We have finally arrived in our last country of this crazy adventure and I am so excited to be here! Sorry it has taken so long to get a blog out…our team had to make sure that it was okay to blog while we were in India because in certain parts of the country Christians are persecuted for their beliefs. We just wanted to make sure that we got the go-ahead before we put anything out there, and now that we have, you should be seeing more blogs for the rest of the month. We arrived exactly two weeks ago and were greeted with roses and an ambulance ride to the city we would be in this month (Kolhapur). Along the way, we got to stop at a McDonald’s, which is a totally different story in India because cows are sacred to Hindus (majority religion) so there is no beef anywhere (cows literally roam freely EVERYWHERE). Honestly, I wish we had the McVeg at home…it’s actually really good!
We are working with an organization called Serving Friends International (SFI) this month that does an amazing work in Kolhapur and in other places around the world. Specifically in Kohlapur, they help people who are invected with HIV/AIDS by praying for them, visiting them in their homes, and offering medical attention if possible. They also taken over a hospital here that has been around for over 100 years and really made it something special! We have gotten the opportunity to go on some of the house visits and pray for the people so far and have love it. It is amazing how so many of them put their faith in Christ in the midst of struggling with HIV. We also get to work with children who are HIV positive (known as “friends” to conceal their identity). It is really sad to hear some of the stories about the children’s parents. Some of them can no longer take care of the children and some of them have died from having such a low immune system from the disease. Despite all of this, these kids have SO much joy and laughter. They truly are filled with God’s love. All they ever want to do is sit in my lap give me a hug and make awkward facial expressions at each other because we really can’t understand each other…and I love it!
This month has already been so God ordained and so blessed. The doctor we are working with (far right in the top picture) as well as the director and all the staff are awesome! They have been so hospitable to us and really treat us like family. We call them “aunty” and “uncle” and they call us “brother” or “sister” and it is really neat to feel that close to people you haven’t known that long. Especially with the kids, we really can’t communicate that well, but somehow there is this bond that is so strong between us. I look forward to sharing more about this place and how special it really is…it’s hard not to get emotional when talking about it though because God is really doing something awesome here and it shows in everything. The people here really pray into every single thing and seek the Lord on healing these children and everything that goes into the ministry. I can’t wait to share more soon!
