Just Another Post
Ahoy mateys. Not so much deep epiphany-like posts today, just feel like givin everybody some juicy filler. I would first and foremost like to let every one know that we have decided to indulge ourselves tonight with some delicious Domino’s Pizza. Jealous?! Nah, I’m sure that’s what you had for dinner a few nights ago and now you’re munchin’ on the leftovers, but for us, this is a big deal! We did have KFC on Sunday, and it far and away surpassed all of our expectations. So we really can’t wait for some good old American pizza. (I know I know, pizza’s Italian. Whatever)
So the ministry has been going very smoothly and the people we’ve met through it have been a mighty blessing. In the near future though, it may be changing a bit. There are some teams from other churches or organizations coming in and out of the area, and since their trips have tended to be much more short-term, they take over our current ministries, which is just fine, but we’re thinkin’ that we might have to make some adjustments. On Friday, we’re going to register to work with some of the Mother Teresa homes (for the…dying, sick and dying, orphans, handicapped children, etc) for about a week, and if it feels right and the Lord is pulling us in that direction, it may become more of a full-time thing. Also, today was one of those days where another team took over the teaching we do in the mornings, so Ryan and Sara went out to prayer walk the slums. They said it seemed like one of the most productive and satisfying days of ministry yet, so that may be another option for more of the ministry–prayer walks, more door-to-door stuff, or just letting each day be more Spirit-led and spontaneous. And personally, I’d be down with that because they brought back some delicious chocolate-filled caramels today!
So, last night Ryan and I visited the Mother Home (Missionaries of Charity Headquarters) to register to volunteer only to find out that there were designated times to do this kind of thing. Go figure, but it was totally worth it. As you all know from the previous posts, Calcutta isn’t the most delightful place, spiritually that is. (hence the term, kingdom of darkness!) Mother’s Home, however, is quite the exception. When we walked in, we could feel the peace of God all around us. It was as if the darkness wanted nothing to do with this place. The whole atmosphere was truly nothing but peaceful. We got the info we needed, saw Mother Teresa’s tomb, her very humble room, and received some pendants of the virgin Mary (yikes…). It was kinda weird seeing all of the white people around, but I really can’t wait to start volunteering. The most memorable part of the evening though happened in our taxi ride back home. When we got in, I looked at the driver, and thought he looked a bit familiar. I told Ryan, and we decided it was the guy who drove us to church on Sunday. The place where we get dropped off for church is called Music World, so Ryan looked at the guy, said “Music World?” and he knew exactly what we were talking about. Once he realized that he had been our driver, we all just started laughing. Now, laughing with and sharing a joke with someone who doesn’t speak the same language is one thing, but what really got to us was the odds. I mean, really, what are the chances of us getting the same cab driver twice, in all of Calcutta’s 17 million people?! We figured the odds were about 2 in a million. Mind = blown. I’m still not over it. And I don’t think I ever will be.
At this point, I would like to give a big shout-out to whoever invented our new best friend: Skype. What a great thing. Being able to talk to (and see!) friends and family back home, for FREE, is more than we could ever ask for. It has been such a huge blessing to talk to everybody. If you don’t have it, then google it, download it, and talk to us. When we’re on, it’s under either benjammin412 or chopecroll. Our wireless internet connection is hit and miss, but if you give us your username (which is also free to register), we’ll talk to ya when we can. And keep in mind the 11.5 hour time difference…
Once again, a big thanks to everyone who has been and is continuing to pray for us. If anyone has been praying for our finances, well, they have been answered. In abundance. We got about 15 or 20 percent more money back than we expected for refunding our train tickets, received a very generous amount of money from a few people back home, and found out that our stay in Calcutta is going to end up being about half as much as we thought. Praise the Lord! We love you guys, miss you, and can’t wait to see all of your beautiful faces. And don’t stop prayin! Peace
-Team India
