Many of the social media websites have this thing called Throw Back Thursday where people post very old, and usually embarrassing, photos of themselves and their friends from many years ago. I thought to myself: what a great idea to write a "Throw Back Thursday" type blog post of some of the reasons why I even decided to come on this crazy adventure!
I decided in November of 2012 that I wanted to go on a Missions Trip. I had never been on one before and I thought that it was important that I go and experience a new group of people that God loves just as much as you and I. I believe that God calls us to go and serve the needy, the widows, and the orphans, and I thought it was important to acknowledge how blessed I was and give back, in a way. ("
And He said to them, "Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation!" Mark 16:15) I was excited to go and before I knew it I was on a plane, flying across the ocean, all the way to INDIA!!!!
We landed in a city called Hyderabad, and the first thing you noticed coming off the plane was the smell. It was an intense smell which pretty much consumed your nostrils. We were warned prior to this about the smell, but nothing really prepares you for it. Its one of the first things you realize you take for granted every day: clean air. After getting our many bags, full of orphan care bags, toothbrushes, and medical supplies, we checked through customs, and headed out into the Indian night. When met our party we were greeted with real flower leis by a man named Raja who has an orphanage in Hyderabad
 |
| Our first visit to Rajas in January |
 |
| Raja's Home in January |
 |
| Raja's in August |
 |
| Raja's In January |
One of the huge things that really impacted my heart was Raja's Children Home. Raja used to work for the government but he saw a need and quit his job to open an orphanage and run it full time! He rescues many children off the streets who are employed to beg and are exploited, and he offers them a place to sleep, school, and food! There are around thirty children that live there ages four to seventeen! The children are so happy and fun to be around. This was my first exposure to real joy and thankfulness and it was amazing. Here were children who had nothing and yet they were happier than any American child that I had ever met.
 |
| Raja's in August! |
Our stay in Hyderabad was short and in the morning we were headed to Ongole where we would spend the rest of our trip. The ride was long and the roads were rough, causing a lot of discomfort and carsickness, but we finally made it all in one piece! Our hotel was less than appealing but we were all grateful for a soft bed and AC! We rested that night because we new our official journey would start the next day!
It would take hours to tell you about the whole trip and all that was experienced but there were a few specific things that really broke my heart and, while I didn't know it then, lit a fire inside of me for the children of India.
 |
| Little girl in the village in the mountains |
 |
| A group of cousins! |
 |
| Sweet baby :) |
One of the villages we went too was in the Indian mountains. We had to travel up a long, steep, mountain to get there. It was probably one of the scariest car rides of my entire life. There were no guardrails and our driver was driving like the typical Indian maniac driver. One wrong move and it was a very long way down to the bottom! When we got there we were greeted with flower leis and some very big smiles! We were told that we were the only white people that anyone in this village had ever seen! I remember thinking how incredibly wild that was. Can you honestly say that there is a race of people that you have never seen before? In America we see different races and nationalities everyday! It's such a strange thing to take for granted everyday. We are so culturally privileged in America and we don't even realize it! Another thing about this village that was crazy to me was that everyone was related in some way. It was such a small village that everyone was basically a big family. One of the old ladies showed me her grandchildren and it was about 50% of the children there. Could you imagine living in a village where everyone is related! Eventually you would run into some serious problems, and that was a very real issue for this village. We saw a lot of "problems" in some of the younger children there. One of the girls on our trip worked in genetics and she said that some of these issues looked like they were related to inbreeding. Yikes!!! None the less, these children were adorable and completely loveable. They were so happy we were there and it was such a pleasure to shower them with gifts of toothbrushes, small toys, tattoos, and candy! Though it was a long ride it was probably one of my favorite places that we visited.
 |
| Waving goodbye to us! We will miss you!! |
 |
| The Village by the ocean in January |
 |
| Sweet little girl in January |
Another village that stuck out to me was a small village near the beach that I was actually lucky enough to go back to this August. Many of the children there were rescued from harsh child labor and allowed to go to school through sponsors back in the US. This is such a huge blessing that I am not sure many people understand. We, as Americans, can not comprehend what an incredible privilege it is that most children in the US do not have to worry about being forced into child labor, or sold by their parents so that their younger siblings can eat, because in the rural villages in India this is a reality for some children. Many of these children were rescued from working in cashew fields. The juices from the cashews had permanently stained and damaged some of the children's hands. It was chaos from the moment we arrived. The power kept going off and on and the children kept coming. Our small crowd went from fifteen children to almost fifty! It was impossible to contain them, especially when we started passing out the care bags. It was then I realized the desperation in these children. Here were children who had probably never been given anything in their entire lives! Who could blame them for being pushy and over excited. It was insane, but it was amazing to be able to give these children gifts and a small hope for something new. While we were there we broke the ground for their new school. This august we were able to see the school, completely built, and sit in while lessons were taught. How amazing!!!!
 |
| School! Fully built in August!! |
 |
| Two students |
 |
| Learning about the digestive system!!! |
 |
| Cutie!!! |
 |
| No notebooks, every child gets their own personal chalkboard! |
It helps to look through pictures from January sometimes. It helps me remember why I am here and the reason I felt so called to come back. God loves these children so much and none of us can fathom it. It makes me so grateful for my wonderful family back home and all the wonderful things I have been blessed with. These children have next to nothing, and yet they are always happy and thankful. There is something to be learned from these children, and we often do not thank God enough every day for the things He has given us. If you are reading this it means you probably have a phone, or a computer, or iPad; remember that there are children all over the world that have nothing, and yet, are still happy and thankful.
My point is not to make you feel bad or feel guilty about having these wonderful things. God has blessed you and me and we are so lucky!! We should not waste those blessing but instead be thankful and appreciative. He gave us these things to enjoy! God still cares about our problems even though we are not homeless, starving, or being sold by our parents! I am always reminding people that God cares about "first world problems" too! My point is to remind you to be thankful! To feel blessed and to be happy! Every day is a great day and though you face hard times and troubles remember the good times and the sweet things in life! God loves all of us despite our short comings and wants us all to be happy!!! I would encourage you to remember that today, as you live out your amazing life!!! Remember to thank God as you get in your car, talk on your iPhone, or open your mouth in shower and not have to worry about getting e-coli (haha). Remember that He loves you so much, just as much as He loves me and all of the children here, and that in His eyes you are His favorite.
".
..who shows no partiality to princes, and does not favor the rich over the poor for they are all the work of his hands!" Job 34:19
Love. Love. Love. Love. you all!!!!!!!
Grace :)
And its a GREAT day to be alive
I know the sun's still shining
When I close my eyes
There might be hard times in the neighborhood
But why can't every day be just this good
-Travis Tritt
**Certainly not biblical, but applicable and a very good message ;)
Since this program is new it does not have a website yet, nor does it have anything about the families that need our help. My job is to create the website and also get profiles together for future sponsors. I do this by meeting these families out in the villages and interviewing them! I want sponsors to know everything about the children they are sponsoring, the good and the bad! 
This local misisonary's name is G. Williams. He has been been married to his wife since 2005 and they have three children: two girls, Komalajoy (6) and Sara Angel (3), and a baby boy who is seven months old. The interview started out much like any other. I have grown somewhat used to the rough living conditions that many of these families endure, but this village was particularly rural and dirty. We pulled up to a small building which was obviously the church and a crowd of people were waiting outside. I met the children and the missionary pastor and began my interview. Very early on in the interview I learned that his family did not have a home. They used to live in a concrete hut (which is better than a thatch roofed hut) but their landlord kicked them out. His reasoning was so that he could let a higher caste family live there, but another reason could be because Williams was a Christian (in my opinion they're equally as bad). They have been living in the church and sleeping on the church floor. The church is not meant for people to live in and as the nights are getting cooler it is getting drafty. This has caused his baby to be sick with pneumonia. Now he is currently in the hospital indefinitely. 
Today I was able to meet this baby. When I came in it was obvious that he did not feel well. He was coughing and there was no sign of sweet, rosy, baby cheeks. My heart broke for this family who were desperate for their son to get better but didn't know how they were going to pay their medical bills. They told me that doctor's fee each day was 200 rupees ($4) and that the hospital room was 450 rupees (about $8). In addition there are the costs for medicines and IV fluids and any other procedures. In all it is about $15 a day. That is NOTHING to us, and yet here is a family who can not afford any of it. Here is a man who has a degree and is perfectly qualified to work a higher paying job and who left a higher paying job and a nice house to serve God in the villages and help God's people. He sacrificed these things because he knew that God was calling him there. And yet here is his son, in the hospital, with a potentially fatal sickness. Despite all of this, I did not see a man whose faith was wavering, I did not see a man who was angry with God, or a man who was bitter. I saw a man who kept telling me that God would provide, that God never fails, and that all we could do was pray. Pray for the baby's health and pray that things would work out financially. 
So that's what we did, we prayed. Never have I ever experienced anything like it. We couldn't understand a word the other was saying and yet we were connected and united through prayer for this sweet baby. Even cooler, God heard our prayers and could understand both of us. When I left the hospital an hour later I saw a smiling baby who had color in his cheeks and I knew that I had just witnessed the power of prayer like I had never before. 
It's families like this that deserve our help and our time. We can help them and we can do it at next to nothing. Its only $30 a month to help a family like this provide their children with basic medical care, three meals a day, and to cover tuition costs so that their children can attend good schools. That's less then many of us spend on a tanning membership or a haircut. That's 120 Roo Cup refills, and less than some of us would spend on a nice dress. That is less than 3 trips to the movies, and less than any of us EVER spend at Target (you know its true). Thirty dollars is nothing! 
This is not a guilt trip. I am the first to admit that I don't value what I have enough. I will also be the first to admit that I too spend too much on material things and have no problem throwing $30 down the drain (at Target- what is it with that place??). I do, however, see my attitude towards money changing as I meet these families and see first hand their needs and struggles and how something as small as $30 could help them!
This local misisonary's name is G. Williams. He has been been married to his wife since 2005 and they have three children: two girls, Komalajoy (6) and Sara Angel (3), and a baby boy who is seven months old. The interview started out much like any other. I have grown somewhat used to the rough living conditions that many of these families endure, but this village was particularly rural and dirty. We pulled up to a small building which was obviously the church and a crowd of people were waiting outside. I met the children and the missionary pastor and began my interview. Very early on in the interview I learned that his family did not have a home. They used to live in a concrete hut (which is better than a thatch roofed hut) but their landlord kicked them out. His reasoning was so that he could let a higher caste family live there, but another reason could be because Williams was a Christian (in my opinion they're equally as bad). They have been living in the church and sleeping on the church floor. The church is not meant for people to live in and as the nights are getting cooler it is getting drafty. This has caused his baby to be sick with pneumonia. Now he is currently in the hospital indefinitely. 
Today I was able to meet this baby. When I came in it was obvious that he did not feel well. He was coughing and there was no sign of sweet, rosy, baby cheeks. My heart broke for this family who were desperate for their son to get better but didn't know how they were going to pay their medical bills. They told me that doctor's fee each day was 200 rupees ($4) and that the hospital room was 450 rupees (about $8). In addition there are the costs for medicines and IV fluids and any other procedures. In all it is about $15 a day. That is NOTHING to us, and yet here is a family who can not afford any of it. Here is a man who has a degree and is perfectly qualified to work a higher paying job and who left a higher paying job and a nice house to serve God in the villages and help God's people. He sacrificed these things because he knew that God was calling him there. And yet here is his son, in the hospital, with a potentially fatal sickness. Despite all of this, I did not see a man whose faith was wavering, I did not see a man who was angry with God, or a man who was bitter. I saw a man who kept telling me that God would provide, that God never fails, and that all we could do was pray. Pray for the baby's health and pray that things would work out financially. 
So that's what we did, we prayed. Never have I ever experienced anything like it. We couldn't understand a word the other was saying and yet we were connected and united through prayer for this sweet baby. Even cooler, God heard our prayers and could understand both of us. When I left the hospital an hour later I saw a smiling baby who had color in his cheeks and I knew that I had just witnessed the power of prayer like I had never before. 
It's families like this that deserve our help and our time. We can help them and we can do it at next to nothing. Its only $30 a month to help a family like this provide their children with basic medical care, three meals a day, and to cover tuition costs so that their children can attend good schools. That's less then many of us spend on a tanning membership or a haircut. That's 120 Roo Cup refills, and less than some of us would spend on a nice dress. That is less than 3 trips to the movies, and less than any of us EVER spend at Target (you know its true). Thirty dollars is nothing! 
This is not a guilt trip. I am the first to admit that I don't value what I have enough. I will also be the first to admit that I too spend too much on material things and have no problem throwing $30 down the drain (at Target- what is it with that place??). I do, however, see my attitude towards money changing as I meet these families and see first hand their needs and struggles and how something as small as $30 could help them!
