encouragement, I felt a compulsion to open to the book of Ezra. I saw where I had previously underlined the following verse:

"On the first day of the first month he began his journey from Babylon, and on the first day of the fifth month he came to Jerusalem, according to the good hand of his God upon him.  {10} For Ezra had prepared his heart to seek the Law of the LORD, and to do it, and to teach statutes and ordinances in Israel." (Ezra 7:9,10)   

     This verse quickened my spirit, because I was also trying to prioritize my life around God's Word, and was trying to live according to it. I also planned to teach God's word to God’s people, like Ezra had done with the children of Israel. The Lord put His good hand upon him. I could identify with all of this, and entered into the same gratitude that Ezra had. And like Ezra, I was aware of my vulnerability and the potential for real danger that was ahead.

     Years ago, I had underlined the phrase, "the good hand of God upon him..." every time it appeared in the book of Ezra. Now it took on new meaning, especially as I read each verse in its context. I was blessed to see how God's good hand was on them as they traveled and when they ventured into the unknown. It was upon them when they needed assistance from others; it was on them when they need favor with the officials; it was on them when they needed protection from the enemy.  It was also a source of encouragement when they would otherwise have been overwhelmed by the fears. It was a phrase that did something in me and served to equalize the pressure that I often felt. Like Ezra, I was taking God's Word to His people and I couldn't do it without His help. 

PROTECTION 

"Then I proclaimed a fast there at the river of Ahava, that we might humble ourselves before our God, to seek from Him the right way for us and our little ones and all our possessions. {22} For I was ashamed to request of the king an escort of soldiers and horsemen to help us against the enemy on the road, because we had spoken to the king, saying, "The hand of our God is upon all those for good who seek Him, but His power and His wrath are against all those who forsake Him." {23} So we fasted and entreated our God for this, and He answered our prayer." (Ezra 8:21-23)  

     To me, there always seems to be many very real dangers in India and, like Ezra, all I can do is humble myself before the Lord. As Ezra witnessed to the King, he boldly stated to him that God would protect them and that His good hand would be upon them. Now that the day of departure had come, he beseeched the Lord to bring about what he said would come to pass. Again, I knew exactly how he felt. 

BEWARE OF THE TIRES 

      We had rented a jeep for the entire stay so we could travel from village to village. It seemed like a good vehicle, except I could not keep my mind off the tires. Unfortunately, I had looked at them when we were fixing a flat that had occurred earlier that day. (This was the second tire to blow in just a couple of days.) The tire just below me was a retread. This means that someone had overlaid it with a tread cut from another tire.  Now this second tread was as bald as the original tire. It also had large chunks of rubber gouged out of the sides.

     I had seen one of the inner tubes when they attempted to fix the tire that had just blown. It was as patchy as an Amish quilt. It was also very thin. The bubble I blew with my gum was thicker. This made me wonder what the other tubes were like.  I don't know how many times I asked the Lord to allow His good hand to be upon us as I watched the tire below me navigate the jagged rocks. All I could think about were the complications of blowing that tire in the jungle.  This concerned me for a couple of reasons. One was because we were so far in that it would definitely have meant spending the night there and we were not equipped for that.  Also I thought of how difficult it would have been just to get another tire.

     The jeep lumbered over the red clay path, which began where the paved road ended.  We went further and further into the jungle without a spare tire.  We crossed rivers where there were no bridges and crossed bridges where there were no rivers. It was like driving into a concrete V. We drove down to where the bridge collapsed and up the other side.  Sometimes our team would get out and fix a log bridge before we attempted to cross. Once, we had to get out and walk over while someone guided the jeep downstream to a clearing, where it could cross to the other side.

     We squeezed between trees and crawled up steep hills in first gear, with gravel and dust flying, the smell of rubber burning. Then it occurred to me that we had to return the same way later that night. To make matters worse, while we were preaching, our driver and his assistant sat with a group of unbelievers in the shade. They got so drunk that they lost all concern for the jeep, the tires, and us.  What a trip out of the jungle that night! Yet God's good hand was upon us. The next morning, we had a new driver and another spare tire as we headed off into the jungle once again. 

FAVOR WITH THOSE IN AUTHORITY 

"Blessed be the LORD God of our fathers, who has put such a thing as this in the king's heart, to beautify the house of the LORD which is in Jerusalem, {28} and has extended mercy to me before the king and his counselors, and before all the king's mighty princes. So I was encouraged, as the hand of the LORD my God was upon me; and I gathered leading men of Israel to go up with me." (Ezra 7:27,28)    

     One morning, when we were getting ready to leave for another village on the edge of the jungle, we were told that this would be our largest seminar. The organizers were expecting anywhere from 600 to a 1000 people to attend for the day. I had been looking forward to this particular meeting, as the church where the two young boys had been healed during my first visit was hosting it. It was one of my favorites places from my first trip to India. It was also the village where I had stayed with the widow.

     Then the pastor of the church came to our home early and presented me with an order from the local magistrate ordering the "two foreign nationals" not to preach or participate in the meeting in any way. This was disturbing to us and we were willing to comply. We said that we would not preach. Our interpreter and host pastor said it would be all right if we preached anyway. I admired their zeal, but I needed more assurance than just a wave of their hand. I went to my room to pray. As I lay on my bed, the Lord showed me that I was to preach. I told Him I would, if the authorities would let me. I laid out a couple of conditions, such as the chief of police would have to agree to let me preach and he would have to be willing to stay with us in the meetings. I did not want him to give us permission and to have someone else arresting us.

     I told Will that I felt I was to go to the meetings to preach. He was really reluctant to get involved, which I understood. We only had another couple of days in India and then we would be on our way home. We had passed the jail the other day and would not want to spend any time there.

      Finally, our brothers went to speak to the local police chief who was charged with enforcing the order. They brought him to our house. We visited briefly and I offered him a stick of gum. He bit right into it without taking off the foil. It was then that I realized that he was as nervous about our meeting as I was. This helped me relax. He said he would be glad to hear me preach and offered to stay for the meeting. God gave me an inner freedom, a complete peace, and a good word for the people.

     When I finished speaking and ministering to people during the altar call, I wanted to go back to Hemant's house, but the brothers came and asked if I would speak again. I preached again and prayed with more people. Some were saved and others were baptized with the Holy Spirit. When I finished, the brothers came to me again, and asked if I would preach again. I ended up speaking three times to the large, receptive crowd that afternoon and into the evening. The police chief and a fellow officer attended all the meetings and let us continue into the evening even though radical Hindus protested outside the meeting with posters and chanting. God's good hand was upon us. Looking back, these were the best meetings of the entire trip.

      When I returned to New York, someone told me that I should listen to the news on the car radio. When I did, I learned that a group of nine American short-term missionaries and thirty-five national pastors had been arrested and taken to jail for preaching in the same state that we had been in. Such large crowds had gathered for healing that they pushed down the police line and a riot broke out. Later, they announced that the Americans were sent back home and were unable to visit India again. 

ASSISTANCE FROM OTHERS 

"Then, by the good hand of our God upon us, they brought us a man of understanding, of the sons of Mahli the son of Levi, the son of Israel, namely Sherebiah, with his sons and brothers, eighteen men;" (Ezra 8:18)    

     As Ezra had realized, God’s provision of helpers could not be underestimated under such circumstances. God also gave us a wonderful team of gracious people. The gifted interpreters were most earnest, as were the pastors who worked with us. Other believers traveled along with us to pray and help look after us. Their love and encouragement was most stimulating. Their company gave us joy in the way. After the meetings that evening, we were taken to a widow’s house. She had a beautiful garden in her back yard, where she had placed straw mats on the ground so we could have a meal together. She placed steaming piles of rice on our leaf plates, while the entire team sat under the stars laughing and enjoying the rich fellowship. We had gone through something together and were rejoicing in the fact that God had used us to enlarge His kingdom that day. It was a special time that I will always remember. 

PROTECTION FROM THE ENEMY 

"Then we departed from the river of Ahava on the twelfth day of the first month, to go to Jerusalem. And the hand of our God was upon us, and He delivered us from the hand of the enemy and from ambush along the road." (Ezra 8:31)   

     We had been invited to the remote jungle village, Manga Panga, where Gabriel had planned for us to spend the night. Will said he was not feeling well, so he stayed at Hemant’s house. I went on with Gabriel, who was to be my interpreter. The villagers had gathered in the plaza that lay between the rows of mud huts. Everyone sat on mats and someone hung a kerosene lantern from the corner of the nearest building so we could see each other. I looked out at the brown faces and the warm smiles illuminated by the lantern. Suddenly, I noticed a strange face staring at me. Instantly, I knew the person was demon possessed. Then the shadow from the person in front of the women who was possessed would block my view. When the shadow moved I could see that the bug-eyed stare and hideous smile was focused on me. Hemant complained days later that he could not get this face out of his mind. Earlier, I had stayed in a hotel that had masks of idol faces on the walls. This was the same expression as one of the masks I had seen.

     As the demons began to act up, the people stopped singing and moved away from the possessed woman. I stood up and walked over to her. I commanded the demons leave, in Jesus’ name. I commanded it to not disrupt the meeting, which caused the smile to vanish from her face.  The woman lay down and no longer moved. I went back to the table that had been set up as a pulpit. Gabriel told me to go ahead and teach. Surprisingly, I found that I could do it with peace and presence of mind. I continued to teach the believers that were where now very attentive to what I was saying.

     After the meeting, I wanted to go to the church where we would be sleeping that night, but the pastor asked if I would go to the home of the woman and pray for her again.  The last thing I wanted to do was spend the night casting out devils in a dark mud hut by flashlight, but what else could I do?

    When we stepped through the little doorway, she was squatting in the corner. Then she began to waddle like a duck towards me. She reached out to touch my feet, in a typical deferential manner. I commanded it to stop and to not touch me. The demons seemed to be obeying whatever I said, although the women did not speak a word of English. As I ordered the demon to come out, there seemed to be some visible effect and some convulsing. Soon the woman began to talk in her native language, which she had not done for a couple of years. Her family comforted her. I was not sure of what all had happened but she seemed fine. I agreed to come back and check on her in the morning.

     That night as we lay down to sleep in the church, we talked about what had happened to her and I learned that she was a Christian, but had married an idol worshipper. She also began to worship idols again and had come under a curse that had been put on her. She then went to exorcists and became worse with each visit. She had been possessed for almost two years. She was unable to talk, feed herself, or do any work. She was a zombie. The entire church had been fasting and praying and trying to cast the demons out, but without any success.

    The next morning they told us that she was still not free. I went to pray for her again. This time I sat on the front porch and laid hands on the woman as she squatted in front of me.  Her face went through a variety of contortions and strange expressions. She began to choke and gag and said the demons were choking her.  She began to retch, and I was sure she was going to vomit on my feet so I took my hands off her and moved to the side. Then Hemant spoke to the woman in her native language. The demon cranked the woman’s neck and looked directly at Hemant and began to laugh. The more he made commands, the more it laughed. Now a crowd had gathered and some began to speak to the demons, others picked up sticks to hit the woman. She reacted to their jeers, swinging her fist at them. It became apparent to me that we had now lost ground and that the scene was becoming a spectacle. I felt that it was best to stop praying at that time. We were on our way to the airport, so we could not spend any more time in this village.

     After we left, I learned that the woman had become more like her old self and was able to talk and feed herself again, but she often complained of the pain the demons caused her. Of course, I was disappointed with myself for not ensuring that she was set free. I wish I had not taken my hands off her head when the demons appeared to be coming out. I noted from past experience that when this kind of choking occurs, deliverance is usually eminent. If only I hadn't been so concerned about being vomited on, she might have been set free. I purposed to pray for her again the next time that I returned to India.    

A GREAT QUOTE 

"Courage is being afraid but going on anyway".  -- Dan Rather