Going When Others refuse to go

December 25: Genesis 25:8 (NCV)

8 He breathed his last breath and died at an old age, after a long and satisfying life.
Such could be said about this man named William Carey. Born to a poor family in England, he possessed no possibilities from the human side of ever making much of his life. But not being one to believe the statistics he set himself to the business of learning why he worked. By the age of 31, even though he could not afford a formal education, he had taught himself several languages and learned to translate them all the while he was busy making shoes as a cobbler.
As he began to experience God’s call to the nations unreached he would challenge the churches in England to take up the missionary call but he was often prevented by some well meaning senior member who would say such things as , “Young man sit down when God chooses to save the heathen he will do it without your help or mine.”
Not being one to give up he would follow God’s call to India at the age of 31. He would leave England never to return. In those early days of missions there were no such things as furloughs, when you left for the field you left knowing you would not return. Many missionaries would pack all their belonging in caskets they had made so they would have something to ship their bodies back in when they died on the foreign field.
The lives of those who set the pace for us to follow were not lives of ease but rather the exact opposite. They faced hardship in their own country as they prepared to leave, made to listen to the words of many caring believers who warned them they were not doing God’s will; being laughed at in their voyage to the foreign fields by others who were travelling the same ship; being laughed at or prevented from even landing on solid ground due to the refusal of many foreign rulers who refused the gospel a hearing; being persecuted by pagan religions who saw their ministry an offense to their pagan deities. The late 1700’s and early 1800’s was not of a picnic. No one in their right mind would choose such a calling
William Carey lived a life of selfless service to our Master. He set the pace for all who would follow him. As the time drew near for his departure he would the one who would preach his funeral, "Mr. Duff, you have been talking about Dr. Carey, Dr. Carey; when I am gone, say nothing about Dr. Carey,-- speak about Dr. Carey's Savior!"
May we follow such steps as those that Dr. William Carey laid out for us in this coming year.
Pastor Phil