Well, it has been one week in India. I don’t know about everyone, but I am tired. It has been exciting and busy. Every day is filled with many activities. They want to be sure that we experience as many things here as possible. I am still amazed that a county a third the size of the USA can have so many different cultures and languages.

Saturday we visited a children’s orphanage. Some of the children attend a youth program we held earlier in the week. A Hindu convert supported them, but the gentleman recently passed away and now the Orphanage has lost its main support income. The children live in a family setting. The home is alongside the railroad tracks and the grazing grounds for water buffalos. It’s a small house for 9 youth and 2 couples that care for the children. We were unable to stay long because we had a train to catch to Trichy City.

The train ride was a new experience for our whole team. It was a sleeper train. The car slept up to 70ish people. There were not separate compartments with doors but sections that would sleep 8 people. When the beds were pulled down they sleep 3 high. The train left the Bangalore station at 7pm and we arrived at Trichy Station at 4am. It was a short ride to our hotel to wash up and maybe rest a little bit more before our first church service. The church meets above the house of the pastor. The roof has been converted into the sanctuary. It is covered with a tin roof and walled with tarps and cloth. The home also houses a small seminary, Grace theological Seminary.

After a short rest we were off again to an evening service. I had the opportunity to dedicate a beautiful baby girl. Here name was Aarvil (cried over) Jenisha (God is gracious). The evening was a long one. The pastor there preached, we shared testimonies, Bob taught and the worship group played.

Every worship service we have been to has varied from each other. It has been exciting to see and take part in these services. Different people from different areas all worshiping the same God of the universe. We must not forget that the believers here are part of the same body of Christ. The people here are overjoyed to know that we will pray for them and share their stories when we return. It is an encouragement to them that we were willing to come alongside them here in India and lift praises to the Lord.

Today we took a drive to the Trichy fort. It is more of a Hindu shrine than a fort. It sits on top of a small mountain. There are many steps up through the mountain until we reach the summit. At the top is a shrine, which also affords a great view of the city. Those who come to worship take a cleansing bath at the base of the mountain and begin their journey up. There is also a large catholic church at the base of the mountain. It was built during the British colonial time. The Catholic Church has much of the best real estate here in India. Even though they are a small minority they have much power and the church has a lot of money. Having money is very helpful in India. 

While walking the streets I had an opportunity to see first hand how India as a whole is suffering from corruption. A vendor had added a little cheat to his scale at his fruit stand. The police will ask him for higher taxes or for free produce. To counter this he needs to sell more at a higher price, but people won’t buy it at that price so he must cheat.

Tonight we are going to meet the present students at the seminary and a few recent graduates. Please pray for this school. Many of the church leaders here have little or no training. The school is hoping to grow and become fully self sufficient in a few short years.