All is well

Hey everybody! I plan to write a longer post soon... But for now just know that Samuel and I are well and loving India! We are heading out again to the streets of Delhi in a few minutes..





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Kashmir

We left New Delhi 2 days ago... for a "24"... ended up being over 27 hour bus ride North to Srinigar, Kashmir! That is the Northern tip of India, surrounded by China, Tibet and Pakistan. We were so tired and stiff after the trip, my ankles were swollen like and elephants' and our skin was smeared with pollution, but we were happy! We are staying in a houseboat on a lake under the Himalaya mountains. Spending time here with the Muslims... praying, dreaming and freezing!

I have stunning photos to share with you later :)

Pray for Kashmirian missionaries to be raised up and sent to their own war-weary land. Pray for the Holy Spirit to visit people in their dreams, their homes, their daily encounters... drawing their hearts closer to an encounter with the living God.

India

India is incredible. The people are stunning. The smells and noises are overwhelming. The food is spicy and delicious. The traffic is scarry. There is chaos all around. Somehow we feel like we have come home.

We were bumped up to first class on our flight from Istanbul to Mumbai... It was amazing. We sat praying and prophecying over India when it's lights finally began to shine below. I cried a lot. Typical :)

When we arrived in the airport we found out that our bags had not... And then before we made it to our hotel we fell into a scam... But it all worked out and we were sooo happy just to be in this place that we've been longing for for so many years!

We spent our first day meeting new Indian friends, walking the streets, handwashing our one pair of clothes and taking on the wild traffic of the big city... That alone was an adventure!

On Wednesday we planned to take a train North to Ajmer but there were no tickets... So instead we flew to New Delhi. The hardest part of traveling like this is finding places to stay. Everyone was out of rooms except for one "guest house" in a dark alley way. We went up it's 3 flights of skinny cement stairs and found a reception desk sparkeling with christmas lights and idols... They showed us to our room($12/night). It was a rough place.. We took baby wipe showers and slept on top of my scarf.. Using my skirts as blankets. In the middle of the night we heard someone trying to come through our door... Poor Samuel lost his voice on our first day so when he tried to shout out... Nothing really came... But the stranger soon left. We were half asleep/half awake for the rest of the night.

It is easy to go anywhere in the world when you know that you have heard the whispers of God calling you to the people He is burning for. Do I long for a warm shower, or even just a shower.. Or a clean bed at times? Of course! But if it doesn't come, I'm still happy. We are on this crazy wonderful journey of first class and last class... And the sacrifices are always worth it. I have no idea what lies ahead but I do know that there are millions of lost all around me... They wear turbans and sarees and try to sell me their idols... They ask me for money, ask me for food, they look at me with the most piercing of eyes...
I just want to give them Jesus. The only living God!






























- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Location:New Delhi

Ready, Set....

Friday was my 5-hour Swedish test. Saturday was marathon clean/prepare/pack day. Now it's 5am Sunday and I can't sleep because of all the butterflies in my tummy! Tomorrow we're leaving for India!

Friday: The test was good, just long, but not so difficult... as usual I was far too anxious for the weeks leading up to it. Last night I had a brief conversation with my neighbor in the hallway and he said "Wow, your Swedish has improved, I can understand everything you say now!" haha. That's a good sign :)

This little smiley-face-guy waited for me outside my car door on my way to the Test.. and I made Samuel wait on me so I could get a pic for the blog :) Love little happy surprises!

Saturday: Laundry. Laundry. Scrubbed bathroom. Mopped floors. Cleaned and prepared camera stuff (My photography things are all ready for India... my backpack on the other hand, empty. Shows where my priorities are I suppose :)) Shopped, or tried to shop, it's so difficult to find things in this country.. there is nothing like Walmart or Target or a drugstore... what I really need is a travel-aisle. (Someone please, where can I find contact solution in Sweden??) Somehow in the midst of all this I managed to bake a chicken and mash some potatoes too :) I felt a bit like a super-mom, minus the children. In the evening Samuel and I sat over a map of India and discussed our plan-A vs. plan-B method. Pray that God shows us whether to start from the East or the West!

There it is.. my life in a red bag for 6 weeks. Although it's empty in the photo :)

Sunday: In a few hours we're having lunch together with Samuel's parents, sister, her-hub and kids... love the Strandbergs. Church starts at 4pm (Pingstkrykan Varberg.. come!) and I'll be leading worship with my hero friends Samuel(his blog is in Swedish) and Lotta and some other wonderful people! I love worshiping!! At some point I really do need to pack that back-pack and Skype with mama and daddy in Hawaii too :)

Monday: Drive to Gothenburg 10 am
Fly to Istanbul 1 pm (we like Istanbul's airport - been there so many times. It was always our first taste of the West when we came out of Africa and Samuel would leave me with all the luggage and run to Burger King for french fries. The way to Samuel's heart?? Fast food.)
Arrive in India 4:15 am Tuesday
... then we have a countless number of train-trips(most of them around the 20-hours), rickshaws, boats, a plane or two... pray for strength, health, rest, favor and wisdom in all of our travels!!!

'To an Unknown God'

India is full of worshipers. Faithful worshipers. They have given their lives to all kinds of gods and spirituality. I weep as I watch this video of the Hindu people bathing, praying and burning their dead at the Ganges River in Uttar Pradesh.

When the Indians meet the Creator and Savior of the world, the one and only God who is alive and active, listening, breathing, moving, loving... they will be the greatest worshipers the world has known. Pray for a shift to happen in the atmosphere of India. Pray for God to sweep through the nation in raw and powerful ways. Pray for the Indians in all of their different religions to come to the truth of the cross.

Paul preached so incredibly when he was in Greece, speaking with people who believed in countless gods.... (Acts 17)

So Paul, standing before the council, addressed them as follows: “Men of Athens, I notice that you are very religious in every way,  for as I was walking along I saw your many shrines. And one of your altars had this inscription on it: ‘To an Unknown God.’ This God, whom you worship without knowing, is the one I’m telling you about.

“He is the God who made the world and everything in it. Since he is Lord of heaven and earth, he doesn’t live in man-made temples, and human hands can’t serve his needs—for he has no needs. He himself gives life and breath to everything, and he satisfies every need. From one man he created all the nations throughout the whole earth. He decided beforehand when they should rise and fall, and he determined their boundaries.

“His purpose was for the nations to seek after God and perhaps feel their way toward him and find him—though he is not far from any one of us. For in him we live and move and exist. As some of your own poets have said, ‘We are his offspring. And since this is true, we shouldn’t think of God as an idol designed by craftsmen from gold or silver or stone.

“God overlooked people’s ignorance about these things in earlier times, but now he commands everyone everywhere to repent of their sins and turn to him. For he has set a day for judging the world with justice by the man he has appointed, and he proved to everyone who this is by raising him from the dead.”

When they heard Paul speak about the resurrection of the dead, some laughed in contempt, but others said, “We want to hear more about this later.” That ended Paul’s discussion with them, but some joined him and became believers. 

Pioneer

Today I've started preparing our bags for India. Last night Samuel and I skyped with one of our heroes who has been working in India for years.... and I can't even put words to how much my heart is longing to get there!!! I'm also listening to the "Pioneer Conference" with Dutch Sheets that my aunt Illa sent us in the mail this week. Wow wow wow. You can listen to one of Dutch's messages here.

Here is the song Pioneer sung by Rick Pino. It was written by Nancy Honeytree in the 70's during the Jesus People Movement in America. I pray that your spirit would be stirred... to pioneer the lands God is calling you to.

Marathon

Okay people... the marathon season is in full swing! Today we booked our tickets to Ethiopia(Jan/Feb)... and on Monday we're leaving for India(Nov/Dec). Then it's off to the states In March... but more on that later :) And soon after, India again!

God is so incredible. He is the reason for every little thing that I do. My Creator, Savior, Healer, Dad and Friend. I'm so full of love for Him! Nothing in life is sacred to me except God... nothing else matters. Lately when people ask me what I do and I start to share... they say, "ooo, so you're religious." And my answer is always no. Religion is what man creates so that they feel they have a formula to follow... a list of to-do's or not-to-do's that will assure them a good place in life and whatever comes after life. There are lots of religions to choose from if you just want to become a better person and have a new hobby. But if you want life, freedom, truth... you will find that through a relationship with God, His Son Jesus and His Spirit, the Holy Spirit. That's my only formula. That is the only way. Lots of paths come with flashy advertisements for pleasure, success... but there is only ONE way to God and that is through His Son Jesus... believing that Jesus died on the cross for your sins and asking Him to forgive you and fill up your life. Not all paths lead to God... but He will walk any path to meet you where you are and show you the way to go.

My life-goal, the thing that makes me come alive, is to follow God and tell people about Him along the way. I left everything just to chase God. And this is the best life I could have ever found :)

Pray for the persecuted Church

I got this email today from Christian Solidarity Worldwide...


Join a worldwide day of prayer for persecuted Christians
More than 25 pastors are killed in Colombia every year, simply because they lead churches. Right now there are over 2,000 Christians in prison in Eritrea, just because they're Christians. In Iran, Pastor Nadarkhani is facing execution for apostasy (abandoning Islam). And this is just the tip of the iceberg. 


On 6 November 2011, there'll be an International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church (IDOP). It's a special opportunity for the global Church to unite in prayer, raising up situations just like the ones above. 

Joelle

This is the picture on my desktop right now. Me and Joelle!

 Joelle is studying at Heidi Baker's Bibleschool in Mozambique! We don't get to talk much these months because we're always on different continents.. but I do believe she just finished up a ministering in the bush somewhere in Africa.... and she will be taking a trip to Nepal after she finishes her term in Mozambique. We just might see each other in Nepal! 

These pictures were taken in Ethiopia... when Joelle stayed with me for one month there!

If you're a prayer person, please don't forget to pray for the people who are working out on the fields!

Voiceless

 I've been meditating on the prophetic chapters at the end of Isaiah all week. Crying for the lost. Proclaiming these promises over the lands that I love... over the people God has burdened me with. Especially over the voiceless: people plagued with diseases, the starving, child prostitutes, victims of violence, those trapped in trafficking, the aborted and their mothers, victims of "honor killings", the horrendous dark sex-world of prostitution and rape...

^{Isaiah 60}

¹⁷ I will exchange your bronze for gold,
      your iron for silver,
   your wood for bronze,
      and your stones for iron.
   I will make peace your leader
      and righteousness your ruler.
 ¹⁸ Violence will disappear from your land;
      the desolation and destruction of war will end.
   Salvation will surround you like city walls,
      and praise will be on the lips of all who enter there.

 ¹⁹ “No longer will you need the sun to shine by day,
      nor the moon to give its light by night,
   for the Lord your God will be your everlasting light,
      and your God will be your glory.
 ²⁰ Your sun will never set;
      your moon will not go down.
   For the Lord will be your everlasting light.
      Your days of mourning will come to an end.
 ²¹ All your people will be righteous.
      They will possess their land forever,
   for I will plant them there with my own hands
      in order to bring myself glory.
 ²² The smallest family will become a thousand people,
      and the tiniest group will become a mighty nation.
      At the right time, I, the Lord, will make it happen.”

Legwarmers

It was pouring down rain yesterday on my walk to school... so I brought my waterproof camera out :) 

Tis the season of legwarmers, scarves, hooded-jackets! For the next week and half that is... then it's on to HOT India for us!

The view from my classroom :) Not bad.

national test

I've been waiting all week to find out if I was qualified to take a national Swedish-language test on October 28th. Found out today that I am. :)

Now that I know this sweet fact that I was longing so badly for, I'm realizing the insane amount of hours I have yet to cram in to these next 2 weeks! Many of my classmates that will also take the test have been in school for a year or more... and I've only been there for a month and a half. The test is only 2 days before we're leaving for India as well! Lots lots lots to do.

But, tomorrow... Samuel and I will take the train to Gothenburg for a much needed day of strolling hand-in-hand through the autumn-crisp cobble stoned allies of Scandinavia. Studying can wait for one day. I need a few hours of snapping photos and cuddling with my man!