We mostly think of missionaries as godly people who travel to some far-off, uncivilized land and don’t return for several years. Being a missionary is considered the ultimate calling—nothing can be more noble or admirable. While it is true that God calls men and women to missionary service in other lands, and we need to have great respect for them, the idea of missionaries has changed over the years.
Every Christian is part of Christ’s mission in the world. What Jesus told His disciples in Acts 1 applies also to us. We are His witnesses and therefore must speak and live so that others will glorify Him when they hear our message and see our faith in action.
Here are real-life stories of a few men and women of God who served God in their own land, among their own people, in their own unique way. May their stories give us the confidence that we can be missionaries where ever we are.
Sadhu Sundar Singh [1889 -1929]
From a young Sikh boy who grew up questioning a foreign religion, to man known as, “the apostle with the bleeding feet”. Here is a brief story of Sadhu Sundar Singh.
Pandita Ramabai [1858-1922]
Embark on a journey of self-discovery and experience the freedom and hope born out the quest for truth. Here is a story of a revolutionary woman, Pandita Ramabai, the founder of the Mukti mission.
Bakht Singh [1903 – 2000]
Be inspired by the story of Bakht Singh, a visionary revivalist, who planted thousands of churches reaching out to millions of lives and the founder of Hebron Ministries.
Vedanayagam Sastriyar [1774 – 1864]
Find out how God our maker is glorified from the story of Vedanayagam Sastriyar, the first in a great lineage of poets who used indigenous and cultural elements in the Christian worship. Their songs are greatly revered and still sung in traditional Tamil churches.
Ida Scudder [1870 – 1960]
“His ways are greater than our ways” is a spiritual quote we often hear, but here is a real-life story of how a reluctant girl becomes a missionary who later starts India’s first mission hospital, CMC, Vellore, an pioneer institution in the field of medicine that still continues to serve the needs of the community.
Narayan Vaman Tilak [1862 – 1919]
Life is an ongoing journey… Tilak was one of the five eminent poets known as the Panch Kavi in Maharashtra who became a Christian and continued to inspire many through his works, even till death.
