Baby dedication…

It was a wonderful Lord’s day here at Asha Mission Children’s home! Babu preached a wonderful message and also held his very first baby dedication for baby Asha. It was a beautiful celebration of her life and the miracle that she is…

You know, I have to give my dad a hard time when he fusses about me coming to India. I tell him “hey, it isn’t my fault that you dedicated me to the Lord when I was a baby!” He shakes his head & usually walks away from me at that point. (men just can’t handle defeat! )

Babu asked Palwesh to lead us in prayer during the service. His prayer, although in Hindi, was one of the most heartfelt and passionate prayers I have ever heard. It roused a lot of “Amen’s!” from those in the service. He truly is a man that is seeking God’s heart… He has a lot going on this week - please pray for favor & grace!!! I hope you all get to meet him one day soon!

Attempting to catch up on several days worth at one time here at the ol' internet cafe... It's WONDERFUL that Babu brought his laptop & I bought a flash drive before I left! I can type all this stuff out everyday and then simply cut & paste it into here! Thank you to those folks that are watching! Woohoo! It's like you're right here with me! Gonna try to catch some of my church's service online tonight - make sure they're getting along ok with out me! :) (Our website is http://www.famfm.com/ if you ever care to check it out... services stream live, but are also archived...

Tomorrow we are supposed to go to Jaipur and another place I can't spell... I am going to offer to stay behind at the orphanage with Grace & the kids so she won't be there overnight by herself. Unfortunately, she stumbled onto a burglar on the premises the week before we arrived & she's still a bit spooked. (don't worry, new safety precautions are in effect!!)

Then probably towards the end of the week, Babu & I will head to Kolkata to start work on the new orphanage site.

Blessings to you all!

No rest for the wicked… or something like that

After a wonderful day, I was worn out (not to mention that my head was still spinning from the discussion with Palwesh) and turned in for bed about 10:30. I awakened at 1:00am and could not, for the life of me, go back to sleep. So I did what any other red blooded American would do.. I started texting people. (it would have been 3:30 in the afternoon in Fort Myers). Needless to say, the next thing I knew, it was 5:00am and the kids were starting their morning routine. Their schedule is UNBELIEVABLE, It’s a little bit hard to read, but here is a picture of their daily routine (keep in mind, they also have school every other Saturday!)

I am SO tired now (I’m typing this at 9:30am my time, midnight EST) I can barely keep my eyes open. Thank the Lord for STRONG chai (love, love, LOVE it!!) and “black” coffee (no milk, but enough sugar to put a diabetic into a coma!) Hopefully I will get to the internet café today to post this.

We are going to go to the children’s school in a few minutes and pay up their school bill. It costs approximately $20 per month to send each child to school. Many of them have ‘educational sponsors,’ but this does not cover their day to day expenses. Would you consider sponsoring one of these precious kids? Or maybe one of the children we are hoping to rescue in Kolkata…? We hope to journey there in a few days via plane (it’s actually only $50 more to fly than to be on a train for over 24 hours… heck yeah, we’re flyin’!) Pray we find a WONDERFUL, inexpensive place for the new orphanage! As I have said before, you have NO idea how far an American dollar goes in India… For instance, Babu had to take some passport type photos for a banking transaction he was doing. He will receive 20 photos for 30 rupees. Right now, the exchange rate is 45 rupees to one dollar!!! In case you were wondering, it costs about $8.95 for TWO passport pictures at Walgreens in Fort Myers.

**update: the two sisters that came in to the orphanage last week are really warming up to everyone. I try to spend extra time with them to try to help get them better acclimated.

A life changing prayer request...

I am in my room listening to 22 orphans sing “He knows my name. He hears my every thought. He sees each tear that falls and hears me when I call…” What a beautiful picture of who these children are… kids that trust that their heavenly Father cares for them, even if their own earthly father did not… Amazing how Americans have a difficult time trusting that God will never leave or forsake them, but these abandoned children grasp it heartily…remarkably thought provoking & touching…

Spent most of today with some of the now grown children I knew from the other orphanage… Sarika worked very hard and made us a wonderful meal! In this picture (left to right) are Sarika (Palwesh’s sister), Palwesh, Babu CJ and Pastor Saji Abraham.

Many of you have heard stories about Palwesh, and the very interesting relationship that we have shared over the last 5 years. Since my last trip here in 2004, we have maintained steady telephone communication and our friendship has continued to grow. I came to India convinced that ‘friendship’ was all we were to share. I even had some friends joke with me saying “don’t you come back married to that guy!” I really had no idea that our mutual feelings for each other would still be as strong as they were when I saw him last. However… (those dreaded ellipses)

At this point, all I will say is - PLEASE pray with us for guidance, wisdom and favor as we seek the Lord about what comes next.

Palwesh delivered me (via rickshaw) back to home base around 5:30 and I helped several of the children with their homework.

Tomorrow I will go do some shopping (let’s call it Squatty Potty therapy, shall we?) with Grace, the house mother here. She & I have become amazingly close in a few short days. I think she craves some adult conversation (plus I help her with her English skills!) J She is unbelievably hard working - I push her to take rest during the day… I think she appreciates it!

"Folks that listen"...

See the Folks that Listen widget (no, I don't know what it means either) on the left hand side of the screen? Why not join in & let me know you're reading?

Blessings-
A

Some pictures...

Babu and Asha - the baby that came to Asha Mission society at 3 days old!

The unbelievable electrical system...

Grace, the Momma of the house... Behind her is something they call a "cooler" which uses water pulled from the air to help cool a room. I have one for my room as well. This picture was taken from my bedroom door...

I love this picture. It gives you a glimpse into the poverty, yet the bright colors of India. This was taken on the roof where the children's bathroom is located. One boy recently fell from the roof & almost died. The doctors couldn't believe he survived!

Another shot from the roof - Take note of the reflection...

And of course, I had to get one picture on here with Asha and her Anitha Auntie... (yes, that's how they spell my name here!)

Wednesday - we’re halfway through & you haven’t even started…

I have to warn you first, some of the following could be too much information (TMI) for some people…

I love Indian food. I don’t care what region it is from, there is very little that I have found that I don’t like. One of those things are “pickles.” Nasty. Anyway… I have found that my appetite is minimal because (here’s where the TMI comes in) I can’t convince my body to…uh…excrete… in the squatty potty… I always get a bit stopped up on missions trips. My body’s way of revolting, I suppose. I had to gently explain this to my hostess because she was getting offended at how little I was eating. I’m happy to say that, other than that, things are going exceptionally well!

Babu was just here informing me that so many of his friends are coming to visit, which is awesome, but keeps him from taking care of business that needs to be done. Pray that the Lord will help him squeeze 36 hours into a 24 hour day!

The other problem is the “new” camera I bought has decided it doesn’t like me. The flash no longer works, so in order to get any light whatsoever, I have to change the shutter speed, which of course makes things blurry. God has given me a creative mind, so I am trying to come up with new ways to throw light on my subjects!

I’m excited to announce that we are going to try to organize a “reunion” with a bunch of the kids that grew up in the orphanage I used to visit! There are at least 20 of them living near Palwesh and Taku and they have made quite a community family. It is wonderful to hear how they all stick together as a family unit. After they visited last night, Babu suggested that we work hard to get as many of the orphans together as possible. That will be WONDERFUL! Some of these kids I haven’t seen in 10 years! UN-BE-LIEVE-ABLE!

I am now in a room with 5 American kids that came last week and they will be here until Dec. 8th. They look to be about 12 years old. They are excited, yet beginning to experience culture shock. Bless their pea pickers.

Again, pray for our time that remains… pray we get all accomplished that needs to happen! Pray I find a western toilet soon…

**UPDATE** Since typing all that, the squatty potty & I have become better friends. (couldn't leave ya hangin', now could I?)

The Eagle has landed...

(this was written yesterday - but I am only now able to get to an internet cafe)

Well, after over 24 hours in transit, we arrived in Delhi at last! (granted, 8 of those hours were spent waiting in airports!) We landed a half an hour early, breezed through customs and had all of our bags arrive with us! Definitely a GOOD day! (quite shocking, actually, if you know ANYTHING about how things happen in India!) We discovered this morning that they did not ask me for some paperwork that was securely tucked inside my passport… ooopsie!

We were greeted by my dear friend Palwesh and another friend of his that grew up in the orphanage I used to visit. It breaks my heart that I cannot return there to visit, however, I have found out that there are only 190 children there (as opposed to the 1400 that were there before!) so I may not even know any of the children that are there today.

My accommodations are meager, but comfortable. I have not one, but TWO fans in my room!! (so anyone that knows me, knows I am in hog heaven!) However, to compensate with that slice of heaven, they only have a squatty potty here… If you don’t know what I am referring to, PLEASE check out this link so you can fully understand my plight! But God is good, and it all works out in the wash and all that other blah, blah, blah… I’m just happy to be here!

I slept almost the entire flight from Chicago to Delhi with the help of Benedryl! (Babu said he was jealous!) Then when we arrived here at the house, I took more & slept off & on all night. He hasn’t slept much, so will force himself to stay awake today and take Benedryl tonight in attempts to catch up. He has a lot to do in the coming weeks, so please keep him in your prayers! Pray for favor & grace as he deals with officials in attempts of establishing the second Asha Mission home.

Babu has just left with a copy of my passport. Apparently, the local authorities have to be made known of my existence! Helps them have more of a controlling edge on what is going on in their community, I guess. He has put minutes on a cell phone that I can use while I am here. In India (as it is in most countries other than ours) you don’t get charged for incoming calls, only outgoing. If you are interested in having the number, please send me a note. You should check with your provider to find out about international charges (it can be quite expensive).

There are 3 new children at the orphanage - they just came last week. I mention it now because the little boy, who speaks only Bihari, is standing next to me watching me type this. He has an amazing smile, and, believe it or not, is named Santos. This is him...
Who knew this was a Bihari name!?! Koman and Simrian are the girls names. They are sisters. There father died recently and their mother could no longer afford to take care of them. They are quite sad, but of course, I am doing my best to bring them out of their shell. Santos & Koman are old enough to go to school, but because they moved here so late in the school year, officials will not allow them to attend. They are trying to get them into a small, local government school (our equivalent to public school) - while the other children go to a “public” school which is equivalent to our private schools. They pay over $500 a month for the children to attend there. Pray specifically that Babu can meet with a lady that operates a nice, Christian school here in Delhi. He would LOVE for these children to attend her school, but it is quite expensive. If God can move mountains, He can surely arrange this, right?

The pastor (Saji) and his sweet wife (Gracie) take impeccable care of these children despite their humble surroundings. It is a nice, family atmosphere.

There isn’t much for me to do, so I have spent some time here on Babu’s laptop typing out this message. I’ll then save it to a flash drive and we’ll eventually visit an internet café where I can upload it to my blog… EVERYTHING in India takes at least 5 times longer than in the states!

In the coming weeks, I hope to spend some time with a childhood friend who is working with another ministry here in Delhi. She’s been here a couple of years. The ONLY thing she asked me to bring her from the states was brown sugar! Can you believe that?

Stay tuned.....

777...

Well, we are on the plane & it is a 777! How's that for a godly assignment! We are sitting right on the wing - blocks the view, but, that's ok with me as I plan on having my eyes shut for a good portion of the trip!

We will arrive about 6:00am Monday morning EST time (8:30 pm Delhi time) Please pray for safe travel & EASY entrance into the country...

will update as often as I can... Love you all....

Fixin' to Fly Lewis

Off we go...!!!

Well - the waiting begins! We are delayed leaving Ft. Myers by a half hour :-( Oh well, more time to walk around before the marathon flight (14 hours!!) to Delhi! The plane must not be too big because the seats are in a 2 - 5 - 2 formation. Babu & I will sit together in one of the outer 2 seat sides, so that will be nice! (I HATE stepping over people to go potty or walk about!)

Delhi is 10 & a half hours ahead of Fort Myers time, so we will arrive at about 6:00am your time tomorrow (Monday) morning. (8:30 pm Delhi time)

My dear friend, Julie, will be coming to visit during the 6 hour wait at O'Hare... It will be wonderful to catch up!

Please continue to pray for our safety & for smooth & easy flights!

The journey is just beginning!

Blessings-
anita

Cleansing...

God is doing a great work in me.

Weeding through the clutter in my innermost being has been a daily process. Sometimes that cleasing comes with tears: tears of grief, tears of disappointment... Sometimes even tears of joy!

Worshipping "in Spirit and in Truth" has become a new priority... Enough "playing church" (can I get an Amen?)

Over the next weeks, please pray for:

*my dear friends, Babu & Lijy. Babu & I will be traveling to India together (hence why HE needs prayer!!) Lijy recently had a beautiful baby girl, and she is still recovering. Lijy's parents are here from India helping take care of her and their 3 daughters while we are gone. Pray that they remain healthy & safe in Babu's absence.

*my health, specifically freedom from headaches caused by Chiari Syndrome - I need COMPLETE healing!

*safety as we will be doing a LOT of traveling during the next month.

*my Dad... He only "permits" me to go on these trips because he knows that years ago, he entrusted me into the Lord's care. He is doing well, yet has some health concerns.

*Indian believers. As you may know, times are VERY difficult for Indian Christians. Persecution is unfathomable to those of us who were fortunate enough to grow up in the US. Pray we can encourage our brothers & sisters (however, it is most often ME that walks away encouraged because of the faith of these remarkable people!)

you are loved...
a

Additional info on AMS....

Several of you have written asking for more information about Asha Mission Society... here is a newsletter we put out several months ago...

Asha Mission Society...

Please take a few moments and watch this video that was put together SO well!

These are the children of Asha Mission Society's first orphanage in New Delhi, India. I have the incredible pleasure of serving on the board for this God ordained ministry. I will be spending about 3 weeks with these children in the upcoming month and also scouting out a location for a second home for orphaned and abandoned children in Calcutta... I covet your prayers during this long journey...

***PLEASE prayerfully consider making a tax deductible donation to help offset the cost of this trip and to provide much needed supplies for these children and those that will soon be housed in Calcutta. You wouldn't believe what even $5 can buy in India! Checks can be made out to Asha Mission Society and please put my name in the subject line. They can be mailed to:

Asha Mission Society
**NOTE: I had the wrong address previously**

P.O. Box 61414

Ft. Myers, FL 33906

If you have ANY questions, please do not hesitate to contact me...

Many blessings to you and yours -
anita