We’re down to single digits! Friends and family, I am officially leaving for my World Race launch in 8 days! These past few days have been so full of encouragement and love; I have had to say goodbye to many dear friends, but instead of tears and sorrow, God has blessed those goodbyes with laughter, hugs, and sweet prayer. While my goodbyes have all been bittersweet, none of my goodbyes have been sad, and I know that this is because God has surrounded me with a supportive community that has taken joy in sending me out to bring Kingdom across the world.
As if this whole thing felt like a whole dream before now, it just got read; yesterday, my team received our ministry placement for India! The following blog excerpt about our ministry placements for January was beautifully written by Lindsey Welch — a joyful, Holy-Spirit-filled teammate of mine. If you are interested in learning more about her, please visit LindseyWelch.TheWorldRace.org!
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For the month of January, (we) will have the privilege of working with India Christian Ministries (ICM) in one of their specified programs (the name of which will not be disclosed for security purposes). This program works with young girls who come from neglected or abusive backgrounds and also pregnant/lactating mothers to fight malnutrition and child neglect. The program works to empower mothers to establish their own businesses, hosts regular medical camps for women and children, and provides continuous awareness programs on the importance of girl children. They also provide counseling services to mothers who are under the pressure of aborting their baby girls or of being abused because they are not having a baby boy.
The mission statement for this program is to bring an end to female infanticide through Rescue, Prevention and Awareness. Female infanticide is a historic problem in India’s highly patriarchal society, as daughters are often viewed as a burden because of the continuing prevalence of the dowry system (1).
In India the constraint is mostly economic—daughters will require a sizable financial dowry in order to marry. Because daughters leave their families of origin, they are often regarded as temporary members of their families and a drain on its wealth. There is an expression in India that “bringing up a daughter is like watering a neighbor’s plant (Anderson & Moore, 1993)” (2).
In an article published in April 2015, India’s Minister of Women and Child Development stated that “two thousand girls are killed in India every day, with many slain before or just after birth” (1). With the economy in India growing worse after the rupee crisis and due to the caste system still in place, many women will get abused if they cannot produce a male instead of a female. ICM’s program is set up to be a support for those pregnant with baby girls and also for young girls who experience neglect or abuse because of the dowry system.
My team and I have received this list of possible activities over the next month while we are working alongside ICM in a small town in Southern India:
-Help organize and put on an awareness and medical camp for pregnant and nursing mothers with girl babies.
-Help out at the after school program for the girls by investing into their lives and help shape them to be more confident young ladies. We will also be gathering profiles for each girl enrolled.
-Help create profiles of the new batch of women who will be enrolled into the Women Entrepreneurship program by conducting home visits.
-Be involved in ministering to the mothers of the nutrition program by educating them on various aspects of child growth and development and their identity in Christ as women.
For more information about female infanticide in India please see the articles I quoted from below:
(1) http://time.com/3830874/2000-girls-killed-every-day-india-minister
(2) http://www.domesticviolenceservices.com/female-infanticide.html
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I can’t wait to get started! This entire thing is so much more real to me now that I know more about where I’ll be living and what I’ll be doing! Please pray that I’ll be able to not only accept the differences in this new and beautiful place, but embrace the Indian culture, food, and customs! Additionally, thank you all for your obedience to the Spirit in loving and supporting me thus far on our journey! As I get ready for launch, there are a few final things I would like to share with you:
-I am funded to launch, but need to raise $2,800 more before the end of February. Would you consider making an end-of-year donation to ensure that I stay on the field and continue to follow God deeper into His plan for me?
-If you haven’t already, consider subscribing to my blog! It’s easy; all you have to do is click on the orange “Subscribe for Updates” button directly under my picture and enter your e-mail! This will ensure that you get updates if I am unable to post my blog links to social media (which may be likely in some places).
I would like to wish a Happy New Year to all my readers, family, and friends! Thank you SO much for all your support and prayers this year! The next time I blog, I will be in India!
