Shan Dai Advocacy

Romans

March 23, 2007 on 1:06 pm | In His First Bible, New Testament, PrayerGrams |

The funerals of non-believing Shan Dai people are sad. There is no hope of ever seeing the deceased person in eternity so the grieving by loved ones is inconsolable. Add to that a real fear that the spirit of the dead may remain within the household and neighborhood, roaming about in the evenings seeking eerie satisfaction. For three days or so the corpse is displayed in the family’s small living room for viewing, covered by an elaborately embroidered cloth. Dai women from nearby villages take their turns with preparing meals for the many who will gather. The monk gives his final chants. The wailing family members, with immediate family wearing a white cloth around their head, kneel and bow low forming a human bridge for the casket to travel over through the courtyard and into the road. As the corpse is carried over them, each hopes that the spirit will leave as well for permanent burial with the body. Lord, how the Shan Dai people need to know You and the hope of life that is found in You. Jesus, You are the bridge; the only way to God the Father and to life that will never die. Father, we pray their mourning would turn into joy as they trust in You. “For we died and were buried with Christ by baptism. And just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glorious power of the Father, now we also may live new lives. Since we have been united with him in his death, we will also be raised as he was” (Romans 6:4-5).