December 19, 2022
I Have Decided!
“For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain.”
Precious soul, this week I want to highlight songs and the circumstances that led to the writing of the lyrics of the song. Please pay attention to the lyrics as you read each day.
Have you decided you are going to follow Jesus? Everything begins with a decision. I for one can tell you, I made the decision over forty years ago, and though none go with me, I still will follow. The true story behind the Hymn ‘I Have Decided’ really impacted me and I want to share it with you. The lyrics come from the last words of Nokseng, a man from the Garo tribe in Assam in India. It is today, the song of the Garo people and ‘an Anthem for Persecution.’ The great revival in Wales about 150 years ago raised many missionaries. As a result, the gospel reached Northeast India through some of them. The region which then was in Assam had hundreds of aggressive tribes called head-hunters. Despite severe opposition, the missionaries shared the gospel to these tribes. One of them shared the gospel to Nokseng, his wife, and two sons. Thereafter they received Jesus Christ as their Savior. As a result, many villagers turned to Jesus.
Hearing this, the angry chief of the village gathered all the villagers. He called Nokseng and demanded he renounce his faith publicly or face death. Touched by the Holy Spirit, Nokseng replied, “I have decided to follow Jesus. No turning back, no turning back.”’ The outraged chief ordered the shooting of his two children. The arrows pierced the boys and they fell dead immediately. Again, he demanded Nokseng deny his faith if he wanted to spare his wife. But Nokseng responded, “Though none go with me, still I will follow. No turning back, no turning back.” Nokseng’s wife also died. The chief then asked for the final time to deny his faith and live. Nokseng gladly said these final words, “The cross before me, the world behind me. No turning back, no turning back.” He was shot with arrows immediately like the rest of his family.
This triggered a mass revival in the village – beginning with the chief! The chief was extremely disturbed by the faith of this man. He could not understand why Nokseng, his wife, and two children gave up their life for a man who lived some 2,000 years ago on some other continent. So, he wanted to experience the remarkable power behind the family’s faith. The Holy Spirit touched him, and he spontaneously confessed, “I too belong to Jesus Christ!” When the gathered villagers heard their chief confessing his faith in Jesus Christ, the whole village accepted Christ as their Lord and Savior. Great Welsh Revival to India began after this family gave up their lives for the sake of the gospel and many people were saved. Have you decided to follow Jesus, no turning back, no turning back?
