Recently
I have attended Rongmei Theological Society (RTS) Conference in Lubanglong
Baptist Church, Khoupum. RTS has been around for many years convening
conferences at least 18 times across Rongmei inhabited areas in North East
India – Assam, Manipur, and Nagaland. It is my first time to RTS Conference,
also to visit the Khoupum Valley. Like any first-timer, I do have few things to
say about each of them.
I went to
RTS Conference not to discuss any of its agendas but to listen, especially the
sermons. The Conference was convened under the theme “Win more of them” (1
Cor.9:19) with a missional bent. Rev. L. Timothy Phaomei, perhaps the most
reputed Rongmei pastor-teacher of RNBA was one of the distinguished
speakers. He preached a two-part sermon on Philippians 3:7-11. He was
passionate, bold, polemical, and even confrontational. The first sermon was
more expositional, and the second sermon was condensed with applications. Though
it looked unfortunate that the sermon was attacking the ‘theological system’
prevailing in Rongmei Christians, I could not disagree with him. He was calling
everybody to know God, gain Christ, live in Spirit, rather than knowing about
God, earning degrees, and quarreling.
I was
almost in tears when an elderly man stood up and told about their prayer
meeting for Rongmei Bible students and teachers across the world. He does not
have a trumpet to call the elderly people in the village to come together and
pray, but he has this drum.
He
promised us that as long as this drum remains, there would be a gathering of
elderly people in the church to pray for us at 2:30 PM.
I really
enjoyed the waterfall of Khoupum, the hospitality of Lubanglong Church and
volunteers. You should not miss this waterfall if you ever visit Khoupum.
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| Distant View of Waterfall |