My First Indian Birthday

Yesterday was one of the most unique days of my life, and certainly my most unique birthday.

The day started with amazing words of encouragement and scriptures from the members of our visiting U.S. team. They were amazing. I'll remember their words for a long time and am so thankful for them.

Next, we attended a 3 hour Indian church service where I had the blessing of delivering the sermon. It is a special gift from my Father in Heaven to be able to lead the sweet people of this church in the Word on my birthday.

I had initially attempted to keep my birthday a secret because I had seen how they celebrate Ralph's birthday, and I was planning to stay below the radar! 

However, I first noticed that something was up when one of our staff called me on the way to church to wish me happy birthday. I wondered how she found out?  Then, on the way into church, all of our littlest girls were wishing me happy birthday. How did they find out?? Then I saw the church service schedule...and at the bottom was..."Happy Birthday Brother Will." Now how did all this happen???

After some false accusations and investigative work, I saw the Facebook message from my Dad to Ralph that blew my cover!

At the end of church, they had a cake for my birthday, and a couple of children in the congregation who share their birthdays with me also came forward.  This is where the day begins to become unique...in an Indian way.

The tradition starts with cutting the cake and posing for pictures. Then those that you know, especially elders, procede to feed you pieces of cake. With each piece, there is a pose for a photo, then they feed you by hand the biggest piece they can get your mouth open for. Finally, everyone comes up and wishes you happy birthday, saying "many happy returns of this day."

Then we went to Ralph's cousin's house for lunch, followed by the second birthday celebration. More amazing chocolate cake, more cutting, more being fed by hand, more pictures. But this was extra special because several of our oldest girls were also there, and they wanted to feed me cake, too. That is because, with a little prodding from Ralph, they proceeded to rub it all over my face! I just laughed with them and let them. I realized that they would only do that if they felt comfortable with me, and that was a special thing. They always do this to their sisters in our home and even with Ralph.

Finally, the third celebration occured in the evening at our littlest girls home. They sang happy birthday to me together and presented me with my 4th handmade card of the day. And a third amazing chocolate birthday cake, which we all shared.

I must say that after it all, although I resisted it initially, I am very happy that my Indian family found out that it was my birthday. It's one that I'll never forget!

A Call to Fast & Pray

Friends and family,

This coming week is special. For many people it will mean days with the family and celebrations. But for others, this week is special in a different way. This coming holiday week is one of the busiest for brothels here in India. Similar to American events like the Super Bowl and the associated increase in sex-trafficking there every year, this coming week brings a much larger volume of customers to the brothels.

This means more women working longer hours throughout the days and nights to satisfy the insatiable demand. This also means more children who are exposed to these environments having their senses assailed by the activities occurring in the next room, or as is unfortunately common, directly above them, as they try to sleep under the bed of their mother.

The threats to these children are clear: 95% become 2nd generation commercial sex workers. But the threat doesn't end there. Even for those who can be rescued or find another life, what their eyes see and ears hear can leave deep scars in need of healing.

These realities are hard to grapple with, and it is especially unnerving being so close to some of these places this week.  However, we are not powerless. Not even close.

This week, I am asking you to join me for a day of fasting and prayer of intercession for the vulnerable and defenseless. For those whose bodies are being used for destruction, and just as much, for the innocent little ones who will be threatened by being in the same place.

 

You see, without Christ, we are indeed powerless. But with Christ, our finite obedience and humble cries reach an infinite God. And in that, we have "the divine power to demolish strongholds" (2 Cor 10:4) in Jesus name.

Please join me in fasting and praying specifically for the children currently forced to be in the brothels or other places of such darkness this week. Please intercede with me on their behalf for protection from physical, emotional, psychological, and spiritual abuse.  Isaiah 59:16 - "God wondered that there was no intercessor" for the oppressed and vulnerable. Let God not wonder today. Let us stand as intercessors in the power of The Intercessor, Christ, to whom this passage in Isaiah refers.

I pray that Isaiah 58:6-9 brings you encouragement and guidance if you decide to fast this week:

"Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen: to loose the chains of injustice and untie the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed free and break every yoke? Is it not to share your food with the hungry and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter—when you see the naked, to clothe him, and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood?

Then your light will break forth like the dawn, and your healing will quickly appear; then your righteousness will go before you, and the glory of the Lord will be your rear guard. Then you will call, and the Lord will answer; you will cry for help, and he will say: Here am I."

 

Thank you for your sacrifices for these children in the sight of God. May the God of all grace grant protection and salvation for the children in dark places this week and reward your faithfulness in Christ. Amen.

The Sermon That Stuck: "Be a Burning Bush"

Today I was able to attend one of our churches within our network, and specifically the same church in which I preached just this past July. It is always a joy to visit and see familiar faces worshiping God with all their might and experiencing their authentic joy to see you again.

At the end of the service, it is customary for every single person to greet every single other person...every single person! As I was coming to the end, saying "Praise the Lord" again and again (this is how you say hello in the church here...love it!), there was one woman in the back that spoke to me just a little bit longer. What she said really meant a lot to me.

She told me that she remembered my sermon the last time I was there, and most amazingly, "I ask God every day to make me a burning bush." Wow. She actually remembered the sermon and it has changed her prayer life!

When you preach or teach, you sometimes wonder if even one person remembers one little part such that it makes a real impact in their life. And I reason with myself that if even a single person remembers a single thing that has real impact on their life, then it was worth all the preparation and spending yourself for the message. The message was for them...they are the person you were preaching to, if the only person. That gives the teacher or preacher purpose.

And so to know that God continues to work powerfully in the message long after it is given is a special blessing.  As I prepare to preach again next Sunday, Nov 11, I would like to invite you to pray for a sermon with equal or greater impact on listeners such as the woman today who has been impacted by Moses and the burning bush. 

Specifically, I am praying for three things:

-Simplicity
-Clarity
-Power

I believe these elements will be used by the Holy Spirit to make lasting impact in the lives of those who will hear.

The topic of my sermon next week will be Waiting on the Lord, specifically highlighting the account of Jesus raising Lazurus in John 11. It is partially inspired by the post the Lord moved me to write last November: The Pain & Glory of Waiting on the Lord.  I had no idea at the time that I would be preaching on this topic in India within the year!

Until then, for those that are curious, and for those that migh be similarly impacted, below is a summary of the Burning Bush sermon from July:

Key Scripture: Exodus 3:1-10

Thought questions: Have you ever ignored a burning bush? What does a burning bush look like in your life?

1. Examining the burning bush
- Was the bush God, or special in any way? No, it was ordinary. God IN the bush made it extrordinary.
- What does a burning bush look like today? - 2 Cor 4. A burning bush is anyone who is under trial, but is not consumed. Without Christ they would be consumed, but with Christ, they are not.
- Everyone is set on fire by the world. Will you be consumed?
- Daniel 3:22-25 - Jesus, the 4th person in the furnace is the difference.

2. Responding to the burning bush - Lessons from Moses in Exodus 3
- This was an ordinary day for Moses. 40 years, 14,600 days of silence, exile, and obscurity.
- Moses' role? He simply "turned aside" to behold the phenomenon.
- God speaks through burning bushes today. Look for them and "turn aside" to listen. In addition, your testimony will be God's miracle and mouthpiece to speak to someone else.
- God called Moses by name, and He will do the same with you.
- Moses' and our calls are the same: (Eph 2:8-10)
  1. To God Himself
  2. His purpose for your life

Thought questions:
1. Does today feel like just another day?
2. Are you preparing yourself to respond to God's call?
3. If you have received a call from God, are you remembering daily that He calls you to Himself first?

Conclusion:
1. Be the burning bush in Christ
- Hope of not being consumed yourself
- Joy of sharing that hope with others

2. Turn aside and listen to God in burning bushes (fellow Christians)
- If you have failed, if you have not heard from God - today He chooses you by name
- First call is to God Himself
- Second, walk in obedience in the works that have been prepared for you

Asking for a Father

Of the many scriptures that our girls memorize, one that seems to resonate within them and that they recall with energy is “Though my mother and father forsake me, God will take care of me” (Psalm 27:10). The first time I heard these little ones recite that verse, it was nearly heartbreaking. However, in time I’ve come to realize that my heartbreak came from a focus on the wrong things—the past. When looking at the second half of the verse and coming to a true understanding of what it means to have God as a Father, the verse is truly uplifting…whether or not you still have an earthly mother and father in your life.

Today is Saturday, a day off, known as “holiday” to the Indian people. My absolute favorite way to spend any “holiday” in India is with our girls. Sometimes energetic games, sometimes songs, sometimes Bible stories…the activities vary, but the joy of sharing life with these precious little ones remains a constant blessing.

I like to take the opportunity to instruct our girls, and really, any human being who will listen, about the Father heart of God and our place as His children. For Americans, Indians, adults, and children alike, understanding the truth of our relationship with God as our Father is the source of life and life abundant. Near the end of my instruction today, the girls recited to me of their own accord that “though my mother and father forsake me, God will take care of me.” Then one of our very bright and shy little ones spoke something softly in the local language and disappeared around the corner. Some of the girls giggled as I asked what she had said. “She wants you to be her father,” said a bold little one. Oh my. Yes, my answer is yes, my heart and my mind said silently. I took the opportunity to speak in Hindi, “Tum meri bahen’e heh, Mai tumhara bha’i hu,” which means “You are my sisters, I am your brother.” Their smiles told me that I had been accepted into our family.

It is clear that my role in this ministry is not to be the father figure to each of our girls, though I can think of no greater blessing. But the request of one precious little one to be a father to her spoke so much. Yes, it made me feel like a million bucks, in that I would be desired as such; but much, much more, it reveals the simple heart of a child, and every child of God, to be fathered. To be fathered is to be loved, to be protected, to be instructed, to be disciplined, to be provided for, to be an heir to all that is our Father’s. In God’s grace, He fathers us in these and many more ways. In God’s grace, our little girls are receiving an answer to their sometimes inaudible cries for a loving mother and father here on earth. Love. Protection. Instruction. Discipline. Provision. Heirs.

I encourage you to meditate on what it means to have the God of the universe as your Father today. It may be the most meaningful part of your day. Men, may I also suggest a book that I am just a few pages from finishing: “Fathered by God” by John Eldridge.

For you did not receive a spirit that makes you a slave again to fear, but you received the Spirit of sonship. And by him we cry, "Abba, Father." - Romans 8:15

 

If my response to a little one asking for me to be a father to her was immediately "yes" in my heart in mind, though I am limited in my ability to actually assume that role, how much more is the answer of God "yes" to any of His children who, in Christ, cry out "Abba, Father?" And our God is by no means limited in either His desire or ability to be our Father. This is God's promise to you.

I praise God for providing abundantly for each of the girls in our care, I praise Him for providing abundantly for me, and it is my prayer that you would come to know with ever greater depth that God is your Father. In Christ alone. Amen.

"...no matter how many promises God has made, they are "Yes" in Christ. And so through him the "Amen" is spoken by us to the glory of God." - 2 Cor 1:20

What I'll Miss

Well, as I sit in the airport pecking away on my smartphone, the hour has come for my departure to India. Thank you for joining me in this journey and especially for your prayers.

In considering such an extended time away from home and in counting the cost, I began thinking of all the things I am going to miss over the next 5 months:

Family, friends, my Sunday school class, the World Series, Thanksgiving, my birthday, Christmas, turkey, ham, BEEF!, the first ever Summit new year's hoedown, the college football bowl season, daylight savings time (OK, I don't miss changing my clocks AT ALL), BEEF!, TexMex, regular recreational sports, the birth of at least one friend's first child, the Texas Nascar race, the Daytona 500 on TV, Starbucks, Chick-fil-a, BEEF! (Yes, I know, I said it 3 times)

OK, so that's a partial list of what I'm going to miss. However, what I share in the posts over the next few months will be all that I get to experience instead! Blessings in exchange for blessings, this is our Lord's economy.

Looking forward to the journey and sharing it with you.