In 2004, an earthquake shook the Indian Ocean, and a tsunami ran aground in Indonesia, Myanmar, Thailand, and India. It is still one of the largest natural disasters of this century with over 230,000 killed. On that day Eliya was in the Indian Ocean fishing for his livelihood. He was bringing up a fish when all of a sudden he saw a huge wave come at him. He braced himself and prayed to whatever god was out there for safety and protection. When the wave came, his boat was safely brought to shore. His life was saved.

Eliya had no idea which god answered his prayer until a friend shared with him about Jesus Christ. After hearing about how the Sovereign Lord and Creator of the universe sent His son Jesus to die on the cross on his behalf, Eliya knew it was the god who saved him. So, Eliya gave his life to the Lord Jesus and since then has been serving as a native missionary in Southern India. Several churches have been planted through his testimony, life, and ministry. A life saved during a tsunami has led to hundreds more being saved through the gospel of Jesus Christ.

God a has purpose for you! Jesus Christ saves your soul from eternal death so that today you might be a witness for Him. I challenge you to ask yourself, why was I saved? What purpose does God want me to fulfill during my life to extend His kingdom in the world? Philippians 1:6 says, “being confident of this, that He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.” The Lord has a good work for each and every child of His to complete until they are called to heaven or until Jesus returns. Eliya surrendered himself to full-time gospel missionary work, what is God calling you to do today?

Until all have heard, Dr. Breckenridge L. Merkle