India Face to Face

This traffic is insane! Tiny cars, trucks, motorbikes, big buses, small yellow 3-wheeled ‘autos,’are all zinging in different directions, blowing their horns and flying past us leaving only a hair’s breadth between them and the little white car I was riding in.  Every other second it seems certain there would be a crash! I determinedly set my gaze out the side window, because it’s best not to see the inevitable head-on collisions. I see shops, beggars, women in bright colored sarees, crowded bus stops, street vendors,  open sewer, and garbage on the other side of all that ludicrous traffic! A good horn is the most important thing to have on your vehicle here because everyone is using it incessantly.  It doesn’t mean anger.  The trucks and buses all say on the back, “Sound Horn!” The drivers just want to know who is passing, who is getting close.

You guessed it!  I have suddenly found myself in India!  But how did I end up here? I didn't plan it.  When in your daily life you say, “Here am I send me,” then the unexpected, least likely things happen because He says:  

“As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts.”  Isaiah 55:9

BletJhaw and I had planned to go to the discipleship training program, BTTA (Back to the Altar), offered in Sukhothai, Thailand, February 12-21.  I had previously attended that same training in America last summer at the JFA office headquarters in Collegedale, Tennessee. Therefore I was to be a group leader this time.  It was an inspiring time of group prayers, and close fellowship with God and each other.  On Friday the 16th, I was in Natalies motel room listening to her speaker phone.  Jon and someone else were discussing the upcoming India trip, where many abandoned churches were being re-opened by revival meetings.  I had known and prayed about this trip since last summer, but had not received an answer from God, so had not planned to go.  However in this conversation I heard Jon say that they were one person short to preach a revival series in an abandoned church. Immediately I heard God calling me to GO!  Immediately I said to Natalie - “I will go!” Things moved fast. She got the airplane ticket and Indian e-VISA on-line, and Jonathan Hill went to the bus station and purchased bus tickets for 4 of us to travel to Bangkok Don Mueang  airport, where I purchased my re-entry visa!  I am thrilled, confident, peaceful, and courageous when I am in the center of His will.  His presence is palpable, His love is everywhere.  He is everything!

I’m so happy! Here I am on the bus with these 3 other lovely ladies, going to Bangkok Airport and then on to where I have never been before, at God’s sending!

Our night flight to Channai, India!

Our welcome by Israel Prasaad, JFA director, upon arrival!!

As we stepped out of our van at the hotel, the loudest welcoming band met us!

This is the welcome we received at the hotel we were going to stay in. I was so surprised because this is a brand new beautiful hotel. They served us a great meal for breakfast, and the section office fed us a huge selection of great food for lunch! I thought I was coming to India to live in a mud house, take cold dipper baths, and eat rice and chili for each meal!

What a royal welcome we received by Israel Prasaad, JFA director of India at the airport, and by the hotel staff where we stayed.  There were 14 Americans in our group.  I was given a packet of information and itinerary for the next ten days. It dawned on me like a light bulb going on in my brain, that I was a last-minute person showing up there, so they gave me a last-minute church!  I am alone to present in that church every evening! Others had a team of workers. But without me, that church would not be opened!  Nothing would have happened there. Israel was apologetic about giving me this church which had never opened and the people had never heard about God. I assured him whole-heartedly that if he had given me a choice of all seven churches a long time ago, I still would have chosen this one. That’s what I do all the time, share Jesus with people who never heard of Him!! Oh praise God!

DC Kuppam church after it had been painted, but before renovations.

After renovations! Please notice the lovely cement steps, the ceiling fan inside, and all the electricity hooked up to power!! Also the dear lady standing in front is Panjavarnakilli. (It took me days to remember her name)! She is the Bible worker who was assigned to be my helper. She came to all the meetings with me and truly was a big blessing. I came to love her so much!!

The name of my church is DC Kuppam.  It is a 45 minute drive through unbelievable traffic through which, by God’s amazing grace, we came unscathed evening after evening. This little church has never been opened. As soon as it was built 13 years ago, there was so much opposition and danger that the pastor and Bible worker had to flee for their lives.  No church service has ever been held there.  Now it has been painted and when they heard I was coming they did some quick renovating, because a lady that I call “The cow lady,” had taken over the building, putting her hay and cows in and around it. She was very angry that the Adventists were taking it back and cleaning it out! 

The first 2 nights there was a generator to produce light and microphones, but both nights smoke poured out of the speakers and they had to be turned off.  By the third night I was shocked to see the Section President there.  He had worked all day to hook the church up to real electricity, put a fan in the ceiling, and make beautiful cement steps to the front door!  We had lights, fans, speakers, and at last I can use my computer and show the slide pictures on the wall! Let me tell you right here that I am so thankful to God for impressing me so strongly to come here to India!

This is the “Cow Lady!” Let’s pray that she can accept Jesus, because even though she did an evil job by turning many people away at the door, she did attend many of the meetings. So she has learned something about Jesus!

Things went less than peacefully however, the devil hated what we were doing. The Pentecostals were in the village going everywhere telling the people not to come to our church, the cow lady was cunning.  She came in and acted interested, but went out stopping the people from coming in.  Also that week there were exams for all the children and the parents didn’t want them to come!  Isn’t it wonderful that we are meeting the devil head-on, that means we are NOT going the same way, plus God is going to do great things.  In spite of everything the meetings were going well until that never-to-be-forgotten Friday night!  That was the night I was beginning the New Testament on the life of Jesus!

The local Bible worker was late coming to open the church.  He had the key and we waited for him.  When he came, the two pastors that were with me told him nicely that he should come early to open and clean the church and be ready.  He became furious, yelling and shouting.  His voice echoed in that little church and was so loud the entire village could hear him.  He was so angry I thought we might all get hurt. His son came in.  He was over 6 feet tall and very strong.  I noticed the size of his hands - enormous!  He joined his father in the yelling and fury!  It was all a nightmare. The yelling went on for over 30 minutes! My sweet little Indian lady, Panjavarnakilli, a Bible worker who came every night to help and support me, was in tears.  My two pastors who brought me here were driven out - they left!  Thankfully Hannah Hill had come with me that evening and we sat in that church with those angry men still yelling and screaming. 

Here he is! I surreptitiously took this picture without anybody knowing! I did not get a picture of his son.

Israel Prasaad was in a near-by church interpreting for Jon and Natalie Wood, so he switched with my pastor and came to our rescue!  Soon the angry man calmed down and we proceeded to have our meeting.  That angry man and his son sat through my entire meeting hearing about the birth of Jesus, His baptism, and His mighty works!  Sabbath evening was the last revival meeting covering the second coming.  The Section president came with me to deal with the problem and interpret for me.  In spite of all the devils attacks, half the congregation stood during the final appeal for those wanting to join with Jesus and be baptized!

This is part of my congregation that last Sabbath evening. You can see the Section President standing beside me. Some people had already left.

Praying with some people who want to be baptized

Here you see the 2 pastors who brought me to this church every evening. The man with the purple tie is Pastor David. He is my interpreter. He is the section secretary for the Vellore district. The other pastor is our driver Pastor Selvam Samuel.

Now HERE IS THE MIRACLE!!! Do you see the man with the black bag? He is the Pentecostal pastor! The one who gave us such a terrible time at first, driving the people away!! He came to me asking me to pray for him! He came to the last 2 meetings. Praise the Lord for His mercy endures forever!!

These people want baptism. That little old lady on my left attended all the meetings. The “Cow Lady” is on the other side!!

This is a wonderful picture of the grandma who attended every meeting faithfully. You can see Hannah in the background snapping a picture of the “Cow Lady” with her calf!”

This is Pastor Selvam Samuel who drove us 45 minutes through tremendous traffic conditions every evening! He is so proud of his little “Ministry” car! I am too!

Here we three are in the back of this lerching, turning, twisting, braking, horn-blowing little white car!

The last Sabbath all churches met together at the main church. Here I am with the Section pastor and his lovely wife! Here in India, you are very out of place if you do not wear a saree for church. This is Natalie’s saree! Can you believe how you can tuck, fold, drape, arrange, pin, and wear such a thing? Then try to act “Normal!” in it all day long!!! They also put sweet smelling flowers in your hair! (Secret: I showed BletJhaw a picture of me in this saree and he said: “You look a lot better in Karen clothes!”)

Jon Wood is preaching the Sabbath sermon.

Many people were baptized this Sabbath. But among them, one lady became demon possessed and had to be rescued out of the water.

The evening meetings were not my only responsibility.  Because I am a nurse, Israel put me in charge of all the medical clinics which were put on in each of the seven churches that our group was presenting in.  So every morning I left at 9am, and didn’t return until 2-3pm, ate a quick lunch and prepared to leave for my church at 5pm, usually not returning to the hotel until 8 or 9 pm.  Indeed it was a mad dash, but so rewarding, ordering medical supplies, organizing who in our group could come each day and participate.  Others felt sorry for me that I had such a non-stop, break-neck schedule, more than anyone else. But actually everything I did here in India was right along the lines of what I do constantly in BYT! I treat the sick non-stop, travel on bad roads, prepare and preach sermons for and pray with those who know nothing or very little about the God of the Bible.

At the medical clinics the Pastor or Bible Worker taught the 8 natural remedies first, then we did Height, Weight, Blood Pressure, Respiratory volume, Oxygen Saturation, Blood glucose, and gave eye glasses for far sighted patients.  I was the “Doctor” who did medical counseling with all the patients that came. Last and best was someone to pray with each one.  In each church 50-93 patients came to our medical clinics.  The Pastors, Bible workers, and interpreters did a fantastic job, and the clinics ran smoothly. 

This is the pastor giving instruction on the eight natural remedies.

Here is Sharon Williams is setting up her table for reading glasses.

Height, weight, and Blood Pressure will take place here with RaeAnn and Hannah Jobe.

Pastor David will interpret for me again at the Medical Counseling table.

Pastor Aroon can do most anything! Here he will do Blood Glucose sticks. We are all set and ready for the onslaught of patients! It surely was an onslaught moving them through each station. …And my station took the longest to try to counsel with each one about their multiple health problems!!

Here is Susan Schilt doing an earnest, lovely work in praying for the patients.

Somehow I had to laugh till I cried while watching Stephen Hoosier trying to measure lung volume! They just couldn’t get it!!

Sweet RaeAnn Rollins doing pulse ox

Beautiful patient care picture of Rishona Rollins!

Sunday, March 3, 2024, was my last day in India. We were all taken to an evening school in Viluppuram. There are many SDA evening schools in India. Children love to come because they receive tutoring on their school studies, they are taught about Jesus and how to pray, and they receive a very good healthy meal! Some of the poor children do not get to eat all day.until they come to evening school!

This is a beautiful way to reach the parents who are strict Hindu. When there is trouble in the home, the children pray for their parents! I have heard that many of the parents begin to believe in God!

Here is the evening school I visited!

This is how they welcomed us!

Everything is done neatly and orderly. The children are all wonderfully behaved!

I surely did enjoy the children!

Everyone in our group was completely blessed and inspired to have this privileged opportunity.

Long ago I claimed 1Chronicles 4:9 for myself! The prayer of Jabez! I stand amazed before God, how He has pushed me out further and further away to places I never would have dreamed about.

“Oh that Thou wouldest bless me indeed, and enlarge my coast, and that Thine hand might be with me, and that Thou wouldest keep me from evil, that it may not grieve me!  And God granted him that which he requested.”

Mrs. White states: “Throw a pebble into the lake and a wave is formed, and another and another, and as they increase, the circle widens until they reach the very shore. Thus our influence, though apparently insignificant, may continue to extend far beyond our knowledge or control! RH jan. 24,1882

Truly I am blessed, my coast is enlarging, God’s hand is with me keeping me from evil, and I am so happy!

How about you?