I'm okay. I'm alive, no broken bones, in good health, and im filled with joy.
After a short flight from Bangalore we arrived in Goa, India. As the jeep took us further north and through all the fields and dirt roads I began to wonder what kind of world I was entering. There were many middle-aged men and women who wore the baggy clothes and dreadlocks that are the signature of hippies. Apparently many of these people are former businessmen who come to Goa for vacation and never go home. There is something exotic in the air in Goa. We pulled down the dirt road to the house we would we staying in. Tucked back nicely in the woods is our nice little "resort". Im a two minute walk from the beach. There are some pretty nice things I have learned and seen in Goa, and it has been an amazing experience and debriefing. I'll write all these later.
With all that said...Two days ago I was in a motorcycle accident. (re-read first line of post). While in Goa I have had a motorcycle. I was out one night just exploring and enjoying the ride. I was zipping around a corner and went to take a right hand turn (they drive on the left side of the street). I leaned into the turn and realized I was headed straight for a truck. I tucked in and leaned harder to take the turn sharper and pass inbetween the truck and the wall. I turned too hard, me and the bike hit the pavement and skidded across the road. Dont worry, the bike is only a little scratched. I am fine, no broken bones. I have some pretty bad roadrash on my hands, back, hip, shoulder, knee, and ankle. It will heal nicely. And for the worried moms...im sorry, but no, I was not wearing a helmet. They aren't available.
On a lighter note, after dressing the wounds and sleeping a night, I was back on the bike the following day and haven't had another upset. I have enjoyed my time here. We leave tomorrow morning for Mumbai, where we will catch a plane to Italy, and then after a while, another one back to Budapest. Then it's only a week before I come home! I'll post again in a few days, just some random stories and thoughts. Then I'll be there to tell you all in person!
Wednesday, February 27, 2008
Wednesday, February 20, 2008
Day 152, Bangalore
We gathered together in one of the rooms to pray and have devotion. It was early. We talked about the schedule for the day. We were going to the slums to do a program. We had two hours in the slums and during that time we would do two dramas, play a game with the children, and give a message. When asked who would give a testimony no one answered until called on specifically. Then we asked for someone to give a message. I had told everyone that I wanted to see other people, besides me, sharing messages. No one spoke up. Even after sitting there encouraging and calling on people specifically, no one would speak. Then I found out that it didn't have to be a message for Christians, but for non-believers, that we could simply share the Gospel.....
I told them that it was easy, just share the Gospel, tell The Story! Thats all! Still no one would volunteer. I was, and am, disappointed. We were told that there would be 35-45 people there, and we had an opportunity to share the Treasure that we have found. No one. This was our last opportunity to speak openly like this before our outreach is over. The last chance to share the Gospel to the villages, and I was the only one willing. After the meeting I left with a heavy heart. We have been at this for over 5 months now, and there is still the fear of stepping out and speaking the Truth....I was troubled. I sat on my bed praying, I knew I wasn't God's first choice today. I knew His first choice for someone to share the Gospel with the village was one of the girls. I prayed against the fear. No one came.
At the beginning of the outreach I didn't want to share the Gospel either, I was afraid of not knowing what to say, I didn't like my testimony, I just wanted to work behind the scenes. But then I realized I was missing out on blessings that could be mine. I was so hungry for God's blessing, so hungry to see God do something, but was not willing to preach or speak the Truth that is Christ. When this became apparent to me I decided I wasn't going to subject myself to that fear, I would not let anyone else have the blessing that was meant for me.
God's will will be done.
God's will will be done whether we choose to do it or not.
We have opportunities to do God's will, and there are blessings tied to these.
When we choose to not do His will, He will use someone else, and they will get the blessing.
We got to the village and rounded up the people. There were many children. While speaking to the guide I found out that these people had heard about Jesus, but still worshiped other gods. I knew what the Holy Spirit was guiding me to do, but it was uncomfortable....
We started with some games with the children. "Duck Duck Goose" was the first game. To them, it was actually "Duh duh (and then one REALLY emphasized DUH)". As one of the children made his way around the circle he pushed hard on my head and yelled, "DUH!" (which meant goose). I got up and chased him around the circle. I had taken my sandals off so I could run, and I scraped my toe on the rough ground. As I wiped the blood off my toe I continued and picked someone to chase me. Around the circle we went until I rested in his spot. After I sat down, a little boy, maybe 3 years old, squeezed in next to me. He looked up at me and snuggled in. I smiled and he held out his hand. I put mine hand under his, in an attempt to show him that I cared about him and wanted to hold him. He looked at my hand and then put his under mine, and with the other hand began to trace the lines in my palm. As he examined my hand he noticed the dried blood on one of my fingers. With his finger, a quarter the size of mine, he began to scratch away the dried blood and tried to wipe all the dirt off my hand. I didn't know why he did this...i just sat there in awe as this child showed ME how much he cared about me. He was so captivated with my large white hand covered with dirt and blood that cradled him in my arm.....I only hope he comes to know and be captivated by the large hands covered in dirt and blood that REALLY holds him, and were pierced so his life could be spared.
After the dramas, I grabbed my Bible and stood in the middle of them. From there I spoke about God's love for them, I related it to their love for their children. I told them the Gospel, and about sin and the nature of God. They were listening, their eyes were fixed on me, they were open. As the time ticked away, it came to the point where I knew I had to do what the Holy Spirit had told me to do. I was unsure how they would react, I had never rebuked anyone before, I was afraid that coming against their other gods would make them stop listening and walk away from what God was trying to say to them......I considered this briefly, then pushed through and said what God had put in my mouth. I told them that their other gods were keeping them from having the relationship with God that He desired, that their gods were the sin that separated them from Him. He wanted to bless them, He wanted to show them His love, He wanted to do good things in and through them, but their other gods were stopping this. I told them to repent, to tear down these idols, to give up their other gods and follow the only one true God.....one rolled his eyes and sat back on the rock and smirked....the others were listening.
I led them through the sinner's pray, told them about the Holy Spirit and being joined with other believers. I turned and went to sit down. I was greatly encouraged by the words of those who were listening, they spoke very highly of what was said and told me how great the message was. All I can think about is the little boy who noticed the blood on my hand and tried his best to clean it off.
I told them that it was easy, just share the Gospel, tell The Story! Thats all! Still no one would volunteer. I was, and am, disappointed. We were told that there would be 35-45 people there, and we had an opportunity to share the Treasure that we have found. No one. This was our last opportunity to speak openly like this before our outreach is over. The last chance to share the Gospel to the villages, and I was the only one willing. After the meeting I left with a heavy heart. We have been at this for over 5 months now, and there is still the fear of stepping out and speaking the Truth....I was troubled. I sat on my bed praying, I knew I wasn't God's first choice today. I knew His first choice for someone to share the Gospel with the village was one of the girls. I prayed against the fear. No one came.
At the beginning of the outreach I didn't want to share the Gospel either, I was afraid of not knowing what to say, I didn't like my testimony, I just wanted to work behind the scenes. But then I realized I was missing out on blessings that could be mine. I was so hungry for God's blessing, so hungry to see God do something, but was not willing to preach or speak the Truth that is Christ. When this became apparent to me I decided I wasn't going to subject myself to that fear, I would not let anyone else have the blessing that was meant for me.
God's will will be done.
God's will will be done whether we choose to do it or not.
We have opportunities to do God's will, and there are blessings tied to these.
When we choose to not do His will, He will use someone else, and they will get the blessing.
We got to the village and rounded up the people. There were many children. While speaking to the guide I found out that these people had heard about Jesus, but still worshiped other gods. I knew what the Holy Spirit was guiding me to do, but it was uncomfortable....
We started with some games with the children. "Duck Duck Goose" was the first game. To them, it was actually "Duh duh (and then one REALLY emphasized DUH)". As one of the children made his way around the circle he pushed hard on my head and yelled, "DUH!" (which meant goose). I got up and chased him around the circle. I had taken my sandals off so I could run, and I scraped my toe on the rough ground. As I wiped the blood off my toe I continued and picked someone to chase me. Around the circle we went until I rested in his spot. After I sat down, a little boy, maybe 3 years old, squeezed in next to me. He looked up at me and snuggled in. I smiled and he held out his hand. I put mine hand under his, in an attempt to show him that I cared about him and wanted to hold him. He looked at my hand and then put his under mine, and with the other hand began to trace the lines in my palm. As he examined my hand he noticed the dried blood on one of my fingers. With his finger, a quarter the size of mine, he began to scratch away the dried blood and tried to wipe all the dirt off my hand. I didn't know why he did this...i just sat there in awe as this child showed ME how much he cared about me. He was so captivated with my large white hand covered with dirt and blood that cradled him in my arm.....I only hope he comes to know and be captivated by the large hands covered in dirt and blood that REALLY holds him, and were pierced so his life could be spared.
After the dramas, I grabbed my Bible and stood in the middle of them. From there I spoke about God's love for them, I related it to their love for their children. I told them the Gospel, and about sin and the nature of God. They were listening, their eyes were fixed on me, they were open. As the time ticked away, it came to the point where I knew I had to do what the Holy Spirit had told me to do. I was unsure how they would react, I had never rebuked anyone before, I was afraid that coming against their other gods would make them stop listening and walk away from what God was trying to say to them......I considered this briefly, then pushed through and said what God had put in my mouth. I told them that their other gods were keeping them from having the relationship with God that He desired, that their gods were the sin that separated them from Him. He wanted to bless them, He wanted to show them His love, He wanted to do good things in and through them, but their other gods were stopping this. I told them to repent, to tear down these idols, to give up their other gods and follow the only one true God.....one rolled his eyes and sat back on the rock and smirked....the others were listening.
I led them through the sinner's pray, told them about the Holy Spirit and being joined with other believers. I turned and went to sit down. I was greatly encouraged by the words of those who were listening, they spoke very highly of what was said and told me how great the message was. All I can think about is the little boy who noticed the blood on my hand and tried his best to clean it off.
Monday, February 18, 2008
Day 151, Bangalore
Our time here in Bangalore is quickly coming to an end. We leave in 6 days and head to Goa, India. We have been here for one week and have only done a handful of things. Medical outreach, children's programs, I only preached once, threw a Valentine's Day program, done our dramas a few times for different church programs, led worship at a church... It hasn't been too busy, but my faith has been strengthened more in this past week than it ever has! I came looking for huge salvations and healing miracles to build my faith, but these I haven't seen this week. So what has caused this back-burned relaxed week of ministry to be my most strengthening week, and the week to build my faith the most?
It began as I had time to look at my thoughts. Before this week I had been a real student of the Word, I was memorizing verses left and right and really enjoying it. But something had happened and I had lost this passion. I had noticed that in my heart I had put up walls to a few of my team members...outwardly I wasn't mean to them, but in my heart I didn't like them as much as the others and preferred to not be around them if I had the choice. As I would go out to do a ministry somewhere I began to question myself....over and over again..."Do you really care Nick?"....."Does it matter to you whether or not these people go to heaven or hell?"....."Do these people matter to you.....REALLY matter?"....."Nick.....do you actually CARE!"
"Of course I do, I'm here aren't I", I would start.
All of this was sparked from a story I read about a man who was faced with a similar question. The more I asked myself, the more irritated I got with the question, until finally the answer came...
No...
I felt embarrassed, a little shamed, I was confused and troubled....I have been here preaching and living the Gospel for all to see, but only because I desired to do it because it was God's desire for me to be here and do this. I was enjoying it, but not as much as I could have.
Right before we took the train here to Bangalore I had hit a dry spot in my passion for putting the Word of God on my heart. We have all felt this. As I meditated on my hardened heart towards a few of my team members, my dry spot for the Word, my lack of REAL concern and love for these people, I was moved to pray.....this time not for our ministry, not for the Indians or the children, not for my team....but for ME. The prayers were simple, and I wrote my concerns and prayers in my journal. The events that happened the following days shook my heart and spirit as I realized what had happened.
The next day I found myself alone and with little to do, I picked up my Bible and began to skim some pages to pass the time. As I read I became so entranced by what I was reading....I was ALIVE, my Spirit was stirred and I read and read...these past few days I have read 4 books I've never read before all the way through. My time in the Word is the highlight of my day again.....
One of the team members I had hardened my heart towards came to me and shared how they were struggling with some of the other team members, how he felt alone and couldn't wait for this outreach to be over....I was moved to compassion for him and in my heart I felt the wall break down, he has been my closest companion ever since and the Lord has used me to build him up and encourage him, even provide his needs when I was blessed with an abundance once. "Do you really care, Nick?"
One day around lunch I was separated from my team doing some things I needed to get done. I wasn't in a great mood as I was pondering the status of my heart and some other news I had received that troubled me. I was hungry and decided that I didn't want the food I had with me. I walked to a restaurant close by, alone, desiring to grab some food to go and retire to my room to eat in silence. As I walked in the restaurant I saw the other two members in line that I had put up walls against. I walked up behind them and got my food. "For here or to go?"....I hesitated..."I'll eat here". I took a seat with the two and had a wonderful time with them. I really enjoyed my lunch and the fellowship I had with them. I did the same thing the following night. "Do you really care, Nick?"
As we walked to the place where we would do our children's program, I began to ponder what kind of life they lived, what their everyday looked like, what they thought about the King I serve....did they really know who He was? As I sat with them....i just loved them. As I was called to the front I made my way through the children, they all looked up at me as I picked my way through them....they grabbed my hands....they all reached up just trying to touch me. Again I was moved to compassion...."Do you really care, Nick?"
The day before, we sat in a cool, concrete room. As I waited for the college students to pour in I picked through the message I had in mind. Why did I choose to speak about this particular subject... as I shared with them how to live in the Spirit, how to have Him live THROUGH you, how to live in a world surrounded by worldly things and still see God and live in a deep relationship with.... as I look around the room at these students.....I spoke with compassion....."Do you really care, Nick?"....."Yes...I actually do..."
As I realized what had happened I was moved to tears. I had done nothing of myself to promote any of these changed....but I am different. I am in awe....I asked God to encourage me in my reading, I prayed that He would give me His compassion, I prayed that he would change my heart towards my team members....and He DID!! In two days He completely changed the status of my heart, and I realized that this is simply because I asked Him too!
Too often we go through life without challenging what we are thinking, without asking for God to change US. When faced with a problem we usually hear, "Lord, please change them, help them to understand, help them to see how they irritate me and how you really desire for them to be". No...It was different this time... "Lord, change ME!"...."Lord, bless ME!"....PICK ME!!! My faith has been strengthened more than ever not because I saw some healing miracle or God answered a prayer for someone to be saved.....but because I prayed that God would change the status of my heart and He did...miraculously!
I want to encourage you all who read this....meditate on the status of your heart...THINK about what you are thinking about....challenge the way you think..... When we face up to our thoughts, our character, the status of our heart, we are troubled when we see an area that is not reflecting Christ through us. We pray for money, we pray for nice things, we pray for God to remove the stress or struggles we are dealing with....He answers them sometimes....but sometimes He puts us through stress or struggles for a reason, a healthy reason....
If you want to see a miracle, if you want to see God do something amazing, pray for Him to change your heart, open your eyes...ask. It is God's will for us to be transformed into His desire for our life, and when we pray in the direction of His will, the miracles will follow, His will WILL be done, and you will BE the miracle, the living testimony of His grace and ability to perform supernatural things in our lives. Im the example, I'm living in it....you can too... Think about it.....
It began as I had time to look at my thoughts. Before this week I had been a real student of the Word, I was memorizing verses left and right and really enjoying it. But something had happened and I had lost this passion. I had noticed that in my heart I had put up walls to a few of my team members...outwardly I wasn't mean to them, but in my heart I didn't like them as much as the others and preferred to not be around them if I had the choice. As I would go out to do a ministry somewhere I began to question myself....over and over again..."Do you really care Nick?"....."Does it matter to you whether or not these people go to heaven or hell?"....."Do these people matter to you.....REALLY matter?"....."Nick.....do you actually CARE!"
"Of course I do, I'm here aren't I", I would start.
All of this was sparked from a story I read about a man who was faced with a similar question. The more I asked myself, the more irritated I got with the question, until finally the answer came...
No...
I felt embarrassed, a little shamed, I was confused and troubled....I have been here preaching and living the Gospel for all to see, but only because I desired to do it because it was God's desire for me to be here and do this. I was enjoying it, but not as much as I could have.
Right before we took the train here to Bangalore I had hit a dry spot in my passion for putting the Word of God on my heart. We have all felt this. As I meditated on my hardened heart towards a few of my team members, my dry spot for the Word, my lack of REAL concern and love for these people, I was moved to pray.....this time not for our ministry, not for the Indians or the children, not for my team....but for ME. The prayers were simple, and I wrote my concerns and prayers in my journal. The events that happened the following days shook my heart and spirit as I realized what had happened.
The next day I found myself alone and with little to do, I picked up my Bible and began to skim some pages to pass the time. As I read I became so entranced by what I was reading....I was ALIVE, my Spirit was stirred and I read and read...these past few days I have read 4 books I've never read before all the way through. My time in the Word is the highlight of my day again.....
One of the team members I had hardened my heart towards came to me and shared how they were struggling with some of the other team members, how he felt alone and couldn't wait for this outreach to be over....I was moved to compassion for him and in my heart I felt the wall break down, he has been my closest companion ever since and the Lord has used me to build him up and encourage him, even provide his needs when I was blessed with an abundance once. "Do you really care, Nick?"
One day around lunch I was separated from my team doing some things I needed to get done. I wasn't in a great mood as I was pondering the status of my heart and some other news I had received that troubled me. I was hungry and decided that I didn't want the food I had with me. I walked to a restaurant close by, alone, desiring to grab some food to go and retire to my room to eat in silence. As I walked in the restaurant I saw the other two members in line that I had put up walls against. I walked up behind them and got my food. "For here or to go?"....I hesitated..."I'll eat here". I took a seat with the two and had a wonderful time with them. I really enjoyed my lunch and the fellowship I had with them. I did the same thing the following night. "Do you really care, Nick?"
As we walked to the place where we would do our children's program, I began to ponder what kind of life they lived, what their everyday looked like, what they thought about the King I serve....did they really know who He was? As I sat with them....i just loved them. As I was called to the front I made my way through the children, they all looked up at me as I picked my way through them....they grabbed my hands....they all reached up just trying to touch me. Again I was moved to compassion...."Do you really care, Nick?"
The day before, we sat in a cool, concrete room. As I waited for the college students to pour in I picked through the message I had in mind. Why did I choose to speak about this particular subject... as I shared with them how to live in the Spirit, how to have Him live THROUGH you, how to live in a world surrounded by worldly things and still see God and live in a deep relationship with.... as I look around the room at these students.....I spoke with compassion....."Do you really care, Nick?"....."Yes...I actually do..."
As I realized what had happened I was moved to tears. I had done nothing of myself to promote any of these changed....but I am different. I am in awe....I asked God to encourage me in my reading, I prayed that He would give me His compassion, I prayed that he would change my heart towards my team members....and He DID!! In two days He completely changed the status of my heart, and I realized that this is simply because I asked Him too!
Too often we go through life without challenging what we are thinking, without asking for God to change US. When faced with a problem we usually hear, "Lord, please change them, help them to understand, help them to see how they irritate me and how you really desire for them to be". No...It was different this time... "Lord, change ME!"...."Lord, bless ME!"....PICK ME!!! My faith has been strengthened more than ever not because I saw some healing miracle or God answered a prayer for someone to be saved.....but because I prayed that God would change the status of my heart and He did...miraculously!
I want to encourage you all who read this....meditate on the status of your heart...THINK about what you are thinking about....challenge the way you think..... When we face up to our thoughts, our character, the status of our heart, we are troubled when we see an area that is not reflecting Christ through us. We pray for money, we pray for nice things, we pray for God to remove the stress or struggles we are dealing with....He answers them sometimes....but sometimes He puts us through stress or struggles for a reason, a healthy reason....
If you want to see a miracle, if you want to see God do something amazing, pray for Him to change your heart, open your eyes...ask. It is God's will for us to be transformed into His desire for our life, and when we pray in the direction of His will, the miracles will follow, His will WILL be done, and you will BE the miracle, the living testimony of His grace and ability to perform supernatural things in our lives. Im the example, I'm living in it....you can too... Think about it.....
Wednesday, February 13, 2008
Day 145, Bangalore
For those of you who haven't heard, I have been really praying about continuing missions for a few years. My focus would be medical missions and I would leave in the fall for three months of specialized medical training for developing contries followed by three more months of fieldwork where we would focus on dental work, delivering babies, administering medicine, treating wounds and diseases, blood and urine analysis, malnutrition and many other things. I have had this on my heart for a long time now, and the opportunity has opened up in Guatemala. While nothing is set in stone, and the Lord could lead me another direction, this is the direction I am heading.
Yesterday I got my first taste of medical missions. Me and two girls went alone with a medical team here to assist them in the slums. As we carried the backpacks and medical supplies in I began to imagine myself in years to come doing the exact same thing. We sat up the medical supplies and waited for the people to pour in. Soon we were flooded by little children. As we cleaned one of the gashes on a little boy's leg I was amazed at the process. The wound was a few days old and was covered with dirt. Before we could see exactly what was wrong we had to first clean the wound. This is the most painful process of healing. The same thing is true in our lives. Before we can allow Christ to enter into our wounds, we have to acknowledge that they are there and wait patiently as He removes the "dirt" from our lives. The little boy sat there whincing as the last of the dirt was removed from the wound. Then the healing process could begin. We finished up and the boy was happy again. He was so pleased to have his wound taken care of....but I think he was happier that someone had acknowledged the fact that he was hurt and needed help. Amazing how this same process echoes throughout our lives. Dont allow your wounds to stay covered with dirt. Bring them to the surface and allow Christ to enter into them. He never heals the outside first. If we had just cleaned the outside up and sewed it shut with the dirt under the surface, it would never heal properly. No, instead Christ enters INTO our wounds and heals us from the inside out, slowly removing the death and decay, the dirt, from our wounds and restoring us to the way we were created to be. Lets continue to examine our lives, find the wounds, and invite the Physician to do His magic.
Yesterday I got my first taste of medical missions. Me and two girls went alone with a medical team here to assist them in the slums. As we carried the backpacks and medical supplies in I began to imagine myself in years to come doing the exact same thing. We sat up the medical supplies and waited for the people to pour in. Soon we were flooded by little children. As we cleaned one of the gashes on a little boy's leg I was amazed at the process. The wound was a few days old and was covered with dirt. Before we could see exactly what was wrong we had to first clean the wound. This is the most painful process of healing. The same thing is true in our lives. Before we can allow Christ to enter into our wounds, we have to acknowledge that they are there and wait patiently as He removes the "dirt" from our lives. The little boy sat there whincing as the last of the dirt was removed from the wound. Then the healing process could begin. We finished up and the boy was happy again. He was so pleased to have his wound taken care of....but I think he was happier that someone had acknowledged the fact that he was hurt and needed help. Amazing how this same process echoes throughout our lives. Dont allow your wounds to stay covered with dirt. Bring them to the surface and allow Christ to enter into them. He never heals the outside first. If we had just cleaned the outside up and sewed it shut with the dirt under the surface, it would never heal properly. No, instead Christ enters INTO our wounds and heals us from the inside out, slowly removing the death and decay, the dirt, from our wounds and restoring us to the way we were created to be. Lets continue to examine our lives, find the wounds, and invite the Physician to do His magic.
Sunday, February 10, 2008
Day 143, Bangalore
I just spent 24 hours on a train from Mumbai to Bangalore. Very....interesting. As we crammed all our luggage on the train *cough7girls=alotofluggagecough* the girls started picking "beds". They were more like padded shelves, but whatever. The beds were about a foot and a half wide. There were 8 of them. In the main compartment there were six beds, stacked three high, about 6 1/2 feet long. The girls all filled the top four beds, leaving 2 bottom beds which were occupied by an Indian couple. These beds ran perpendicular to the train, then there were two beds that ran parallel to the train. I got stuck with one of these....of course. The only problem: The bed was walled off at the head and foot, and the bed was only about 5 feet 9 inches. Im 6 foot...my feet couldn't even hang off the bottom because of the wall. How is it that the tallest person on our team gets the shortest bed? Because im the guy. Thank you Lord for giving me an opportunity to sacrifice my comfort. It made a memory, I'm happy.
Needless to say I had a less that enjoyable nights sleep. When everyone woke the next morning we still had 14 hours left on the train. We did absolutely nothing. lol. We just waited and wrote and read. A few hours before we got off I got my guitar out and decided it would be a good idea to have some worship while we were surrounded by a bunch of Indians. We began to sing and worship, everyone was listening, you could hear it in the whole car. There is just something about worshiping around a bunch of non-believers that gets my blood pumping. As I finished up i decided to talk to the two Indians that were sharing a compartment with us. After a while of talking I found out that they were making a pilgrimage to the south to offer prayers in temples. What was I getting into. I shared my testimony and why my team was heading to Bangalore. They were very interested, and enjoyed talking about it. I have found that the people here are very tolerable and accepting of other religions, but aren't really interested in changing to the Truth. We got off the train and said good-bye to them and made our way to the bus.
Our room isnt too bad, me and Ruseball are sharing a room with three American guys from another DTS outreach team. THANK YOU LORD. This is the first time I've been around another American guy in months, and it is soothing. I'm looking forward to our work here, it will be wonderful and I'm expecting the Lord to do amazing things.
I've gotta run for now, I'll give you all another update after I get the orientation to Bangalore and know what my team will be doing.
Needless to say I had a less that enjoyable nights sleep. When everyone woke the next morning we still had 14 hours left on the train. We did absolutely nothing. lol. We just waited and wrote and read. A few hours before we got off I got my guitar out and decided it would be a good idea to have some worship while we were surrounded by a bunch of Indians. We began to sing and worship, everyone was listening, you could hear it in the whole car. There is just something about worshiping around a bunch of non-believers that gets my blood pumping. As I finished up i decided to talk to the two Indians that were sharing a compartment with us. After a while of talking I found out that they were making a pilgrimage to the south to offer prayers in temples. What was I getting into. I shared my testimony and why my team was heading to Bangalore. They were very interested, and enjoyed talking about it. I have found that the people here are very tolerable and accepting of other religions, but aren't really interested in changing to the Truth. We got off the train and said good-bye to them and made our way to the bus.
Our room isnt too bad, me and Ruseball are sharing a room with three American guys from another DTS outreach team. THANK YOU LORD. This is the first time I've been around another American guy in months, and it is soothing. I'm looking forward to our work here, it will be wonderful and I'm expecting the Lord to do amazing things.
I've gotta run for now, I'll give you all another update after I get the orientation to Bangalore and know what my team will be doing.
Friday, February 8, 2008
Day 140, Mumbai
Today is our last day in Mumbai. We will go speak and do a drama at a concert tonight and this will sum up our ministry in this city. Tomorrow night we leave for Bangalore, which is in South India. We will spend 24 hours on the train. From what we have heard, this will be an interesting train ride.
My illness is fading. Thank you so much for your prayers. After almost three weeks of coughing and illness I am finally healing. I know many of you have been praying for me, and it is working!
This week we traveled to the largest temple in Mumbai, and the largest Muslim mosque. It was a powerful prayer walk. As we made our way to the temple we passed many people selling plates full of flowers and coconuts....everyone was selling them. As we climbed the stairs to the temple at the top I began to pray. The Indians were so blind....I couldn't believe it. They brought these plates of flowers and coconuts in and walked around the temple, expecting their gods to bless them, and then would take them back to their house so their house would be blessed by the flowers.
As I walked around I was almost overwhelmed. They were SOOO headstrong about their religion...they were SOOO blind to the real truth, their religion wasn't just a Sunday service religion, it was a complete way of life, the way they dress, speak, think, work, eat, pray....everything they did was under the guise of their religion. I began to think, "How is it possible to show these people the truth....it is too hard to change their life". I started to think about everything that would have to change in their life for them to follow Christ and started to realize how impossible it was. Then I felt the Holy Spirit quicken something to my mind. It was then that I realized that I had doubted the strength of our God. He is strong enough to break their religion's hold on them. HE IS STRONG ENOUGH. From that point on, that is what my prayer was focused on, declaring the strength of the Lord, declaring His power over their religion, over their way of life, and declaring that He has the power to change people's lives. I was not overwhelmed anymore.
I walked to the back of the temple where I found a staircase winding down to the sea. I walked down the stairs and sat there praying for the Lord to open their eyes to what they are doing. They get NOTHING from their gods, absolutely NOTHING, yet they continue to do their rituals in hopes that when they die they will be reincarnated into something better than a bug or dog (or worse, a cat). As I sat there I watched some people walk down with their platters of coconuts and flowers, and hand a girl their coconut. She walked across the rocks and down to the water where she threw the coconut in the water as an offering to their gods. I sat there in amazement. "How foolish you are! Open your eyes to what you are doing!" I thought to myself. They throw coconuts in the sea in order to please their gods. They carve statues and worship them....worship something that they themselves created! The last time it was counted they concluded that there are over 330,000,000 gods in India...That is 330 MILLION different gods that they worship....monkey gods, rat gods, cow gods, coconut gods....you name it, they worship it....they worship everything that is lower than them. How cunning the prince of this world is to get people to believe they will benefit in their "afterlife" by worshiping the rats and cats and cows and everything else on the planet that is of less value than they themselves.
I prayed that their eyes would be opened, that they would begin to think about their life, that they would begin to hear the truth.
We left there and went to the mosque afterwards. I spent a month in Egypt where I was constantly surrounded by the mosques and their eerie chants to prayer, where all the women completely covered themselves in black, with only a small slit for their eyes, where the men had huge bruises on their heads from smacking their foreheads on the ground in prayer 5 times a day. I was very familiar with Islam and had a pretty good picture of what to expect. A small rock walkway jutted a few hundred yards out into the sea where the mosque sat surrounded by water. As I entered the mosque I was shocked to see how different it was. It was mixed with Hinduism! The women didnt wear the black, the men had no bruises, the chant wasn't playing.....The Muslims here conform their religion however necessary in order to get people to follow their religion. Muslims don't worship idols, but these did. In a country where people are used to praying "to" something tangible, the muslims put things infront of them so they could worship them.
This was a shock to me, but it made sense at the same time. The enemy is so focused on separating people from Christ that he will use any means necessary, even if it contradicts his own made up religions, to get them to do it. In America, Islam is taking off like a wildfire. They are mainly doing this through the black population. They tell them that Jesus was white and preached that the Kingdom of Heaven was for white people, and that Mohammad was black and accepted blacks. By this, the muslims convert many blacks to Islam. When I spoke to one of the muslims here about this he was completely shocked that they did that. He said it was wrong and that Mohammad wasn't black. In the Qua'ran it says that it is okay to lie to people in order to get them to believe your religion. I didnt realize the extent of how true this was until I saw this mosque. Islam changes and shifts its beliefs and lies in order to get as many followers as possible.
I am so thankful for the stability of living a life with Christ, where you are anchored to something solid, the ROCK. Something that doesn't move and shift, but has always been and will always be the same.
Well, I dont know if I will be able to post until after I arrive in Bangalore where I will tell you all about the 24 hour train ride. Please pray that I will get some sleep and it wont be too bad.
My illness is fading. Thank you so much for your prayers. After almost three weeks of coughing and illness I am finally healing. I know many of you have been praying for me, and it is working!
This week we traveled to the largest temple in Mumbai, and the largest Muslim mosque. It was a powerful prayer walk. As we made our way to the temple we passed many people selling plates full of flowers and coconuts....everyone was selling them. As we climbed the stairs to the temple at the top I began to pray. The Indians were so blind....I couldn't believe it. They brought these plates of flowers and coconuts in and walked around the temple, expecting their gods to bless them, and then would take them back to their house so their house would be blessed by the flowers.
As I walked around I was almost overwhelmed. They were SOOO headstrong about their religion...they were SOOO blind to the real truth, their religion wasn't just a Sunday service religion, it was a complete way of life, the way they dress, speak, think, work, eat, pray....everything they did was under the guise of their religion. I began to think, "How is it possible to show these people the truth....it is too hard to change their life". I started to think about everything that would have to change in their life for them to follow Christ and started to realize how impossible it was. Then I felt the Holy Spirit quicken something to my mind. It was then that I realized that I had doubted the strength of our God. He is strong enough to break their religion's hold on them. HE IS STRONG ENOUGH. From that point on, that is what my prayer was focused on, declaring the strength of the Lord, declaring His power over their religion, over their way of life, and declaring that He has the power to change people's lives. I was not overwhelmed anymore.
I walked to the back of the temple where I found a staircase winding down to the sea. I walked down the stairs and sat there praying for the Lord to open their eyes to what they are doing. They get NOTHING from their gods, absolutely NOTHING, yet they continue to do their rituals in hopes that when they die they will be reincarnated into something better than a bug or dog (or worse, a cat). As I sat there I watched some people walk down with their platters of coconuts and flowers, and hand a girl their coconut. She walked across the rocks and down to the water where she threw the coconut in the water as an offering to their gods. I sat there in amazement. "How foolish you are! Open your eyes to what you are doing!" I thought to myself. They throw coconuts in the sea in order to please their gods. They carve statues and worship them....worship something that they themselves created! The last time it was counted they concluded that there are over 330,000,000 gods in India...That is 330 MILLION different gods that they worship....monkey gods, rat gods, cow gods, coconut gods....you name it, they worship it....they worship everything that is lower than them. How cunning the prince of this world is to get people to believe they will benefit in their "afterlife" by worshiping the rats and cats and cows and everything else on the planet that is of less value than they themselves.
I prayed that their eyes would be opened, that they would begin to think about their life, that they would begin to hear the truth.
We left there and went to the mosque afterwards. I spent a month in Egypt where I was constantly surrounded by the mosques and their eerie chants to prayer, where all the women completely covered themselves in black, with only a small slit for their eyes, where the men had huge bruises on their heads from smacking their foreheads on the ground in prayer 5 times a day. I was very familiar with Islam and had a pretty good picture of what to expect. A small rock walkway jutted a few hundred yards out into the sea where the mosque sat surrounded by water. As I entered the mosque I was shocked to see how different it was. It was mixed with Hinduism! The women didnt wear the black, the men had no bruises, the chant wasn't playing.....The Muslims here conform their religion however necessary in order to get people to follow their religion. Muslims don't worship idols, but these did. In a country where people are used to praying "to" something tangible, the muslims put things infront of them so they could worship them.
This was a shock to me, but it made sense at the same time. The enemy is so focused on separating people from Christ that he will use any means necessary, even if it contradicts his own made up religions, to get them to do it. In America, Islam is taking off like a wildfire. They are mainly doing this through the black population. They tell them that Jesus was white and preached that the Kingdom of Heaven was for white people, and that Mohammad was black and accepted blacks. By this, the muslims convert many blacks to Islam. When I spoke to one of the muslims here about this he was completely shocked that they did that. He said it was wrong and that Mohammad wasn't black. In the Qua'ran it says that it is okay to lie to people in order to get them to believe your religion. I didnt realize the extent of how true this was until I saw this mosque. Islam changes and shifts its beliefs and lies in order to get as many followers as possible.
I am so thankful for the stability of living a life with Christ, where you are anchored to something solid, the ROCK. Something that doesn't move and shift, but has always been and will always be the same.
Well, I dont know if I will be able to post until after I arrive in Bangalore where I will tell you all about the 24 hour train ride. Please pray that I will get some sleep and it wont be too bad.
Thursday, February 7, 2008
Day 139, Mumbai
Whew, its been a packed week. I just got back from a meeting with the local ministry workers here in Mumbai, my team is leaving on Saturday to do ministry in Bangalore. We will be in Bangalore for two weeks before we head to Goa to debrief.
I forgot to share a story of provision with you all! I was spending some time one morning looking over my things, everything I have with me. I have some clothes, a Bible and a journal, my brother's guitar, and a broken laptop and iPod, even the suitcases were borrowed. I look back at what I actually owned back home.... I don't own a vehicle anymore....no furniture....the clothes I didn't bring with me were the clothes I dont wear.... Then it hit me, I don't own anything anymore! I've got my clothes, my Bible, some books, and thats about it. I actually still OWE money! lol. I was reading through Matthew 6 where it talks about how God knows our needs, He feeds the birds and clothes the grass, and how much more important are we! I just started praying. I am the only one on my team who hasn't raised all the money we were each supposed to contribute. I still needed $1,400 for our team to have enough money to finish our ministry here. I had begun to doubt that I would be able to raise this, it seems to hard to get support while you are overseas. I just prayed and asked. Later this day I received an e-mail saying that someone had donated $400! I was so amazed, it was such a blessing. Not only did this help with my financial needs while I'm over here, but it picked up my spirit and strengthened my faith in His provision! How wonderful He is! I do no know who sent this money, but I just wanted to thank you so much, you have no idea how spirit-led that was. It was an answer to prayer and it has blessed me so much! Thank you!
Okay, im being kicked off the computer in this net cafe, I'll post more soon. Probably tomorrow.
I forgot to share a story of provision with you all! I was spending some time one morning looking over my things, everything I have with me. I have some clothes, a Bible and a journal, my brother's guitar, and a broken laptop and iPod, even the suitcases were borrowed. I look back at what I actually owned back home.... I don't own a vehicle anymore....no furniture....the clothes I didn't bring with me were the clothes I dont wear.... Then it hit me, I don't own anything anymore! I've got my clothes, my Bible, some books, and thats about it. I actually still OWE money! lol. I was reading through Matthew 6 where it talks about how God knows our needs, He feeds the birds and clothes the grass, and how much more important are we! I just started praying. I am the only one on my team who hasn't raised all the money we were each supposed to contribute. I still needed $1,400 for our team to have enough money to finish our ministry here. I had begun to doubt that I would be able to raise this, it seems to hard to get support while you are overseas. I just prayed and asked. Later this day I received an e-mail saying that someone had donated $400! I was so amazed, it was such a blessing. Not only did this help with my financial needs while I'm over here, but it picked up my spirit and strengthened my faith in His provision! How wonderful He is! I do no know who sent this money, but I just wanted to thank you so much, you have no idea how spirit-led that was. It was an answer to prayer and it has blessed me so much! Thank you!
Okay, im being kicked off the computer in this net cafe, I'll post more soon. Probably tomorrow.
Saturday, February 2, 2008
Day 134, Mumbai
I have been told that a lot of you are asking about my iPod. lol. I have tried drying it out and charging it...nothing works. Its okay though, its just an iPod, its not the end of the world. He gives and takes away.
Wednesday morning we crammed onto a bus with our small backpacks for a trip to a base a few hours away in the hill country of Lonavala. Mostly inhabited my small "tribes" or slum areas, there is a fairly nice YWAM base nestled in the mountains there. Our busride through the mountains was very scenic and the monkies that swung in the trees and walked along the rode helped the time to pass and helped us to not notice the absense of A/C. We were going to teach. At this base there was a new team of DTS students who had just begun their lecture phase. Shortly after we arived I had to change into my dress clothes and prepare to teach. The students entered the classroom and I began speaking about dramas and outreaches. After two hours I was about half way done. lol. We ended the class and met with a man named Alex who took us to his house for dinner. For those of you who know my bud Marko, Alex is the guy who led him to the Lord. After an evening of dinner and talking we returned to the base and retired to our rooms where I spent the whole night coughing.
For about 2 weeks now I have been fighting off a cold. I am congested and cough non-stop. I dont think the pollution is helping much. Hopefully this will pass soon. Pray for healing.
The next morning we woke and were briefed on a local outreach the students were going on. We decided to go with them. My team paired up with a team of 10 DTS students from the Lonavala base. They had only had a couple outreaches so far and were new to it. The village that we would be taken to had just been reached a few weeks ago, and so far all the outreaches that had been done had been praying outreaches where they walk around the village praying. We brought a battery powered CD player and planned to do a drama for the village. Our group, along with the DTS students, circled to pray for the next few hours of outreach. The students were still shy and uncomfortable (I remember this phase my team went through during our lecture time), and I was so proud to see each member of my team pray out and declare the outreach for the Kingdom and ask that the Holy Spirit be with us and speak through us. Only two from the DTS students prayed, one of them being a staff member. As the SUV climbed the mountain rodes I thought about the village that we were about to enter.
We piled out of the SUV and began walking. We entered someone's house and just sat there. They students didnt know what to do. We talked to the outreach leader and he said we could do a drama outside if we wanted. Well, we wanted to! As we stepped out onto the dirt rode and began to set the CD player up, the Indian Staff member told his team what we were going to do. There was no crowd, no one watching, just a few people walking past in the street every few minutes. I began to wonder how this would work....it was a small street, no room for anyone to crowd and watch....and no way to let the village know! They'll come, I reassured myself. We set up like we were about to start the drama....some people passing by watched curiously as we took our positions. Only one problem...the CD player wouldn't work. No matter what we tried, we couldn't get it to work. So we decided to start singing. As we sang, more and more villagers stopped to watch, then the children came. After a few minutes there were 50-75 people crowded on both sides of the street, infront of us, behind us, on both sides, crammed together. We decided to do a drama that didnt need music. We located some props we might need and then got someone to translate for us that we were about to do a drama. Afterwards I would preach.
We did our drama and the staff member from the other team came to translate for me. As I stood there preaching the Gospel, more and more people began to come. I spoke for about 45 minutes, and at the end I spoke about salvation and gave a opportunity for them to pray. As he translated the prayer, I looked up to see so many people, children and all, bowing their heads in prayer, repenting for their sins and asking Jesus to come into their life. I couldn't believe it. They Holy Spirit had been with us. What an amazing outreach.
As we finished up our program the villagers came to speak with us, my girls played with the little girls, and the guys spoke with the men and boys who had questions or just wanted to meet us or ask us for personal prayer. As me and my translator walked a little farther from the group he said to me, "That was amazing.....this is the first time the Gospel has ever been preached here....that was so powerful....thank you".
We got back to the base, I washed up, and prepared to teach another 2 hour class on outreach dramas. This one wouldn't start until 9pm. I walked into the classroom and finished up teaching the DTS students the dramas and how to use them. After we encouraged them in their outreaches we retired to our rooms and I spent another night coughing.
We left the following day and came back here to Mumbai. Which is where my story leaves off right now. I am still pretty sick, but looking back....I have realized that during the classes I taught every night and the preaching in the village....i didn't cough once. Thats a miracle.
Wednesday morning we crammed onto a bus with our small backpacks for a trip to a base a few hours away in the hill country of Lonavala. Mostly inhabited my small "tribes" or slum areas, there is a fairly nice YWAM base nestled in the mountains there. Our busride through the mountains was very scenic and the monkies that swung in the trees and walked along the rode helped the time to pass and helped us to not notice the absense of A/C. We were going to teach. At this base there was a new team of DTS students who had just begun their lecture phase. Shortly after we arived I had to change into my dress clothes and prepare to teach. The students entered the classroom and I began speaking about dramas and outreaches. After two hours I was about half way done. lol. We ended the class and met with a man named Alex who took us to his house for dinner. For those of you who know my bud Marko, Alex is the guy who led him to the Lord. After an evening of dinner and talking we returned to the base and retired to our rooms where I spent the whole night coughing.
For about 2 weeks now I have been fighting off a cold. I am congested and cough non-stop. I dont think the pollution is helping much. Hopefully this will pass soon. Pray for healing.
The next morning we woke and were briefed on a local outreach the students were going on. We decided to go with them. My team paired up with a team of 10 DTS students from the Lonavala base. They had only had a couple outreaches so far and were new to it. The village that we would be taken to had just been reached a few weeks ago, and so far all the outreaches that had been done had been praying outreaches where they walk around the village praying. We brought a battery powered CD player and planned to do a drama for the village. Our group, along with the DTS students, circled to pray for the next few hours of outreach. The students were still shy and uncomfortable (I remember this phase my team went through during our lecture time), and I was so proud to see each member of my team pray out and declare the outreach for the Kingdom and ask that the Holy Spirit be with us and speak through us. Only two from the DTS students prayed, one of them being a staff member. As the SUV climbed the mountain rodes I thought about the village that we were about to enter.
We piled out of the SUV and began walking. We entered someone's house and just sat there. They students didnt know what to do. We talked to the outreach leader and he said we could do a drama outside if we wanted. Well, we wanted to! As we stepped out onto the dirt rode and began to set the CD player up, the Indian Staff member told his team what we were going to do. There was no crowd, no one watching, just a few people walking past in the street every few minutes. I began to wonder how this would work....it was a small street, no room for anyone to crowd and watch....and no way to let the village know! They'll come, I reassured myself. We set up like we were about to start the drama....some people passing by watched curiously as we took our positions. Only one problem...the CD player wouldn't work. No matter what we tried, we couldn't get it to work. So we decided to start singing. As we sang, more and more villagers stopped to watch, then the children came. After a few minutes there were 50-75 people crowded on both sides of the street, infront of us, behind us, on both sides, crammed together. We decided to do a drama that didnt need music. We located some props we might need and then got someone to translate for us that we were about to do a drama. Afterwards I would preach.
We did our drama and the staff member from the other team came to translate for me. As I stood there preaching the Gospel, more and more people began to come. I spoke for about 45 minutes, and at the end I spoke about salvation and gave a opportunity for them to pray. As he translated the prayer, I looked up to see so many people, children and all, bowing their heads in prayer, repenting for their sins and asking Jesus to come into their life. I couldn't believe it. They Holy Spirit had been with us. What an amazing outreach.
As we finished up our program the villagers came to speak with us, my girls played with the little girls, and the guys spoke with the men and boys who had questions or just wanted to meet us or ask us for personal prayer. As me and my translator walked a little farther from the group he said to me, "That was amazing.....this is the first time the Gospel has ever been preached here....that was so powerful....thank you".
We got back to the base, I washed up, and prepared to teach another 2 hour class on outreach dramas. This one wouldn't start until 9pm. I walked into the classroom and finished up teaching the DTS students the dramas and how to use them. After we encouraged them in their outreaches we retired to our rooms and I spent another night coughing.
We left the following day and came back here to Mumbai. Which is where my story leaves off right now. I am still pretty sick, but looking back....I have realized that during the classes I taught every night and the preaching in the village....i didn't cough once. Thats a miracle.
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