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I have many fond memories of Christmas Eve.

Every year, we would visit friends and family, share a special meal, and our family would read the Christmas story together from the Gospel of Luke.

Sometimes we would go to a Christmas Eve service where we would hold candles in an otherwise dark sanctuary, illuminating the message that the little baby born on Christmas is the Light of the world. Christmas Eve was filled with laughter, stories, and family – a precious day celebrating the abundant life given to us by God the Father through His Son Jesus.

Throughout the regions where Live Dead Silk Road operates, Christmas Eve is virtually unknown. The long arm of globalism in all our countries and the receding grasp of Russian imperialism in the countries once dominated by the Soviet Union have both combined to bring all the trappings of Christmas to the peoples along the ancient Silk Road, but none of the message. There are Christmas lights up everywhere – for the New Year. Some of the people groups in LDSR set up Christmas Trees, but they’re known as “New Year’s Trees,” and they give gifts – for the New Year. Right now, a large Santa and sleigh are visible atop a local mall and – you guessed it! – he’s bringing presents for New Year’s Day.

These people groups are unreached, meaning they’re largely untouched by the gospel: the story of Jesus’ birth is foreign to them, unknown.

In the Gospel of Luke we’re told that Jesus was born “to give knowledge of salvation to his people in the forgiveness of their sins, because of the tender mercy of our God, whereby the sunrise shall visit us from on high to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace.”

Sadly, while Jesus came to our world over 2,000 years ago, there are still millions and millions of people who have not ever heard the good news of his birth, life, death, and resurrection. They’ve never heard that God sent His Son like a brilliant sunrise in the midst of the darkness of this world.

Live Dead Silk Road is committed to seeing that all have a chance to hear the good news about what God has done for us in Jesus. Everyone deserves to hear the Christmas story.

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