Prayers of little ones

She came to the meeting with a bandage on her neck.  She was a mother who had come to see her daughter perform.

It was the last day of a 5-day vacation Bible school that JSK had facilitated with the help of many local church volunteers for children and neighbours of the families we see day in and day out in our home-based care work.

Most of the children were from families in which at least one member was known to be HIV positive - or had already passed away from the disease.

When we see the kids we would never imagine the challenges that they live with.  On the surface we had a week of engaging activities with bright, active, rambunctious kids.  Yes some of them were thin.  Yes others were not able to sit still.  But take any group of kids from off the street and you will find that. 

Why do we spend this time with these kids?  Because beyond the outside 'kiddishness' are many areas that need deep love.

In one of the classes the boys were speaking about stealing.  One boy said that the other boys' brother was a thief.  The second boy responded in kind - claiming that the first boy's father had been sent to a lock-up because he was found stealing.

Its sobering to think of how secure my family is. How far from the culture of the police station I am.  But how different it is for so many of the children what we are in touch with.


What a to help set a positive course for some of these kids.  The overarching theme of the week was "Its Your Choice" and we spend a wonderful time helping all of us to understand the consequences of our decisions - and making choices to change too!


In one of the games we played, the kids had one friend blindfolded - and then four others guided them by voice through a set of obstacles.  The results were hilarious - lots of shouting - and plenty of hand-waving too! 'Go here, go there' accompanied by directions for the unseeing friend!

How many of our instructions are the same way.  Statements to do things - when the person does not really see what we can see.

But that hardly means that guidance is impossible.  Despite the confusion the kids managed to navigate their way through.  In each one of our lives we face a multitude of different voices.  Which ones should we listen to?  How to make good and Godly choices?

One of the take-homes of this week was knowing that God cares for us and hears our prayers.  How much He yearns to have us use the free will that He has given us as a precious gift in loving and obedient ways to Him.

Spiderman joined us on our last day too!

Sheba spoke earlier in the week to the daughter of the woman with the bandage. 

The girl told Sheba that the previous week she had seen her father take a knife and attack her mother at 3 am in the morning.  After the assault he had run away and has not been seen since.

And yet the girl came to spend time with us at the VBS.  And her mother came, a sad woman with the bandage on her neck, to see her daugther perform on the last day.

Who are we to help children like this?  Whatever we do seems so pitifully limited when weighed against the vast sum of suffering and sorrow that so many of the kids have gone through.

But we take hope from the words of Scripture which tells us that our God is a God of all comfort: "who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God."  At the end of the day, it's not us - but Him working through the simple steps we take, the simple opportunities to touch lives and shape futures.
 

And so we press on... not as "boats against the current borne back ceaselessly into the past".... following some kind of a pipedream of a future...  but rather as people who know that everything we do has value, and that every decision we make can be used by a loving God to help undo the mess around us (and inside us).

The prayers of the little ones touch the heart of a great compassionate and just God. 

We don't have a quick fix for the woman who came to see her daughter.  But we are so glad she came.  And so glad her daughter was with us for these five precious days.  And are so totally convinced that we have hope despite being in some very dark days.

Retreat

Each day brings a new set of challenges.

Some of these are exciting.  Others slip in unknown.  Many are in the league of the slow drip-drip-drip that takes away so much of our joy.  Working with people - many of whome are in such shambles wears you down - dries up the inner you.

As a team, we make sure that we go away each year to some place for a staff retreat.  Last month was our time.   The fact that this post is being written almost a month later tells you a bit about the pace of our lives...

But back to the retreat.  After spending a Friday all together at the Jeevan Sahara Kendra centre (partly so that out-patients coming to the centre could be catered to) - we bundled into a hired school bus and drove out to the Blessed Sacrament Ashram in Vasai.  

The Ashram is a retreat centre tucked away in a coastal village - well off the beaten track.  An hour and a half by bus took us into a different world.

But more than the out-ward change of scenery - the retreat helped us to look inwards - and together in reflection and song and prayer.



What a blessing to have superb teaching from the Bible by our dear friend Phil.  He had flown in especially to spend this weekend with us.  Our hearts were 'strangely warmed' as Phil walked us through 5 sessions looking at God's grace in our lives - and our responses to Him.

The times of teaching were interspersed with small group discussions and times of individual reflection and prayer.   On the first day we charted out our lives so far - and were amazed to share with each other the amazing grace each one of us have received over the years.

It's vital to be thankful - especially when we work day-in-and-day out with people in so much brokenness.

And there were games too!

How to build a tower.  One that actually stands.  Using newspaper and tape.  And competing with other teams.

We saw how quickly we most of us look at others and are spurred into doing things because we don't want to lose - rather than actually working together as a team with a plan.

A lot of laughter went along with these learnings!  Here's to education by games.   Another day we were beside ourselves trying to make 'rockets' out of baloons and string.

An evening 'talent show' had each one of us participate in some way - with plenty of acting on show - perhaps some Bollywood agents were around?  The Eichers put on a 'round' of a song which has become a family favourite: "I will sing unto the Lord for He has done gloriously..."
 

 But more than anything - our time of retreat was meant to be a time of families being together.  Of spending time in a non-pressure environment. Of living out our fellowship together.

The tea-breaks and meals in the Retreat centre dining room, the morning Emmaus prayer walk, the times in the bus singing and talking together.  All of these are worth their weight in gold.

We need each other very much.  In our day to day lives we often seen each other's rough edges.  There is so much to be done in appreciating and celebrating each other.  Its all part of being a family.  At Jeevan Sahara, we are a pretty big one that has been growing over the last few years.  With all the strains and challenges that any large clan has.

Add in the black sands of Arnala Beach - a mere 2 kms away from us and you have a real winner.

Where else can you go on a camel ride

Or bathe in the warm Arabian sea at the end of the day?

If there is a place to get sick - like Enoch did on the last day - what better place when everyone you love is around you! 

Mercifully, his illness was not too long.  A viral fever that started to fade once we got back home to Thane.

The retreat reminded us again how much we need to be constantly renewed.  How much of the time we are living on the capital of the past - times which are now slipping well behind us.  When actually we need to be renewed day by day.

The old hackneyed saying has a powerful truth - a family that prays together, stays together.

How very true for us at Jeevan Sahara.  We do pray, but how much more we need to come before our loving Lord.

Its been a month now since our blessed retreat.  Its not that everything is perfect.  But we know that this time away was worth its weight in gold.

On the last day, after having communion together and thinking about where we are going as a movement, we had one last beautiful experience as a family.

Following the example of our Lord we washed each other's feet.

As we have experienced a number of times in the past - this simple but deep act of love and service
- makes a world of a difference.  There were many moist eyes - and even more thankful hearts. We were blessed.  We are blessed.  All glory and honour to Him who is past change.

------------------------
in addition to the Eichers - a number photos were taken by Suneeta and Phil.  Thanks for letting us use them!

Ten days ago...

... we were on Retreat with our JSK Staff.  Life has been pretty much a haze since then, but here is a pic to tide you over till the posts catch up a bit with life lived out large...

An SMS from...

My new phone buzzed.

A new phone - because a week ago I managed to lose my trusty rusty handset.  After it did not make a return, I gave in and bought the cheapest possible replacement unit.

Which now was buzzing.

It was an sms.  A scripture portion.

I didn't know who sent it, since all my previous numbers were lost with my missing handset.

So I sent an sms - 'who r u?'

And this is the reply I got:

As far as I know - this was the first time I received an sms from a blind man.

I met Arun at the end of January this year.  Arun is a pastor with the Free Methodist Church - and has a special heart for people who are visually impared.  Like himself.

"I prayed for physical healing" Arun told me "but then God showed me something different."  Arun told me that God showed him Psalm 119 where David says: Open my eyes that I may see wonderful things in your law. (Psalm 119.18).  "My spiritual eyes have been opened" said Arun.

He told me about the group of blind people who meet for fellowship with him.  Many of them have been deeply blessed.  But many have some of the same issues that so many of us face... not wanting to trust God, seeking help in the wrong places, dishonesty... the list goes on.

Fanny Crosby, the famous hymn-writer who was blinded by a quack doctor when she was six years old, is said to have stated that "the first face that these blind eyes will ever see is the face of Jesus, my Savior."

I have had the privilege of meeting my own Fanny Cosby right here in Thane - and his name is Arun Chauhan.  Another living legend.  What a privilege to have met such a saint!

Plastic Surgery

What comes to mind when I say "plastic surgery?"

Did you think of 'nose-jobs' and other 'enhancements'?

For most of us, 'plastic surgery' is linked completely to 'cosmetic surgery.'

But add two more words to make it 'plastic and reconstructive surgery' and then you have a totally different kettle of fish.

Last week we were blessed to have Drs. Derick and Vivienne Mendonca visit us with their three lovely kids.   Derick practices P&R Surgery at Bangalore Baptist Hospital - and Vivienne is a dentist - though with three young kids (youngest pushing 8 months now) she has her hands full with non-oral matters.  They write about their adventures here.

Our society is full of hidden people.  People whose features have not formed normally, or who have suffered from a disfiguring illness or accident.  Our society is harsh on anyone who is not 'normal.'  The stares, the pointed rude questions, and the nasty comments mean that many people with visible deformities withdraw - or are purposely hidden by their relatives.

For many begging - the degrading high-lighting of their deformities - is the only way they are able to survive.

But so much can be done.  Especially if it is done early.

Derick showed us some of the work that he is involved with at Bangalore Baptist.  Amazing.   Some of the pics were pretty gruesome - but the outcomes are remarkable.  Reconstruction of limbs and faces which accidents or cancer have so gruesomely marred - and now thanks to a patch of skin from here, some muscle tissue from there, and the skilled hands and mind of the surgeon and team - we now have a restored person.

This little girl, for example has a bi-lateral cleft palate.  She was born without the ability to eat normally, speak normally and our eyes do not see her pretty face because we immediately look at the two gaping holes in her upper lip.

But thanks the community health team from Bangalore Baptist, this little girl was identified early.  After counselling the parents, the surgery was conducted and the result is crystal clear - a little girl who has so much more of a future to look forward to!

Sadly the parents seem to feel that now she is restored that she needs some extra protection from the 'evil eye' and hence they have made a big black splotch on her forehead and cheek.

And what about someone who has lived their whole life with a deformity?

Dr. Derick's team came across a man who was 55 years and had been living with a bilateral cleft lip all his life.  After corrective surgery.  Plastic and reconstructive surgery.  This is what he looks like.

55 years of looking one way.  And now able to be look different.  To be in society without everyone staring at you.  Or pretending not to notice you.  To live a 'normal' life.

Wow.

But think this too.  With all the wonder that the surgeon's knife has done on this man's face - there are also other things within that need healing.  A life-time of disability - of being disfigured - does not disappear at once.   At Bangalore Baptist they do not only heal the body, they also heal the soul.  Patients are prayed with.  Stories are listened to.  Just like our Lord did.

We are so grateful to be in the business of sculpting lives.  We applaud Derick and the wonderful work of reconstructive surgery that he and the team do.  And though we may not wield the scapel like he does - we are so glad that at Jeevan Sahara we are part and parcel of rebuilding and reconstructing so many lives.  The deformities may not be so gross - but they are there - and need the gentle hands of the Master surgeon working through us to repair and renew.

And yes, we are also helping rehabilitate the daughter of a widow who is living with HIV - through reconstructive surgery for a cleft lip and palate - and speech therapy to help her master the power of talking!

Thanks to Derick and Vivienne for coming by and opening our eyes a bit more.

Delight in small dimensions

Beauty is all around us - but so often the crush of the horrible and the mundane drive it away from our ken.

Take a look at a small gift from a couple with a big heart for us:

Saro Mathai made this sunflower at a miniature scale.  Using paper-quilling.

She and her wonderful husband Martin presented us with this tiny flicker of joy - the result of careful craftsmanship and attention to detail.

And it wasn't the first one we have received.  The tea cups on the banner-head of this blog are from Saro. 

On getting this latest miniature treasure, we had to bring out one of the cups from before - and a key to give perspective....

How much colour and form can bring us joy - even through tiny bursts of light and love!

Blessed wedding

In the blur of the last few weeks (so what's new?) one event does stick out a bit more than others.

The wonderful marriage of two lovely people - Giri and Sushma.   April 5th will remain with us for a long time - a day when these two became one!

We have known Giri for seven years now - as a faithful - often stoic member of the Jeevan Sahara Kendra team.  After doing his Masters of Social Work from the Tata Institute of Social Sciences in Mumbai, he worked for a year in Pune and then joined us.

We have watched him grow and develop as a person - and have been praying with him for a life partner.  What a joy to see him find Sushma!

Sushma is a member of a local church who has been very involved in reaching out to people with HIV.  We knew her originally as 'Pinky' - and have seen her come many times with our team as a volunteer.

Its wonderful that these precious people are now one!

On the big day we were at the wedding in full force as a family.

I had been asked to serve as the MC.  It was a first for me and something and a real honour.  And that too in Hindi.

This marriage was a meeting of worlds.  Giri comes from a village in the interior of Odisha.  Sushma's parents are from UP but have been in Thane for many years.  His relatives travelled across the country to be here - hers came down from the north.  The message was translated into Oriya since a number of his relatives only spoke their mother tongue.

Our dear Sam Thomas was also there from Dehra Dun - with a powerful message - and the joy of joining Giri and Sushma through the sacred promises that brought them into union as husband and wife.

Each time we are part of the vows it reminds us of the miracle of our marriage.  What an amazing and impossible challenge it is to live up to the promises we make - and how much grace we receive to see so many of them fleshed out as the years roll by!

We have seen that the work of having and holding - of being united as husband and wife - is a life-long affair.  For me it is particularly sobering to be looking at myself 13 years into our marriage - and gauging where I am with where Mum and Dad were when I was an eleven year old.  We stand on the shoulders of giants.  We look forward to stepping deeper into life each day.

But for me, on the 5th of April, it seemed barely a blink of an eye and the new couple was walking down the aisle. 

There they were - Giri and Sushma - making their first steps together as a family.

Their first hike as a couple was a short walk down the aisle at the room at the end of the marriage ceremony - out the front door of the hall - around the side and then back in and onto the stage where the reception was to begin!

Fittingly, there were a set of thrones ready for them.


But as with most marriages in India - they did not do a lot of sitting in their seats of honour.

The marriage reception is a time when everyone who you know is invited to come and meet and bless the couple.

At the end of the ceremony - two lines appear.  One outside in the dining area where the guests line up for being served the food.

And inside the hall, another line emerges - of people who have come to meet the new family.

Each well-wisher gets their photo taken with the happy couple.   There is a lot of smiling going on!


I remember that at the end of my marriage day my cheeks ached from all the smiling - but I would happily keep on smiling - it was such a thrill.

As I saw Giri and Sushma being married it was such a total dream come true.  Here were our dear friends united in love and service to each other.   United in their desire to follow Jesus in their lives.  United though so much of their cultures are totally different from each other.

With Sheba having being born and schooled in Odisha - we were able to communicate with all of Giri's relatives.

What an honour to meet his mother.  We had not met her before.  Here she was, in Thane for the first time in her life.   Tragically, Giri's father had died earlier this year after suffering from a stroke some years ago.

We were able to mingle with others in Giri's clan - two of his three brothers were there with their families.   We could see just how proud they were of the youngest in the family - and how grateful to God that he was marrying such a godly woman.



And then outside to the food line!  What a kaleidoscope of people we saw.  What fun to guess who they were and what their connections with the two families were.

Being Giri's wedding it was wonderful to see that so many of the people there were people who are living with the virus in their body - and are able to live life with purpose and wholeness.

We are so grateful for each person in the crowd - and it was a crowd - no less than 500 people were there - is a testimony of the varied relationships that make up our lives.

Each person a precious reminder of the chords of love the bind us together.  Of the varied relationships that we are blessed with.  Of the value of our marriages and our shared lives.

Every marriage ceremony - especially marriages in our dear land - costs money.  But as I looked that the beauty and simplicity of Giri and Sushma's wedding - and the whole-hearted love with which their whole church pitched in to make this day such a beautiful experience - I have to say that every paisa spent was worth it.

Here's to our wonderful new couple.  As they are currently visiting the relatives and others in Odisha - our prayers are with them as they move forward in God's love.

True to form - marriages are also great times for kids - Enoch was off like a shot, running around and playing with his friends.  He is the one who took the lion's share of the photos in this post - since I was up on stage.  Here is a click of him and his friend Joash just before we had to pry him away from the venue. 

As we got into our 'Papaya' - our trusty almost-one-year-old Nano car - and drove off into the night - our hearts were very very happy on a wonderful day for all of us - and the blessings that Giri and Sushma are to each other - and to so many more!