Hey Hey everyone. It’s been a little while, but things here are awesome. A lot of exciting things have happened. We went to three different cities; Dharamapuri, Kotagiri, and Udumalpet. When we got to Dharamapuri we worked at CDC and taught the kids some Bible stories. We went to a leper community, and to a families house who had HIV positive. These were really hard for me, but atH the families house I got the chance to pray and God definitely gave me the words. After I prayed the man of the house grabbed my hands and gave me the biggest smile. It was great to have this opportunity to pray for them. We stayed in a hotel and had amazing food. On our drive up to Kotagiri we all were wide-awake. It was such a beautiful drive. It was actually pretty chilly there too, which was a nice change. We were able to meet the Ketcham’s, a missionary family in Ooty. They were so sweet, and made us an American meal, it was delicious. We left Kotagiri and went to Udumalpet. We got to paint the Nazarene Church, and might I add we picked the color and it looks reaaal good. We went to a Crocodile farm, and on the way back we came up to the scene of an accident. It looked pretty serious, considering there were about 6 cars stopped, helping. We stopped our car and Kingsley and Courtney (our nurse) jumped out to check it out. The man had been drinking and had swerved off the road. He was okay but he had a big cut in his lip and was having trouble breathing. A few people called the ambulance and we left after that, seeing as how there were six other cars of people there to help him. The thing that I thought was really cool was how many people were stopped taking care of this man. The unity of this country is unreal. They will protect each other no matter what. Thank goodness he was okay. We have met so many friends and it keeps getting harder to leave them. We left Udumalpet and our friend Daniel, the grandson to the owner of our hotel, was emotional which made us even more sad. We arrived in Musiri about a day ago and it is so good to be back. We saw the kids and they ran to us and hugged us. They were so happy to see us. Just the thought of leaving makes me really sad. We leave for Erode for four days then we’ll be back to Musiri for about two weeks. God is continuing to show me new things everyday. I am in love with India.

These past few days have been wonderful. Kingsley took us to an Island called, Rameshwaram, it was beautiful; we swam in the Indian Ocean. We went there for one night and did some sight seeing. We saw one of the biggest Hindu temples. There are people all around the world that travel to come see it. At the little island we went to, there were people dunking themselves in a very weird way. I asked Kings what they were doing and he told us that in order for their sins to be washed clean, they had to come to this spot and dunk themselves 33 times. Crazy.
Some of the teammates got carsick on the way and they didn’t feel very good for most of the trip. But they are all back to good health. We are back in Musiri for a few more days, and then we leave on Monday to start our travels. Manoj leaves tomorrow, he is our new friend, he is studying to be a pastor, he has such an amazing heart, and he’s hilarious. We are sad he is leaving, but he has to go back to school. We are going to a service Saturday morning, Saturday night, Sunday morning, and Sunday night. Each night one of the teammates is preaching. Monday were traveling by train to our next destination.
Courtney and I were looking at the pictures of the kids we’ve taken so far and we already started to get emotional. They are so stinkin cute! This picture is one that I’m stuck on. She is so beautiful her name is Sharmilla, she’s Hindu, and her hair was sacrificed to the Gods.
We are so blessed to be here. I’m so excited for the weeks to come here in India. Thank you for your prayers.

WERE HERE!!!

Wow. We are finally here. India is absolutely beautiful. This week so much has already happened. When we first arrived here it was 11p.m. India time and we had to drive 7 hours to get to Musiri, (the first place we are staying.) We had two separate cars to ride in on our way. Courtney and I were in one with Kingsley and a taxi driver, and the other girls, Monica, Rachel, and Kirsta were with another pastor in the area and a taxi driver. Lets just say driving is very different here. Swerving in and out of traffic and honking at every car driving by is a regular occurrence. It was something new for us, but the drive was amazing. India is beautiful. On our way there were so many tiny villages. We were so fascinated that we stayed awake the whole drive. We were introduced to our first toilet or lack thereof, and our new favorite, chai tea on the drive.
Once we arrived we had breakfast and then shortly after we rested. At four p.m. we met the children in the CDC (child development center.) This is sort of an after-school program. I have already fallen in love with the children. They run up to us, touch us, and try to speak the little English they can. We each were assigned to different grades. The next day we told a bible story, sang a song, and taught the children a bible verse. Today we had a prayer time from 10-12. We learned a song in Tamil and we sang it with the youth. There is no better sound then Indians singing a worship song. Tonight we are going to be with the kids and we are teaching them another story from the Bible and games. I love it here, and am so thankful god has given me such an amazing opportunity. The Children are so beautiful and their smiles are like nothing I have seen. The food here is AMAZING. I’m not kidding, every thing we eat has been so good. Every time they offer me tea I can’t say no it is so so good. I thought Starbucks was good, this is the best there is.
In the next few days we are going to have a picnic with the youth of the Nazarene church here in Musiri, and I will be giving a short devotion/sermon. I’m a little nervous but I know that God will speak through me. Sunday as a team we are singing worship songs, two in English, and the one we learned in Tamil. Monday we are shopping for Saris! I’m so excited. We will be here until the 13th then we will begin traveling. Thank you for your prayers! Love you all!

Training Camp

One more day here in the US of A and i couldn't be more excited. We leave at around 5 a.m. on Monday morning. Training today was very heavy. We had what they called a "World Feast." We went into it not really knowing what we were going to do. There was a big table with candles and place mats, another table with four spots on it and it looked even nicer than the other. There were two spots on the ground with tape outlining a square and a triangle. We each got called to different groups. I was a #4 so i had to sit on the ground with a bunch of other people, we were crammed together inside these lines and we got two rolls and a can of water. Group #3 got rice and beans. Group #2 had a feast, and Group #1 had a five course meal. We sat and watched as they received there food, and we had barely anything to eat. A little bit later one of the people from the feast said, "we are allowed to take one of you, to eat with us, and i will let you guys choose." I have been a little sick with a cough so my team nominated me and I couldn't do it, i couldn't sit there and eat while the rest of my group was so hungry. So we chose someone else and she went. She sat down and the staff, or worker, pulled the chair away from the table as if she were an outsider. they asked her what she wanted on her plate, with tears in their eyes. She put the tray on her lap and she began to sob. This broke me. I can't believe we as Americans sit and eat our meals without thinking of the poverty that is all around our world. It breaks my heart to know that there are millions. Millions of people starving around the world. Although, it was a simulation it touched all of our hearts and really brought out so many emotions. Anger, sadness, guilt. We experienced these together. It was a crazy experience.

Tomorrow the India team, Rachel, Monica, Courtney, Kirsta, and myself will be attending a Hindu church to understand more of the Indian's culture. I cannot wait. Then Monday at 5 A.M. we will be on our way to INDIA!!! Thank you all for your prayers. I will try to update my blog once a week. Love you ALL!

Pleasing to You

God continues to shine through people all around me. Coming to SNU i knew that I would meet some life-long friends but i had no idea how many. I am so happy to know that i have so many praying for me and this summer. I am at home in Boise, ID and I love spending time with my family and friends. I am definitely ready to begin this life-changing trip. I was talking recently to a friend who came back from Romania and he said, "As Americans we go into mission trips thinking that we will "save" or "help" the people, but they end up impacting out lives more than they will ever know." I can't wait for this.

This song is my favorite worship song right now it's called Maker of Heaven by Desperation Band. This is my prayer.

Keep my heart amazed
Let me see Your wonders every day
Teach me in Your ways
So that I may fear
You are walking on water
You are calling me after
You are standing beside me now

You are the Maker of Heaven
You turn my world around
You're making all things new again
Through it all I know
You are God alone

Set my heart on fire
Let me burn
With passion for Your name
Take over my life
I surrender now

Hallelujah
Hallelujah
Hallelujah
You are God alone

Overcome

You continue to amaze me God. I have been so afraid and fearful of this trip that i lost my focus and passion. Tonight God revealed himself to me. He is God of all and he will help me overcome all of this worry, and fear because he is the maker of Heaven. I underestimate God's listening skills which sounds terrible, but i tend to doubt. God continues to come through and tell me that he put this passion in my heart, and he will take away ALL of these hesitations. I cannot believe that he loves me, he unconditionally loves me no matter what mistakes i make, no matter what fears and worries i have, HE STILL LOVES ME.

The country seems so nice now
but the city's all i see
I'm blocked from all the good things
that i need to believe

My heart is longing to be yours
I lay myself at your feet
I give you all the Glory
You are my Prince of Peace

I can't predict the weather
I don't know what the future brings
but i do know a savior
He's in control of everything