In the early
1990’s, after spending several years learning the Loron
culture and language, Marina
and I, along with our missionary partners, began to bring the
gospel to these dear unreached people.
Sadly, a large section of the older
generation of Loron people refused to
listen to the message of God’s love for them, and
most of them died
without Christ.
There
was one man, however, who was eager to hear the good news. His name
was Cakʋrɛ [cha-ko-ray].
Cakʋrɛ lived with
his wives and children in a large
village about 6 miles from where the New
Tribes missionary team was located. Over many
months, the missionaries travelled
in the evenings to
his little family homestead, and presented
a series of chronological Bible lessons to
Cakʋrɛ and his family as
they sat in a circle in their courtyard.
I can vividly
remember sitting in the cool of the evening
in the open air, with a
fire crackling in the background and the
stars gazing down, as the Word of God was
taught.
When
the gospel was presented, Cakʋrɛ and
several members
of his family,
put their trust in the Lord Jesus Christ for salvation. They
were the first Loron people in the village to become Christians.
Cakʋrɛ was a
reserved and unassuming man who enjoyed wide
respect in his community. For quite a few years there were no other
Loron people in the village who became Christians, but
gradually, through the quiet,
humble witness and testimony of Cakʋrɛ
and his family,
more and more people trusted in Christ, and
today there is a thriving church in the village, including his
children, grandchildren, as well as many
from other Loron
families in the
area.
Cakʋrɛ
passed away on Thursday evening, and went
to be with the Saviour that he
loved and served. We thank the Lord for
the life and work
of our dear brother.
