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If your house was the size of your bathroom...

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A kind man lives just beneath our house in an old woodshed. There is no running water, no electricity, (although he has some access to both from the owner of the woodshed), and his “house” is about the size of an American bathroom. There is one small window with bars on it, no glass, no screen and a thin door for the room. In the harshness of winter, I often wonder how he doesn’t freeze to death. In the warm of summer swarming with mosquitos and flies, I wonder how he doesn’t get typhoid and more.  This man is one of the kindest men I have ever met. He has a smile that displays his kindness without words.  Recently after the COVID-19 lockdown hit our area, about 8 day laborers got stuck in our city as they were trying to travel home to Nepal. In Hindi, we refer to these day laborers as “coolies”. This sweet neighbor of ours opened his one room home to these 8 men. For the last two months, they shared his tiny one room home, limited water supply, and cramped quarters until t
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What’s It Like Here with Lockdown?

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(This woman sold her husband's phone for 2500rps ($33) to buy food.) I don’t think any country or family has it “easy” during these Covid-19 times, but I do think Third World Countries like ours have it a little harder.  Many of the people who are day laborers or migrants are really struggling. These are the people who work every day to get income to supply that same day’s food supply. Without it, they have no food to eat. With lockdown, most of this population is without income and therefore without food. Today, news came that one lady died from hunger in Nep@l.  Each day the news is filled with stories and pictures of desperate slum dwellers lined up at NGO doors for food donations or migrant day laborers walking thousands of miles to try to go back to their cities or countries to find food. The stories are gut retching.  In our personal city, we haven’t seen these stories first hand. Throughout the country, there are government programs working to help
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The C0V!D craze

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  Three weeks ago, the country seemed to be moseying along as if COVID-19 was just a distant problem, and would never come to us. Two weeks ago, we saw an active interest in preventative measures that were actually impressive for a third world country like Indi@. There were gloved workers everywhere with disinfectant cleaning everything; masked staff members working in stores; and information being passed around the community on how to stay safe.   Waiting for food/rations It was during this time, that we saw what COVID-19 was doing in other countries, and we decided to stock up dried foods for a few months and go into self-isolation. We decided it best to send the 3 boys that live with us back to their villages, so they could be close to family during these uncertain times.  Their exams for which they are studying (and one of the main reasons they stay with us) were postponed the day after we sent them home. Two days later all buses and public transportation stopped
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Sometimes I wonder

It’s been almost 6 years living here permanently in India and I think I have only seen three people come to a saving knowledge of Jesus before me. I know so many seeds have been planted. I know many people are on the verge of truly following Christ, but ouch, three people seems so few. I wonder what I could do more or speak. I read this today by John Piper: “Not one life spent in the cause of world evangelization is spent in vain. Not one prayer or one dollar or one sermon or one letter of encouragement or one little light shining in some dark place — nothing in the cause of this advancing kingdom is in vain.” I have to remind myself. Nothing I do for Christ is in vain. Even the little hugs to neighbors and neighbor’s children count.  Someone told me this past Sunday, “Christina, you love everyone”! They said not just like you pretend to care but you really care. You truly love people.  My heart sang. Not out of pride but because this is my prayer. I pray I can genuinely love
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Opened Eyes- Again

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I was visiting a new city in a new State. My cousin was visiting from the States and I took her to go on a camel safari ride in the desert of Rajasthan, India for a whopping $14.00 USD.  We were tourists on our “happy vacation”.  Happy for a time. But then the desperate eyes followed me as I wandered through the dark market streets. Waiting for me to exit a shop to offer her begging hand and starving child, she waiting patiently. No matter how long it took, this beggar woman would wait. She asked for money. I said no.  I don’t give money to beggars in the case they are employed by some big pimp and larger “operation”. I offered to buy food instead.  She knew this way of life better than I. She walked me to her friend’s local shop. He already knew her “order” and he told me what she wanted. Was this a scam? Was this a dream? I didn’t quite know how to respond.  She must get her dinner bit by bit, supplied by the hands of softened hearts. A little lentil dal here,
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The ugliness I sometimes see

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We returned home today, August 18th, to the vastly different country that I now call "home". The things I so easily become immune to while living here rage their ugly heads whenever I return. It’s a mini culture shock and re-initiation if you will. I watched from my hotel window as a woman outside bathed her child in brown water. They live in an uncompleted brick shack with holes and a plastic sheet roof that monsoon has mostly destroyed already. Besides the beauty in the color of the scraps of clothes they are wearing there is nothing beautiful to the sight. No running water, no comforts to enjoy- simply day to day survival. My heart broke as I watched her. I looked down to my own sleeping baby tucked away in a nice crib with clean sheets and clean clothes. Sin is a horrible thing! It’s mared the world God created and his original beauty designed. It’s brought sickness, poverty, and brokenness. My heart aches for this woman, and at the same time rejoices in the
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But God...

Every Knee Will Bow And Every Tongue Will Confess Truly everywhere we look is need- physical, emotional, financial, and spiritual. I see the man with elephantitis lift his giant leg to shift his position as he sits on a mat begging for money on the side of the road. I see a woman sitting on a patch of grass on the edge of a busy highway practicing her meditation attempting to find her inner peace. I see a young girl on her way to school stop to touch the street cow and then touch her own forehead in hopes that her Hindu practices will reap the blessing from her god (cow). Simultaneously, I see a shop keeper allow the giant cow to mosey along his street front restaurant; he even offers the cow freshly made roti (bread) as to not offend his “god” passing by. I see another person practicing yoga with all the pristine positions and poses. Her breaths are well practiced, yet her face is stricken with the look of anxiety and distress.  I see a young man who was
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