Well, I was trying to post on my blog last night, and the internet was spotty and taking me offline repeatedly. So, I finally got a clear signal and quickly posted the entry this morning. However, I forgot 
to put a title because I was hurrying. I guess this is the Lord’s sense of humor, or the Apocalypse (you choose), because when it posted, the title had been entered automatically by WordPress (my blog builder) as “666.” So I have fixed it. Apologies to all who thought I had gone around the bend in India for a moment. And I have to admit, sadly, that this title is not nearly as exciting or attention grabbing as the first. However, it’s 7 am here, and as many of you know, I don’t even wake up till 10, so exciting titles escape me at the moment.
We finally taught for the first time today [yesterday now] after a week in India. We have spent the time getting oriented and having some medical work done among the team. We traveled 55 km, which is about 35 miles, but it took us 2 hours due to road conditions. Lots of typical Indian cross-country sights.
There are many Hindu temples along the road, colorful and a bit Old Testament in the sense that this is real practicing idol worship. Sometimes in the big famous temples, they sacrifice so many goats at one time that the blood actually runs into the road and they have to make detours. I’m glad we are in the age of Grace. I am putting a photo here of the very popular monkey god. We saw him in his incarnation in the road today – that is to say, we saw an actual monkey.
There are so many small, one-room temples along the road that you don’t notice them after a while. Some are colorfully painted and well kept. Others are very old and seem neglected or abandoned.
I will also put a picture of the church we taught in today. Notice the cloths stretched around poles for walls. It is the beginning of summer here, and it looks like it will be a hot one – they tell me temperatures reach a consistent balmy 118 degrees during the height of the summer in this district of India.
We will be returning for more teaching tomorrow, but will leave earlier to make up for bad road conditions – this slowed us down today and we were quite late getting there. Even on the far out country road, we are constantly dodging buses, trucks, motorcycles, and small, three-wheeled rickshaws crammed with up to 15 people. Also, cows and a lot of goats.
After a long season of prayer, Gail and I committed ourselves to full-time missions in December 2010. We expect 2011 to be the year we plant our feet on this new ground. Our vision, for the time being, is to be servant missionaries, seeking to serve other established mission organizations around the world rather than originate a new mission organization with ventures of our own. There are a lot of established mission ministries already out there - we desire to go alongside other missionaries as servants and partners until the Lord leads us differently. We are open to go anywhere in the world to serve, short-term, long-term...we'll see...Have Mission Will Travel...
wow! great shots of the scenery. The church setting blows my mind. So out of our “normal” here. Truly indiginous, i would guess!
Sounds like your teaching has been really anointed and blessed again in that location~based on your report to Mom yesterday. I am so excited to hear about it and know that you are leaving little bits of spiritual life behind you as you go! We do miss you here~ good grief! it’s been a looong time. 🙂 love you, praying for you, miss you!
Yes, God is always moving around in interesting ways here. I am forever surprised by things that stick in the people’s minds, sometimes things I’m not aware of having said or done – very very very humbling. Yes, also, I am starting to smell home on the wind and my heart is turning in your direction. A couple more weeks, teaching nearly every day in some new place or other right up to the last day. Loving it, but missing you all so much too…be home soon…dad
I’m loving your stories and pictures. Can’t wait to see you to get the once you can’t blog. So glad you’re coming home soon.
I don’t get the how the title of your post relates to the content…?
Evan Meade
Mistake later corrected. Original 666 title was default title added by WordPress because I forgot to put a title. I later went back and corrected the mistake with “Finally Taught in India.” I have sent you a private email response on this also with some more humorous detail about what happened.