As long as each day has been, I can’t believe how quickly our time in India has flown by. This place is full of a sort of chaotic beauty that can only exist in a world where water buffalo cause as many traffic jams as cars. There is still a bit of pure and raw wild that has been washed away from the Western world by waves of wealth and luxury.
To live every day in this place has been an eye-opening honor. Because, to engage in a world so very different from your own casts a unique light on your life’s perspective. Your version of “supposed to” goes out the window.
For example, kids are “supposed to” have pants on outside.
I recently watched a movie called “The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel”. It’s a hilarious movie that you might not enjoy unless you are over 50 (or me) about British ex-pats who move to India to live in a sort of retirement community. The main character says this about the place:“Initially you’re overwhelmed. But gradually you realize it’s like a wave. Resist, and you’ll be knocked over. Dive into it, and you’ll swim out the other side.”
We can all tend to be stubborn in the way we see and know the world and can often end up being knocked over by the waves of something different. We can also tend to be stubborn in the way we see and know the Lord. We can get so stuck in our “supposed to-s” saying, “This is how you pray, this is how you worship, this is when and how you talk to God, this is what you look like…etc…” that we miss out on God entirely.
We put God in our own boxes. Some look more colorful and creative than others, but they are still boxes that can cause potential division between His people if we are not careful.
This month I have spent about a million hours loving on, serving, and teaching people who have loved on, served, and taught me just as much (probably more) about life and about the Lord. They come to God in a way differently than I do, worship differently than I do, and express their faith in different ways than I do. We are different, but the same. We serve the same God. We are loved equally by the same God. God does not deem my Southern California shaped cultural box a more comfortable place to be than their Southern India shaped one.
I think that is something that sometimes gets missed in the missionary world. We look at Christians from other cultures and say “Well that’s not very Christian at all. How can worship music only have a drum and a voice? How can arranged marriage be God’s will? How can letting children run around naked be condoned by the Lord?” We are trying to fit another culture into our own cultural perspective, which is impossible. We were all uniquely and wonderfully made and, by respecting our differences rather than pointing them out and “correcting” them, we are a better example to those who don’t know the Lord at all.
Being a missionary doesn’t equal imperializing and conquering a nation to make it look like yours. It is sharing the Love and the Good News and being a helping hand to our fellow humans. And it has been a blessing and an honor to do so in India!
In just four short days we will hop on a plane to Nepal for a few days rest before beginning ministry. Our team has been chosen to have what is called an “Unsung Hero” month. This means that we will be traveling throughout the country of Nepal, searching for missions and ministries that are in need of assistance and would benefit from consistently receiving teams to come help them in their ministry. I am excited for this opportunity and ask for major prayer. If anyone out there knows of any ministries that could benefit from this and are super fun and cool (sherpa ministry at Everest base camp, anyone?) or any other worthy organizations, let me know!
Thank you so much for all of your prayer and support! I hope you all had a happy Thanksgiving! Know that I am so, so thankful for all of you and can’t wait to tell you all about this stuff in person! Vandanalu from India! Catch you in Nepal!
Love,
P.S. I am officially fully funded for this trip! Woohoo! If you would like to continue to give support for things not covered (i.e. medical supplies, misc. clothes/shoes/undies, a latte at Christmas, funds for returning home…etc..) you can do so through PayPal! My PayPal ID is: [email protected] Thank you so much, everyone!
