Inspiration from a Fishing Village

I conducted a childrens program in the awesome town of Aleppy yesterday. Aleppy is a fishing village on the backwaters. It was a beautiful drive and I got to see a lot of house boats, fishing boats, and rice fields. The road there was covered on both sides by water, then there was this other tiny strip of land with houses on it and each side of that was water. It was very interesting countryside and I loved getting to see how different people live. I made many friends along the way, simply by smiling from my car window! It was a joyful trip, right from the beginning. The church at Aleppy was wonderful. I got to sit and talk with their pastor, Prince John, for a while about his vision for their community. (Yes, he has the coolest name ever.) He lives in a community that is majority Hindu, and his vision spreads outside his church to how he can impact and change those people who don't know of Jesus Christ. His church only has eight kids in it, but for their childrens programs they will have up to 120 kids in attendance. Many of these kids are Hindu or Muslim, and by getting their information when they come the church makes sure to follow up with each child. His strategy involves remembering the children's birthdays by bringing a small gift to their home. Many parents have forgotten the celebration and are overwhelmed with this act of kindness. Many times, they allow Prince to come in and pray for their family. In this way, he is invited into their homes and their lives. And he has more plans as well. He seeks to start a counseling program for the police force in order to help reduce crime, and he also hopes to conduct a week long intensive course in English to engage the community. Both of these programs would bring people into the church that would normally never set foot there. He is determined to build relationships in order to eventually be able to share the Good News of Jesus Christ. This is a man with vision, a man who is not content with just the Christians in his church but wants his entire nation to know the Lord. It was an inspiration to see his efforts in Aleppy. The program went well too. I spoke on Creation and how God created man special. Many of the children were Hindu so it was an incredible opportunity to share the word of God with them. I truly enjoyed the kids, though they were younger and more rambunctious than my last group, and I hope that they were impacted in some way by the lesson I brought them.

The church at Aleppy really inspired me not to be content with sitting happily in my church. We must be determined to reach those around us in our communities, though it will take time and effort. I hope that everyone who reads this will send up a prayer for Prince John and his church, and my hope is that he will serve as an inspiration to pastors here in India and to everyone at home. He is the epitome of a disciple maker and we can all learn from his big ideas and positive outlook. If he can get Hindus and Muslims to send their children to programs at his church then we can certainly do the same with our neighbors. We must simply make the effort, trusting that God will take care of the rest.

Tomorrow I leave for Nagarcoil where I will spend 3 days and teach my last womens seminar. I have high hopes for this trip and I believe it will be my best talk yet. I am going to the Southern most part of India and it should be very cool! I praise the Lord for all He has taught me through observation on this trip. My prayer is simply that I will take all I have learned and put it into action in my heart, words, and deeds when I return to the United States. As always thank you for your continued prayers. Please do not cease to pray as my trip comes to a close. I need your prayers for health and safety now as much as ever. Can't wait to see you all soon!