Recap of meeting my India Team!

Sunday, October 19:
Matt and I drove to Citrus Junior College in southern California where we were holding a rummage sale at a swap meet. They all met at 5:00 am but because of where we stayed I got there at 8:00, so as I walked up to the group everyone was busy selling items and getting people to look at our "goods". Doug, our leader, starting introducing me to everyone right away and everyone was very welcoming. There are 9 of us total and only one person that was not there. I was a little overwhelmed meeting everyone at first because it was a bit chaotic and a lot of names being thrown at me...not to mention not everyone I met is part of our team so I was trying to remember who was who! I stayed close to Kelly, our co-leader and I think her and I are going to get along very well. She has been to Kenya and Peru as well and worked with the same ministries I worked with when I was there...so we hit it off right away! Because we are staying in a hotel we already have our room assignments so I got to meet my roommate, Sylvia. I was also excited to see that I am not the youngest member of the team-there is a 22 year old guy who has actually never been out of the country before. With the exception of Matt, the 22 year old, everyone on the team is married and will be going on the trip without their spouse. It will be neat that we will be able to help each other and relate to each other throughout our stay in Calcutta.

Meeting everyone has gotten me so much more excited and has also relieved some anxieties that I had. I ask that you will continue to pray for me and our trip and that you will be asking God to prepare my nerves and my patience with the living situations I will encounter.

One last thing...I also found out that we are leaving two days earlier for our trip, December 28 at 1:30pm from LAX.

Thanks again for all your support and love. It has been incredible to see all the support. As of today I only need $60 until my trip is paid for...thank you!

PS to Prop 8 post...

I'm not saying one should vote yes or no on prop 8...I'm simply wondering why we, myself included, spend more time making known what we stand against rather than what we stand for. I think it is a problem with Christianity as a whole...we are known more for what we stand against rather than what we believe in and stand for. Just don't take this as a political statement on how to vote one way or another! Okay, now I'm done!

Prop 8

On my way to school this morning, around 7:30 am, I drove past a busy intersection to see two people holding signs to vote "yes" on Prop 8. This got me thinking about how much time we spend making it clear about what we stand against rather than what we stand for. I would venture to guess that the majority of the people who are rallying people to vote yes on prop 8 are Christians which begs me to ask if they are spending even half as much time loving others (homosexuals) as they are making their stance known? Jesus simply calls us to Love God and to Love Others and if we did this simple command...oh how different the world would be!
On another note, why are Christians so focused on homosexuality? Do we see it as a sin? Yes...but why are we so focused on this sin compared to other sins? I haven't heard much talk about prop 4 which deals with abortion. The truth is that homosexuality is happening...and it didn't just start in 2008...it was in the Bible and whether there is a law against homosexual marriage or not same sex couples will be together and a law is not going to stop it. Whether they can marry or not really has no effect on my marriage, my marriage is still valid and will be great regardless of who else is allowed to marry. Youth are still going to grow up knowing homosexual relationships happen but I really don't think it will have an effect on the path they choose...in the past it wasn't talked about nearly as much as it is talked about now yet homosexuality didn't die out...it still happened. As a youth leader I say we should focus more on teaching youth to value themselves and to guard their body against premarital sex or drug use or underage drinking rather than trying to protect them from the talk of homosexuality. Let's teach the youth to love God and love others regardless of the life they choose just as Jesus did. Okay...that's all on that. This is what happens when I have an hour drive to school early in the morning! :-)

It is really going to happen!

I just got confirmation that our plane tickets to India have been purchased! It is really going to happen! I am really excited...it's not just a possibility anymore. I'm also excited because we have a layover in Dubai and I really like it there! Thanks again for your prayers and support! 

India Team Training!

I am very excited for this weekend as I finally get the opportunity to meet the people I will be traveling to India with! The team is holding a fundraiser in Southern California and it will work out for Matt and I to go down for the weekend. The church I am going with (Simplified) is holding their church service at a swap meet to be out in the community and all the money raised from the swap meet will go toward our trip. I am really looking forward to meeting everyone and hopefully it will alleviate some of my anxieties about the trip! Again I want to thank you for all your support, financial and prayer. I can't explain how encouraged I have been by the love and support you have poured out on me.

Frustrations....

Quite honestly I try to avoid talking to a lot of other people involved in youth ministry because it usually leaves me being frustrated and this happens...a post about my frustrations! I was recently reviewing a popular website among Pastor's wives and one of the most popular posts was about the game show Wipeout. Now, for the record, this is a pretty hilarious game show. We actually DVR it so that we can watch it with friends and make fun of the ridiculous things people will compete in for money. Having a post about the game show is not the frustrating thing frustrations comes in when the wives go on and on about how their youth pastor husbands spend time, energy and money figuring out how to recreate this obstacle course for their youth services. I am all about having fun and enjoy creating fun environments for youth the problem I have is that when we as youth leaders only have about an hour and half with these young students why are we wasting it playing silly games? Project Four Twelve is very, very unique in that we do not play games during our youth group services and I am astonished at how many groups will spend 45+ minutes playing games each week. Wednesday night for Jr. High and Thursday night for High School are our most crucial nights of the week and I can't imagine wasting that time playing silly games rather than worshiping and teaching students about the most important thing they will ever hear about. They don't need to compete in a fun competition what they need is to hear about the saving grace of Jesus Christ...they already know how to have fun...they need a Savior...they need to know how to live for Him, how to teach others about Him...not who can drink a disgusting blended drink of sardines and whatever else was on sale at the store. We have been entrusted with an amazing responsibility of teaching young people about Christ and I don't want to waste the time that we have to do that.

India Update!

I recently received an update from our India Trip Team Leader and wanted to pass it on to you to include you in my trip as well as to ask you to join me in praying for India. This update makes me nervous and at the same time makes me want to go to India even more. It is clear that the Christians in India need encouragement and support and the country is in dire need of Christ's love. Here is the email that the missionaries in Calcutta have sent to us:

I just spoke with [the Pastor] on the phone from Orissa. He says that things are much worse than even what the reports we’ve read are saying. The government is 100% for the radical Hindu groups that are attacking Christians, burning churches, killing and raiding. The Baptists and Catholic communities have been hit the hardest. Many Christians want to retaliate with violence by joining the terrorists hiding in the jungles. Many Christians must hide out in the jungle at night for safety. No where is safe for them. [Pastor] is there with his son, and others – who speaks the local language. They are meeting tomorrow – which will be our tonight – with 20 Christian pastors to fast and pray and seek the Lord for wisdom and guidance. He is asking for our sincere prayers. He wants to know what to do to help. We had two missionaries in this area for about a year, but they have since fled. There are some Christians there who have no pastor that were baptized under our care. [Pastor] believes that the Lord has a plan for this area and that many will be reached for Christ through this conflict. The people he has talked to are so very grateful that he came – they feel that there are not alone and they’ve been told that we are praying for them.

Please continue to pray and let others know what is happening. This hasn’t hit the world news reports yet, and it needs to. Indians in other areas feel that this is barbaric and is a stain on India. We must pray that the dark deeds of Satan against the church be revealed. Pray for God’s Spirit to lead and guide His people though this very difficult time of persecution. He is their ever present help in time of need. Pray to the Prince of Peace to rule and reign in Orissa.