India has been a whirlwind of emotional, physical, and spiritual hardships. Week 1 I was very homesick, questioning if I can actually do this, and trying to find my place on this Squad. They say this is common in Month 1, the transition from old to new is a very tough road to travel. But when you let go of that part of you that still clings to home and all of its comforts, something really crazy happens. Your heart opens and you are able to begin to make home out of your surroundings and make the people around you new members of your family. As humans, we can make a home out of anything and anywhere if we allow ourselves. I slowly feel myself detaching from everything I knew and starting to move onto a very new, very welcome chapter of my life.
We are in Sielmat, which is a very remote and tribal area of India. There is a big mixture of cultures and religion- Hindu, Sique, Christian, Muslim. The people here look half Indian, half Chinese because their people migrated here from China long ago. The ministry host we are with this month is called Bibles for the World. The story behind it is incredible. Dr. Pudaite, the founder of this ministry, lived in a very tribal area as a child. His father was a Christian because of a white man who had traveled as a missionary to spread the good news of the Gospel. He encouraged him to travel through the wilderness so that he could attend school, learn English, and eventually translate the Bible into their people’s language so that they could know the love of Christ. So, as a young boy, he traveled for 3 days, alone in the wilderness, to reach the village so that he could eventually get an education and translate the Good Word for his tribe. I try to put myself in his shoes. At that age, I was learning to ride a bike and trying to make my school bus on time. To travel through the wilderness, the unknown, and fully rely on God the whole time is unfathomable for a kid that age. I truly wish I could have met him, but he passed in 2014. His wife Mowaii is still here, and she is an incredible woman and you can easily tell how much she loved her husband and supported him in his every move. What more can you ask for in a marriage?
It’s been such an honor to work alongside this ministry. Our hosts and liasons are intentional and want to get to know each of us as individuals. Their hospitality and generosity is overwhelming in the best way. I traveled 10,000 miles, and yet I feel right at home. Our work every day is something new. Kitchen crew, Praying over sick people, construction work, preparing and organizing medical supplies at the local hospital, teaching and improving English to students at the seminary… I could go on. Every morning I wake up and still have to wrap my head around the fact that I just woke up in India, and that for some reason God chose me to do His work and let Him work through me. So yes, I am traveling to 11 countries within the year, but I’m learning that adventure isn’t just about the stories, or the physical adventures we encounter. The true adventure is also finding out God’s purpose for you, for His people, His plans from the start, and the people you come to care deeply for along the way.
