Yah! So we made it to India! We got in on January 4th to Hyderabad, India around 3:00am (we are 10.5 hours ahead of EST). For Launch (the first three days of our journey) we stayed at a hostel with the entire squad and World Race team to prepare for our upcoming journey. Probably the hardest part so far was getting used to the time change-kind of like switching from day shift to the moonlight shift. I think we are all settled in now… but I’m pretty sure the first two days were a blur! Last night we left the hostel and split ways. Three of our teams headed off to the airport to fly out in the morning for Dehli. The rest of us stayed in Hyderabad at a School of Worship. We have today off to relax, rest up and sight see before we head off to our ministry sites tonight.
India is pretty incredible so far. The people are fantastic and so loving and generous. It is definitely a culture shock. I don’t think I’ve ever been stared at so much in my life! You get used to it after a while though. Probably my favorite part thus far was driving in a taxi through the busy streets. You would not believe the traffic here. Its like NY in warp speed. Pretty crazy. 🙂
Our Leadership
Our squad is very blessed to have
Seth Barnes (the founder of AIM) and his wife Karen as our mentors for the next 11 months. What an honor it is to have them help us along this journey. They will be coming out at month 2,5 and 8 to check in and help us process what we have experienced and where we are at in our walks with Christ.
Our two squad leaders are:
Hollis Johnson and
Noe Rivera. [You can click on their names to view their blogs.] They are such strong followers of Christ that will lead us in confidence and help us grow along this journey. They have already given us so much insight and wisdom into the things to come. Their sensitivity to the Spirit and God’s voice is inspiring and will lead us through the next 11 months.
Where We Are Headed
We are leaving tonight from Hyderabad and will be taking a bus to Vijayawada, India which is south off the coast at 8pm tonight. The travel time is about 8 hours, so we should arrive there around 4am. We will be working in an orphanage with 27 children lead by a man named Madhava. We will be doing Vacation Bible School, arts and crafts with the kids and also doing other things such as street evangelism and witnessing to the people in the community. I am so excited for this opportunity and can’t wait to tell you all about it as the month progresses!!
Miss you all. God Bless!!
“Follow God’s example, therefore, as dearly loved children and walk in the way of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God” –Ephesians 5:1-2
