Day 9: Macaroni in Mugs

My roommates ate their macaroni in mugs this evening. We sat down together to eat, and it made me laugh. So I thought it was worth documenting. :) I'm thankful for these ladies. And I'm thankful for their quirkiness. And I'm thankful for macaroni and mugs, as well as macaroni in mugs.

Day 8: Tuesdays

I look forward to Tuesdays every week. Here's why: On Tuesdays Patricia and I go to a fishing village and study the Word with a small group of believers. We meet in the home of a young couple that have recently believed in Jesus. The two of them, two of us, our national partner, and two older ladies (who have been believers for awhile) all sit together, open our Bibles (in three different languages) and talk about it together. 

They are faithful. They are obedient to the Word. They are hungry for more. And they are discovering the joy that comes with life in Christ. They are listening to the Spirit. 

He is more kind and generous and loving than I ever could have imagined.

 

Sitting on the floor together, I look up and think, "How is this possible? How did this happen? We are worlds apart culturally. We have nothing in common, but I love these people about as much as you can love anybody." And the Spirit inside of me reminds me that we have the most important thing in common. Him. And that is only because of His love, His grace...Oh, where would we be without it?! He put His Spirit inside each one of us...crazy, right?! 

I cannot thank God enough for allowing me to be a part of something so wonderful--Him! ...especially on Tuesdays! :)

Day 7: Keytars

Keytar! At a Ravi Zacharias event in Mumbai. :)

This guy was playing 3 keyboards at the same time, then he went crazy on his keytar for awhile. It was impressive. It definitely made me smile. :)

On a slightly more serious note, we were in a room filled with believers tonight as Ravi Zacharias spoke and celebrated RZIM's 25th year. It was unbelievably encouraging to see so many people there and to see most of our Indian friends from many different backgrounds and churches in one place. It was a reminder of how many prayers God has answered and how many people He has sent to us. All gifts. His grace astounds me.

Day 6: Piercing Darkness with Praise

This morning at church right in the middle of praise and worship all the electricity went out. The room suddenly went pitch black, but the sound hardly changed at all. Everyone was singing so loud you couldn't really tell the mics weren't working. It was beautiful. God's people singing His praises, in Hindi and English, undeterred by darkness. We went right on worshiping like that for about an hour.

Day 5: Rickshaws in the Rain

This nice man took us to the train station in the rain. I was so thankful for him because Lena and I would have been in a pickle...and very wet had he not picked us up. :)

Day 4: Home Sweet Home

This morning I woke up sad. So sad to leave vacation. So not ready to enter the craziness that is Mumbai. However, when I stepped off the plane in Mumbai, I felt relief. A surprise. Relieved to be home. Mumbai feels like home. A moment of thanks.

We got home and saw familiar faces. A moment of thanks. Thank You for familiarity. Thank You for these people.

We walk into our flat, and there's Patricia! A moment of "Thank You!" She has made us a welcome cake, complete with a sign. A moment of thanks.

Thank you, Patricia, for making us a cake! :)

We arrived on Day 2 of 11 of a festival called Ganapati. For people from Mumbai (and Maharashtra--the state), Ganapati is like Christmas. We were able to spend some time getting to know our neighbors better. Building relationships. A moment of thanks.

People are playing drums and dancing in the streets. This is home. Thank You, Father, for making this place feel like home.

The view from our living room.

Banging drums. People dancing.

Day 3: Simplicity

Today I continually found myself giving thanks for the simplest of things and moments. I tend to complicate things so much in my mind. But really following Jesus is simple. I give Him my sin, my unrighteousness. He gives me His righteousness. I lay down my life. He lives His life through me. I enjoy Him. He is glorified. It doesn't really get any better than that, does it?

So...Think simplicity.