Our first month in Asia was almost like starting all over again. With
a new continent and a country that is semi-closed, super conservative,
and mainly Hindu there were a brand new set of cultural “norms” to get
used to. It was a great month filled with new challenges for our team
and our marriage. Ladies and gents were separated with our ministry
contact so Kristin and I were able to see how we functioned without
each other in ministry.
I saw Kristin step into a ministry that was just getting off the
ground. The women’s ministry spent a lot of time in prayer, worship,
and administrative work. Kristin embraced the extra time spent with
God each day as they prayed in worship. I saw my wife spending more
time in her Father’s presence. I also got to witness her step up in
finding ways to support the ministry through marketing by discussing
their techniques and making lyric videos to help spread the popularity
of the Covenant Worship Band. It was a proud time for me to see her
seeking ministry opportunities when there weren’t many handed to her.
For myself, I was stretched outside of my comfort zone and spent more
time interacting with out host and the people we were ministering to.
I had to let myself be in uncomfortable situations and speak up more
often. It was also a time for me to bond more with Brooks and Derek.
Luckily, there were a few nights when Kristin got to come to the slums
with the guys. I am very glad I get to share those experiences with
her. Seeing the poverty of the area mixed with the joy of those people
is something neither of us had experienced before. The race is filled
with many moments like that. Things that you can’t properly explain to
another person how it looked, or how it made you feel, or how you saw
God in that moment, unless they were also there.
Our lodging in India was a step up from Kenya. We had our own room….
Sort of. We at least got to sleep alone. Our little tent was set up
on the patio of our host’s home. It wasn’t the most comfy of
situations but we were alone. During the day, the patio was public
space, so we still had to fight to get alone time during the day. It
was hard for us. It meant having a lot of whisper discussions at night
in our tent. This month we grew a lot, though. There were a lot of
hard conversations that weren’t fun. Kristin used the term “growing
pains”. It’s a perfect description. We both felt hurt at times.
It seems like the little things that were a problem at home are now
amplified that we’re together all day long. No more escaping to work
for ten hours a day. But just like growing pains, growth came out of
the hurt. I began to understand that I get defensive during arguments.
When Kristin gets hurt, I get upset. Learning to understand these
things about communication is helping us grow into emotionally healthy
adults. Sometimes we need to hurt to know where we need to grow. It
was a hard month, but I am happy it happened.
