After 55 hours of traveling, my squad and I have made it safely to a town in the state of Andhra Pradesh. We hopped on three different flights, waited in airports for over 20 hours, and took a nice 7-hour bus ride through the backroads of India, and now we are here!
The past three days have been a complete whirlwind with different places, time zones, and lots and lots of new things.; new people, new norms, new food, new expectations. A whole new way of doing life.
But God has not changed. His goodness is ever present and His faithfulness is unending. God is God of Andhra Pradesh just like He is God of North Carolina. In the midst of all the change and newness, His love, character, and promises have been bold and constant, piercing through every moment of anxiety or doubt.
My team and I will be staying in the city and working with Sarah’s Covenant Homes, www.schindia.com, which is a home for orphans with special needs. Here in India, orphans are already viewed as the lowest of low, so when an orphan has special needs they are given little to no attention. Sarah, who started the home, felt led to adopt 5 of these children several years ago after seeing their horrible living conditions. However when she put in her request to the government, she was met with something she did not expect…40 children instead of 5.
Over the years, Sarah’s Covenant has taken in 105 children. We will work with another World Race team to clean the children’s rooms, sort through old clothes, and more than anything show the boys and girls their Father’s love for them. These children are not Fatherless, their Father is the King and He desires to give each of them the kingdom. I am so humbled to be used by God to communicate His love for them.
We start working on Wednesday and we will work Monday – Saturday, 8am – 6pm.
I am so encouraged by all of the believers here. I have met a few of them and from them have heard of so many Indians who love the Lord and are going out to the villages all over the state with a vision of every village having its own church. Right now there are 3,600 churches in the state. The leader here is praying for that number to DOUBLE by February 22, 2013! God is doing great things in India!
Continue praying for my team, my squad, and myself as we transition and learn this new way of life. A whole different kind of faith is needed here. There is no more faking it. There is nothing else to put your security or trust in. There is only Jesus. And He is more than enough. I know that at the end of this, I will get more of Jesus and that is what makes anything worth it.
Jesus is good! To God be the glory!
