The team has been home for over a week now, and everyone is settling back into their lives in Los Angeles. Most had to hit the ground running with our jobs, some had to battle remnants of whatever illness got hold of us while in India. Regardless of our circumstance upon returning, we have all been reflective in our time. I hesitate to say any sort of conclusion has been drawn as to how we will proceed with the knowledge we now have—but I do think our hearts are matured and open to God’s calling for the work He will have us do with these ministries in the future in a way that they could not have been before visiting.
One of the many blessings of our time in Northern India was the opportunity to attend a Christian church. Our hosts in Mussoorie run the facility, which is a small room on the side of the road, overlooking a vast landscape of mountains and trees. Most members walk there, many for one or two hours each way, surely a weekly commitment beyond our own in Los Angeles. The morning started with the team splitting in two and leading the youth group and younger children in activity and song. After this, service started and we were lead in worship through at least six songs. They sing praise in Hindi so beautifully, and we hope to be able to share a sample with you. As guests, we were made to stand and introduce ourselves. It was fascinating to witness the varied ways in which people praise the Lord. We were all struck by a man speaking in tongues, pointing to individuals as he prayed. It was clear the spirit was alive in that space. Admittedly, we did not know how to react to his loud calls, but upon reflection we liked seeing that he was so moved. The Ecclesia team was then invited up to the front and sang, “Lord we Lift Your Name on High”. Jennifer gave her poignant testimony, which includes stories of previous visits to India as a non-Christian. Kevin followed with a reading from the book of Matthew and an explanation of our background in Hollywood. We spent another hour there after service, meeting people and buying clothing, handmade jewelry, candles and blankets to support the church.
It was so special to see how affected people were by our presence there on this day. We did only what we were compelled to do as followers of the Lord; as guests of our hosts. But we could see in people’s response to Jennifer’s testimony, their embraces, the flowers we received, the dance moves the young ladies taught us…that they knew we were family. This church’s regional positioning is so important—they have about eighty congregants and every single one of them carry a responsibility to their community. It is one that we certainly share in Los Angeles, but because of the scarcity of believers, their calling holds a gravity that an American could easily dismiss as outside our domain of obligation. But this is not so and the heart of the matter is that as a church we have committed to supporting the livelihood of this town through the work of our incredible ministry partners. The supreme way in which our team can serve Ecclesia is to educate everyone else on how to properly pray for what our family is striving toward in India. They need us and if they didn’t, God would have placed us somewhere else. He sent ten of us to return with this knowledge for you and we will spend the months ahead doing our very best to deliver. ::Sara
Pictures from the day at church
Please join us in service on Sunday, November 8th at 11am as we begin to unfold a portion of our enlightenment.
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