Worship is smiling at a loaded gun
It's a strange feeling, having a gun shoved against your head. As Kapu looked at the man holding the gun, he realized this could be it. His life might be over.
It's interesting how people react when faced with imminent death. Some cry. Some beg. Some freeze.
Kapu smiled. He smiled at the man and silently prayed.
Kapu is a believer in the Fore tribe of Papua New Guinea. For several years there has been no missionary in his tribe, but he is still choosing to follow God.
That choice hasn't made his life easy.
He had a gun to his head because pigs from an opposing clan wandered into his family's gardens. His mother tried to run them off and in an attempt to scare them away, threw a shovel at the pigs. The shovel grazed the edge of a pig's leg.
The owners were furious about the cut on the pig's leg. They came together to confront Kapu and his family. Kapu knew he was marked to be killed.
They didn't just threaten him. They went and chopped down his entire garden of coffee trees. Those trees were Kapu's only real source of income. Now they were gone.
His father was cut in several places, and now Kapu was standing there with a gun to his head.
And Kapu was smiling. He was smiling and praying and realizing that he had an amazing sense of peace inside.
The clan finally left. Kapu wasn't killed, but his livelihood was shattered. Coffee trees take a long time to grow.
And he's not the only believer to deal with opposition. Another Fore believer had his coffee grinder stolen by another clan. Both of these incidents would normally be grounds for violent retaliation.
All the non-believers in their clan were ready to fight, but the believers decided to stand strong together, turn the other cheek and keep praying.
The man with the gun was gone. So were Kapu's coffee trees. The days ahead would not be easy.
But whether it's a gun to his head or poverty at his door, Kapu has chosen to look beyond the bullets. He has chosen to keep worshipping and smiling, even while staring down the barrel of a loaded gun.
It's interesting how people react when faced with imminent death. Some cry. Some beg. Some freeze.
Kapu smiled. He smiled at the man and silently prayed.
Kapu is a believer in the Fore tribe of Papua New Guinea. For several years there has been no missionary in his tribe, but he is still choosing to follow God.
That choice hasn't made his life easy.
He had a gun to his head because pigs from an opposing clan wandered into his family's gardens. His mother tried to run them off and in an attempt to scare them away, threw a shovel at the pigs. The shovel grazed the edge of a pig's leg.
The owners were furious about the cut on the pig's leg. They came together to confront Kapu and his family. Kapu knew he was marked to be killed.
They didn't just threaten him. They went and chopped down his entire garden of coffee trees. Those trees were Kapu's only real source of income. Now they were gone.
His father was cut in several places, and now Kapu was standing there with a gun to his head.
And Kapu was smiling. He was smiling and praying and realizing that he had an amazing sense of peace inside.
The clan finally left. Kapu wasn't killed, but his livelihood was shattered. Coffee trees take a long time to grow.
And he's not the only believer to deal with opposition. Another Fore believer had his coffee grinder stolen by another clan. Both of these incidents would normally be grounds for violent retaliation.
All the non-believers in their clan were ready to fight, but the believers decided to stand strong together, turn the other cheek and keep praying.
The man with the gun was gone. So were Kapu's coffee trees. The days ahead would not be easy.
But whether it's a gun to his head or poverty at his door, Kapu has chosen to look beyond the bullets. He has chosen to keep worshipping and smiling, even while staring down the barrel of a loaded gun.