Fighting Overseas

After being here for almost four months, I now better know meaning of the title “foreign missionary.” A few days ago we honored all our veterans and all those who are still fighting. Having grandpas and a grandma that served in wars past and two of my three brothers in the military, I am proud and honored by a soldiers sacrifice, especially those overseas. But the word 'overseas' is not for soldiers alone, but for many missionaries as well. As we remember the soldiers overseas, take time to remember all the missionaries to. The soldiers fight for our freedom as a nation in THIS world, but the missionaries fight to reach the souls of many for the freedom of eternity! Both make the same sacrifices by leaving behind everything they know, their friends, and their families. Both the battles they fight are just as hard, and both could be imprisoned and put to death for fighting the battle. Both get discouraged, and look daily for emails or letters from people back home to give them a boost to make it through just one more day. Both see things they wish they could change but can do nothing about. The soldiers arm themselves with weapons and machinery, where the missionaries arm themselves only with the armor of God. A soldier can fight back, but the missionaries must represent the Christ they serve, “he didn't fight back...” One is a soldier in the United States of America military, and is fighting and seeing gruesome horrors.  The other is in the Lord's army fighting an unseen battle against the powers of hell. We have no idea what these soldiers go through and face every single day, but they do it for us. Both soldiers are just as important and the battles just as hard, and both need all the prayers we can give them.

In Him -Katie T- The Daughter of a King

                                   

Traveling Around India

August 14-19

As I mentioned in my last blog, I had the opportunity of traveling with a wonderful group of people from Europe around India. I loved just being able to be a tourist for once, but let me tell you there is a big difference between being here for mission work and being here for a tourist trip. I will try and sum up the whole week for you best I can.

I experienced my first train ride, which I must say I wouldn't mind EVER experiencing AGAIN! So crowded and confusing, but that is how we made it to our first stop, the Chenni (chin-i) Marina. But I have to say I don't know which was worse, the crowded train ride, or the over crowded beach! The beach was huge, but that meant the hike to the water would take a few minutes. Since I was a kid I have always wanted to ride a big beautiful horse on some lonely stretch of beach...what a nice picture... Well I never thought my dream would come true!....almost. A man on a horse rode up and offered to give me a ride down to the water. After saying no again and again, the people I was traveling with finally convinced me to have a ride. So I climbed up on that boney thing and the guy walked the horse through that crowded beach with everyone staring (because WHITE PERSON!) We finally made it to the water, and thats when he ripped five bucks off us by riding off before he had given us change. -_- Not exactly the fairy tale picture I had in my mind, but I did get to ride a horse on the beach and stick my feet in the Indian ocean. Things don't always go how we picture them, and when they don't thats when I can almost see God looking down from heaven just laughing at us! But it was also one of those moments where God knows your secret wishes and wants that you don't ask for, but he gives to us anyway in times when we least expect it . :)

We then traveled to St. Thomas's mount (Right) where “doubting Thomas” was martyred for his faith. As I stood on top of that mountain and looked out it was amazing to think that 2000 years ago Thomas traveled all this way probably by boat, foot, and mule just to tell people about Jesus. And I thought just flying 3000 miles away for the same thing was a big step! It was really neat to see how far his disciples carried the message.

Then we traveled to Puducherri (originally ruled by French) and saw another beach, this place was actually the nicest place I have been to so far in India, because it was the cleanest...and thats still saying a lot! Haha This beach was much better than the one in Chenni but unfortunately we didn't get to spend much time there.

More driving to Coimbatore, where we went to the Nilgiris railway and we took a slow steam engine (Swiss 120 years old) up to Ooty (8000ft) While in Ooty we went to the botanical gardens, tea plantations, and went for a boat ride on Ooty lake. At the lake I got my second chance to ride a horse, and I think the last horse ride I can handle for a while! It was a pure white horse which was neat, but about halfway through the ride it started rearing up and snorting. If I ever saw my life flash before my eyes, that was it! I was so scared it would run off with me on it or knock me off into the middle of all the traffic we were riding beside. Fortunately it calmed down, but I don't think I did until quite some time after wards!

Drove (some more!) to Mysore. I sound excited about the driving but don't get me wrong its all sarcasm, driving here long distances is the worst thing I have ever experienced...i think I would rather go to the dentist than spend one hour in a vehicle here, and believe me that is saying A LOT! In Mysore we went to the palace and toured it, the palace was really spectacular and was built from and contained items found in only certain parts of the world, so that was really neat.

Left top: Steam engine ride!

Left: Horse that went crazy!

And that ended my journey in India! I was back at the girls orphanage on August 19 in Bangalore for the last time till I leave, which at that point was 17 more weeks! Fred came back for a few days before going back to the states, and after saying goodbye to him and the people from Europe it hit me that I was the only one left, from then on it would be just me and God!

Right: Palace in Mysore

In Him -Katie T- The Daughter of a King

Stepping into Bible times?

August 10-11

The last two days my group was here  was filled with things to do every minute. On August 10 we headed out early in the morning to visit an orphanage, where we also passes out goody bags. From there we went to the slums, I shouldn't really call it THE slums as there are many places like this in every city. The missionary we were with, PK, goes and delivers milk to this particular site every week, and recently with funds provided from H.I.M was able to provide every family with mosquito nets! There are so many you can not give milk to all, it is like the beggar situation, you do what you can, share the love of Jesus, and pray for that seed you just planted.

After the heart breaking visit to the slums, we went to pass out rice and vegetables at a leper church. It's amazing how so many things here relate to the bible and make me view bible stories more clearly than I ever have. Being at the leper church really made all the stories about healing the lepers come to life. Everyday there seemed to be a few little things that would catch my eye and remind me of a bible story. It made me stop and think, is this what it really was like? All the way from seeing women in the fields shifting grain, or women gathering water at the wells, to the lepers at the leper church, there is always something here that will make you feel like you just stepped into a particular bible story.

I would encourage you to pray for the missionary PK, as his ministry is stretched over so many different things. We only came and saw a tiny sliver of what he does every single day. What a mighty servant of God!

Right: Leper Church

The next day we traveled back to Bangalore to the girl's orphanage, where Fred and I said goodbye to the rest of our team. In three days I would leave with a group from England to travel a bit around India, and Fred would be leaving to travel up in Northern India to do more mission work. Mr. Fred Kornis is a really inspiring man of God. He can travel day and night on just a few hours of sleep but be up and ready to share the gospel with everyone he bumps into and have enthusiasm to carry out the work God has for him. When most of us would be ready to sit down and just pass out for a few minutes, he was always up and going. I'm glad I have a reasonable explanation for where all his energy came from, because if I didn't I would really have no idea. God will empower us with everything we need to complete His will, and Mr. Fred is a good example of that. I really enjoyed traveling with my whole team, who were all an encouragement to me in some way or another. It is really important on mission trips to have that unity in your group before you try and reach people. If people don't see that love and unity in our group it might be a stumbling block when we go try to tell them about the love of Jesus.

 In Him -Katie T- The Daughter of a King

Communicating with the love of Jesus

 August 8-9

These two days consisted of going to Vijayawada, Macherla, and Alia for 5 gospel/ prayer meetings with groups of believers in these areas. The first place we traveled to was out in the middle of no where and the majority of the believers there were gypsy's. Living in such a place didn't stop them from having a heart of reverence and worship for God. The second was actually a bible college graduation. This location was also remote, with no modern day conveniences, but that didn't stop these men from going to this college to learn all they could so they can share with others. These prayer meetings went mostly the same way, we would come in share our testimonies, pray for them, and then usually eat a meal with them, and leave more humbled than ever by THEIR stories of faith.

                                                                                          They are very respectful to their guests and speakers over here, every meeting we went to they always had  flowers to put around our necks and made sure to give us food. I felt like such a fake, and so undeserving of it. There is a point when you go on a mission trip when it hits you that your not supposed to just be the smiling American, who comes and takes pictures and says Jesus loves you, your there to pour out every ounce of your being into these people, give until you have nothing left and than give a little more. Sometimes its very easy to get into the “mission trip” mode of just going and being there, but there is a difference in being there and completely diving in with faith and putting aside all your worries, needs, and wants for a while.

            I think my favorite, but also most heartbreaking part of these meetings was praying for the people when we were finished. They would surround and line up around us, each one wanted to be sure and have us pray for them. Some would bring children they wanted us to pray for, or bring oil to anoint them with. Some would grab our feet and not let get, or touch our feet and then their heads. By this description you may think it was overwhelming, but I found it to be quite the opposite. As I prayed for one or two ladies at a time all the other just seemed to fade away and it was just me, and the person I was praying for. Even though I didn't speak their language while I was praying for them I felt more connected with each one individually than I have ever connected with anyone before, and when I was done I felt like each lady was a life long friend and we had something special in common. The only possible explanation for this is we were speaking the universal language of the love of Christ. I so badly wanted to have time to pray for each one and their needs in particular, and just sit with them all day and talk, but we had a tight schedule to keep up to be able to reach everyone we possibly could. Each time I left one of these meetings I felt like I was leaving a big group of close friends behind, such amazing women of God! These people were so hungry for prayer! Even as we were walking towards the car to leave they were following us grabbing our hands in hopes we would stop and pray for them and with them. In my heart I just wanted to camp out at each place and pray with them as long as they wanted, I was so torn to not have more time with them.

It was also amazing to see their hearts for worship, these people don't need a big band or an orchestra to feel the Holy Spirit in worship, instead they use their voices, hands, and hearts, and let me say the Holy Spirit was definitely moving more and more with each song they sung. And before they would worship they would come in and touch their face to the ground in reverence and to prepare their hearts for worshiping such a mighty God. Humbled I was watching these people pouring out their hearts, because how many times have I prepared my heart to worship the God who made the universe and shown the proper reverence and respect He deserves before bringing even one request before Him?

In Him -Katie T- The Daughter of a King

Getting Refreshed but Taught a Lesson

 August 7 Left at 3 in the morning for the airport, where half of us went home, and the other half traveled onto Hyderabad. I don't know what it is about these Kansas people I'm traveling with, but they sure do like to get me up at 3 in the morning to go to some airport! We arrived in Hyderabad with all our luggage and found our contact (PK one of the PALS) no problem, Praise the Lord for smooth and safe travel!

We went to PK's church where we gave our testimonies and Fred gave a message. Afterward they served us lunch where I made a “note to self” in my journal: putting lemon juice on already spicy rice will just make it 100 times more spicy NOT dull it down!! So with a mouth on fire we started on our long drive to Vijaywada (about a “6 hour” drive.) We arrived at our hotel very hungry and VERY tired, but God always knows when to revive His children. This hotel was clean, it had hot water for showers, it had toilet paper, it had snacks, the beds didn't have bugs in them, and it had wifi so I finally got a chance to talk to my family! No words can describe how much we needed this refreshing boost, but God knew and He will always take care of His children.

Yet as I lay all clean in my nice clean bed that night my mind couldn't help but bring up flashes of what we had seen driving that day. Mile after mile was spent driving past tent colonies, slums, and people sleeping on the street. Children with either no clothes or filthy rags digging through the trash piles on the side of the road trying to find some food or working along side their parents on a construction site, doing hard labor NO CHILD should have to do to survive. Beggars coming up to our vehicle with malnourished or injured babies, staring at you so intense with something in their eyes that makes your heart break, until you finally learn you just have to ignore the little tapping on the window and look the other way. If you don't you will give in to their pathetic looks and with a breaking heart you will watch them walk away to beg more knowing that there are thousands of others like them and you can't help them all. Not knowing if they are beggars that are forced to beg for someone else, or if the children really aren't injured or were injured on purpose just so the situation will look more heartbreaking. There are so many of them and its impossible to know what their true situation is, but to judge and ignore them is something Jesus would never do, so being examples of Christ what should we do? This is a question I've spun round and round in my mind for a long time, and I really have come up with no answer. All you can really do is give them a few rupees, say a prayer, and never expect a thanks because they will never give you one, all they will do is ask for more. Thinking of all these people in a filthy dangerous environment, while I am in a safe clean one, definitely made me feel guilty. It made me want to give them all hot showers and a nice place to stay, but there is too many to even make a dent. It made me think again how blessed I truly am, even in the little things. I could have been born one of those beggars or children in the slums, but I wasn't, I was born and grew up in a safe comfortable home not needing to worry about my next meal. So why DID God choose to place me where He did? It is because every one on earth is uniquely different and has a certain calling in their life that only they can full fill. I may not know the reason why God richly blessed me by placing me in the family I am in just yet, but he has a reason and a purpose for it. And I don't quite know why God chose to put me in a nice clean bed that night instead of one of the thousands that were sleeping on the streets. So undeserving am I of the many blessings He has poured into my life, that I many times fail to even thank Him for, but with love and mercy He keeps pouring them! Sending His only Son to die for us should be enough of a blessing for us that we should never complain, but we do, and even despite our complaints he pours blessings into our lives. Nothing we can do could ever thank Him enough for everything He gives us, and he asks for nothing in return except for faithfully following Him, and that is not to much to ask considering He will provide us with everything we will need to follow Him. Then even more amazing to think how many times we mess up and DON'T follow Him but Hes there to pick us back up and give us a new start. It seems like every time I turn around here I'm thanking God for something, its not until things are taken away and only given to us once in a while that we truly understand just how much He gives us and I recognize just how much a fail to thank Him for! All these thoughts kept me awake for sometime that night and all I could say was thank you again and again, knowing that nothing I do will ever be enough to repay all Hes given me, but when I die He will still welcome me with open arms and still say the words “Well done good and faithful servant... here is your crown” Such mercy and love I could never in my life deserve, but He gives it...FREELY, and why? Because that is just how much HE LOVES US!

“Imagine waking up tomorrow with only the things you have thanked God for today...”

In Him -Katie T- The Daughter of a King  

His Word will NEVER return Void!

         For anyone who didn't read my last post (Happy Birthday to Me) this is a follow up to it. I mentioned getting to go see a waterfall, monkeys, and attend a few church meetings, but what happened at the last part of the day is more amazing than any of those things could ever be. I feel so inadequate to do this story justice, please forgive me ahead of time!

          It had been a long day for all of us and we went straight up to our rooms to get to sleep as soon as possible. Except for Fred, who went to a little restaurant next to the hotel. (Fred is the missionary that started H.I.M) After getting some food Fred started talking with the man at the counter, and this man just started smiling. He said, “I bet you don't remember me, but I remember you.” Fred couldn't remember him so the man went on to explain- “I used to be a Hindu until two years ago you came to a restaurant down the road I was working at, and as you were paying the bill you looked at me said 'Just like I have to pay for this meal, you have to pay for your sins, but Jesus has already paid for them'.” Is that a miracle of God or what? You can only imagine all of our shock when Fred told us what happened. For him to run into the same man TWO YEARS later and find out that such a simple sentence as “Jesus has paid for your sin” turned this mans life around and resulted in him accepting Christ! Its moments like these that I can see God standing over us, smiling at our renewed shock of how amazingly unpredictable He is! We never know what God is doing with people around us everyday that we have touched and influenced even in such a small way as this. “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are you ways my ways, declares the Lord. As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts” Isaiah 55:8-9

         From this story we can learn and be encouraged in such a huge way. How often do we share a simple sentence about the love of Jesus with one of the many lost people we pass by everyday? What are our reasons for NOT doing this? Is it fear of embarrassment or not knowing what to say? Is it because you're having a bad day and don't feel like interacting with someone that would be encouraged with just a smile? We as Christians are on the mission field everyday, everywhere we go. You don't have to go across the world to share with the person in front of you in line at the grocery store. We are around people that are lost everyday, so its so very important to MOMENT BY MOMENT DIE to SELF, pick up our cross and share Him with everyone we can! Just a smile or a simple sentence is all it takes! Look what God did with such a simple but profound statement as “Jesus paid for your sins.”?! It took the power of God to turn this Hindu's life around, but it took an obedient servant of God to plant the seed! Sometimes we think that what we do for Him goes no where, but His word will NEVER return void! “So is my word that goes forth from my mouth: it will not return to me empty BUT will accomplish WHAT I DESIRE and achieve the purpose for which I sent it!” Isaiah 55:11 “Our labor of the Lord is NEVER in vain!” 1 Cor. 15:58 So NEVER think that if you share a simple phrase of love that no seed has been planted! You may never see the fruits of your labor or you may see it two years down the road like Fred did. He has promised us in His word it WILL. NOT. BE. IN. VAIN.! For those of you struggling with loved ones that aren't saved, hang in there and keep praying, keep sharing those simple phrases of love, because God can not wait to do a MIGHTY WORK through them!

     “The WORD of GOD is LIVING and ACTIVE! SHARPER than any double- edged sword, It penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.” Hebrews 4:12

Happy birthday to me!

August 6

            I never thought my first birthday spent away from home would be as soon as my 18^th and all the way across the world in India! I woke up seriously depressed because I started thinking of all the things I would be doing if I were home, first, my mom would have come in and woke me up...not the Muslim in Hindu prayer calls -_- but thinking about what I WOULD be doing did no good what so ever, so I stopped and reached over to the four birthday cards people had written me that I had been SO very tempted to open every day since I got them! In addition to birthday cards I was sung to plenty of (if not too many) times! Once by the girls home earlier that week and once by the boys orphanage, and again by my group, and then a little later in the day by about 200 kids. Haha so I was definitely well covered on my birthday! Hearing all those children sing to me made it special enough!

         We got to visit a beautiful waterfall, and while we were there we saw wild monkeys and got to feed them! So far a pretty different birthday from any I've had before! But that's not the half of it!

We made our way to a conference...we're still in the mountains so it was more curves and plenty of near death experiences! I've learned the best thing to do is just close you eyes till you've come to complete stop and the car is turned off! Haha but by now we are all used to the driving! We arrived at the conference where a band met us at the top of the hill and played the whole time we walked down the hill and into the building. And when we entered the building...whew! Everyone stood up and started clapping and were all excited! I felt like we were some sort of special football players running out onto the field! Then they put flowers around each of our necks, and this is where I got my birthday song by the 200 children!                               Their respect for visitors and speakers certainly touched everyone in our group! We each talked a little and I did my evangecube and some balloon animals and then painted some faces, they were all so excited and listened to every word we had to say! Some of the children were Hindus so it was wonderful to get to share the gospel with them and some of their parents!

       Then we drove to another meeting, where the excitement of a girl older than me getting a balloon animal was a  special thing to see, you'd have thought I'd just given her a car by how excited this girl was!

But I think the most exciting thing that happened on my birthday was what Mr. Fred told us right before we went to bed, and that is something I will put in my next post because it deserves a post by itself! It will be called “His Word will NEVER return Void.” So looking over the day I'd say I had a very good, interesting, different, and God filled birthday! I am blessed, Praise the Lord!

In Him -Katie T- The Daughter of a King