Sheep Without a Shepherd

We recently visited one of the Riverboat teams and were able to join them in ministry. One particular Bible study had multiple participants. We were meeting outside and by the time everyone was gathered and ready to begin, it was 2 hours past the scheduled starting time and it was starting to get dark outside.

The people listened intently and used flashlights to read their Bibles. We read the parable of the sower and explained the Gospel. The people shared their questions and we responded through a translator as best we could. The only known believer in the village shared passionately in their own language and many understood for the first time and others were assured in their salvation. 

As I sat there, God brought a verse to my mind. Mark 6:34 says "When Jesus landed and saw a large crowd, he had compassion on them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd. So he began teaching them many things."

That night I was reminded that this is what anyone who is going to the unreached and hard to reach  is doing, just showing the way. God had already been working and the people were hungry and ready for the truth found in God's Word. They just needed someone to point them to it. His sheep know His voice and God will do the rest.

Joe