Heading home

We went to a Chinese restaurant in Hyderabad our last night in India. We spent the night in town, had the morning to do a little shopping and then headed to the airport. We flew to Delhi on Thursday afternoon where we had a lay over until just after midnight Good Friday. Our route home took us up over the North Pole which was pretty cool. After hours of flying, we entered the Central Time Zone at 11:30 pm on Thursday -how's that for going back in time!!!!

Saying goodbye

The day our journey home began, I was decorated by a young lady from the children's home. They use henna and draw flowers and other designs on the hands and arms. I was also blessed with a gift of earrings from the girls of the Children's Home. Wearing my punjabi, I left as Indian as I could get!


It was a sad, tearful time as we pulled away after a very drawn out time of saying good-bye to the kids. I can't wait to get back!!!

Free day

Tuesday was our "tourist" day. We went to a nearby Hindu temple where we walked down a ton of steps to the river, and watched a bunch of monkeys.

We left the temple and caught a ferry across the river to go to a nearby village. We met a Christian woman who invited us to her home. When her friends and family had all gathered, we were able to pray for them. Many of the village children walked us back to the river and stayed with us until we loaded back onto the ferry.

One last day trip

Monday morning, we loaded up into the van once again and headed to another little village where the people gathered for a one-day seminar. In every church we went to, we were all asked to offer greetings to the people. Public speaking has never been my favorite thing, but it was a privilege to be able to honor these people who so honor us! This was our last trip out to a village church. In every village, we were served a wonderful meal before heading home. We got a bunch of the people together just outside the church for pictures just before leaving!

Walking tour

On Sunday evening, we walked around the neighborhood next to the children's home where a once nomadic tribe now lives - many in tents like the one above. We drew a crowd of children that called out "Photo! One more photo!!!" with every step we took.

As we walked around town we had several opportunities to stop and pray for various people. The two men pictured below received healing in their arms as we prayed. In the first picture, the man is shaking hands with his left hand (which is not usually acceptable in their culture as the left hand is considered defiled) to show that strength has returned and the pain he had after having his shoulder dislocated by thieves was completely gone!!! The older man's right arm was locked in a specific position with weakness/paralysis on that side of his body following a stroke. The shoulder gave way and he received more mobility in his arm as we prayed!!! He also felt strengthened to the point that he circled the chair unaided with arms raised in praise after we prayed!!!

Palm Sunday

On Palm Sunday, everyone decorates palm branches with little flowers and carries them to church with them. These are some pictures of the Children's Home children lining up to head to the church with their branches.

When they arrive, they hang the branches up around the church - in the windows, doorways and on the gate.

The church was packed out so several rows of people from the front were brought up onto the platform with us to make more room!

It was an incredible time and we got to be a part of a baptism following the service. It hit me during worship that it was our last Sunday which made it difficult not to cry the rest of the day!

"Hard" work

Part of the work I was able to help with was translating letters from the children's home to their sponsors. We also worked on translating some of the script on the pictures the kids drew during the children's conference. I was also able to spend some time playing with the girls from the children's home. I was severely beaten multiple times in thumb war, won a few games of hot potato, and watched a great skit a few of the girls put together. They are always up for a song and a game. It was a lot of fun! I can't wait to really get to know these girls!!!

Tribal region

Going out to one of the tribal churches was so exciting! We have been praying for this particular region for quite some time as it is a dangerous area where persecution comes both from terrorists in the area and police who accuse Christians of being terrorist informants! It was a long drive, but well worth it!!! It was such an honor to be able to encourage the church and pastors in this area, as we were also blessed by them and the testimony of their faithfulness in very hard situations! We also got to pray blessings over the construction of a new church building that will be used for corporate events with churches from the surrounding villages as well as social events such as weddings. On our way back, we stopped in a small village to pray over another church in need of a new roof. The people gathered as we were looking around and we were able to share with them that we were there to bless them. It was a wonderful day!

Future students for the Christian school

One of the purposes of this trip was to evaluate the potential opening of a new Christian school so we took time to see the land the school would be started on. There is a current 2 room building that would be expanded to 4 rooms with "bathrooms" to hold 75 kindergarten and first grade students. We saw some of the future students who are currently unable to go to school. The government requires new schools to be functioning by the end of August so we will be working to raise funds to complete the construction of the building so that the school can open this coming school year!

At the children's home, we got the kids together for some pictures, took a tour of their dorms, and got them some ice cream. Some of these children will also be students at the new school. They are currently having to attend Hindu schools so it will be so good for them to be able to receive their education in a Christian environment as this school is developed!

Women's Conference

I went to the last night of the women's conference and a group of girls from the children's home danced before the service started. There were close to 1000 women in town for the conference. Some had come from 6 - 8 hours away!!! One of the testimonies shared was of a woman who is married to an unbeliever. They had a rice paddy that wasn't doing very well - dry and brown, looking dead. Her husband did not want her to go to the conference but she came anyway bringing a small bottle of oil to be prayed for. (They often bring packets or bottles of oil to receive a prayer of blessing before they use it.) She went home with the oil, took her husband with her out into the rice paddy where she prayed and poured out the bottle of oil. Within 3 days, they were beginning to see new growth in their field and her husband said, "Your God is the true God. You can go to church whenever you want to."