Old Wrapping Paper Launches Mission Movement in India

Ancient Israel comprised 12 tribes camping around the tabernacle. In the same way, Christianity has always contained various camps, tribes and denominations, often closely related and working together for the Kingdom. One of the fastest-growing in early America was the Freewill Baptists of New England, started when New Hampshire’s Benjamin Randall was converted in 1770. Freewill Baptists aggressively pursued evangelism and education in Northeast America and were among the loudest voices against slavery.

The extension of the movement overseas was ignited by a handful of old wrapping paper.

The General Baptists of England had sent Amos Sutton to India in 1830 as a missionary doctor. The load was too great, and his American wife, worried about his health, suggested he write to Freewill Baptists, appealing for help. Sutton immediately penned a long letter ending with, “Come, then, my American brethren, come over and help us.”

Unfortunately, Sutton had no address for the Freewill Baptists, so his letter rested in his desk many months. One day he received a package and, opening it, saw a fragile item wrapped in discarded newspaper. The paper proved more valuable than the gift, for it was the Morningstar, publication of the Freewill Baptists. Dr. Sutton immediately posted his letter to the listed address. The Freewill Baptist Foreign Mission Society was soon established, and Sutton made a dramatic visit to New Hampshire. Pale and emaciated, he told 3,000 assembled Christians, “As I arise to speak, I seem to see the millions in India with bended knees and tearful eyes, saying, ‘Sir, plead our cause—plead it effectually!’” He did, returning to India with 21 workers. Many of them died, others suffered greatly, but still more followed. And on April 14, 1839 the first small Freewill Baptist chapel in India was dedicated to Christ to accommodate the new converts.

“Could the friends of missions have witnessed our little assembly quietly seated on their mats, listening to the Word of eternal life with serious attention,” wrote a missionary, “they would have rejoiced with us, and would have praised the name of that God who had here made room for us.”

The person that mailed the gift to Dr. Sutton may have never known the impact of the discarded paper that he wrapped it in. Yet in God’s sovereignty that “trash” led to souls being won in India. Has God ever used something unique or something the world would see as rubbish to guide you or assist you in finding His will? Please share your story in the comments to this post.

Story excerpted from “On This Day in Christian History: 365 Amazing and Inspiring Stories about Saints, Martyrs and Heroes” by Robert J. Morgan. Disclosure: VOM is part of the Amazon Associates program. If you click on the links in this post and purchase the book from Amazon, VOM will receive a very small percentage of your purchase as a referral fee.

Comments

[Brooke G.]

Thank you for sharing that story, it reminds me to use my gift for the Lord, as I have a degree in writing and have a book idea I think He can use. Bless you, bless VOM.

[VOM_MediaDev]

Christina: THANK YOU for sharing your story!

[Christina C.]

I went through a period of struggling with what I planned on doing with my life. In the midst of pursing some sort of art career path in college, yet without any confirmation on what I was really supposed to do, I kept seeking and seeking for what God wanted from me. Finally, God answered. It was something utterly ridiculous.
I was at my church with a small group during a rehearsal, and I flippantly decided to pick up my friend's laptop and write a ridiculous story just for the fun of it. I only ever wrote as a hobby, but never considered doing it seriously.
There was no bright, holy light or a voice from Heaven--but there was a prick in my Spirit. A voice that said, "You should write."
By the end of the night, that ridiculous story had become a catalyst to my passion and my mission. That night I began work on what I knew God has called me to do, and though the road is hard and it's not all peaches and cookies, I know without a shadow of a doubt that I was created to serve God's Kingdom through my writing.
In one night, through one ridiculously silly story, God called me to a cause that I never before had considered or thought myself capable of--a cause far greater than myself.