Out of the Ashes

Fear is a tricky thing.  It trinkles in almost unknowingly, and sinks deep fast.  We rarely can identify fear as quickly as we see the signs of it. I have been seeing the Lord pinpoint fear to me almost daily.   It would be easy to give way to it, but when we fear we are not trusting in HIM.   Trust, true abandoned trust in the Lord, leaves no room for fear. He says, “Fear not, do not be dismayed.”   He is our Lord and there is no other.   He alone is able.   What is impossible for man, (for this world) is not impossible with Him.   Nothing is impossible with him.   He is completely “otherly” as my one friend Vivian would say. He is not limited to our plans or abilities, nor is he limited to the statistics and history of the past.   He is entirely otherly, outside this world. I find myself rushing to fill water bottles when we have electricity and water, worry I won’t have enough water.   I find myself conserving paper and...

Sometimes I remember the ease of my old life, I remember: Hot showers with fast running water, Rather then the trinkle of a bucket bath. Electricity that rarely goes off, Verses the question will I have it today? A car that takes me wherever I need to go, Whenever I need it, Rather then the few miles walk to get items I need at the store. The taste of fresh fruits and veggies and the ease of washing and eating, Rather than soaking in cleanser to remove the parasites and then hoping the produce you just bought it not BE filled with a worm or soft and mille inside. The ability to do laundry in the comfort of my home whenever I want, Rather then walking to the edge of a muddy cliff where the washer machine is etched into the rocks.   Here I must precariously put my laundry in and out as to not drop it into the muddy water making it dirtier, My other choice is doing it by hand or giving it to a Dobi Walla, who does his best, but it still ends up coming bac...

Sometimes things don't turn out how you planned, and sometimes life is hard, but it doesn't change the One who sees and knows all and loves us the same. 1. Spent the night in an Indian hospital with my friend who is sick. BUT: 2. Got to hear a mother giving birth and the cry of a new baby. Seems relevant wouldn't you say? 3. Got to eat yummy Indian food for breakfast, not so bad for a hospital. 4. Met some cute kids and their puppies while on the search for toilet paper, as of course the hospital didn't have any. 5. Got to see a parade to celebrate winter, when on the search for Gatorade. 6. I was reminded: sometimes Christmas Gifts come in different ways then we expect!   Sometimes the best gifts of all come in shapes and sizes we could never anticipate.   Sometimes gifts turn out to be Kings. Sometimes things don't turn out how you planned, and sometimes life is hard, but it doesn't change the One who sees ...

Unnormal- This is what I have been living since I arrived in India; well or so I thought.  I realize this is not a word, but either is what I have been feeling. As I thought about this feeling of “not normal” or “abnormal” I realized calling India abnormal is an unfair statement.  Indians could say the same about me if they moved to America. My norm is not theirs, but it doesn’t make them abnormal. I realized the judgment in my attitude as I looked at others here. The way they live, the way they walk, they way they eat, the way they dress all of it is different than me, but none of it is abnormal. In fact it is all quite normal for India. My judgment could keep me back from experiencing India. If I can begin to see through the lens of different, but not unnormal, I think I will begin to see people and see India, and I think it is then that I will really begin to live!  I saw not one, but four bald eagles flying high over the valley today. The mountains were crisp ...