Monday, July 21, 2008

All Good Things.

All good things come to an end. As we are wrapping up the final days in our adventures here in India, we are all taking some time to take stock of the experiences we have had here. The canvas for this time of reflection just happens to be one of the 7 built wonders of the world…the Taj Mahal.

We spent 27+ hours on a train to get us to Agra…I (Tony) must admit, the time flew by much quicker than I had expected. It was a beautiful time of rest, reading, and introspection. We all found our nose buried in books and journals, and before we knew it we were here in Agra with anticipation of children at Christmas, knowing the Taj Mahal was on the day’s agenda. We slept for 3 hours or so, and then began our early morning to the Taj. This required us all to “push through” with little sleep and achy limbs and stomachs.

The Taj Mahal is actually quite a beautiful thing to behold. As most of you know, it was built as a tomb to enshrine a love lost to death. It glistens with a brilliant white from all over the city. From every brief glimpse of the towering minerettes, or the beautiful domes, the Taj Mahal has an ability to excite even the most apathetic sight see-er. Although the structure and grounds are incredibly impressive and beautiful (and we were all quite elated to be there), I think many of us at one point were also saddened by it. Man spends so much time and energy glorifying the wrong things.



Two quick things about our team at the Taj: we all sweat more than any of us has ever sweat before, assuring us that heaven will be a temperate place, more like San Deigo than Agra; and we all did exactly what we set out to do at the Taj, get the perfect Facebook picture.

With that said, as is the case during our debrief, I have been reflecting on our trip and wanted to put a few things in writing for you all. I hope it encourages and challenges you as it has me.

Reflections from Happy Home for the Handicapped: This is a place that can only be described as Ben said upon our first arrival “A piece of heaven on earth.” Not because it is a beautiful building with brilliant white, but because the people there make it so. The families and staff that live and work there evince a true servant’s heart every day, and show Christ to the children on a daily basis. The children themselves are welling up with a pure joy and peace that could only be a part of their existence were it for Christ in their life. Their stories are too sad to generate the love they do without Chirst in their lives. It is a truly beautiful and special thing happening there, and it is still very much with our team and me as we continue toward home.


Reflections from Ongole: The villages of Ongole have left me with a heavy heart. We saw the darkness idol worship and false gods can have on communities and families, and two things Jesus said keep echoing through my mind. “Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness and all these things will be added unto you.” (Matthew 6:33) We had one specific interaction with a man who had lost his faith, and claimed that there was no God because of his circumstances. He didn’t see the Lord saving him from his troubles, so he presumed God not to be. I love that verse in Matthew because it put into proper order the priorities we should have. The kingdom is our heartbeat…and if it is, everything else will work itself out. “Some things can only be done with prayer and fasting.” (Mark 9:29) We need to be prepared for troubles in our life that we might not also turn. Keeping our mind and attention on the Lord is of paramount importance.


I know I am getting a bit long here, but I also wanted to take a minute to mention what a beautiful team we have and spend a minute encouraging them and you about the ways I have seen Jesus in new ways through them all. Here is just short list of the qualities I have seen through my team that show how Jesus is alive in their lives, and molding them into creatures more like Him: selfless servant-hood, childlike joy, unabandoned love for one another, extreme patience, authenticity, tender compassion, gentle love, and sacrifice for each other. I am proud to have been a part of such a beautiful group.

Tony

Extra Extra Read All About It...

Hey all, it’s Danielle! No worries we are safe! PTL (Praise the Lord) as Jordan would say. We had no access to the internet in Ongole. We arrived in Ongole early in the morning around 2 AM. We finally got settled in, and got some rest for a long day ahead of us. We stayed in Ongole for 3 days and somehow managed to get our photo in the daily newspaper. Let me tell you, us white people have Hollywood status. There was a small article about us, explaining that we were here to see the Prime Minister. Apparently she was in town the same time we were.

Aside from having our day of fame, the Lord had many blessings ahead of us and was at work. Every morning after breakfast we headed over to an orphanage with about 200 children to sing songs with and love on. In the Afternoon we headed over to the Jr. College to share our testimonies and words of encouragement. Both the orphanage and Jr. College are part of Beulah Ministries. While we were there we performed 2 skits from the Bible, which the kids loved. We had such a great time performing out silly skits; we felt like kids again. It was definitely a blessing for us to spend time with those amazing children.

The first day we were there, the Lord specifically had a blessing for me. We were having lunch at the hotel restaurant and a man comes over to me saying, “Hello, Miss Danielle.” I look over in confusion and soon realize I know him! It was one of my student’s parents from last year. His son Abhinav was with him. They were just passing through to get some lunch and go further with their travels to see their family. What are the odds? I got to chat with them for a little while and went to go finish my lunch. As I was finishing I couldn’t help but think that this was one of Gods divine appointments. So I prayed and prayed asking the Lord to give me words to speak hoping to at least plant some sort of seed. I finally got the courage to go back over and chat some more We talked about the Hindu religion which they practice once in awhile and how different the cultures are compared to America. I was able to share why we were here in India and what we were doing. Our conversation was coming to an end and I got that panic feeling inside thinking, “what else can I say?” The first thing that came out was, “Can I pray for you?” He was a little caught off guard but seemed open to it as well. So I got to pray for them and wished them the best! So I pray that the Lord used that time for seed planting! The Lord had more to come.

After visiting the Jr. College Wednesday and Thursday we visited some villages. We had the privilege of sharing the gospel and praying for people that were ill. In the first village we prayed with a man who was barely able to walk. He kept asking us to pray that he could walk to the village church and join in the service. With great faith we surrounded the man and laid hands on him, speaking Jesus’ name. By the grace of God he arose to his feet and with Ben on one side and the pastor of the village on the other, he led a processional to the church. It was amazing! To see the hand of God so strongly on this man’s body brought tears to our eyes. The next night we visited another village, where we met a woman who was quite hardened to the gospel. But that didn’t stop it from spilling out of our mouths. After sharing scripture and telling her of the life Jesus had to offer her, we asked if she wanted to ask Jesus into her heart and she said YES! What a blessing it was to witness salvation for this woman.

All in all, Ongole was fun, it was intense, and we got to end the trip by going to the Bay of Bengal. A day at the beach was just what the team needed to end a great few days In Ongole. We hope all is well back home! See you soon!

Danielle

Monday, July 14, 2008

Saying our Goodbyes...

As the team pulled up into Happy Home this morning, I don't know if anyone expected such a sad goodbye. We spent some time with the kids, giving hugs and kisses, and telling them how much we love them, feeling so much love in return. When it was time to go, most of us were in tears as we thought about having to leave this place that we've grown to love so much, these kids we've come to adore. Seeing many of the children crying made it so hard to leave. I will never forget those sad faces waving goodbye to us as our bus left the property. Happy Home will forever be ingrained in our hearts. We will never forget those sweet faces, loving hugs, crazy hand games, gentle touches, quirky personalities and adorable smiles. Our team has been so blessed by our time at Happy Home!







With heavy hearts, we headed toward the train station to start our journey to Ongole. Our first train ride was about 1.5 hours and was a nice break for us to all sit together and just relax. As we waited to board the second train that would take us to Bangalore, the team started talking about last year's trip and the running and throwing of bags that was involved. This made us all a bit anxious, but thankfully we all made it on the train safely and no one was left behind:) I don't know how he did it, but after about a half hour into the ride Roshan had managed to get seats for the whole team in the air-conditioned car of the train. It was a great way to spend the 3 hours!

We arrived in Bangalore and headed to our hotel. Since we've been at the hotel, we've been enjoying the clean rooms and comfy beds. Our afternoon was nice as we all got a chance to relax and get some rest before our long train ride tomorrow! We headed up to the hotel restaurant on the roof of the building for dinner and were greeted by a nice cool breeze, the honking of the cars below, and fireworks!! Dinner on the roof was a fun way to spend the last time our whole team would be together. Bob had to leave for the airport right after dinner to go back home to be with his family. It's been such a blast to have Bob on this team and we've loved getting to know him! We love you Bob and we miss you already!


--Courtney Sell

Sunday, July 13, 2008

A sad farewell to our friends at Happy Home



Greetings family and friends from India! Today didn't start off as our usual day here at Happy Home, which usually consists of waking the kids up, helping them brush their teeth, serving them breakfast, and then getting them ready for school. Nope, today Roshan took us on a hike to what they like to call here in India as the "world famous" Jog Falls. And a hike it was! As a few of us hiked down nearly to the bottom Ben mentioned that he now knows what it means on the application when it says arduous hikes! After our hike it was back to Happy Home to spend the last few hours we had left with the kids. It's sad to think that tomorrow we'll be leaving to head to Ongole and we'll have to say goodbye to these precious little faces. But like someone once told me, its never goodbye, it's always see you later!

I think I can speak for the team when I say that the impact that these children have made on my life while I've been here is like nothing I've ever experienced before. They have taught me so much in just this short amount of time that it brings tears to my eyes to even think about saying goodbye to these beautiful kids.

But as we approach our departure tomorrow our team would like to ask all of you to continue to keep us in your prayers, especially our health. A handful of us have been feeling a little under the weather and traveling isn't necessarily the funnest thing when you're sick. So prayer for our health and quick recoveries, and also prayer for our travels that we would make it to our next destination safely. Thank you all for your constant prayers and comments. We read them everyday and look forward to reading more! Love you all and we'll be in touch soon!

Much love
Stephanie









Saturday, July 12, 2008

CHAOS!!

So, here I am, sitting in Roshan’s room, trying to write this blog. And, all I can think of is that nothing I write will even come close to how awesome today was. The kids only had a half day at school. After doing some chores, we sat all of the kids down in the prayer hall. I don’t think they knew what was coming. What came next, can pretty much be summed up in one word…. Chaos. We passed out toys to each of the kids, that wasn’t the problem. We also blew up about twenty beach balls. And from there it starts! The simplest thing brought so much joy, and a few tears, to all of the kids at Happy Home. I don’t think we expected the balls to be such a hit, but a hit they were. The kids were so happy, and had so much fun. It was crazy.. beach balls were flying everywhere. We had to move the party outside. And from there things just got crazier! There were kids running all over the property, and beach balls everywhere! One of the kids was playing with a Frisbee, but using it as a steering wheel, and was making driving sounds and honking at everyone.. and of course as always, our little friend was hollering “Roshan! Roshan!” But the day didn’t end there. Reema, beautiful Reema, took us shopping to buy saris. That was in adventure in itself! From the second we stepped out of the cars and until we stepped back in… it was a little awkward. The streets were crowded and it was hot… and the group of us stuck out like a sore thumb. We found the shop we were looking for and went in. All of us girls stayed and tried on about a million saris, and the guys went and bought bananas. About an hour later… we were ready to bargain. Good thing we had Stella there to help! So, we made our way back down stairs to pay. That took some time. As we stood in the door way, we got plenty of looks, but even more stares. And, yes, even a few, “what country?! What country?!” Roshan said, Africa... We trekked our way back home, and back to the quiet and comfort of Happy Home. I think it’s safe speak for the whole team when I say, to be perfectly honest, there is nowhere else I’d rather be.

Missing you all!
-Christine






Friday, July 11, 2008

Yes, we are still alive...


FINALLY!!!!!!!! A NEW POST!!!!!!!!

Sorry but our internet has been pretty sketchy the last few days (well ok, it just hasn’t been working at all). We’ll try to make it up to you guys but it was totally out of our control!

The last few days at Happy Home have been AWESOME. However, most of us don’t like the part about Roshan picking us up from the hotel at 5:30 IN THE MORNING to start our work at the orphanage. We split into two teams so we could take turns on who wakes up early. We continue to marvel at the staff here at Happy Home and how they do all this work every single day. It’s hard enough with the eleven of us! Even the kids help with most of the work and they do it with huge smiles on their faces. The kids have really shown all of us what Paul meant in 1 Corinthians 1 when he said that God uses the weak things of the world to shame the strong. All those tiny little kids seem to have more strength than we do!

We have played a bunch of really fun games with the kids. We did an epic game of duck, duck, goose with the whole orphanage (only they call it something different in India- it sounds kind of like Obi-won Kenobi☺). Then we played a hard-core tackle game, where Irene ended up tearing her MCL. She doesn’t need surgery, just a cast for 3 weeks then a brace. Pray that Irene’s leg heals quickly and that she will REST. It’s hard to keep her off her feet!

Yesterday (the 10th) Roshan took us on a safari. It’s more like getting into a bus with metal screens and driving through the tiger cage at the zoo but it was still pretty cool. Another bus got stuck in the mud but no one could help them because there were four hungry tigers surrounding it! I think they finally made it after we took a few pictures and videos☺.

After the safari we visited a piece of land that will hopefully be the new Happy Home for the Handicapped. We all circled up and prayed over the land. Believe it or not, a church is trying to kick Happy Home off the property they are on now. When I asked Roshan how I should tell you guys to pray he said pray that they get the land of course, and that the people who own the land would be honest and not cheat them. He really feels that this place is meant to be the new Happy Home… definitely something to put on your prayer list!

Well, that’s about it for now and again sorry about the “long-time-no-post” thing! We will post again soon as long as the internet keeps working! Thanks for the prayers and God bless!

Jordan (The tall guy)


The tigers outside the bus that got stuck


The HOPEFULLY new land for Happy Home


Just a cool pic I took while driving through a village


Bob Roach- sleeping beauty

Tuesday, July 8, 2008

30 hours later...

Hello our friends and family! Thank you for joining us! I think I can speak for the team when I say, "Hallelujah we made it!!!" Here are a few pics from our travels.

The team getting ready to head through security at PDX.



Frankfurt airport





We finally arrived in Shimoga at around midnight, and little did we know our first team building exercise awaited us at the baggage carousel. I had been so nervous that my bag would get lost, but one by one all 22 made it. I ran to my bag, checked the tag, and as I flipped it over I noticed something slimy on top! Hmmmm what could this be? You got it, team building exercise in a bag!







After a few sighs from me and about 84 paper towels our wonderful team helped me transfer my stuff into an extra bag Tony had brought. God sure works in mysterious ways. It was actually a blessing in disguise, a little shampoo spill substituted for a shower:) But we were off to a good start! Now to the bus. We loaded our bags and got onto the bus only to have our bus driver back into a car behind us. This maneuver would cost us another 45 minutes as Roshan negotiated for us. Whew, thank goodness for our friend (a black belt in karate I might add). We always feel safe with him!



Many hours later we arrived... As we pulled up all I could think was, "Home, sweet home!" Coming back for the 2nd time has a totally different feel. I had been longing to be here for 12 months, and NOW I was actually here. Here are a few pictures of the precious faces that were waiting for us...





















And last but certainly not least, here is the woman that mothers each of these 84 children here at Happy Home. IRENE! Her story is too long to post right now, but just know that this woman is a woman of God. We could all learn a little bit from her. Pictures of Reema and Roshan to come...

Love you all! Thank you for your prayers!

-Allison Newell-