Recent Reflections

These reflections were posted prior to our knowledge of the Mumbai terriorist attacks... read on.

Our team's level of commitment and excitement for this project has blossomed. It is one month from today that we depart for India. Here are some recent reflections of some of our team members:

From Andrew (co-leader):
I've reflected on one of the many reasons we are going: to share words of our Lord who said, "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light." (Matthew 11:28)

Where we are headed, the workforce labors hard and from what I've seen, many are weary. For instance, during our early morning drive from the airport just after arriving in India, we will undoubtedly pass an endless parade of laborers trudging along even before the sun rises to go work in the fields. They will put in a full 10 or 12 hour day and then walk back home only to do it all over again the next day.

What can we possible bring to such an existence that will be in any way meaningful? We bring that which we have to share: medical care, a touch of kindness and best of all, The Word of God. I pray that the Word of God becomes real to those whom we touch and lives on forever.

From Jerri (nurse):

God is so faithful! I was asking Him for a promise for all of us and for our families at home that do have some concerns about our safety, as we going into a country with some ongoing violence. Here is what He gave me just today.

Psalms 105: 13-15
When they went from one nation to another;
From one Kingdom to another people,
He permitted no one to do them wrong;
Yes, He rebuked kings for their sakes,
Saying, "do not touch My anointed ones,
And do My prophets no harm."

This made my day, hope it brightens your too! Jerri

From Cheryl (nurse), who homeschools her two children:
Our curriculum reading this morning was on the cycle of poverty in India and brainstorming ways we could help "break it." There was a true story (complete with great photos) about a young homeless couple with a sick child in Mumbai. The husband is a rickshaw driver and the wife sells lemons on the street.

Our discussion of possible ways to help led both my kids to the conclusion that instead of wanting to purchase items here to send to India, they want to send more money to be used to buy from the people there.

Of course, we can still purchase some items here that may not be available there, but they have made me PROMISE that I will buy lemons from any street vendor I see and, if I ride in a rickshaw, I will pay the driver extra, and if I see any little girls sick with diarrhea, I will give them water and medicine at "no charge". Their compassion is real and their connection to the people we will serve is getting stronger every day.

Follow-up to the previous email from Cheryl:
I don't in anyway want this to sound like I'm bragging but...Bryce wrote an "ending" to the story of the family we read about where a "tall white man" paid the mother 500 rupees for one lemon, read to her from a Book, led her to Jesus, healed her daughter, then came back every day to teach the family to read and write so they could earn enough money to send their daughter to school.
I asked Bryce if he thought this was a realistic/practical ending to the story and he answered with an emphatic "YES!" Then he asked if there was any way I could maybe go through Mumbai on my way home in case this family was still living in the slums.

I didn't actually get to the lesson on "Underlining vs. quotation marks to set titles of books/articles apart in a sentence" but somehow that doesn't seem to matter...Cheryl

From Daleen, (co-leader):

Here is my “anchor” for the trip, the one the Lord led me to about 3 weeks ago:

Zechariah 2:5 (don’t ask me how I got here – it’s convoluted):

“I will be a wall of fire around her (me, us) and I will be the glory in her (my, our) midst.”