When I woke up this morning I couldn’t help but wonder what my first day of ministry in India was going to look like. What would the people think about 7 white twenty something’s coming into their homes to pray for them in a language that they couldn’t understand? Would anyone show up for the church service tonight? Then I reminded myself that this day wasn’t about me. It wasn’t about how many people came to church. All I had to do was show up and be a willing participant in the day God had planned out for my team and me. When we arrived at the pastor’s house for lunch he told us that we would have to travel 50 kilometers to get to the village. I would be lying if I said I was thrilled about riding an 1 ½ in a squished up in a car whose only air-conditioner was the windows blowing in hot air and street pollution. There it was. The devil tried to creep in and steal my joy before ministry even started. On the way to the village we drove past several rice fields. I marveled in the beauty that surrounded me. When we arrived in the village the pastor of the local church greeted us with cashew cookies and coffee. Their coffee is amazing here! After getting to know a little bit about the community, we separated into two teams and began visiting door-to-door and praying for the families.
I have never witnessed such gracious people. They were so quick to welcome us into their homes and offer us tea or soda. After going door to door for almost 3 ½ hours, we stopped to eat dinner. Now dinner was supposed to be around 7 India time, so that meant we ended up eating around 8:30. Chipate and chicken. It was scrumptious! Between the rice and chipate, I can see why they say girls gain weight on the race. This dinner reiterated the servant hearts of the people here. See around 7 pm the power for the entire village goes out for 2 hours, but that didn’t stop them from blessing us. They continued to cook dinner in the dark and stood and held candles and flashlights so that we could see while we were eating. WOW! Around 10 pm it was time for church and all of the children gathered in the front. I love the way that they called people to church; they would just take turns singing different worship songs until they thought everyone had arrived. Crosby opened up for my team by singing “We Are” by Kari Job, and then Michael preached. It was so great to see people sitting in church who had a heart for worship; people who had a love so big for the Lord that it radiated off of them like the glow of a candle in a dark room. The service ended around 11:30 pm. I couldn’t help but wonder what Americans would do if we said that we would have church every night, but even more so if I told them it wouldn’t end until 11:30 pm. For the first time I felt like I was with people who weren’t just “playing” church; they were living it out everyday. My heart began to break for my own country. Here I was in the slums of India to be a light in a dark place, yet they were showing me what it meant to be Christ with skin on in everything they did!
I have never witnessed such gracious people. They were so quick to welcome us into their homes and offer us tea or soda. After going door to door for almost 3 ½ hours, we stopped to eat dinner. Now dinner was supposed to be around 7 India time, so that meant we ended up eating around 8:30. Chipate and chicken. It was scrumptious! Between the rice and chipate, I can see why they say girls gain weight on the race. This dinner reiterated the servant hearts of the people here. See around 7 pm the power for the entire village goes out for 2 hours, but that didn’t stop them from blessing us. They continued to cook dinner in the dark and stood and held candles and flashlights so that we could see while we were eating. WOW! Around 10 pm it was time for church and all of the children gathered in the front. I love the way that they called people to church; they would just take turns singing different worship songs until they thought everyone had arrived. Crosby opened up for my team by singing “We Are” by Kari Job, and then Michael preached. It was so great to see people sitting in church who had a heart for worship; people who had a love so big for the Lord that it radiated off of them like the glow of a candle in a dark room. The service ended around 11:30 pm. I couldn’t help but wonder what Americans would do if we said that we would have church every night, but even more so if I told them it wouldn’t end until 11:30 pm. For the first time I felt like I was with people who weren’t just “playing” church; they were living it out everyday. My heart began to break for my own country. Here I was in the slums of India to be a light in a dark place, yet they were showing me what it meant to be Christ with skin on in everything they did!
***I am still SUPPORT RAISING!!! I need $3000 by the end of next month to continue this AMAZING journey…I would love for you to be a part of it…every little bit helps!!!
Love Y'all…Mean It!!!
Chelsie Layne
