Well if you havn’t heard yet… We made it to India! Sorry for the break in blogging I took a week or two off. No worries though because I’m alive and the hope we have in Christ is still being preached!
The travel was very smooth and we had no problems getting into the country. Finding our bus driver was a challenge of its own and I literally had to explain to him that he was indeed our bus driver…. Enough said… My time in India has been nothing but a blessing as India was the country I was most looking forward to on the race as it offers such a unique culture and environment. Everything is really cheap or at least food. I went to the market today and bought both a kilo of grapes and oranges for only a $1.30!! So I am really taking advantage of that. Our ministry this month is all across the board. We are in Bangalore currently working at an AIDS hospital. We just finished spending a week in a village/metropolitan working with a school, going to pastors and fellow Christians houses just praying and encouraging them, and a few other odds and ends.
Since India has been amazing but nothing crazy has yet happened I want to dedicate this blog to all the crazy testimonies that I have heard and been touched by so far:
- The testimony of an 11 year old girl in Cambodia who would read the Bible to her father, “Omkan,“ every evening under a light solely charged by a car battery. When asked “If you could wish for one thing what would it be?” She responded with “Wisdom.” I believe she received it and more.
- The testimony of 14 year old girl in Malaysia who is the only Christian in her entire school. She dedicates her lunch time to have a Bible study for her fellow students and has also touched the hearts of her teachers with her ability to share the Gospel.
- The testimony of a millionaire bank swindler who lost it all in Cuba after being physically beaten by a demon. He ended up homeless on the streets of the U.S. but was given a Bible and read for 4 hours straight. Through this, God showed him all the times that He had saved him in the past and said this is your last chance then I will let you go. Within 48hrs he had given his life to Christ and more… He felt God calling him to Mexico so he asked a friend for a ride whom he had previously stolen half a million dollars from. (For some reason his skeptical friend said “yes”). While in Mexico he stayed at an orphanage and was told that he would receive $2000 from his aunt. Sure enough… God called him to give half to the orphanage. He bought food immediately afterward and then God called him to give the rest to the poor. After this he heard two prostitutes’ testimonies and knew God was calling him to the mission field. He and his wife now work in Nicaragua serving at a house with abused and trafficked women. He says that “I’ve never needed anything because God has always provided.”
- The testimony of all the missionaries who are thousands of miles away from home, dedicating their lives to obey God’s calling to share the hope we have in Christ and help those in need in Guatemala, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama, Thailand, Cambodia, Malaysia, and India. So many of them have suffered for their faith. Been rejected by family and even beaten by religious extremists.
- The testimony of…..?…..
There was a time when I wanted to have everyone else’s testimony. I wanted to be like Paul or the prophet Ezekiel, but as time goes on I realize that although some testimonies are more glamorous than others. If we are obeying God’s calling in our lives we have the testimony God has given us and what can be more pleasing than that. When I was reading the book of Ezekiel I wanted to be used like the prophet Ezekiel for the first three chapters but once chapter 4 came a long I praised God for the testimony He has given me! You can look up chapter 4.
I hope this inspired you today to live out God’s calling. It’s ok if you don’t believe every testimony or the details involved, but know that I am a bigger skeptic and I believe all of them.
Prayer Requests:
- In April elections are occurring in India
- Pray that Jesus won’t just become the millionth God of Hinduism
- Pray for the Church body in India and that they will be able to expand and unite without persecution
- Pray for opportunities to share God’s word with India despite the difficulty since the word “Missionary” will get you deported…
Here are some photos of me and our Hindu neighbor, a fellow christian family and the students we teach English to…
