As I sit here in a coffee shop in Katmandu, Nepal, reflecting on the past month we just spent in India, I’m in awe of the Lord and the deep deep love He has for us all. My heart is still broken and hurting from having to say goodbye to the beautiful people of the Hmar tribe in Northeast India in the states of Assam and Manipur India. The India I was expecting was not the India we were greeted with when we arrived at our ministry site for the month. There was an odd mixture of Hindus, Buddhists, Muslims, and then the Hmar tribe who are primarily Christians. Our squad began the month doing ministry together in a town called Hmarkawlien and our ministry contact was with a ministry called Partnership Missions Society. It was led by an amazing noble man of God named John Pudaite who was actually the son to one of the most amazing men of God I got the chance to learn and read about, a man named Dr. (Rev.) Rochunga Pudaite. Dr. Ro grew up in the mountains and jungle in Northeast India and left behind an amazing legacy. He founded a ministry called Bibles for the World and has distributed more than 19 million bibles around the world after God gave him the vision of spreading the Word to the nations. I could go on and on about Dr. Rochunga and his legacy and the ministry but that would turn into a whole new blog. If you get the chance read the book, Fire On the Hills, it’s his life story and will really help give you an understanding of how big of an impact he had not only on his tribe but on the entire world for the glory of the Lord.
Our squad got the opportunity to create a human chain up the side of a mountain and toss bricks to each other reaching all the way to the top so that a remote village would be able to build a church. It was a beautiful picture as the Church came together to help build the church, brick by brick tossing about 4,000 bricks all together up the mountain. Talk about unity, it was an amazing experience for our squad to share together and with the local Hmar people. I’ll never ever forget an older lady, she had to be about 80 something walking up and down the mountain as we tossed the bricks to each other, yelling “Hallelujah” as it was the only word we could understand her saying and the only word she could find to say it seemed like. She would wipe some of our foreheads off from sweating as we worked, hugging us, and giving glory to God as we worked to build their church. She was beautiful and the Holy Spirit within her was even more beautiful.
So after the first week of ministering together as a whole squad my team and I headed to an extremely remote village deep in the jungle and up in the mountains in the state of Manipur to a place called Lungthulien. Words will never be able to adequately describe our experience there or how peaceful the atmosphere was there. After a 14 hour boat ride up the Barak River, a hike up the mountain with our packs in the rain dodging snakes and getting a few leeches here and there, followed by the craziest ride in the back of a truck I’ve ever experienced in my entire life, we reached our destination. We worked with one of the few P.M.S. (Partnership Mission School) high schools and primary schools there in Lungthulien getting to teach the kids, share bible stories with them, singing silly songs, leading devotionals every evening, and facilitating their exams the last week we were there. We put on a field day the last day of their exams and set up a make shift slip-n-slide and other funny games for them to play. My favorite part about working with the kids was getting to help them write letters to their sponsors. I’ve sponsored a child in Africa for the past year or so and getting to be on the opposite end of the spectrum and actually seeing firsthand the fruits from the sponsorships and helping them write their letters was so surreal. Their lives and future depend so much on receiving sponsorship and their gratitude to their sponsors was heart-touching. We would walk through the villages and pray for people and other people would come and thank us for sponsoring their kids and grandkids, knowing we weren’t actually the ones sponsoring their kids but we were only the third group of Americans to ever reach their village so just by seeing us they were encouraged and extremely thankful that we were there and would be able to relay their messages of gratitude and thankfulness to everyone back home in the U.S. Another blog will be coming soon with more stories and information about the sponsorship and how impactful it truly is.
I’m running low on time but I definitely plan on writing a few more blogs with more specific stories of what the Lord taught me and what He did in and through His people this past month. My teammate Shaylee created another recap video for the month so hopefully it will give you a better understanding of the joy the Lord provided for the kids and for us even and what our month looked like. I love you all and am so appreciative of your prayers and all of your support. We serve a Mighty God, one who still works miracles, one who still heals the sick, and one who still moves mountains in order to provide for His people. More blogs and updates coming soon.
Because my Redeemer lives,
Kacy <3
“I always thank my God as I remember you in my prayers, because I hear about your love for all his holy people and your faith in the Lord Jesus. I pray that your partnership with us in the faith may be effective in deepening your understanding of every good thing we share for the sake of Christ. Your love has given me great joy and encouragement, because you, brother, have refreshed the hearts of the Lord’s people.” (Philemon 1:4-7)
