GRADUATE SCHOOL- Lesson #2

<3, <3, <3
It is November. 

Three months of strenuous work. 

Of challenge. Of controversy. Of diligence. Of childlike trust and curiosity

I can't even relax

Lesson for Today:

Enjoy the day, enjoy the time!

"My  <3 is not proud, my eyes are not haughty. I do not get involved in things too great or too difficult for me. Instead, I have calmed and quieted myself.....like a little weaned child with its mother; I am like a little child. 3 Angela put your hope in the Lord, both now and forever." - Psalms 131


Let not the restlessness of the world, spur my energies toward shadows of fulfillment or counterfeit substances.  


Word of the Day:

Aegyo (v) : A collection of childish speaking styles, gestures, and mannerisms. Aegyo is to show a "cute" side of an individual
  

Graduate School- Lesson #1True servanthood

August/ September 2012

The appearance of a bedbug can really shake your theological foundations... It is amazing to me why on earth God would create such an annoying skin-crawling deceitful insect. It's like a mosquito in beetle form except it hides like a bat and lives as long as a tortoise. Eww.

This is one of those occasions where no devotional can satisfactorily soothe the soul. I mean you can't even read a devotional for fear of something slithering and gnawing on you unknowingly..

My landlord who was seemingly uninterested and apathetic has shown a great amount of concern over the entire ordeal. (Hello!!)  His compassion was completely unexpected and I was convicted about my ridiculous handling of the whole affair. (I think I called him six times in a day!..how selfish) The man was overly considerate....eliminating rent for the last two months and even paying for our laundry.

Still I complained....

I remember pleading with God to remove the disgusting vermon. No Reply. Another month went by.  Finally an answer! And most definitely NOT the one I was anticipating. His message to me......serve.

 SERVE?!?!?

Ah yes.. my child... the entirety of this situation is for you to remember your place in the spread of My plan.

Gah! Service.

 Until my answered prayer, I  hadn't realized the considerable level of neglect I had raised to my roommate. Indeed, I had  even ignored being a helping hand at my church. Even my school work was slipping.

Well duhh. Why remind me to consider all the other ones around me?.... I'M the one who's suffering!

"On the contrary, my child, I'm the One who Suffered" 

The following litany of "yeah, buts" that ran through my mind seemed to stop incredibly short of that statement. I truly no nothing of God's love, as Amy Carmichael said. If I aptly look after myself to the neglect or detriment of another...I know nothing of Christ's love.

SIN!

In the weeks that followed, my roommate began to become increasingly unsettled and it truly took the power of the Holy Spirit to urge me to be committed to listening to her and making things comfortable for her. As I continued to serve her by baking for her and being available for conversation and cleaning... the Lord reminded me that He sees my sin, like I see bedbugs. It's deceitful, disgusting, annoying. It gnaws away at me and sucks the life out of me....more importantly, if it is untreated it multiplies quickly then spreads to those around me. Eww. May I see all my sin like devouring bedbugs.



LESSON OF THE DAY!

Humility reminds me that I am horribly scarred by my skin. However, the grace of God that comes through Christ Jesus cleanses me. Service. 

The truest service is offered when nothing is anticipated, returned or congratulated. It is the willing sacrifice of unfathomably unconditional love for another as demonstrated on the Cross.

"For even the Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many." (Mark 10:45) 

WORD OF THE DAY

HUMILITY (N): Modesty, docility, abasement....as in a basement..#self-explanatory

LANDING!! June 7-9,2011

Yep...

June 7-8, 2011

Read: Finished 2 Chronicles; John 17

            Left the Atlanta Airport in the morning heading to John F. Kennedy airport in New York. Then took a nap in the airport and before we knew it – There we were on our way to Kolkata India. It was a long ride! But I was pleasantly surprised by the full-course Indian food served on the plane (I was expecting like goldfish or something)  and the smell. Totally caught me off guard. I thought it was so cool to see the flight attendants dressed in Saris and salwar kameez suits! Bit into a pepper on the plane that I thought was a string bean…not a string bean.

            We were picked up at the airport- I was also surprised that customs was no big deal. Met Andy, Billy, and Bill, the three missionaries my team would be serving with for the summer. Billy would be our supervisor. We all called our parents and it was such a joy to hear my family’s voices! When we went to get a taxi, I found it very interesting that the supervisors had trouble finding their pre-paid taxi. I saw firsthand how important it is to actually live in the culture and not just amongst the people. Went through traffic. Driving through the city was soooo exciting and wonderfully terrifying at the same time! 

June 9,2011

            Ezra 1-2, John 18

Great Bazaar aka New Market

Woke up to banging. Seriously thought terrorists were coming to deport me. It was the boys calling us to breakfast….they forgot we said we would skip it to sleep in

Today we would meet a journey girl named Karis who had lived in the city for two years now! She would be taking us to a place called New Market to go shopping for clothes. It is culturally inappropriate for a girl to wear shorts, shirts exposing the collarbone, shirts that do not cover the bottom, or even capris. We really wanted to be appropriate or at least culturally chic.  As we walked through the market, I loved all the bright vibrant colors! Dogs roam the streets. People were everywhere. There were different shops for everything you could imagine. All outdoors! I mean watch stands and shoe stands, hat stands and jewelry stands. I remember thinking my gosh, can you actually go inside any of the stores. There were a few but they were very similar in set-up to the ones outside- lots of stuff and very close together. Bargaining was going to be a challenge to me but watching Karis was like watching a live auction! She is truly an amazing girl! She was so kind and diligent to us!

Later that day we went to a temple called the Birla temple. Honestly, by that time I had had my fill of India that day and didn’t even want to take pictures of/or with the place. Once inside, I was heartbroken.  It had 8 or 9 gods represented there. I was tore up when I saw people paying to receive a blessing called Bashish, which is actually a little white piece of food that is sacrificed to the idol.

Left to meet Kayla, another journeygirl, for coffee! We stopped by a KFC just before hand and I was so surprised to see English signs everywhere and even more so when I heard  Taylor Swift’s “Mine” playing on the loud speakers. Then the country “chicken fried” song that always reminds me of Cale Ward played. I mean my goodness am in India? It was so different from the earlier events of the day!

June 10, 2011

            Read: Ezra 3-5, John 18 (again)

Meeting @ supervisors home: Met Billy’s wife Lydia and their two kids William and baby Hannah. We went over there to learn Henna!

                          

            Emailed Dad this morning. I also took pictures today. Yesterday I was just so overwhelmed. I was apathetic. The temple was beautiful but it was really too much in one day so I couldn’t really appreciate it or feel true sorrow for the people worshipping.

            Today is much better…. I revisited my purpose. I am here to evangelize these Indians. That is why I am here. Discovered Subway- which is seriously an example of glocalizaton

Mosque- head covering

·        Spoke with a man who explained Muslim wear!

·        Watched them carry a casket in

o       Because it was a “funeral” we weren’t allowed in

Language learned thus far

o       Jesu appliquer balibashan- Jesus loves you

Mahendi party!

Today’s lesson was Creation. One day one God created the light. We drew a sun and moon for day one. Then we drew dry land and water.

·        Day 3- Stars, Moon Sun-

·        Day 4- Plants- represented by vines

·        Day 5- Birds, fish, animals- represented by a duck

·        Day 6- Humans- represented by two hearts: one representing man and the other woman

We ate simosas which are spicy vegetable/meat rolls covered in fried bread! We will have Mehandi lessons every Friday. I love this! Fridays will be my favorite. Honestly seeing the women tell the story of Cretion and how happy they were filled my own heart with joy!

June 6, 2011

Jun Last Day of Orientation

            Read: 2 Chronicles 31-32, John 17

+Culture Class+

Today the topic was the Hindu Religion. It is similar to Catholicism, in that it is works based. It was interesting to learn that the Hindus really only believe in one god who manifested himself in many different forms. The Trinity would not be a hard concept for them to grasp. We also learned more about sharing our testimonies with Hindus. It is very important to tell it like a story. Introduce it by saying you are describing your spiritual journey. Also, we learned to contextualize some familiar Bible stories like the prodigal son and the lame man for the Indians we will meet. We also learned the importance of using small words for understanding. Then, we discussed safety abroad- making sure we had the right medications, how hospitals are not safe, to take extreme caution with fruits and vegetables and –of course- NEVER DRINK THE WATER.

            ^Big Group Session^

                        Storytelling using Jesus’ Model- Mark 2:1-12; Luke 5:17-25

1. Jesus was teaching and people came from far and wide to listen to His wisdom in truth
2. On this day, many many people came. So many people gathered that there was no room—Not even at the door
3. During the teachings of Jesus, four hopeful men brought a man who couldn’t walk
4. Why were they hopeful?

1. They heard stories!!

Prayer for India

àFamily Systems

Prayer in General

à To Be a LOSER!

o       L-ord of Life- Christ!

o       O-bey all of His commands

o       S-erve others

o       E-xalt Him in all I do

o       R- emember to put myself last

5. Worship session! Remember the Cross!

I just remember being so happy and joyful! God has blessed my team with unity and we all truly desire to do His will! We cannot wait to leave for India tomorrow!

This was also TRAVEL DAY!

We left by car at 12:30am for a three-hour ride to the Atlanta International Airport!!

June 5, 2011

June 5, 2011- Orientation Day Four

      Read: 2 Chronicles 27-30, John 16

·        Jotham- Good king who rebuilt east wall

“He saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of His mercy. He saved us by the washing of rebirth and renewal of the Holy Spirit” Titus 3:5

Discovered chocolate gravy on biscuits! Yummy!

Team Training Day #2

            Understanding Personalities

We worked on balancing grace and mercy by collectively working on a puzzle. We did a DISC personality profile test as well. It was fun but really cool to see how unique God has made all of us!

Basic Discipleship Seminar

We discussed what the Gospel really is: Jesus died, was buried, and rose for the forgiveness of sin. Learned how to share our testimonies in three forms: the bus stop testimony, the coffee shop testimony, and the long-winded testimony- which are all useless without the Gospel.

*Major Lesson*

Keep all of the Gospel and keep it simple

^Big Group Session^

            “How to be filled with the Holy Spirit”

1. 1 Corinthians 3:16- Holy Spirit dwells within us.
1. We must remember that we are not our own and we have been given all the Spirit (not like 50%)
2. Ephesians 5:17-18- We are commanded to be filled
1. As we grow we let go of ourselves and our will and gradually relinquish control each day

                                                               i.      (v. 19) What it looks like:

1.      Speaking and singing

2.      Always giving thanks

3. 1 Thessalonians 5:19- Not quenching the Spirit
4. Ephesians 4:29-32- Not grieving the Holy Spirit
1. We must put aside bitterness, wrath, anger, clamor and slander
2. Do not harbor frustrations! Let it go!
5. Romans 8:3-5- Decide to walk in the Spirit
1. We must keep our minds on the Spirit
6. John 15:3-6- Abiding
1. We can do nothing apart from God
2. Remember He chose us!
7. John 16:13- The Spirit is already at work.
1. He is the teacher and He will lead us into all truth
2. It is His work

           

June 4, 2011

June 4, 2011-

Read: 2 Chronicles 24-26, John 15

Team Training Day

We were in the woods. They simulated an obstacle course for all the teams! It was a great way to learn the different personalities and gifts that God has blessed my team with. The five of us (along with the Sudanese team) worked really well together! It taught us to think differently. I learned the importance of relying on others, listening to team members, being quiet, and trying things in various ways. Most importantly, I was taught the importance of character. It is so invaluable to ministry to remember the goal of why I am really doing what I am doing.

Read: 2 Corinthians 5:17-21
• God saved us to entrust us with His message.
• God’s work is God’s work!

Memorized the Ten Commandments and the ten gates Nehemiah built:
• Sheep Gate- Salvation
• Fish Gate- Evangelism
• Old Gate- Learning form the Past
• Valley Gate- Trials, Growth and Humility
• Dung/Garbage Gate- Confession
• Fountain Gate- Holy Spirit
• Water Gate- Word of God
• Horse Gate- Spiritual Warfare
• East Gate- Second Coming
• Inspection Gate- Judgement


Our sister Sudan team because they cannot go to Sudan because of the danger caused by the civil war. Thy have been redirected to Nairobi, Kenya. We collectively prayed that their ministry will be just as effective then rejoiced because nothing can stop the ministry of Christ!

Also, we discussed Mark 5- Jesus and the Gerasene Demoniac
Jesus freed the man from intense bondage. He is more powerful than any opposition. He is the only one able to break strongholds. - We must remember and pray for the people we are ministering to, our team members, and ourselves that God would break these. We must look for opportunities to spread the Gospel.
+CULTURE+
Discussed poverty. Our culture leaders Tonya and Coley, who served in Delhi, challenged us to decide how we would deal with the beggars. They explained that they would be every where and even come up during stop lights. They suggested giving snacks right before the light changes. Then they set up a roleplay where we were in a rickshaw and they were the beggars. INTENSE! Also, we talked about the Hindu lifestyle and avoiding Christianeze words like “born again” and “accepted into our hearts”. Today also learned how give our testimonies. Tonya and Coley asked clarifying questions of from the perspective of an Indian after we gave our testimonies. None of them were what we anticipated and we were lost! However from this experience we learned the following:
• Hindus believe there are many paths to God
• Hindus will gladly accept Christ as a god…without denying the other 300 million
• Families in Hindu culture have one specific house god but acknowledge the others
• They believe god is in them too!
• IT CAN BE FRUSTRATING!
REMEMBER: Focus on their “lacking” of peace, hope, and security. Sometimes we may only be removing hurdles. God alone prepares the heart!!
*Small group*
We BONDED LIKE CRAZY GLUE!

• Nate(On left)- Awesome team leader and has an amazing personality which shined through during the “electric fence” game and small group. He is very creative and likes to be very interactive. He encourages us to sing and always kneel when we pray. I feel very comfortable under his leadership. Our team will be very productive because of this guy!
• Leah- She is truly a sparkling jewel! She is so transparent and sweet! I admire her humility and quiet strength…although she can be a daredevil! She and I have a lot in common and will either become sisters or kill each other. She’s had a difficult past and God is really breaking her! I am sooo glad to have her on the God squad!
(Our field supervisor BILL PERKINS is dead center)
• Amar(Left of Bill)-He is a native of Fort Payne, Alabama but his family is from Gujarat India. He knows a ton about Hindu culture and always shares his knowledge with us! He is so cool to be around and God has made him a natural encourager. I cannot wait to get to know him better and see how God uses him!
• Jared (Far right)- The most lovable guy ever and the youngest! Such a rockstar. He is the shyest of the group but by far the most attentive. He has two twin step-brothers who are also here. Jared is completely comfortable with himself and also strives to include everyone. Plays the guitar beautifully!!
LOVE THESE GUYS!

%Bucket Bath%
…….ICE COLD…..Crawling with beetles….EWW!

June 3, 2011

June 3, 2011

Read: 2 Chronicles 20-23, John 14

“Do not be afraid and do not be dismayed at this great horde for the battle is not yours it’s the Lord’s” 2 Chronicles 20:15

At this point, I was wondering if I would EVER make through orientation and this verse was a major encouragement to me. More security training for fear inoculation. Learned about SafeCom International which is kind of like an insurance program that will connect me with America in case something happens. Asia’s number is +65-3108-0547 and EurAsia is +41-0-1737-247-321.
+CULTURE+
Learned that in India women are inferior to men and not to be surprised if a door is slammed in my face. Set up group rules where the girls of the group i.e. Leah and myself would be protected no matter what.
*Major Lesson*
Wherever I go, the King goes. Wherever the King goes, His Kingdom comes. Wherever His Kingdom comes, the powers to be must submit. Basically, this means that I am a representative of the kingdom of God and I represent an Authority that cannot be subdued, succeeded, succumbed, or surrendered but all will submit to It.