A close family

One of the hardest things about being on the mission field (I'm speaking for me personally), is being on the other side of the world from my family. 

One of the hardest things about furlough, are the inevitable good-byes that must be said when it's over. 
When my kids were younger, it used to bother me that it didn't really bother them to say the good-byes.  They were too young to understand that it would be years before we were together again. They seemed to look at me and wonder "What's wrong with Mom?"   Now that they're older, we all cry together.
The last night before returning to the field we spent with my parents and my brother's family.  My kids are best friends with their cousins.  They really are.  When they get together, even if it's been years, they act like they've never been apart.

I will not open the door to that private time with the family, but it was hard...so hard.  But, my Dad made some comments that have stuck with me, since that sad day.  He said, "We need to be thankful. Not everyone has such a close family, or a family that loves each other and wants to be together like we do. We are blessed. And there are so many ways to stay in touch now...email, skype, texts.  We can still stay close as a family."
Thanks Dad, you are right, as usual.
So, today I am thankful for my family.
That they love and serve God.
That they love each other...even while they aggravate each other;-)
That they have always supported us..in so many ways.
That they never say "Don't go"...they just say "Follow God, but we will miss you"
That they are always just a phone call away.
Yes, I am thankful, and we are blessed.

I admit...I am excited

Those of you who know me well will understand and appreciate this post...those of you who don't know me that well...you may wonder why I am excited.
Those of you who have ever left all that you know, all that you love, and all that is familiar to live in another place that doesn't look, smell, feel, or taste like anything you've ever known will understand and appreciate this post...those of you who have not had this adventure...you may wonder what the big deal is.
When we first came to the field in 2001, the city that we lived in had no American food...at all.  No McD's, no Pizza Hut...nothing even remotely familiar to us.  It doesn't sound like a big deal, and it really isn't, but sometimes it feels like a big deal.  We got used to not having these things available, but whenever we get back to the US..we thoroughly enjoy the treat of eating familiar, comforting food.  Since those early days, we have moved to a new city, and within the last few years many places have opened up here...McD's, Subway, Pizza Hut, Dominos, KFC. 
But...today...you won't believe what we found..on the 3rd floor in the back of the Food Court in a new mall that opened recently.

It's only 15 minutes from our house, on a road that we travel at least once a week.

This could be dangerous...

But it will definitely be very delicious! 

Election 2014

India has begun it's national election today.  Every five years, the country votes for new members of Parliament and elects a new Prime Minister.  There are some things about the election process here that are strange to us, who are used to the American political process.
The election just starts today.  It won't be finished today...or this week, or even this month.  The voting will be going on from now until May 12th.  (That's a lot different than our one day elections!)  The results of the voting will be published on the 16th of May, more than a month after the voting starts!  That's a lot different than the results of our US elections being "projected" before the polls even close!

The different states vote on different days.  Some of the larger states have more than one day of voting.  Votes will be cast in Chandigarh on April 10th, and in the state of Punjab on April 30th.  The reason for the staggered voting is mostly due to security concerns.  There are always riots and violence associated with the elections. (Don't worry, we stay at home and away from polling stations on election days.)  There will be over 2 million police and security officers dispatched through the country to protect the polling stations.  There are also concerns about corruption.  Somehow, this staggered process is supposed to cut down on fraud. (Hmmm..I wonder)

High tech voting booth!

Interesting facts about elections in India:
This election there are 814.5 million people registered to vote.  This is the largest number of voters in the world.
More than 100 million new voters are eligible to place their votes in this election.
This election is estimated to cost 35 billion rupees (about 580 million US dollars). This excludes the cost of security and what individual political parties have spent.
The parties are estimated to have spent 305 billion rupees ($5 billion US dollars).  This is second only to what was spent by US political parties in the 2012 election ($7 billion US dollars).

Please pray for this election.  Things could change drastically here in India depending on which candidate comes into office.  We are praying for God's guidance, protection, and peace, no matter what the outcome of this election, because we know that all things are in His hands.

Bible Conference 2014

Thank you to all those that prayed for our Bible Conference!  Everything went extremely well, and all the meetings were a blessing.  The attendance was high every night (over 150 every night and the last night over 200), and we saw people saved and hearts touched. 

 

There were pastors visiting from different parts of India, and we enjoyed good fellowship.  We especially enjoyed our fellowship with Pastor and Mrs. Eda from Mumbai.  They have been serving God there for 33 years!  This couple is always a blessing and encouragement to us in the ministry.

We held separate classes in the mornings for the pastors and ladies.  Alyssa and Naomi were pressed into service as translators for the ladies classes. This is the first time they have translated in a formal class setting.  It is a blessing to see them using their knowledge of the languages to help in the ministry.

We are so thankful for the ways we are seeing God working in hearts.  Our desire is to see souls come to Christ and follow Him wherever He may lead them in life. 

They were singing "Jesus is Coming Soon".  Reminded us of our college days, singing this same song in the choir.

Thank you for your prayers for our family and the ministry here.

Bible Conference

Things have been rolling along pretty well over here...very busy!  Our annual Bible Conference starts tomorrow.  We have national pastors coming from different parts of the country (some with families along).  We are not sure exactly how many are coming, but we never know until they get here.  Some who have said they are coming may not show up, and others may show up that we don't know about!  There will be classes for the pastors and the ladies each morning, and preaching in the evening.  I will be teaching 3 classes for the ladies, as well as Sunday School on Sunday.  Brian is also teaching some classes for the pastors, and preaching.  We have 2 special speakers coming who will teach classes, as well as preach.
This is always a good time of fellowship and instruction.  We don't just want to "have a meeting".  We are praying to see real change in the lives of people.  Many need to be saved, many need to be faithful, and many need to be encouraged.  Please pray for our Conference, Thursday to Sunday.

One step forward...

One step forward, and two steps back...that's the story of my life for the last couple days.  We have been in India for only a week.  It seems like a lot longer than that, but it always seems that way to me.  I think it's because our life and activity is so different here, that everything else seems far away. 

So, my one step forward...Since we have been living out of suitcases for so long, I was ready to get rid of the suitcases as soon as possible!  By Monday, I finally emptied the last suitcase and things were looking pretty good in the house.  Now for the two steps back...
(Just for your info., I answered the doorbell 3 times since starting this post)

Then we visited the landlord and told him about a few repairs that needed to be made in the house.  There was terrible mold in one bathroom, and one of the kids' rooms.  Also, one of the bathrooms needed some major repairs.  The landlord said he would send someone after the first of the month.  So, I continued my setting up and cleaning.
 (Just now went to buy some vegetables from the vegetable seller.)
He sent the painters and plumber the next day.  So...the bedroom that was set up and neat...

 

 

Turned into a work zone...
(time to go to prayer meeting)
(Back from prayer meeting, finished supper, and got everyone settled in bed)
The one bedroom and bathroom to be painted, turned into touching up the living/dining room.  The "paint" mostly used here is more like white-wash, so it quickly gets dirty and marked up.  It needed to be done.  So, after 2 days of painting, repairing, rearranging...etc...I am back to one room set up and clean.


Nothing on the walls yet

 

But, the walls look fresh and clean, no pencil marks or dirty hand prints, and the bathroom is repaired (it even has hot water..woohoo!)  So, I'm thankful.  Tomorrow is another day, and we're planning to get the rest of the rooms back in order...along with catching up on laundry since we had no afternoon or evening water supply...and shopping for groceries for the meeting...and working on classes for next week...and...well I think you get the picture!  One step forward! 

We made it

Warning:  This is a long post, but I thought some of you may be wondering how our travel and return to India has gone.
It would be very hard to describe the last few weeks.  I'm not exactly sure what a "time warp" is, but I wonder if we were sucked into one!  After attending one last missions conference, after sorting, discarding, rearranging, and packing, after some very emotional "good-bye's", we traveled to Boston on March 11th.

It is always a little nerve-racking to check-in at the airport on the way back to India.  We are a family of seven...with 15 suitcases...and 7 carry-ons...7 passports...7 visas to be checked (and rechecked).  India is a country that changes its policies often, and without warning.  Sometimes they will ask for a different piece of paperwork that they never asked for before, sometimes they won't ask for anything, so we never know what to expect.  This time they checked and rechecked my PIO card, they discussed it among themselves and handed me a piece of paper that said I could travel on the PIO with no problem.  I never had to use the piece of paper, I was never asked for it, but then again "better safe than sorry"! 
All of our luggage was weighed, and all were under weight! Yay!  If you have to travel internationally and have to pack a lot, get a luggage scale (ours is from LL Bean).  It's a lot easier to move things from one suitcase to another and get the weight right when you are in the privacy of your home, than it is when you are in front of a hundred strangers at the airport (this is the voice of experience!)
After a 6 hour flight to London, a long layover, and an almost 9 hour flight to India, we arrived in Delhi on Friday.  We flew through customs (the customs agent just wanted to know if all these kids were ours :-))

And...we made it!  We are back in India.  The jet lag hasn't been too bad.  It seems we are almost back to a normal sleeping schedule already.  The children are excited to be back, and have been enjoying their friends, and their favorite Indian foods.  I have been feverishly working to get this house looking like a home again, instead of a storage unit! Alyssa and Naomi have been a great help with this.  We had to switch the older girls to a different bedroom, because the room they had been using has mold growing, and Alyssa has asthma issues if she is in a moldy environment.  Since moving to the other bedroom, she seems to be doing well.  Hopefully, the landlord will be sending someone to deal with that situation in a few weeks.
The weather has been beautiful (in the 70s and 80s).  We should have a week or two before it hits 100. 

We have a Bible Conference, next Thurs. to Sun.  The guest speaker and his wife and daughter will be staying at our home, so I have to get the place "guest-ready" before then.  I also have 4 ladies classes to get ready for, so my mind is whirling about all those things, but I am trying to get things done one step at a time. 
Thank you to everyone who has been praying for us.  Our travel and transition back to India has gone very well.  We miss many things about the US, we miss many people (and wish they would come for a visit **Hint Hint), but we are thankful to know that God has put us in this place for His purpose.