If you’re new to the Exploring with Jake series, be sure to read the introduction.
I have been thinking about Sundar Singh all week and wondering who he met that could have changed his mind. Finally this morning it was time for our Sunday School teacher to tell us.
Sundar stayed awake all night. He didn’t want to live any more. He was tired of not knowing the truth about God. When it was almost the time Sundar had decided that he would end his life, something started glowing in his room. He didn’t know what it could be. The glow grew brighter and brighter until he saw someone standing in the middle of the bright light. When he finally realized who it was, he could hardly believe it.
It was Jesus.
But he thought Jesus was dead. Then Jesus spoke to him. He asked Sundar why he wouldn’t listen to Him. Sundar had prayed over and over to find the way to God. But Jesus told him that Jesus Himself was the Way. Why wouldn’t Sundar believe Him?
Sundar fell on his knees and asked Jesus to forgive him. He wanted to live a new life. He wanted to follow Jesus. After a while, the vision faded and Sundar didn’t see Jesus any more, but he knew that what he had seen was real. He had a peace in his heart that he had never had before. He even felt joy! He wanted to tell someone, so he ran to tell his father. His father said he was just dreaming and to go back to bed.
The next day, Sundar tried again to tell his father and his family what had happened. His father wasn’t pleased. Everyone in the family were Sikhs, so Sundar was expected to be a Sikh also. Sundar wanted very much to make his father happy, but he knew he could not agree with his father on this one thing. Jesus was real, and He had made a difference in Sundar’s life. He would not give up following Jesus, not for his father, his brothers, or anyone else.
His friends weren’t happy either. The same boys that used to bully Christians with Sundar now bullied him. They threatened to beat him up. Sundar never knew from one day to the next what would happen to him when he left to go to school. But he knew that no matter what friends he lost, or how upset his family became, he knew that Jesus had given His life for him. So even if it meant giving his life for Jesus, he would not turn back.
“Dear God, sometimes it’s hard to follow You when people we care about tell us not to. It hurts when they bully us, and sometimes we are scared. Please help us be brave because You are always with us, no matter what happens. Help us find people we can talk to who will listen and help us when others are bullying us or threatening us. And please help us follow You no matter what. Thank You. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.”
If you missed the beginning of our story, read Sundar Singh: A Seed Is Sown.
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