My Niece

Five years have elapsed since my niece came to stay with me and my family in Gurugram for her further education after her high school and for her spiritual progress in the church life. Time flies indeed. She was a kid when I played with her when I visited my home as I prepared to serve the Lord full-time. 

My niece is so precious to me though I did not express it outwardly as her father had left her few months after she was born. It was a sad sad thing for my elder sister to be widowed at such a young age. Nevertheless, the Lord caused all things to work together for good, and that, to her salvation. Since such a tragic incident, she has been loving the Lord so much beyond my human understanding of her. I can say this because we grew up together most of the time fighting during our childhood. Temperament-wise, my elder sister was not my type at all, in fact, she was an opposite character to me. But as a sibling, the natural bond has ever remained intact. And it grew the more sweeter and dearer after my salvation and much more after her salvation too. Now we are wonderful brother and sister in the Lord!

I had never imagined that I could be of any help to my sister when she opposed me in almost every important decision I made in my life. From education to career choice to marriage and many family-related decisions. She somehow has had her opinion voiced and opposed me. But I never heeded her voice as I was very confirmed in my life's decision taken with much prayer and peace within from the Lord. And down the line, she became clear of all my life's decisions too. Though she is older than me in physical age, I bet not in spiritual matters. The Lord is my witness. And now she is so precious to me; she has changed and transformed a lot after much breaking and dealing from the Lord. Praise God that I have been graced to be a guardian to her daughter, my beloved niece!

My niece has just completed her graduation study in Delhi University, honors in English literature after her two years of higher secondary education in Gurugram. All this while she has been a daughter to me, and even more a sister in the church life. To my level best, I have shepherded her in deed as we enjoy a family life together with my children lovingly addressing her as "appi," meaning, elder sister in Rongmei dialect, my "father-tongue". The warmth of a family life has cherished her in our stay together for five years which zipped by in a blink of an eye. She has passed out of college life so fast. Time indeed flies.

One of my prayer points for her has been that she should join the full-time training in New Training for two years after her college degree. I did not express it to her until she was in her final year of college, this year. This has been my desire for my niece and for all my children too, and for all the young people in the church life. Since the Lord graced me to serve the young people beginning this year, one of the burdens I placed before the Lord is that all the young people I serve should eventually go through the full-time training gradually. That too, beginning with my own family, my niece, the best and first candidate. The Lord has faithfully answered my prayer and fulfilled my burden.

Last Saturday, our whole family dropped her to the training center with much joy and thanksgiving to the Lord. To me, this is more glorious than any worldly achievement. For God's economy has captured me, now all my life and service is all for the Body of Christ as much as I am for the Body of Christ, and much more. Now, I pray that the Lord would grace her to enjoy the training and perfect her to become a useful and functioning member in the Body, to become even a pillar to bear the Lord's testimony and be a living lover of Christ and an overcomer. May the Lord grant this wish I have for my beloved and precious niece! I deem this as the best I could wish and pray for my niece. 

On the academic front, if the Lord so leads, after the training, she may continue her further studies and get a Ph.D. degree, get married to a brother in the church life, and serve the Lord all the days of her life. I would desire this for my own children as much as for my niece. This is just my human desire for the young generation, but the Lord's will be done. The Lord's will  may supersede all my desires. Though I have the freedom to express my desire, the Lord's will is supreme. And amen to the Lord's will should it cross my will in anyway at any point in time. The Lord's will be done.

Lord, grace my niece! Lord, bless my niece! Amen!