Over 2,000 to go

Today marks our second full day in India! It has been a wild ride so far. This is my second trip to India and it has been crazy to see just how different the two experiences have been. We spent yesterday at Saint Thomas Mount. The beginning of the day was filled with shopping and crazy Indian driving and then we got to the Mount and it was as if the whole world went into slow motion. I'm not sure if it was sleep deprivation coupled with extreme heat and the onset of the Indian culture or if it was God showing up in yet another amazing fashion in India. As you may or may not know Thomas, known affectionately to most Christians as "doubting Thomas", traveled to India to spread the gospel. Raj and Anand, two of the most amazing followers of Christ I've had the opportunity to meet, explained to us yesterday that although India is affiliated today with the Hindu religion, Christianity was actually present in India first. Over time Hinduism has slowly taken over and become a thriving part of the culture. However, there was a time when Christianity was thriving as Hinduism is today. We were told yesterday that around 2000 castes in India today have NEVER heard of the good news of Jesus Christ. NEVER! 2,000 people groups struggle and worship these gods who are about as powerful as a limp noodle. They don't know the amazing power that is in the saving grace of Jesus Christ.
I was nervous at the beginning of this trip because we didn't have a set "thing" we were intending to DO. In the past we have spent our time building, teaching the children in the school, planting gardens of some other amazing service to the people of Kalavai. However, this trip wasn't as concrete. We had an idea of what we wanted to happen but the vehicle to get there was a little blurry. Yet again, God has shown up huge in India. In Jeremiah there is a verse that I am sure many of you know. "For I know the plans I have for you delares the Lord." Even though we had our own plans and expectations for this trip they pale in comparison to the plans of our Lord for the people of India. Learning about the hopeless 2000 castes that still do not know of my Lord and my God, I'm sure that we will never know the exact plans or the extent to which God plans to use our trip. I do know that every person on this team is open to the plans that our Lord has for us. We are ready to be the hands and feet of the God most high!
Keep up the prayers everyone! We head off to Kalavai today. I can't express to you exactly what that sentence means to me, but I know that some of you know exactly what I mean when I say, I'm going home.
Allison Z

Day 1, Take 2

Vanakkum from India! I see Liz has beat me to the punch with blogging for the day... nonetheless I must share with you my thoughts. (feel free to reference her pictures though) :)
After arriving in Chennai in the wee hours of the morning, the team was able to get a few hours of much needed rest. At noon we reconvened and went to Spencer Plaza for some lunch and midday shopping. Since I slept right through breakfast, I couldn't wait to dine in at Pizza Hut, one of the few "American delicacies" available here in town. Happy to see a familiar friend, I downed four pieces of pepperoni pizza and a mango/banana smoothie before we hit the mall in search of authentic Indian wear.
Prema, our fearless leader, took us into each of the shops where the attendants pulled out sari upon sari in a vast array of beautiful colors: from sunset orange to emerald green to champagne chiffon- the options were endless. But mind you, Prema wants only the best for her American friends, so she wasn't afraid to haul out of the store when she deemed the fabric too "nasty" or the the service too "rude" for her taste. However, I couldn't keep my eye off a soft creme sari, bordered with pale pink, adorned in gold and strewn with glistening thread. So much so that in our sudden rush out of the shop to get to our next destination in time with Prema denouncing the poor service, I slipped the man at the counter a couple hundred rupees and ran away with my precious sari at a "10% off student discount."
Feeling sheepish for purchasing a sari from a seller that Prema deemed less than hospitable, I didn't boast too much about my stunning new addition to my wardrobe. In spite of the ordeal it was to buy this certainly overpriced 7 yards of fabric, I look forward to wearing my new outfit to tomorrow's church services and New Years Day festivities.
After the exciting rush I got from my first Indian shopping experience I couldn't wait to see what was in store for us next. Riding shotgun with Raj through the bustling streets of Chennai where the rules of the road are merely suggestions and the honk of a horn is more of a greeting than the American expression of rage - we made our way to St. Thomas Mount.
St. Thomas is my father's namesake so I was incredibly excited to go to the place that knew the presence of this Holy man. Here we were able to reflect upon why we traveled half way across the world, sacrificing our time, money, and sleep. Jen put it aptly when she said that St. Thomas, a man who timidly journeyed to India to proclaim the Resurrected Christ, was simply taking the next step that God had called for his life and that we are continuing the work that St. Thomas lived and died for long ago.
We saw the "Bleeding Cross" that St. Thomas carved, which later became the site of his martyrdom. We saw the well that St. Thomas drew life from - a rock from which water still sprouts to this day in a an otherwise dry land. Lastly, we saw the cave in which St. Thomas spent many months in solitude trying to escape the persecutors who would eventually take his life.
I am both humbled and comforted when I remember that St. Thomas was first Doubting Thomas, the man who had to touch the wounds of the Resurrected Christ before he could say "My Lord and My God." I am the first to admit that I have had my fair share of doubts in my faith journey, but God works in miraculous ways and He always reveals Himself to His people. I know and see God everyday in the rising sun, the smile of a passerby, and through all the relationships He has woven into my life. The visit to St. Thomas Mount reminded me that God used to and still continues to work through His people in a very real and tangible way. I think I speak for the Team when I say we are ready, willing, and excited to go be the Hands and Feet of Christ and show God's LOVE to the people of Kalavai!

Blessings Upon You in the New Year!
~Victoria

Our first day in India and the last day of 2012

It is hard to believe that we landed in Chennai today. Granted, it was 1 am when we landed and it is now 9pm, but it was still only today.

As you read in previous posts, we arrived safely and without incident and a cyclone went through this region yesterday evening, altering our travel plans for getting to the village.

After collecting all of our luggage (for a while it seemed like our team bags wouldn't arrive) and making our way through immigration, we were greeted with heavy humidity and heavy flowered garlands from Raj and his team. The picture below is of Sarah receiving her garland.

We were allowed a few hours to sleep in the hotel before we were up, showered and ready to go for the day.

Lunch was the traditional Indian meal of Pizza Hut and then we went to see some different St. Thomas sites. First we climbed high above Chennai to visit the St. Thomas Mount. As the story goes, Thomas was martyred praying in front of a cross that he had carved on the mount because the Gospel was radically changing the people in India. We learned that Thomas had a heart for the poor and loved them because Christ loved them first.

We also went to the cave that St. Thomas hid in when he was being pursued. The picture below is of our impromptu tour guide telling us about the spring that has been flowing since the time of Thomas.

As a team, I believe these two stops and the stories around them re-centered our focus and vision for this trip. We will love the people we are working with because Christ loved them first and He loves them so much more perfectly than we ever could dream.

Please pray as we travel out the village tomorrow and for the ministry we are planning on doing there.

We will do what we can and God will do what we cannot.

Posted by: Liz Taylor

Touch down!!!!!

Ok... so just wanted to let everyone know that we made it safe and sound to the hotel Breeze in Chennai. I am SOOO happy to be back in India. There is so much to be done and I can't wait to see my Indian family in Kalivai. I LOVED seeing all of the precious little Indian babies on the plane from London to Chennai. What I loved even more was standing in the airport holding Prema's hand. We are going to do great things on this trip! Not much to blog about yet but more will DEFINITELY be coming from the whole team. God bless & thanks for all of the prayers... keep 'em coming!

Jennifer

Auntie Em, Auntie Em, It's a Twister!!!

If you've seen (or read) The Wizard of Oz, you'll recall the "the twister" that marauds the little Kansas farm and transports Dorothy to the magical land of Oz. As a result, when I hear about such things as cyclones, tornados or hurricanes (especially having grown up in Arkansas, in the middle of so called "Tornado Alley"), my mental vision goes all black and white and I see young farm girls racing with their dogs to storm shelters in their home farms and think about wicked witches riding broom sticks in the winds.

But if you have loved ones on their way to India right now, you've probably tuned in to the fact that a Cyclone (Cyclone Thane -- see article on CNN here) hit the Southeast part of the country near the town of Pondicherry last night, and you're wondering if that's going to affect our team currently en route. I actually woke up this morning to a text from Raj (our in-country contact and Director of Life Mission) telling me that it took he and Prema 10 hours to drive to Chennai from Trichy just because of the rainfall fallout from Thane and the subsequent traffic jams that resulted. While we'll keep you posted on what happens as we go, i thought i would let you know the following so far:

Good News: The cyclone has mostly dissipated in its force. It did hit the city of Pondicherry, which is in Tamilnadu on the Southeast coast, but where our team is operating this time is (about 120 miles) farther to the northwest and in the interior of the country. We will keep everyone posted if this has an impact on where or how the team lands in Chennai, but as they are still currently in the air, we don't have any new information about that yet.

Bad News: Assuming that the cyclone has dissipated enough to not be a problem for the team landing in Chennai, they will still most likely have to contend with a ton of rain for the week as they seek to engage the community. With the addition of the new KC3 (Kalavai Colony Community Center), they'll at least have good shelter to do their activities indoors, but without the ability to go outside for many of the things planned, it will make things an interesting challenge for the week.

Commitment: We always say this when we have teams overseas, but it bears saying again. We are committed to prioritizing our team's safety at whatever the cost may be. Each of our team leaders has the authority and backing to simply extract their entire team at a moment's notice if they feel that it is wise to do so, and has the autonomy and resources (financial and otherwise) to do so as well. Raj and Prema and our team leaders are all highly experienced veterans and amazing leaders with a high bias for ensuring our teams' safety, and communicate consistently with us while they are in-country. Our team leaders carry a satellite phone (so that even if every phone line in the country went down, they could continue to communicate with us here) with solar charge system (so that even if every power grid in the country went down, they could still ensure that they could keep phones and other critical systems charged), and our staff here Stateside keep our phones on at all times in order to be responsive should an emergency arise.

We'll continue to stay vigilant over the course of the next several hours and days, and will value your prayers for the team and their mission in-country over the course of the next week.

Hopes and Dreams Team Read to Go

This team has been preparing for a trip to Kalavai, that starts next Thursday, December 27, and ends next year on January 8! It's a whole new type of trip for us, and we've dubbed it the "Hopes and Dreams" trip.

Our goal is to help the people of Kalavai Irula Colony understand that they are made in the image of God, and that He loves them as much as He loves all the rest of us.

We will do this through various activities, movies, games, bible stories, gifts, and just spending time talking with them. We even plan a trip to the zoo! The week will be like a cross between summer camp and vacation bible school!

It is the next step in bringing the kingdom of God to this small group of people, that didn't know that they mattered to Him. They're worth it. He made them like Himself, and He died for them, and we want to be sure they know that.

So, the team you are looking at has been training and planning for the last three months, trying to get our heads around this idea ourselves, and then planning ways to communicate it to our friends in Kalavai.

We think God has given us some great ideas through some very creative people. Come along and see what we're up to . . .

Jim Blechl