This morning, on our way to church, I saw the demonic manifesting itself in the lives of 4 young boys.
Phileena and I came up behind a procession. Dozens of people were walking to an unbroken, furious drumbeat.
At the back of the procession was a cart. The cart was being pulled by a few men. On the cart rested the typical ceremonial items of Hindu worship. There was a flame, a vessel containing an offering, idols, flowers, and other items that I don't have time to describe.
About 15 feet ahead of the cart, in the middle of the procession, were two men dancing. These men both wore baggy white pants- more like sheets held up by a belt of antiquated, plum-shaped brass bells. They were bare-chested, wearing a garland of yellow flowers and strings of Hindu prayer beads around their necks.
Both men had long, stringy black hair, wet with sweat, and long black beards. The only thing that distinguished one man from the other was the weapons in their hands. One man danced flashing a long, thick knife, waving and striking the air with it. The other man danced with a polished silver sickle in his hand.
The men danced in unison to the lead of 4 drummers, similarly dressed, beating old instruments made from animal skins. The beat was fast, the dance was violent, and the men had worked themselves into a frenzy. Their possessed eyes raged with wild furry, and their bodies convulsed as they threw themselves around and around.
Another 15 feet ahead of the dancing men, leading the procession, were four young boys. The smallest boy, maybe 3 or 4 years old, was in front and the tallest boy, maybe 10 or 11 years old, was in the back. They walked on, slowly leading the procession. Their eyes were fixed forward and they had no expression on their faces. There were dozens of people all around the boys calling out to them and cheering them on. The boys were on their way to the temple… they were going to walk across a pit of fire.
The thing that stood out the most was how the boys were adorned for this pilgrimage. Each wore an orange or black lungi (a piece of cloth wrapped around the waist making it look like a skirt). Each were barefoot. Each had yellow, white and red chalk smeared across their foreheads. Each of the boys wore the same prayer beads that the dancing men had. Each had a glazed look in his eyes. Each of the boys had a 2 foot spear through his cheeks.
The spears were silver, reflecting the morning sunlight. The shaft was about two feet long and as thick as a man's finger. On one end of the spear was a head that resembled a tear or a large arrowhead. On the other end of the spear was more decorative designs. The steel spear had pierced the boys faces, going in one cheek and coming out the other… yet there was no blood. The boys, with silver lances through their faces, marched on to the temple.
It's the last day of the year and I wonder who has the victory in India. Will Satan march into 1996 leading a procession of young boys and girls trapped into his deceptive lies? How much longer will the church allow him to steal and murder? How much longer will God's people sleep while the sound of drums lead countless thousands to the temple of destruction? Won't you wake from your insolent slumber? Won't you make your life count for God's children? There is something you can do for these boys and all the others like them. Make your life relevant for their sake