Holding The Ropes

  • Ken Ramey
  • Jan 1, 2008

William Carey was the pioneer of modern missions.  He was a simple cobbler who made and repaired shoes in England.  While he worked, he prayed and wept over a map of the world that he kept in front of him in his shop.  One day a friend said to him, “There is a gold mine in India but it seems almost as deep as the center of the earth.”  Carey immediately replied, “I will venture down but remember that you must hold the ropes.”

During January 3rd through the 19th, I have the wonderful opportunity of venturing to India to minister alongside our missionary families serving at The Pastoral Training Institute in the city of Pune.  The first week I will be one of the speakers at The National Expositor’s Conference, an annual gathering of        like-minded pastors from all over India sponsored by PTI.  My wife, Kelli, and Jeanne Nelson will be with me during the conference.  I will be preaching several messages and teaching six seminars on expository preaching.  Kelli is helping in leading worship as well as teaching a couple of seminars for the pastors’ wives.  Jeanne will be serving in various ways throughout the week (i.e. registration, book sales, meals, etc.) as well as ministering to our missionary wives alongside Kelli.  

The second week I will teach a class on The Pastoral Epistles for the PTI students.  My goal is to preach through 1 and 2 Timothy and Titus in five days.  It should be an exhausting but exhilarating week of ministry.  

Every time I visit India, I am overwhelmed by the incredible “gold mine” of ministry opportunities in a predominantly English-speaking country where 1/6 of the world’s population resides (i.e. over 1 Billion).  The majority of Indians are blinded by the idolatrous religion of Hinduism.  As you walk through the streets you cannot help but have your “spirit provoked within you” as Paul’s was as he walked the streets of Athens (cf. Acts 17:16-34).  Like the Athenians, Indians are very religious but they worship in ignorance.  They have “exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worship and serve the creature rather than the Creator” (Rom. 1:25).  They need the true knowledge of God proclaimed to them.  

Some may ask how can a few people from one small church in Texas possibly make an impact in what appears to be a bottomless pit of need.  One way is to train and equip national pastors and lay people to clearly and accurately proclaim and to live the truth of God’s Word in their local communities.  I’m excited that our church has this opportunity to play a part in the advancement of God’s kingdom in India.  It is an honor for me to represent Lakeside Bible Church as we seek to fulfill “The Mission” across the street and around the world.  But like Carey, I would ask that you “hold the ropes” by praying for Kelli, Jeanne, and me while we are in India.  Your task here while we are gone is just as important as our task there in India.  Who is more important?  The one going down into the mine or the one holding the ropes?  Both are equally and extremely important.  Someone has to go and preach and someone has to stay and pray.  It’s a team effort.

Martin Luther, the man God used to spark the Protestant Reformation in the early 1500s, traveled around preaching and contending for the doctrine of “justification by faith alone.”  He had a friend who was equally convinced of the importance of disseminating this doctrine.  They both agreed that Luther would preach, write, and debate while this friend would live in the monastery and pray for Him.  However, the more he prayed for Luther and the more he heard about all that God was doing through Luther, the more his heart was burdened for all the people who still hadn’t heard the liberating truth about salvation.  Consequently, he felt compelled to leave the monastery and join Luther in the harvest.  

My earnest hope is that, as you pray for us while we are in India and you hear about the work God does in and through us, you will be compelled to go the next time the Lord provides Lakeside Bible Church with an opportunity to minister there or some other part of the world.  But for now, thank you for your willingness to labor in prayer on our behalf.  We covet your prayers.

Taking God At His Word,

Ken Ramey