Most of the first week our schedule was
9 a.m – Breakfast followed by corporate prayer.
10:30 – Break
12 – Team Time, Self-Report, Feedback. A few times it went over and we meet again after lunch.
1:30 – Lunch
~ 3 to 4 – Head out for ministry. Drive is anywhere from 45 to 90 minutes.
~ 5 – House Visits
~ 7 – Worship commences
~ 8 – Team speaks
~9 – we close and pray
~9:30 – Dinner
~ 11 – Arrive Home
We adjusted week 2 by moving team time to after breakfast, praying on the drive over, and leaving closer to 4:30 p.m. because we have been arriving home later and later.
January 3rd – We head out for our first night of ministry. We are told that we will do house visits and then be prepared to share two testimonies and a sermon. We arrived at a small cinder block church and sat outside while we were served Chai. After awhile we hopped back in the car and went to a home and sat down. After awhile they served us some desert and more chai! Not knowing quite what to do, I looked around and asked if I could pray for them. They said sure and after that we went to another house. This next house was small and there was a man with a fever who they told us to pray for. This time Alexis steps up to pray. Then she prayed for his mom. There was some confusion as the pastors were telling us to leave but Alexis had started to pray for his wife and was still praying, while the rest of us stayed outside. The next two places, one was a photographer, who took our pictures and who we prayed for. He was a Hindu and asked for God to bless His business. The next business had 3 women and we went to their storage section. We prayed for the family and another older woman who started praising and lifting up her hands. After 4 house visits we went back to the church and the service began. With a drum and a microphone they worshipped in Telagu, fast songs with energetic clapping. Two testimonies and one sermon later, people started to come up and ask for prayer. I didn’t know what people wanted, but one woman pointed to her eye so I put my hand on her eye and prayed. Our host and translator Solomon said it was better. So I prayed again. The crowd was heading out so she walked towards the door when I was done. Solomon asked her how she was and she said God has healed my eye before walking out. He asked her a few more times and she confirmed. I’m stunned and not sure if I believe that just happened. The pastors are telling us to finish, but people who have received prayer from one person are going to another to receive prayer again. During dinner, we wash our hands, and they give us rice and curry which we eat with our right hand. They come around multiple times to make sure we have enough. We say no more, but they put food on our plates afterwards. We discuss how to effectively say we no to more food and decide to ask our hosts later. We get home around 10:30 p.m.
January 4th – We visit more homes. The first one is a woman who is a strong woman of faith who Kayla had spoken over the night before. We sit for awhile. She serves us chai. As it’s time to leave they ask us to pray a blessing. On the way out we are stopped by someone to pray. The next house we find a weak woman with a growth in her stomach. They tell us she has cancer and to pray. Kayla steps up to pray. Another family, the sister, we are told is barren and they ask us to pray. They are Hindu. We head to another house. There is a man in a wheelchair. Children gather around. We hear he was injured and through prayer has gone from being unable to sit up to being in a wheelchair. So Phil steps up to pray. He prays a couple times. He calls out a boy with a cataract and prays for him. The pastors tell us we should go because a crowd is forming. I pray for the man in the wheelchair as well. As we leave the man and crowd come to the car and we take a group photo. He is crying, and says feeling has returned to his legs. We struggle with wanting to stay, but being asked to leave. That night, we sit under the stars and there is singing before we are asked to speak. This time they ask us to sing a song. Thrown for a loop we sing something. Then 2 testimonies and 1 sermon again. I speak on the Father’s Love Letter and do the altar call. 4 people stand up. I say only those who don’t already know Jesus and a woman in orange stays standing. I pray for her. The night ends with people coming up for prayer.
January 5th – It’s a Sunday so we pack our belongings and move them to the boys room, because the girls are tenting in the church. At breakfast, Solomon asks two of us to go to his colleague John’s church. 1 person to preach and 1 to give a testimony. He also asks for the same at his church. Phil and I go volunteer and go to John’s church. Church goes from 11 to 1:30 p.m. There is lots of singing. We sit at the front facing the church. After speaking John says he is encouraged and leaves to minister at another church. We get home around 3 pm. We find out the other village team stopped traffic and were on the front page of the newspaper, Headline: White people are here!
To Be Continued…
