Love One Another

Being back in the States and interacting with different people, especially at church, has been interesting after being gone for so long. It’s different now because I’ve been living overseas. A lot of people know who I am and ask me questions about what I’ve been doing and what I plan to do in the future. I know that some of these people would be interested in me and my life no matter what I was doing, but I think some people are more interested in my life because I’ve been overseas. I don’t know if they think I’m special because of where I’ve been or if they’re intrigued because the stories I can tell are so different from what they experience day-to-day or if it’s because they read my emails and want to know more. Probably it’s a combination of these things along with some other things that I haven’t thought of. And I’m sure it’s different for everyone. (Now some of you reading this are probably wondering whether or not you’re one of the people I’m talking about, and others of you will begin to wonder that as you continue reading. I want you to know that I’m not placing anyone in categories, and no matter what motivates you to be interested in my life enough to ask how things are going (and to read my blog), I truly appreciate all of your prayers, all of your emails, and all of the conversations we’ve had, whether long or short. Thank you for investing in my life and for being part of my journey.)

My increased “visibility” has allowed me to interact with people that I probably wouldn’t have met otherwise. People invite me to their homes to share more about what I’m doing. People ask me how things are going and how they can be praying. People tell me stories about ways they’re reaching out to their friends and neighbors. People help connect me with useful resources and with other people who are involved with similar things. It’s great! It encourages me, reminds me that I’m not alone, and spurs me on to do more.

But then I began to think…Why doesn’t everyone interact like this? Isn’t this the way the Church should be? Loving one another, fellowshipping together, eating together, having all things in common, encouraging each other, and spurring one another on to love and good deeds. What’s keeping us from deeper friendships with fellow believers? What’s keeping us from praying more for one another and from offering help and resources to our brothers and sisters? Our Father has all the resources in the world – we just have to share them with one another. And I’m not talking about money. I’m talking about people and about fellowship – iron sharpening iron. What’s keeping us from living a community lifestyle like the first church in Acts? I think it has to do with individuals and families taking the time to invest in the lives of other individuals and families.

I’m so grateful to all of you who have taken the time to invest in my life. So many of you have said and done things that have truly encouraged me and helped make me who I am and who I will be. Most of you probably have no idea how much of an impact you’ve made and are making in my life. For that, I thank you!! Now think, who else around you needs some kind words of encouragement? Who else can you spend quality time with? Only together can we live the life that Jesus came to give us.

“By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.” (John 13:35)

My First Quilt

Not many of you know, but recently I started quilting. I thought about making a quilt before I went to India the first time but didn't have time to finish. I cut out a few pieces and sewed them together, but then I packed up all of my fabric and put it away before leaving for India. When I got back to Texas in December, I decided to pull it out and see how far I could get. I ended up almost finishing it before I left again, but not quite. Yesterday I finally felt ambitious enough to get it back out and put on the finishing touches, so finally, last night I finished it!! Here are some pictures:

The Longest Month of my Life

Many of you have been asking about my trip. Honestly, it was a roller coaster ride! It was really hard, but it was also really good. I'll write more details about different parts of my trip as I process through them, but here's an overview. This timeline is based on a conversation I had with Sara while we were in Delhi. We'd been there for about 2 1/2 days, but we both agreed that it felt like a week. I told her that the whole trip had felt like that for me, and then I began counting the "weeks" I'd spent in India. Here's the recap:

Week 1: I spent 40+ hours travelling from Houston to our apartment. Those 40 hours included two 8-9 hour plane rides, a layover in London, a talkative drunk man sitting next to me on one of my flights, the exciting news that India beat Pak. in cricket, helping a Swedish girl find the train station in Delhi, a 8 hour bus ride, and a winding, mountainous, taxi ride. I went from being in Houston, TX to being in the foothills of the Himalayas. It's like a totally different world! One of my new friends in India said, "It's so crazy! When we're here [in India] it's hard to imagine that a place like America exists, and when we're in America, it's hard to imagine that a place like India exists." It's so true. So that has to count as a "week."

Week 2: I reached our apartment late on March 31 and stayed through April 4. I spent the time visiting some friends and clinging to Jesus. As some of you may remember from my emails, it was a very difficult time for me, but I was glad to be able to cling to the One who is always with us, even through our troubles.

Weeks 3 & 4: I went out to visit the school from April 5-13. As soon as I neared the school, I remembered why I love India so much! I had a fabulous time reuniting with friends and teaching classes. I love teaching. I love the people there. I love being in the mountains. I love the villages. It was a great visit, though a bittersweet one because I was reuniting with friends and saying goodbye to them at the same time. There was a Sunday in the middle, our one-day weekend, so of course that divided my visit into two "weeks."

Week 5: I went back to the city on the evening of the 13th and spent the evening and night at one of our friend's house. Then early in the morning, I took a bus to the next city over to meet Sara. We spent most of the day there, and then came back to our apartment in the evening. We spent the evening with the family that Sara had lived with, and the returned to our apartment around 11pm. I had left my phone in our room, and came back to 10 missed calls from a number I didn't know. In the morning, they called again, and it turned out to be one of my friends at the school calling to tell me that our friend, Sangeeta, had died in a car accident the evening before (on the 14th). I couldn't believe it. I called someone else to confirm. Time stopped or sped up or something. I rushed back to the school almost immediately.

Week 6: I reached the school on the morning of the 15th and then went with some of the other teachers to Sangeeta's village to mourn with her mother and aunts. When we reached her village and I remembered being there in October with Sangeeta, her death suddenly became very real to me. I cried a lot that day. And the next. I spent the night at the school because I couldn't imagine rushing back to town and being with friends who didn't know Sangeeta and wouldn't understand. I just wanted to be with my friends at the school. It's like home to me, and I was with people that loved Sangeeta like I did.

Week 7: On the 16th, I eventually made my way back to the city to be with Sara and to begin going through all the stuff stored at our apartment. I didn't want to be there. I wanted to be at the school. But we had work to do. I made plans to take Sara to visit the school on the 19th, but it seemed like an eternity away. A lot of my friends in town asked about why I'd gone back to the school so quickly, so I told them about my friend, Sangeeta. Most of them had read about her car accident in the newspaper, but not many of them knew her. I did my best to enjoy my time with friends there and to get done all the sorting, selling, and packing that Sara & I had to do, but it was difficult a lot of the time. I cried a lot the first day, but gradually less and less each day. I was pretty overwhelmed, but I had to keep moving forward. I had a slight breakdown once, but thankfully Sara was there to sit with me and talk with me some.

Week 8: April 19 finally came, and Sara & I went back to the school for a visit. As always, it was great to be back! Sara left on the morning of the 20th, and I stayed until the evening of the 20th. I was glad to see everyone at the school one last time, and I cried as I left. My heart really is with my friends at the school.

Week 9: I joined Sara in town on the evening of the 20th to take care of last minute details of packing, gifting, and selling our things. We spent the 21st saying goodbye to all of our friends (and of course drinking chai (tea) with each of them). We ate lunch twice (due to a mix up in planning), and drank about 10 thousand cups of chai. At the last house, I managed to drop a full, steaming hot cup of tea in my lap. Ouch!! Don't worry, though, they quickly brought me a new cup. (Just what I wanted, more tea!)

Weeks 10-12: Sara & I left for Delhi on the morning of the 21st and reached there in the evening. I spent a calendar week there visiting with different people to explore the options for the future. Sara and I had our conversation about having been in Delhi for a "week" on the morning of the 26th. She was planning to leave the night of the 27th, and I was staying until the night of the 29th, so I told her that I still had 2 more weeks in India -- one with her and one without her. That put my total at 3 "weeks" in Delhi. I spent that time meeting with a couple people almost every day. It was a good balance of having enough to do, but not having too much to do. On some level, it was information overload, but it was encouraging to hear about what other people are doing in India.

So that's how April 2011 became the longest month of my life. That's the "math" that made 4 weeks seem like 12 in my mind. I'd love to share more with you personally about my time in India if you're interested. And I'll definitely keep you updated as I process and pray and figure out what my next steps will be. Thanks again for being part of this journey with me!