Stories
Our stay in Hampi was a sweet one. Team Fierce was one of the only teams outside of Bangalore. We had the blessing of serving in Hampi, a tourist town, known for their famous temples. We served in a coffee shop called All Tribes Café. Pastor Christopher from Bellary brought us there and set us up and taught us how to run the place and how to make delicious Indian Chai and coffee drinks. We lived in the coffee shop as well. Each day we got to meet tourists and locals who would come to find good coffee as it was harder to find in this area. And we had the chance to sit down with them and get to know more about their lives and find out more about their travels and for some more about their spiritual journeys. We had great conversations and I believe God really used them, to make people think more about where they stand with God and what they really believe. It was so cool to see each of us come together with our unique giftings to work as a team to run the place. I was able to do many haircuts as well! We were able to pray over some of the locals for different health conditions and also that God would provide for their families.
I want to share with you about some of the people we met along the way and their stories.
First, a woman Punam I was blessed to meet the first day we arrived in Hampi. Punam I believe is about 23 years old. She works on the road right down from the coffee shop selling jewelry trying to provide for her husband who stays home with their 3 young sons. We saw Punam about every day and got to pray for her and also for her husband who, when we were there had been bit by a dog. With many medical bills to pay after this bite and loans to pay for the jewelry she sells, it was clear how anxious she was about having enough financially and supporting her family. Also, it was off season for tourists in Hampi while we were there, so she really didn’t sell much. But she asked us many times to pray to our God, because she said she believes He listens to us. We told her that He can hear her too and He knows all the details of her life and cares about all of them! Please pray for Punam and her family! That she can learn to Trust the Lord with her life and that He would continue to provide for her and her family’s needs.
Another cool story we heard was when we visited a church in a neighboring city Hospet. We got to visit their congregation and sing a song for the service and one of the girls from our team preached. After the service the pastor asked if we could pray over people for their requests. So we did and it was such an amazing experience. After the service we had lunch with some of the people and met an older couple, probably in their 70’s. The pastor told us that when they met the woman she was Hindi and she had a hunched back. They told her that they could pray over her for healing and when they did she was able to sit up straight and after God healed her in this way she said that this GOD must be the true God and she decided to follow Him the rest of her days and leave her other “gods”. After this happened her and her husband(because they have no children) changed their names to Sarah and Abraham. I could totally see Jesus in this couple…with their huge, permanent smiles across their faces and joy in their eyes!
Another man we met along the way was an American who has lived in Asia for quite some time. He had a lot to share about all he had learned in his studies and all he knew of the Bible. He shared his take on the Kingdom of God here on earth. Also he shared of his experiences with Buddhism. It was so interesting to converse with him on all we believe, answer his thought provoking questions and ask him many questions as well. We all ended up ordering dinner together and talking til midnight!
Then, there were Marlon and Rob. We met them one night when we were at dinner. But over the course of a few weeks ran into them all around Hampi. Marlon is from Germany and Rob from England. They were backpackers and living very “free” lifestyles. We had So many good conversations and it was so interesting to hear their perspectives on life and why they live the way they do. We ended up one night taking turns firing questions about life experiences and choices we have made in life and why we believe what we believe. Sometimes it would get a little heated even and them basically saying how dumb it was to believe what we believe, but in the end on our last day of talking with them, they had said it was so refreshing to meet Christians like us and we parted ways with a respect for one another and them even an amazement at why we would live the way we do.
It’s just amazing the people you meet along the way in life and specifically for us on this trip and God has used them in my life and I hope us in theirs. I feel so much peace that God is moving in their lives for sure and they were on spiritual “hunts” long before meeting us…but praying God used our times with them to bring them closer to personally knowing Him.
