Cross over the Family Altar

“For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.” 1 Corinthians 1:18, NIV.

Janice comes from a large Chinese family in Malaysia. "Large" means 9 sisters and brothers, all of whom are married with families and many with grandchildren of their own. Most of her family gathers annually at their mother's home during Chinese New Year. Janice and Andrew travel every year from their home in Malaysia. Others even come from overseas.  Janice and Andrew are the only Christians. All of her other relatives are Buddhist. Janice dreads seeing the large family altar that sits in her mother's living room. The family altar has pictures of ancestors, idol statues, and offerings of incense, flowers and fruit.

One important annual family event during Chinese New Year is to go to a local temple to make offerings and to pray for prosperity to the locally famous Buddhas and ancestral spirits. Only Janice and Andrew stay home because of their faith. It is a lonely time. 

As the family is at the temple, Janice and Andrew prayerwalk the house. They pray for each family member and for the cleansing of the house from evil spirits. As they pray over the family altar, they picture in their minds the same altar, but with all the ancestral pictures, idols and offerings removed, and a cross hanging over it instead.
 
Each year Janice looks for opportunities to talk with family members about the love of an Almighty Father who will bless and care for them.  Andrew does not speak the same Chinese dialect as Janice's family, so he is not able to talk directly with them. Instead, he prays for Janice. Of course, Janice is especially concerned about her elderly mother. At times she has been willing to talk about spiritual matters; at other times, she changes the subject immediately.

Festive times are often difficult for believers in Malaysia as they are forced to choose between honoring their family traditions or their God. Janice and Andrew look forward to the year when Christ is Lord over their entire family.

*Names changed for the privacy of local believers.

Pray that:

Janice’s family will be irresistibly drawn to faith and the cross will be over the entire household.

Chinese believers in Malaysia will be enabled to share the gospel with their family with wisdom and power.

God will guard the hearts of His children as they are viewed as outsiders by their own family because of their faith in Jesus.

Pacific Rim is a region of the International Mission Board, SBC.