Back from the Far Side of the World!

Every time I have gone to India (and this was my fourth trip), I come back home both totally drained and fully satisfied! Sounds a bit strange, yes? Allow me to explain.

What drains me most is the travel required to get there: three crowded flights (two of which are over 8 hours in length), two van rides (of about 3 hours each) and a partridge in a pear tree! (Sorry ... got a bit carried away there with the holidays fast approaching!). Add to the planes and vehicles was a bunch of time just waiting around three different airports! If that 30+ hours of continuous travel was not enough, we got do do it all in reverse as we traveled home. I am still trying to get my energy back!  Indeed the travel demands are heavy! But I also find myself drained by the overwhelming need we encounter in India. Spiritual darkness lies like a heavy blanket upon the land. The poverty and its devastating impact upon so many is constantly in one's face. And this leads me to what I find most satisfying about the trip. In the midst of all this spiritual darkness and material poverty, there is a ministry called Children's Fellowship of India. It is an orphanage located smack dab in the heart of India (about 500 miles east of Mumbai [Bombay]). Currently 178 boys are finding relief from the abject poverty they once experienced (often when new boys arrive, they are unable to eat the amounts the other boys eat as most of them had very little to eat prior to coming to CFI). But even more important than the relief from poverty - these boys are introduced to Jesus Christ. Wow! What a joy to hear them singing heartily to Jesus Christ. The vast majority make faith commitments to Christ. And here is where this gets me excited. After leaving CFI and going on for more training, these young men return to the general population, taking their faith with them. This is already
happening. While at CFI, I met again four boys I had first met in 2006 (see adjacent photo). All four are now in the work force in different "nearby" cities. All four are following Jesus and involved in churches! Wow! Only eternity will reveal the impact CFI and its boys will have for the kingdom there in India!

If you would like to explore becoming a sponsor of one of these boys (ONLY $30/month!) . . . please let me know (jsmith@gracewv.org)!

Thanks for stopping by . . .
pj