During my first few years with MV Logos+++ I was based most of the time on board the vessel. However occasionally some of us would leave the confines of the ship and harbour. We would venture inland with one of the ship’s vehicles for a week or two. One such trip was in March 1979. I was the leader of a team of men from various states of India. It was known in ship parlance as the ‘Intensive Training’ (IT) programme. As part of our team activities we went on onshore expeditions. You can read a fuller account of this unusual programme in ‘Elastic Band Training’.

Working onshore as a team was not easy for any of us. As the leader there were occasions when the situation was quite beyond me. With diverse cultural and language backgrounds there were plenty opportunities for misunderstandings. This, coupled with doing all the driving, made for an intense time.

Leaving the vessel in Sri Lanka’s capital Colombo we drove off in an old Ford Transit. This was one of the vans we carried on board ship from port to port. Passengers were my 7 team mates. We would be working for 11 days in areas around Kandy in the centre of Sri Lanka. A church in Kandy had outstations in surrounding tea estates where graduates from their Bible school worked. Our task was mainly helping these workers by having outdoor meetings, film rallies, cottage meetings and church services. From the report I wrote at the time it seems we participated in an astonishing 32 meetings. The experience left me with several vivid memories. Unfortunately visual aids to recollection in the form of photos are few. I did not have a camera with me.

After climbing for an hour with the Ford Transit in 1st or 2nd gear we passed through the clouds. It was getting dark and I was doubting our guide’s assurances that the remote village of Hope tea estate existed. One last hairpin bend and we reached it. As the whole village assembled to see us strangers we piled out of the van to hold an open air meeting in the dark. A villager ran for a paraffin lamp and we started—short and simple. 1 song, 1 testimony and a short message from the Bible in front of the whole village. Then we gave out some Christian literature. Afterwards the only Christian family served us (you’ve guessed it!) tea. All while the other villagers crowded their tiny home to hear seven of us share our faith. Prayer then as I started the diesel engine for safety down the treacherous mountainside. It was comforting to know that night lying in bed we could play a small part in reaching one more dark place with HOPE.

From a letter to friends and supporters in April 1979

Another time we arrived at a small rural church. We were greeted by the pastor who let us use the church pews as beds for the night. Perching on our benches the backdrop as we settled was the sound of incessant drums from the village. My sleep that night was little. It was disturbed by nightmares and what I can only describe as the felt presence of evil. The only thing I did was quote scripture to myself, remain still on my bench and await the morning. It was a great comfort to ponder Bible verses. When longed for daylight came the oppression lifted. Hallelujah.

“…weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning.“

Psalm 30 verse 5 (KJV)

Some might think the experience was imagination. Maybe fuelled by the drums from some animist practice nearby. After all, we live in the 21st century, not the times when Jesus walked this earth. It was real to me. I confided with one of my Indian team mates. A convert from a Brahmin background he was not at all surprised by my account. In a rather matter of fact way he said he noticed the place was full of evil spirits. All this in a church building!

Another trip to a tea estate was much more encouraging. We visited the plantation owner/ manager’s home. He had become a Christian and shared how that had transformed the treatment of his workers. In his house was a pole. He said that he used to tie workers to it and whip them. Now his concern was for workers’ welfare and to share his new found faith with them.

The conditions of labourers in the plantations were harsh. In contrast the countryside they lived in was wonderfully lush and filled with all manner of life. One recollection was that of millions of butterflies. They swarmed over green, rolling hillsides. It was an incredible, vibrant celebration of life. Their fragile bodies covering the land like a mantle. Beautiful, yet delicate. Like our team, like the tea pickers.

+++ A number of my blogs are associated with MV Logos. See Logos to read. *** elisabethgrantart.com

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