Preparation to prepare

India Update 6 – Preparation to prepare

“Stotirum!” or “Praise the Lord!”

                This month has gone by so fast, and some of this month’s updates were in the last update, so I pray that you are still blessed and encouraged by the Lord’s work here!

                God’s still giving me the opportunity to share at the church, and I’m thankful for learning more about Him by doing so. He’s given me so much grace. This last weekend, He had me share on Galatians 5:13-26, regarding what most would consider “the fruit of the Spirit”. It was neat to see Him touch people’s hearts and lives, encouraging them to step out in faith and seek God more. The pastor seemed to have people tell Him they were impacted. So praise God! Also this month, the body began home fellowships, going to four different places in the local area, concluding with being back at the church this month for the 1^st of the month prayer service(they do it each month). As we move into December, I’m excited for one couple, who were diagnosed with AIDS, but God has been working in them to bring them to Himself. They only come on the first of the month because of the distance and costs to come, but have a church they go to near their home too. The first Sunday in December, I am praying we get to baptize them, as has been their desire the whole time I’ve been here, and even got to explain it to them one Sunday. So please pray they come and receive their baptism in water, but even more importantly in the Holy Spirit!

The orphanage and school have been going well, as the boys finally got moved in completely! The bathrooms were finished, and now they live in the new building, Praise God! So thank you for your prayers! The last testing period, one of the younger boys, Sanjay, got low scores in English and English reading. So God gave me the opportunity to work with him one on one to improve. And by the grace of God, he got all 90’s on the tests he just took! And because of the boys moving in to the new building, by next month he will be in the old living space as his new classroom! The boys cleaned up and painted the rooms fresh, that the building could be used entirely as a classroom, so it’s exciting because they may have a new grade level introduced next school year!

As God is preparing me to leave, I’ve been saddened with having to leave my new friends and family here, although happy to visit back home again. God has blessed me with gifts that I didn’t expect, even physically, as Solomon’s family gave me an outfit known here by the name “safari”. I’m super thankful for their generosity, and even more by being able to be with them for this last six months. But I’m not the only one receiving gifts from the Lord. The boys at the orphanage are getting blessed by my church family at home. They sent some soccer balls, footballs(which I will teach them how to play), and a dodge ball, like from schooling days (Praise God I’ll get to teach them how to play that too!). God is also providing through them to get personal bibles for the boys, to take home when they go, along with mechanical pencils and some swimming shorts. They tend to be mesmerized by the mechanical pencils, and the shorts to have something besides underwear to swim in. I fly out from Chennai on the 12^th, and arrive back in the states on the 13^th. Please pray for a great and safe journey home, with a good debriefing and outreach on the way.

Along with the prayers aforementioned, please pray for the following:

-          Solomon and Clara, and their family – that God would continue to be their strength and rest, keeping them healthy, as there has been much work going on here toward their work for the Kingdom.

-          The children at the orphanage and school – That God would continue to do His work in their hearts, and win them with their families to Christ.

-          The congregation here – that more people would sense and know God’s calling on their lives, and any hindrances be broken/left behind to fulfill His calling

-          The people here in India – that God would continue to remove the blinders Satan has placed on them, so they will see the light of His glorious gospel before Jesus returns and it’s too late.

-          The team to come here from New Mexico in late December – that God would use them powerfully to reach out in the community here locally, and in the city the orphanage is.

Thanks for all of your prayers and support. They mean so much to me, as I can tell people are praying for me and these needs, as the spiritual attack weakens in those times. You are such a blessing, and I pray you get even more blessed as you have sown here in Jesus’ name. May your fruit abound even more through those seeds you have sown into everyone here. God bless you!

Blessings!

Justin

for pics/video, feel free to check out: http://www.facebook.com/media/albums/?id=1613310128

Merry Christmas!

“Praise The Lord!” or “Stotrum!”, as the local believers say for a greeting.

First I want to thank you for your support through prayers, encouragements, emails, packages, cards, finances, and any other way that I can’t think of at the moment. I really appreciate you taking time to read this update as well. I pray you are encouraged, and are exhorted to a new place in faith in Jesus Christ as well as blessed both now and in heaven. Our visitor from the U.S., “Sister Lisa” as the saints here call her, got to visit here after 17 years of praying for God’s work through Solomon here. She was blessed to see the work that God has done. Her first time at the school, the students welcomed her with flowers and a “gauntlet” of kids to walk through in giving them to her. During her visit we got to chat, God providing fellowship with a sister who speaks English and is from the U.S. He used her to refresh me a bit, as she got to share frequently at the school chapel, churches here and be the special guest speaker during the Church 1 year anniversary. The message God gave her was in part with a song: “There is power in the Name of Jesus to break every chain!”. Such a great reminder in the midst of some temptations the enemy had been throwing at me all trip. We also got to go with Solomon and play volleyball with some young guys at the juvenile detention center in Chengalpet. The guys were way blessed to have some people visit, and we laughed and had fun.

The orphanage/school site is continually being improved, as the Lord keeps supplying. At the beginning of my trip, I began praying for the back building to be finished before I leave, and God to supply all the finances (and possibly so have you, as I included that in my prayer requests the first few times). And God has supplied all that has been needed, and the building being almost finished, we have had the dedication, and began moving beds in. Praise Jesus Christ for His faithfulness! The final touches are being done as I write. The dedication was great, as we worshiped the King together, we prayed and anointed the building with oil and water throughout. God provided for a mobile volleyball setup, using some extra posts, old tires, and concrete supplies. So we have been playing volleyball quite a bit as a group! Praise God! God has been blessing my relationships with children at the orphanage. Last week I went to go preach at Solomon’s church, and Sanjay (one of the kids) held onto me and said “I don’t want you to go!”. So God has been showing His love through me, and touching the kids’ hearts. One of the boys, Christopher, had a birthday this month, and he has warmed up to me as well. At the beginning, he was a quiet and reserved “new kid” to the orphanage, and now he initiates fellowship with me, although he doesn’t speak much English. It’s such a blessing to see God break down walls in a child’s heart. We have been swimming in the well in the back (which is not for drinking just in case you are wondering), and having a blast! My mom sent me a care package with some coffee (instant and real – THANKS MOM!) and the kids got to taste some more American candy (like Skittles, Now & Later, Whoppers, Jolly Ranchers, and others) from her package. They were excited! The kids at the school have had their quarterly testing (very important for the kids here in India). The majority in the school did well, and because of a package my friend Jenn Beck sent, the best overall testers got blessed with some putty to play with (since if you study hard, you should be able to play some, right?). So God has been blessing the kids as well as me with the packages sent!

The Youth have been able to lead worship at the church, and God’s continued opening the doors for me to preach, even though I’ve made a few mistakes. Praise God for His opportunities to confess, forsake and continue following after Him! And He’s been strengthening me against the attacks of the devil, as all trip I was fearing the enemy. The Lord has helped me in so many ways, and one of the main verses He’s had me commit to memory has been Psalm 27:1-3, which states:

“The LORD is my light and my salvation. Whom shall I fear? The LORD is the defense of my life. Who shall I dread? When evildoers came upon me to devour my flesh, my adversaries and my enemies, they stumbled and fell. Though a host encamp against me, my heart will not fear. Though war arise against me, in spite of this I shall be confident.”

So praise God He’s been working it all out for His glory!

I could still use a prayer covering for continuing to overcome the enemy’s temptations. And please pray for an easy and blessed “re-entry” as I come back to the states in a little over one month. I have been planning to come back to India again after my 2 month requirement out of country has been fulfilled, and I want to be lead by the Lord in what He wants me to do next. So please pray for His direction for me, and for provision to do what He wants me to do as well. He’s already provided around $2000 for my next trip, and I’m excited to see Him provide the rest. Beyond my own requests, please join me in prayer for the following:

- Solomon and his family to be refreshed and their gifts to continue coming out in the power of the Holy Spirit, to minister to the congregation, staff and kids as well.

- The needs of the church, school and orphanage to be met this and next month – as they do many outreaches in the area (including 70 widows they give gifts to each year, on top of the places they reach out already.

- God to continue to show His love through me to the students of the school, staff, and kids here at the kids’ home.

- For the believers at Solomon’s church – that they would be edified and exhorted to serve God without reservation in areas of their gifting, and that God would provide the comfort they need in every area of their lives.

- The boys at the juvenile detention center, that they would see the love of Christ every time we even set foot on the property, and that the Lord would break down walls and chains in their lives that the enemy has held them captive with over the years.

for more photos, see:

http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1613310128&sk=photos