India

This is the week I did NOT go to India. I had a crazy idea several months ago about going to India with another organization that is doing evangelism ministry north of Delhi. I did my research and wrote a pros and cons list about the trip and could not make a prayerful decision about going. The trip would have been nearly 4 weeks by the time I went there for 2 weeks, then over to Chennai to visit my Harvest India friends for a week, then a stop over in Qatar to visit my sister for a few days. Sigh. Mid November my Sweet husband suggested I not go and I was okay with his reason. Contrary to modern Christian thought, I like to consult my husband about what I do and eagerly seek his advice. He is my most devoted fan and encourager. 

However, I am planning a trip to India for November 2014 to do a women's conference with Harvest India. They are building a church facility that will seat 3000 and it should be completed by then. I want to see it filled and women blessed as we share the love of God and encourage them in various ways.

I have been to India 9 times now. I find that fascinating since going to India was never on my radar. I went the first time in 2006 after being invited by the head of Harvest India when he was visiting in our  home. I had no idea what I would do there and I had an attitude that I was a little busy, or so I thought, milking cows, doing farm bookkeeping, school part time, internship, but God had other plans for this middle aged reluctant missionary. My daughter had been on several summer missions trips overseas when she was in highschool and she has been to India with me no less than 4 times now. She has been my mentor in this new adventure.

One of the Spiritual gifts that I received when I became a Christian is that of teaching. Now, I realize that I like an audience of 1 or 2 but over the years I have learned that I "come alive" when I am teaching the Word of God. I first started studying the Bible in my late 20's when I joined a group doing inductive Bible study. This required that I do about 5 hours of homework each week and then meet with a group to discuss the lesson and then hear a teaching on the lesson. Studying the Bible became a passion for me for several years until I felt God nudging me to take some leadership training classes and begin teaching a small group for a number of years.  I soon learned that in order to teach a class, I had to have my own homework completely done and have a clear understanding of the lesson in order to guide the students in understanding. I loved it!!
I also found that I was able to take the material I was learning and teach it because it was a part of me and I teach out of the abundance of my heart. In India I have enjoyed speaking to a dozens, to hundreds, I even have spoken to thousands, but I have a translator and that helps a lot because I have a few moments after each sentence to consider what I am going to say next.

So, I often wonder why God would choose me to  be a voice to go to India and teach and encourage women. I am retired from active farm work because I am not physically able to stay on my feet to do the work because of a bad hip and other osteoarthritis annoyances. However, I also realize that I am only an instrument for God to work through and as long as I am willing to walk in obedience, I can join God in the great adventure of seeing lives transformed for eternity. In the meantime, I plod away at my doctoral studies and I write and I quilt, but I seldom do housework. I have a girl that comes in to do that.
And, I can get a stomach bug more often.

Blessings,
Chris