Just a teaser...

I promised Liz that I would let her be the first one to post a trip update, but I don't know how soon that will happen, so I wanted you to know that until she gets one together, this is all you get.

The greater the effort required to achieve a goal, the more meaningful the outcome. This trip took a lot of money and over 100 hours of travel time... it made the joy so much more intense.

Dalit families have lived hard lives with little joy.  Only through the Lord, and his perfect LOVE can any hope be found.

One of the village elders said, "In all of my 86 years in this village, I have never seen the people dance.  I have never seen so much joy."

I cannot wait to share more with you after the dust settles.  Until then, feel free to read about our trip through the India Team Blog at: http://gccindiateams.blogspot.com 

Update from India

I cannot believe that the trip is nearly over, but there are so many things I want to share with everyone.  First, God has done GREAT things through this team, and it has been an absolute delight every moment.  Second, the Lord is doing amazing things in India, and it has been a privilege to be a part of that for 10 days!

I will share three things you should know, and then a video.

1) Five of us from the team were bumped from our flight before leaving India, and they are making us wait 13 hours before routing us through a complicated system of layovers and delays with an expected arrival 20+ hours later than planned. (No worries, they are taking good care of us - see photo below.)

2) During our time in the village, every child was engaged by the gospel and transformed by God's love. Every parent was encouraged in their journey and empowered to play with their kids (some for the first time).  Even the village elders danced to the tune of "Little Sally Walker" while the rest of the village cheered.  So much emotion was seen during our final award ceremony as each person was told that they embodied specific character traits as image bearers of God.

3) A group of 10 church planters traveled 14 hours on Thursday to see the program because they had heard on the first day that it could revolutionize the way they do ministry in India.  We were able to talk with them over lunch and dinner the final day as they asked for us to bring a similar program to their villages and train them in what we did.

**And finally, as promised, a video!**

New Year = New Me

Why do I like the new year so much?  What is it about this holiday that trumps all others in my mind?  Well, there isn't great competition for starters.  (With the exception of Christ incarnate to save all of humanity from depravity on Christmas, the rest of the holidays are kinda dumb.)

We have Halloween - let's celebrate death and evil spirits...
There is Valentines Day - a day dedicated to love and chocolate (or was it a saint with the name valentine)?
Don't forget about St. Patrick's day - a close second because of the green beer.
Do I even need to bring up Labor Day or Memorial Day?  When is the last time you were inspired on either day?

I guess what I'm trying to say, but doing a poor job of it, is that New Year's is my favorite day. I find myself highly introspective and visionary on this day.  I want to make big changes, dream larger than life, and be a part of something eternal.  I get a glimpse of my life like a blank canvas, and I LOVE IT.

I don't have time tonight (suffering from jet-lag) to get into my resolutions, but they will happen this year, and they will be epic.  I challenge you to take on a resolution in 2012.  I know that you've probably tried one in the past and failed by January 1st, but that should never stop you from making this year better than the last.

And we're off!

Please be in prayer as our team leaves for Kalavai, India!  We pull out of Granger, IN in 10 minutes, and then fly out of Chicago O'hare at 5:00pm.  If you are a person who prays for things daily, please keep our team in your prayers the next 12 days.  If you want to follow our travels, we will be updating a trip-blog.  When I get back, I will post pictures and stories for all.  In the mean time, Happy New Year, friends!  I hope it's a good one!  (Here is the team-blog: http://www.gccindiateams.blogspot.com/ )

Dichotomy

Defined as dividing something into two mutually exclusive halves.

How can a Sweet-Tart be both sweet and sour?
How does a loving God let awful things happen? (Did I get serious too quickly?)

I was sitting in church yesterday and the pastor asked the question, "Isn't God good?!"

To give you some context to this story, twenty minutes of open-mic had just wrapped up, in which person after person talked about their troubles, their trials, their pains, and their heartaches.  Do you sense a dichotomy yet?

How does a person talk about the goodness of God directly after that?

The theologian Lee Strobel talks about building a case against God.  He talks about opening a magazine and finding a picture of a mother, holding her malnourished, dead child in her arms with anguish in her eyes.  The child died for lack of water.  Strobel asked of God, "Was it so difficult to make it rain?  Was it too much to ask?  How dare you!?"

This reminds me of a verse in the scriptures: Matthew 5:45 - "... He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous."


Here-in lies the problem.  Do you need a God that only allows good?  Or let me ask it a different way. Do you need a God that only allows good things to happen to good people?


What would that say about God?  Would that make Him a better God, more "just" and more "loving"?  Or would it cause a mass-flood of people to worship Him simply for financial and personal gain?  Is that love, or is that bribery?


I wish to return to the original story.  There were people who recounted stories of hardship in church, and the pastor asked, "Isn't God good?!"  What I didn't tell you was that each of the stories told was ended the same way.  Before the pastor ever took the pulpit, each person ended their story with praise to God.


Why?


God is NOT good because He blesses you. God is not good because He gives you things.  God is GOOD because He sustains you.  He is GOOD because He is your portion.  Only a God greater than our circumstances and greater than our pain is worth worshiping.

Only a person who has tasted and seen the faithfulness of God through hardship can say "God is GOOD".  It appears as foolishness to those that do not know, but is an indelible mark on those that do.

la vida loca

Quiero explicar algo que probablemente no sabes.

Hablo Español, y durante mi juventud, vivía en Chihuahua, Mexico.

Por eso, pienso como Mexicano.

También, no entiendo la "cultura pop" de este país. (no se dice así en Mexico)

Casi todos los días, quiero volver a Mexico para vivir.

Solo pensaba que quisieras saber.

(Mi hermano y yo)

India Trip Update

Can you believe that our trip is only five weeks away!?  These final weeks are filled with preparations.  We are putting the final touches on the programming, taking the second round of immunizations, and translating the lessons into Tamil so the kids will understand the stories.  (We even did a luggage simulation to prepare for our trips through airports and bond as a team!)

There is an even closer deadline, though, and that is our support deadline!

Today is the final day of our India Hopes & Dreams Trip fundraising.  We have definitely felt the Lord stretch us as we decided to go on this trip, and mostly because it has been a rushed timeline.  We had the challenge of raising $3000 each, and thanks to many generous friends and family members, we have raised well over half of that in a very short time.

However, the final push is here, and the only time left is today.  If you have not had the opportunity to give yet, today is the best day to do so.  Two separate gifts have been pledged that will match any donation today.  The first one is designated toward any SpringHill staff member (up to $500), and the second is for anybody else (up to $500).  If you want in on this, please leave a comment below saying how much you can give, or go online right away: Online Donations.  (You will have to create an account (super easy), and make sure you designate who receives the gift!)  

Don't miss out on this opportunity to double your money for the Kingdom of God.