Greetings from the state of Andhra Pradesh in India!
Three plane rides of 19 hours combined, one 10 hour layover, and a seven hour bus ride later, we arrived in the state of Andhra Pradesh!
Our first 12 hour flight took us to Doha. There we promptly exited that plane and entered another five hour flight that brought us to Calcutta. Our squad drew the locals in while playing music and cards. A group of 56 Americans at the airport is quite a site to behold! We then took our final flight to Hyderabad. The bus ride contained seats that reclined and some good old wind blown air conditioning!
Tomorrow our team will be traveling to a village where we will begin our mission of prayer walks, nightly church meetings, partnering with schools and people working in the fields. We are expecting God to do GREAT THINGS!
When in Washington D.C. preparing for our Launch, we were spoken to by many AIM (Adventures in Missions) staff members. One particular day, the topic was about having a positive attitude no matter what the circumstances. We did an activity where we turned to speak to our partner and tell them five things we were thankful for. Then, we were told of a challenging scenario we would potentially face on the field in Africa. Hot weather. Sweat dripping. Overly full from our carb lunch. Walking for a few hours. Crammed on a bus with the smell of BO. Finally we arrive to an orphanage where we get to do five minutes of ministry and then must leave again to catch the bus home. We were again asked to turn to our partner and tell them five things we were thankful for, imagining we were in that scenario.
The point the speaker, Bethany, was emphasizing is taken from Hebrews 13:15, “Through Jesus, therefore, let us continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise- the fruit of lips that confess His name.” Sometimes offering thanks is a sacrifice. My Abba has a kingdom mindset. He is not concerned about my happiness, He desires to grow and mold and make me to be more like Him.
An illustration of a pearl was given. A pearl is made through friction and irritation and difficulty. It is not always going to be easy to enter through the gates of thanksgiving.
Sometimes I just need to sit before the Lord, tell Him I have an attitude problem, and ask Him to show me what is good. I need to confess my heart to the Lord, so He then can change my heart. If I simply try to modify my behavior, then there is no lasting change.
I am excited to see what it will look like to make “sacrifices of praise” to our God over the next eleven months.
Three plane rides of 19 hours combined, one 10 hour layover, and a seven hour bus ride later, we arrived in the state of Andhra Pradesh!
Our first 12 hour flight took us to Doha. There we promptly exited that plane and entered another five hour flight that brought us to Calcutta. Our squad drew the locals in while playing music and cards. A group of 56 Americans at the airport is quite a site to behold! We then took our final flight to Hyderabad. The bus ride contained seats that reclined and some good old wind blown air conditioning!
Tomorrow our team will be traveling to a village where we will begin our mission of prayer walks, nightly church meetings, partnering with schools and people working in the fields. We are expecting God to do GREAT THINGS!
When in Washington D.C. preparing for our Launch, we were spoken to by many AIM (Adventures in Missions) staff members. One particular day, the topic was about having a positive attitude no matter what the circumstances. We did an activity where we turned to speak to our partner and tell them five things we were thankful for. Then, we were told of a challenging scenario we would potentially face on the field in Africa. Hot weather. Sweat dripping. Overly full from our carb lunch. Walking for a few hours. Crammed on a bus with the smell of BO. Finally we arrive to an orphanage where we get to do five minutes of ministry and then must leave again to catch the bus home. We were again asked to turn to our partner and tell them five things we were thankful for, imagining we were in that scenario.
The point the speaker, Bethany, was emphasizing is taken from Hebrews 13:15, “Through Jesus, therefore, let us continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise- the fruit of lips that confess His name.” Sometimes offering thanks is a sacrifice. My Abba has a kingdom mindset. He is not concerned about my happiness, He desires to grow and mold and make me to be more like Him.
An illustration of a pearl was given. A pearl is made through friction and irritation and difficulty. It is not always going to be easy to enter through the gates of thanksgiving.
Sometimes I just need to sit before the Lord, tell Him I have an attitude problem, and ask Him to show me what is good. I need to confess my heart to the Lord, so He then can change my heart. If I simply try to modify my behavior, then there is no lasting change.
I am excited to see what it will look like to make “sacrifices of praise” to our God over the next eleven months.
Psalm 100:4-5 “Enter His gates with thanksgiving and His courts with praise; give thanks to Him and praise His name. For the Lord is good and His love endures forever; His faithfulness continues through all generations.”
