India
After a night of much enjoyed sleep, I stepped out of the entrance to the hostel into the muddy streets of Manali in Northern India. My friend Rosie and I had come to visit the India Outreach team, and one of the team leaders, Isabel, was taking us on a small tour of the “city”
that had been their home for almost three weeks.
It had been dark when we arrived the night before, so I hadn’t seen much. What overtook me first was the incredible beauty of the mountains – that isn’t something I had expected in India. The lush, towering peeks struck such a sense of awe in me – amazing.
But as I turned my eyes to the streets, my heart grew heavier. This “city” of Manali is inhabited with tourists – with about 80% of those tourists being Israeli – but there was little in the way to recommend it. The streets were muddy, the shops somewhat few, the local homes very poor, and cows roamed the streets with more freedom than people did.
After our walk, Isabel brought me back and I asked her about what drew people here. She took me to my room, and pointed to the grassy looking area right in front of my door – marijuana plants. She explained that so many tourists come here looking for cheap drugs, cheap sex and meaning to life. The first two are readily available, and the last one – well, while the eastern religion of India is readily available, the purpose people are looking for often eludes them. And that is why this team was there – to be a light in a place that was so heavy with darkness, and to show that real meaning can’t be found in emptying yourself, but in being filled with the life of Jesus.
That was one small glimpse of my time with our DTS India Outreach team. Though the travel to them was grueling (36 hours each way), it was well worth it to be able to connect with this group and see all that they had been led into.
As I already mentioned, the team was living in a place where tourists came to seek after “recreational” activities and eastern religion. Just in the way the team chose to live – boys and girls living in separate rooms, not engaging with drugs and singing joyful worship songs – set them a part from many other who came there. They had developed friendships with the people in the hostel, shop owners and tourists in the cafes, and had the opportunity to share time and again about why their lives were different.
And the day before I left, we had the opportunity to go into a Christian Children’s home/school. This place is home to about 90 children, and gave education to many more in the local area. Five of us climbed onto the school bus with the kids one morning and headed off to school – what a sight we must have been among those little, black-haired children!
This facility blessed me as I met teachers and workers who were giving of their lives. As they
shared the hope of Jesus with each child, and sought to give them an excellent education, they were building hope for this nation, and in this area, where hopelessness often reigns.
It was sad to leave the team, and although the trip home was also grueling (another 36 hour journey), it was such a privilege to see the students and staff giving of their hearts in this nation.
South Korea
My mind was reeling and my fingers flying as I took notes at the YWAM Global Leadership Team meetings on Jeju Island, South Korea. Every year, the Global Leadership body of YWAM, numbering around 55 people from all over the world, gather to pray together, to hear global reports, and to plan for the future of this Mission.
I was just there as a note taker, commissioned through relationship to help the main administrator of these meetings by taking detailed minutes of their all day sessions. I have been doing this already for another international body in YWAM, and now was the time to put my flying fingers into service for this leadership group.
And what an amazing time it was. I was blown away again by the breadth
and scope of what Youth with a Mission is. From the obedience of one couple, Loren and Darlene Cunningham (see Loren to the right), to a vision they received from God, had grown a Missions agency that is a little over 16,000 members strong. We are running Discipleship Training Schools in over 150 nations and in over 50 languages, and are involved in numerous global issues – literacy, fighting poverty, orphans, business, human trafficking, the United Nations…and the list continues. My little role in Herrnhut, Germany was feeling very small at that moment.
Though the above things were impressed on my mind and spirit, what engaged my heart in a
deeper way was watching the leaders of our Mission took more than one time to pray for a young woman who had contracted a serious form of malaria as she served in Africa. This woman was in a coma, and the leaders of the Jeju Base as well as her family and friends were carrying a heavy load during this time. And so, as members of our global family were hurting, the leaders set aside their time schedule and lifted her and the others up in prayer.
And I saw again that no matter how astounding the work we do in this world is, it’s the time we take for the individuals that truly leaves a mark on the soul. May God give you and I the strength to give the time that changes lives.
Again, so many stories, so little time! But, being able to serve at these meetings, though very busy at times, was a privilege for me. I felt exposed not only to the bigger picture of YWAM, but
to a deeper understanding of how one person’s life can make such a dramatic difference in the future of nations. I met a lot of unsung heroes at these meetings – people who had gone into remote villages in Africa and India, into uncharted sectors of business and industry, people who had been kidnapped for their faith - and all with a desire to see God’s love spread to a hurting world. It was a humbling as well as energizing time for me, and I hope that I can bring even a small piece of what I learned back to the Base in Herrnhut. (Check out some of my YWAM friends to the right - the man in the front with me is from New Zealand, the red-haired woman from Canada, the one woman from Kenya and the other from Holland)
And so, I think that’s it for now! As always, how can I express my deep thanks to you? Thank you for walking alongside me in prayer and support – these last months have been challenging physically, financially (but, by the way, all the finances came in for all the trips – wahoo!) and spiritually, and you help bring joy to my step. Thank you for reaching out to the lives around you.
Drop a note if you have the time – until we type again –
Cory
that had been their home for almost three weeks.It had been dark when we arrived the night before, so I hadn’t seen much. What overtook me first was the incredible beauty of the mountains – that isn’t something I had expected in India. The lush, towering peeks struck such a sense of awe in me – amazing.
But as I turned my eyes to the streets, my heart grew heavier. This “city” of Manali is inhabited with tourists – with about 80% of those tourists being Israeli – but there was little in the way to recommend it. The streets were muddy, the shops somewhat few, the local homes very poor, and cows roamed the streets with more freedom than people did.After our walk, Isabel brought me back and I asked her about what drew people here. She took me to my room, and pointed to the grassy looking area right in front of my door – marijuana plants. She explained that so many tourists come here looking for cheap drugs, cheap sex and meaning to life. The first two are readily available, and the last one – well, while the eastern religion of India is readily available, the purpose people are looking for often eludes them. And that is why this team was there – to be a light in a place that was so heavy with darkness, and to show that real meaning can’t be found in emptying yourself, but in being filled with the life of Jesus.
That was one small glimpse of my time with our DTS India Outreach team. Though the travel to them was grueling (36 hours each way), it was well worth it to be able to connect with this group and see all that they had been led into.
As I already mentioned, the team was living in a place where tourists came to seek after “recreational” activities and eastern religion. Just in the way the team chose to live – boys and girls living in separate rooms, not engaging with drugs and singing joyful worship songs – set them a part from many other who came there. They had developed friendships with the people in the hostel, shop owners and tourists in the cafes, and had the opportunity to share time and again about why their lives were different.
And the day before I left, we had the opportunity to go into a Christian Children’s home/school. This place is home to about 90 children, and gave education to many more in the local area. Five of us climbed onto the school bus with the kids one morning and headed off to school – what a sight we must have been among those little, black-haired children!
This facility blessed me as I met teachers and workers who were giving of their lives. As they
shared the hope of Jesus with each child, and sought to give them an excellent education, they were building hope for this nation, and in this area, where hopelessness often reigns.It was sad to leave the team, and although the trip home was also grueling (another 36 hour journey), it was such a privilege to see the students and staff giving of their hearts in this nation.
South Korea
My mind was reeling and my fingers flying as I took notes at the YWAM Global Leadership Team meetings on Jeju Island, South Korea. Every year, the Global Leadership body of YWAM, numbering around 55 people from all over the world, gather to pray together, to hear global reports, and to plan for the future of this Mission.
I was just there as a note taker, commissioned through relationship to help the main administrator of these meetings by taking detailed minutes of their all day sessions. I have been doing this already for another international body in YWAM, and now was the time to put my flying fingers into service for this leadership group.
And what an amazing time it was. I was blown away again by the breadth
and scope of what Youth with a Mission is. From the obedience of one couple, Loren and Darlene Cunningham (see Loren to the right), to a vision they received from God, had grown a Missions agency that is a little over 16,000 members strong. We are running Discipleship Training Schools in over 150 nations and in over 50 languages, and are involved in numerous global issues – literacy, fighting poverty, orphans, business, human trafficking, the United Nations…and the list continues. My little role in Herrnhut, Germany was feeling very small at that moment.Though the above things were impressed on my mind and spirit, what engaged my heart in a
deeper way was watching the leaders of our Mission took more than one time to pray for a young woman who had contracted a serious form of malaria as she served in Africa. This woman was in a coma, and the leaders of the Jeju Base as well as her family and friends were carrying a heavy load during this time. And so, as members of our global family were hurting, the leaders set aside their time schedule and lifted her and the others up in prayer.And I saw again that no matter how astounding the work we do in this world is, it’s the time we take for the individuals that truly leaves a mark on the soul. May God give you and I the strength to give the time that changes lives.
Again, so many stories, so little time! But, being able to serve at these meetings, though very busy at times, was a privilege for me. I felt exposed not only to the bigger picture of YWAM, but
to a deeper understanding of how one person’s life can make such a dramatic difference in the future of nations. I met a lot of unsung heroes at these meetings – people who had gone into remote villages in Africa and India, into uncharted sectors of business and industry, people who had been kidnapped for their faith - and all with a desire to see God’s love spread to a hurting world. It was a humbling as well as energizing time for me, and I hope that I can bring even a small piece of what I learned back to the Base in Herrnhut. (Check out some of my YWAM friends to the right - the man in the front with me is from New Zealand, the red-haired woman from Canada, the one woman from Kenya and the other from Holland)And so, I think that’s it for now! As always, how can I express my deep thanks to you? Thank you for walking alongside me in prayer and support – these last months have been challenging physically, financially (but, by the way, all the finances came in for all the trips – wahoo!) and spiritually, and you help bring joy to my step. Thank you for reaching out to the lives around you.
Drop a note if you have the time – until we type again –
Cory
