Life Changing Words Ministry

Missionary Journal

January 7, 2007

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

We stayed at Immanuel Prayer House overnight because of the prayer meeting. Florie, Poornima, Sunita, and I spent New Year’s Day making glory rings and streamers for the churches in Nagaland that we would be ministering.

On Tuesday we finished the worship tools for Nagaland. We were invited over to Shaji and Grace’s home. Ezekiel and Nathan remembered us from last year. We had nice fellowship and a good south Indian meal. I was invited to come the next day to show them phonograms.

The next morning Pastor picked us up and dropped me to Shaji’s place at 10 am. I spent two hours teaching them phonograms to improve their English. We laughed a lot and had fun. It seems that Shaji needs the most practice, while Grace seemed to grasp the sounds quite easily.

The Lord led us to contact Pastor Kilang to confirm that he knew the time of our arrival in Nagaland. He was grateful to hear from us. He and his wife had prayed for the Lord to tell us to call him that day. The urgency was that the Central Home Dept in New Delhi had all our paperwork, but could not issue the permit without two sets of passport pictures.

We went to get them immediately and emailed them to the Delhi office. He approved them and faxed the permit to us. We are now required to have the permit in hand when we arrive to Nagaland. Pastor Kilang would no longer be able to get it for us the old way. Lord, please make this restriction to be banished. Anyway, by the end of the day, we were ready to go to Nagaland.

My doctor check-up was short and he seemed satisfied that I had done all he had prescribed, so he released me for Rs 200 ($4.60) fee. Now that is affordable!

Friday was spent in personal ministry of encouragement and answering questions related to life, new challenges, and the phonogram classes. Pastor Paul and Florie went to Ghatkopar church to have a service. They did not get back in time for the meeting Bill was to speak. So when they called, we told them that we would lead the meeting. After a couple songs, Bill began his message. Shalan whispered over to me, "Aunty, we cannot understand Uncle’s English." I said, "No problem, I will translate - slowly." We all laughed, but Bill gave his message and I translated... slowly. They all thanked him for it.

When we had finished the meeting, nine garbage collectors from the society came by. Pastor Paul had told them to come this night to receive their yearly Christmas cake. We did not know what to do, so we told them to sit and wait for the pastor, who was on his way. Now, we had nine captive souls to preach to. I asked my 14 year old new phonogram teacher to translate for me. She looked at me stunned. I said that I would speak slowly for her. And we began. She did a wonderful job because all nine men prayed the prayer after me. They thanked her for translating these things that they had never heard before. I am so proud of Poornima. The Lord is using her as a real servant for the kingdom.

At the Saturday evening prayer meeting, we presented certificates for the mastering of the phonograms, as well as, finishing the first level training. I gave the new teachers what tools I had for them to use in the phonogram classes. They were excited and afterward they started giving each other competitive challenges and goals to meet in their classes. They have a goal to see who can make the most students able to master the phonograms.

I did not have time to complete all my auditing of their recordkeeping, so I will have to budget time next visit to get it all accomplished. I did get my financial records updated.

Our last meal together we went out to eat. It is always a bitter-sweet time of review and refreshing of encouragement for the time in between our visits. It is the time to remind them that they now have to apply the things they have learned to their life and ministry for the Lord’s glory.

We left Immanuel Prayer House at 2pm and headed for the train station in central Mumbai. Pastor and his family, Ramu and Ravi all came with us to help with the luggage and wave goodbye. The New Delhi Rajdhani left promptly at 4 pm. I stood in the doorway as long as I could remembering what the Lord has done for them this trip that we were privileged to be a part of. I can hardly wait to return this fall. Maybe Marisa will be with me to visit all seven phonogram classes. Thank you, Lord.