Coming from the southern hemisphere I celebrated spring day on 1 September. Until Stephan came home and told me "but it's not" - it's only a leafless autumn. I struggle with change ...
In India thousands of peoples lives changed with the season. The Kosi River left 1.5 million people in Bihar homeless. In the south Christians are murdered and harassed for their faith in Jesus. Terrorists attacked Delhi. This change caught everyone unaware and I know it may be our turn one day. I started thinking on a small scale - what if one house disappears in our street? What if 10 houses disappear in our street? What if our block disappears? Can you imagine the chaos? What about a whole city, homeless, without food and water? We've prayed for the disasters. God can make houses shoot up from the ground, but I think He wants to use our obedient hands and feet also. But it is too far and Stephan refuses to let me go ...
So inspired to help people we took Anandi who has been coughing for 3 weeks to the doctor. As we approach the office I notice something is wrong. It stinks! Around the corner of the door I see 3 babies. I look at the mothers suspiciously. The children close their noses and I want to do it too. Next to the door sits a man that looks out of place. Around his leg is a dirty rag and the flies are feasting around it. That is the origin of the stench! The receptionist snaps out of her denial and after a short conversation she shows the man the door. I know he's not going to get the help he needs - but he is close enough for us to help! After the appointment, I sniffed him out in the market. He sits next to his blind friend. The friend bought a cup of tea and shares it with his wounded friend. Half ends up on the ground and he takes the heavier cup for himself. We talk to the man and explain if he does not clean the wound that he might lose his leg or even his life. But he refuses! After half an hour of begging and a growing, unsympathetic crowd we decided to bring in reinforcements. But the man has already disappeared. We prayed for him. As we went home the same smell hit me again. It's the garbage truck!"
Be strong! Take courage! Don't be intimidated by the king of Assyria and his troops - there are more on our side than on their side. He only has a bunch of mere men; we have our God to help us fight for us."
- God, The Message (2 Chronicles 32:7)
Wednesday, September 17, 2008
Wednesday, August 13, 2008
My family and other animals
These days we are running a zoo at our home. There are ants in the children's room that you don't want to squash, because who is going to clean up afterwards. We mistook an earthworm for a snake. We saw two rats the size of cats running in our front yard. A swarm of bees the size of the two rats has gathered in one of our trees. There are two enormous, speedy chameleons ruling at our gate. Not a nice place to be at :-). By the way, I'm really worried about the geckos - they disappeared off the face of the earth.
We are doing well. We enjoy making music together. Nadia plays piano, Stephan the guitar, Anandi the flute and I get to play the congas. The children are looking forward to their birthday party this month. I am painting. Stephan is doing well at work. Nadia has developed a keen interest in cooking and joke books. Anandi loves singing all day - she calls herself the radio. She has an unquenchable thirst for knowledge.
Except for fighting the creatures of nature, I've had other struggles too these last few months. So I've learned to toughen up and fight for myself. Previously I've trusted God to take care of these issues for me, because I simply couldn't. But thankfully God knows how to handle my stubborn head and hard heart. So the burdens kept on stacking up until I couldn't carry them anymore. And then with all the boxes of my life scattered around me, I went and cried to my Father. In the act of giving my burdens to Him, I found the peace I was looking for all along. What a relieve! There is nothing like sitting on Father's lap to open the mind about what He can do and to melt the heart. You can let go too; He's waiting for you...
Just as I am - without one plea,
But that Thy blood was shed for me,
And that Thou bidd'st me come to Thee,
O Lamb of God I come, I come!
- Charlotte Elliott
We are doing well. We enjoy making music together. Nadia plays piano, Stephan the guitar, Anandi the flute and I get to play the congas. The children are looking forward to their birthday party this month. I am painting. Stephan is doing well at work. Nadia has developed a keen interest in cooking and joke books. Anandi loves singing all day - she calls herself the radio. She has an unquenchable thirst for knowledge.
Except for fighting the creatures of nature, I've had other struggles too these last few months. So I've learned to toughen up and fight for myself. Previously I've trusted God to take care of these issues for me, because I simply couldn't. But thankfully God knows how to handle my stubborn head and hard heart. So the burdens kept on stacking up until I couldn't carry them anymore. And then with all the boxes of my life scattered around me, I went and cried to my Father. In the act of giving my burdens to Him, I found the peace I was looking for all along. What a relieve! There is nothing like sitting on Father's lap to open the mind about what He can do and to melt the heart. You can let go too; He's waiting for you...
Just as I am - without one plea,
But that Thy blood was shed for me,
And that Thou bidd'st me come to Thee,
O Lamb of God I come, I come!
- Charlotte Elliott
Friday, July 18, 2008
Two
Get Service
It was a quiet month in India, but we were busy. I wish I had a long list of things worth mentioning.
Two's seem to follow us. The first time I hit someone on the road it happened twice on the same day, first a rickshaw and then an old man on a bicycle. (No cars or people were seriously injured during these incidents.) After shopping one day I realized two things were missing: eggs and ice cream. The next week I went to buy eggs again and as I wanted to pay the man did not want to take my money. He smiled and spoke in Hindi (I understand much more but cannot hear it that fast yet). With the help of hand signs I understood that I forgot my eggs the previous week. Kind of embarrassing, because it's the only thing I bought from this man. But by now I've started to acknowledge the two-principle and walked full of hope to the ice cream man. He smiled and explained that I forgot my ice cream the previous week. I understood immediately. I was truly amazed at these two strangers’ kindness towards me. And in my mind I connected two and caring. During a difficult time we got the same verse on the same day from two different sources. Jes. 41:10 "You're my servant, serving on my side. I've picked you. I haven't dropped you. Don’t panic. I'm with you. There's no need to fear for I'm your God. I'll give you strength. I'll help you. I'll hold you steady, keep a firm grip on you." – God, The Message.
In the movie "The Endurance", there is a scene where someone is released from jail and his brother is waiting outside. They embrace and the one that was in jail said he experienced the most awful things and there was no one to help him. Let us walk arm-in-arm with, share our hope in God with them and use everything at our disposal to help others, because two is better than one. How will we be able to do this? Jesus says in Mat. 10:38-39 "If you don't go all the way with me, through thick and thin, you don't deserve me. If your first concern is to look after yourself, you'll never find yourself. But if you forget about yourself and look to me, you'll find both yourself and me." – God, The Message.
"Do not think that love, in order to be genuine, has to be extraordinary. What we need is to love without getting tired."- Mother Teresa
It was a quiet month in India, but we were busy. I wish I had a long list of things worth mentioning.
Two's seem to follow us. The first time I hit someone on the road it happened twice on the same day, first a rickshaw and then an old man on a bicycle. (No cars or people were seriously injured during these incidents.) After shopping one day I realized two things were missing: eggs and ice cream. The next week I went to buy eggs again and as I wanted to pay the man did not want to take my money. He smiled and spoke in Hindi (I understand much more but cannot hear it that fast yet). With the help of hand signs I understood that I forgot my eggs the previous week. Kind of embarrassing, because it's the only thing I bought from this man. But by now I've started to acknowledge the two-principle and walked full of hope to the ice cream man. He smiled and explained that I forgot my ice cream the previous week. I understood immediately. I was truly amazed at these two strangers’ kindness towards me. And in my mind I connected two and caring. During a difficult time we got the same verse on the same day from two different sources. Jes. 41:10 "You're my servant, serving on my side. I've picked you. I haven't dropped you. Don’t panic. I'm with you. There's no need to fear for I'm your God. I'll give you strength. I'll help you. I'll hold you steady, keep a firm grip on you." – God, The Message.
In the movie "The Endurance", there is a scene where someone is released from jail and his brother is waiting outside. They embrace and the one that was in jail said he experienced the most awful things and there was no one to help him. Let us walk arm-in-arm with, share our hope in God with them and use everything at our disposal to help others, because two is better than one. How will we be able to do this? Jesus says in Mat. 10:38-39 "If you don't go all the way with me, through thick and thin, you don't deserve me. If your first concern is to look after yourself, you'll never find yourself. But if you forget about yourself and look to me, you'll find both yourself and me." – God, The Message.
"Do not think that love, in order to be genuine, has to be extraordinary. What we need is to love without getting tired."- Mother Teresa
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
Heaven and earth
Many things happened since our last letter. Extreme ups and downs. For example Stephan went to Delhi again, but to fetch his brother on the airport. They went to watch an IPL game, but Stephan's wallet and passport were stolen. They went on a daytrip to Agra to see the Taj Mahal (pronounced Taj may hell), but had a 7 hour bus trip - one-way. We went to Shimla for 2 days, but stayed in Hotel Dalziel (pronounced Dalzi hell) - shared a room with a mole. We went for holiday in Dalhousie, but it was too short. And many more...
We watched the movie, Narnia: Prince Caspian, in one of Chandigarh's new theaters. It made the invisible visible for me. Do you see our enemy that uses every possible means to distract us from God, that surrounds us and wounds us left and right. Do you see our God, our loving Father, that stays at our side, that turns every sad story into a triumph at the end. Do you see us in the struggle, broken, but hoping in God. Do you see us declared worthy in God's eyes to be loved, proven by Jesus that died for our sake. Will we stand one day before our majestic King, worthy, and say that we fought until the end to love others, because they are also worthy in the King's eyes, even if it cost a earthly price for a heavenly hope? In such a God I can believe, even if no one else does ...
"Aim at heaven and you will get earth thrown in. Aim at earth and you get neither."
C. S. Lewis
See our Dalhousie photos at http://indiavdm.blogspot.com.
Love
Stephan Irene Nadia Anandi
Wednesday, April 30, 2008
The gardener's wife
Namaskaar
Somebody forgot to close the oven door. It is steaming hot.
Except for the sun, there are a few other hot spots in our lives. Our arrival in Chandigarh was the spark for many explosive situations. It is like falling into a pot of chillies and the more you struggle, the more the people closest to you get hurt. But we have learned that there are some things we cannot change. We accept this, but keep hoping things will get better. I believe it will through prayer and perseverance.
Our gardener was blessed with a new baby daughter. Unfortunately his wife became very ill after the birth and he missed many days at work. He took her to the doctor who prescribed medicine, but nothing seemed to work. After using the excuse too many times and seeing the dejected expression on his face, we decided to do something about the situation. We arranged with a local pastor to go to his house and pray. But the day did not progress as we thought it would. Our boss informed us that we might have to move to another house in August... My reaction was not positive, but maybe you will be able to sympathize with me if you know our moving-history. I was disappointed to say the least.
In the evening we went to the gardener's house in a small town on the outskirts of Chandigarh. With house I don't mean the picture you form in your minds. They stay in an oblong, red-brick building with a flat roof. It is divided into 4 equal-sized rooms. One room per family. The walls in between the rooms have openings on top. On the sides are holes and if you put your eye next to the wall, you can see what's happening next-door. No space for privacy. There is a familiar smell in the air, they stay next to the water buffalo camp. The fan and the TV make loud noises and a mouse watches from the corner.
We meet the gardener's wife, his two sons and his new baby daughter. The pastor explains clearly that prayer in the name of Jesus is not a magic formula, but that they have to believe that God can heal them. After the prayer a few things changed that evening. The gardener's wife has a smile on her face and says she's feeling much better. My heart is filled with thankfulness for the house we have even if it is just for a short time. The gardener smiles every day when he comes to work and says everything is going well.
Thank you for your letters. They are like icy cold water in a desert. Thank you for your prayers. It makes us soar like eagles. We are praying for you too.
Somebody forgot to close the oven door. It is steaming hot.
Except for the sun, there are a few other hot spots in our lives. Our arrival in Chandigarh was the spark for many explosive situations. It is like falling into a pot of chillies and the more you struggle, the more the people closest to you get hurt. But we have learned that there are some things we cannot change. We accept this, but keep hoping things will get better. I believe it will through prayer and perseverance.
Our gardener was blessed with a new baby daughter. Unfortunately his wife became very ill after the birth and he missed many days at work. He took her to the doctor who prescribed medicine, but nothing seemed to work. After using the excuse too many times and seeing the dejected expression on his face, we decided to do something about the situation. We arranged with a local pastor to go to his house and pray. But the day did not progress as we thought it would. Our boss informed us that we might have to move to another house in August... My reaction was not positive, but maybe you will be able to sympathize with me if you know our moving-history. I was disappointed to say the least.
In the evening we went to the gardener's house in a small town on the outskirts of Chandigarh. With house I don't mean the picture you form in your minds. They stay in an oblong, red-brick building with a flat roof. It is divided into 4 equal-sized rooms. One room per family. The walls in between the rooms have openings on top. On the sides are holes and if you put your eye next to the wall, you can see what's happening next-door. No space for privacy. There is a familiar smell in the air, they stay next to the water buffalo camp. The fan and the TV make loud noises and a mouse watches from the corner.
We meet the gardener's wife, his two sons and his new baby daughter. The pastor explains clearly that prayer in the name of Jesus is not a magic formula, but that they have to believe that God can heal them. After the prayer a few things changed that evening. The gardener's wife has a smile on her face and says she's feeling much better. My heart is filled with thankfulness for the house we have even if it is just for a short time. The gardener smiles every day when he comes to work and says everything is going well.
Thank you for your letters. They are like icy cold water in a desert. Thank you for your prayers. It makes us soar like eagles. We are praying for you too.
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