If you’re new to Exploring with Jake, be sure to read the introduction.

Do you remember how last week our Sunday School teacher showed us what life is like in Tamil Nadu? For our next stop in India, we had to travel to the northern part of the country, to the state of Uttarakhand. Uttarakhand became a state in 2000 and took the name Uttarakhand in 2007.

The largest people group living there is the Rajput, the brave warriors and soldiers we met a few weeks ago. The next largest people group is the Brahmin. They too are a class of warriors, as well as doctors, teachers, lawyers, scholars, and politicians. There are many colleges and universities in the state. Many of the people hold tightly to the religions of their families and resist hearing about Jesus.

The people fought for freedom from the state of Uttar Pradesh for many years before they won their own state. Very special pilgrimage sites belonging to other religions are there, and many people travel to Uttarakhand because it is important to them to do special things to please their gods. But they can never know if they have done enough, if they are good enough, or if they have kept all the rules well enough to earn peace and make their gods happy.

They need to hear about the only way to truly be free. They need to know that God is real and that He knows that trying to be good won’t erase the mistakes that we make. He knows that without help, we cannot live the way He wants us to or be forgiven so that we can live forever with Him. That’s why He sent Jesus to pay for our mistakes and give us the forgiveness we need so badly. He wants to give us peace; He wants us to know how much He loves us. He doesn’t want us to try to earn it because He knows we never can.

Will you pray with me that all the people of Uttarakhand will hear the truth about God and understand that He has already paid the price for their sins by sending Jesus to die for each of us?

“Dear God, please help the people of Uttarakhand to hear about the true freedom that You offer us. Help them understand that You have made the way for us to be free from fear and worry. You have made the way we can have peace in this life and spend forever after we die with You. Help them know Jesus. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.”

Download a FREE All Around India Notebooking Unit (Color) with questions for additional exploration.

Download a FREE All Around India Notebooking Unit (BW) with questions for additional exploration.