I'm sitting in the London (Heathrow) airport as I write this. I actually got here yesterday afternoon, but somehow I ended up with a 20 hour layover, so I've still got several hours until my flight leaves.
Since I had to much time to burn, I went out and spent some time in London yesterday. I took the tube in and then walked around and saw the Thames, Big Ben, and some other things. I liked it, but that sort of thing gets a little old after a while if you're all by yourself, haha. So, after I got done seeing the sights, I went and saw Phantom of the Opera in the West end. It was really good - the guy who did Phantom was the best I've heard. After the show was over, I caught the tube back to the airport, slept in the airport for a few hours, and here I am!
Hard to believe the trip's almost over. It's been good, but I'm ready to be home! Thanks for all of your prayers and support, and just caring enough to check in and see what's happening. Cheerio!
Wednesday, August 4, 2010
Wednesday, July 28, 2010
When No Means Yes
During my time here in India, the thing that I've had the most difficulty adjusting to hasn't been what you'd expect. When people talk about cultural differences, they usually mention things like food, weather, dress, etc. For me however, it's a certain non-verbal signal that Indians use. Let me explain.
When we Americans want to say yes without actually speaking, we nod our head up and down. When we want to say no, we shake our head side to side. Well, when Indians want to say yes, they do this thing that to the untrained eye looks almost exactly like what we do when we want to say no. It's not quite the same....a little more of a side-to-side bob.
So, when I'm talking to someone or teaching in one of my classes, I constantly have to remind myself that they're not disagreeing with me when they're shaking their heads, haha. It doesn't seem like that big of a deal, but when your American mind is reading their non-verbals, it sure seems like they're always disagreeing with you.
That's just one of many small differences that I've been getting used to since I've been here. Others include: intermittent electricity, elastic time (everyone's late for everything), and the normal ones like food, weather, etc.
However, for all of the differences, I've also noticed that there are quite a few things that cross the barrier between the American and Indian cultures. Here are a few:
1. Smiles - nothing says "I'm happy and I like you" like a flash of the good ol' pearly whites, regardless of culture.
2. Names - In How To Win Friends And Influence People, Dale Carnegie says that the sweetest sound in the world to a person is their name. I've found that this is true both in America and India. Using someone's name lets them know that you care about them. Since I've been here, I've tried to memorize my students names, and all of the kids from the orphanage are constantly asking me their names because they want to make sure that I remember them.
3. Sugar - No duh, right? Although, quantity and location (what things you like it on) may vary, everybody like the sweet stuff.
4. Games/Competition - The competitive spirit is alive and well here in India. The students like to do volleyball and soccer whenever time allows. I've also got a little finger game that the kids really like, even though most of them have figured out the trick to it by now.
5. Coffee/tea - they drink a ton of both, and will try to bring it to you about 3 times a day whether you want it or not.
6. Muscles - More particularly, biceps. Although it's one of the less useful muscles in the body, it seems to garner the most attention....don't ask me why. As in America, bigger is always better in this area.
So, despite all of the cultural differences, there are also similarities, and they are what allow us to find common ground despite differences in background, skin color, language, etc.
When we Americans want to say yes without actually speaking, we nod our head up and down. When we want to say no, we shake our head side to side. Well, when Indians want to say yes, they do this thing that to the untrained eye looks almost exactly like what we do when we want to say no. It's not quite the same....a little more of a side-to-side bob.
So, when I'm talking to someone or teaching in one of my classes, I constantly have to remind myself that they're not disagreeing with me when they're shaking their heads, haha. It doesn't seem like that big of a deal, but when your American mind is reading their non-verbals, it sure seems like they're always disagreeing with you.
That's just one of many small differences that I've been getting used to since I've been here. Others include: intermittent electricity, elastic time (everyone's late for everything), and the normal ones like food, weather, etc.
However, for all of the differences, I've also noticed that there are quite a few things that cross the barrier between the American and Indian cultures. Here are a few:
1. Smiles - nothing says "I'm happy and I like you" like a flash of the good ol' pearly whites, regardless of culture.
2. Names - In How To Win Friends And Influence People, Dale Carnegie says that the sweetest sound in the world to a person is their name. I've found that this is true both in America and India. Using someone's name lets them know that you care about them. Since I've been here, I've tried to memorize my students names, and all of the kids from the orphanage are constantly asking me their names because they want to make sure that I remember them.
3. Sugar - No duh, right? Although, quantity and location (what things you like it on) may vary, everybody like the sweet stuff.
4. Games/Competition - The competitive spirit is alive and well here in India. The students like to do volleyball and soccer whenever time allows. I've also got a little finger game that the kids really like, even though most of them have figured out the trick to it by now.
5. Coffee/tea - they drink a ton of both, and will try to bring it to you about 3 times a day whether you want it or not.
6. Muscles - More particularly, biceps. Although it's one of the less useful muscles in the body, it seems to garner the most attention....don't ask me why. As in America, bigger is always better in this area.
So, despite all of the cultural differences, there are also similarities, and they are what allow us to find common ground despite differences in background, skin color, language, etc.
Saturday, July 24, 2010
Reading Backwards Upside Down
Well, after 3.5 weeks of classes, some of my Hebrew students finally took me up on my constant offer of out-of-class study help. The three guys that were interested came over to my room and we all sat down on the floor and got to work.
Since I don't have a chalkboard or anything in my room, I quickly came to the conclusion that the best way for me to illustrate stuff was to direct my book towards them and point at and read the relevant items. Since they were on the business side of my book, that left me reading things upside down. Okay, right? I've been reading English for almost my whole life, so that's not too big of a problem.
Well, the thing is, a Hebrew textbook tends to have not only English explanations, but also Hebrew examples (big surprise, right?). For those of you that don't know, Hebrew is written right to left, the opposite of English. In other words, backwards for a native English speaker. So, I was having to read/think not only upside down, but also backwards, hence the title. It actually worked out surprisingly well, but hit me as a little funny, so I thought I'd post it, haha.
Since I don't have a chalkboard or anything in my room, I quickly came to the conclusion that the best way for me to illustrate stuff was to direct my book towards them and point at and read the relevant items. Since they were on the business side of my book, that left me reading things upside down. Okay, right? I've been reading English for almost my whole life, so that's not too big of a problem.
Well, the thing is, a Hebrew textbook tends to have not only English explanations, but also Hebrew examples (big surprise, right?). For those of you that don't know, Hebrew is written right to left, the opposite of English. In other words, backwards for a native English speaker. So, I was having to read/think not only upside down, but also backwards, hence the title. It actually worked out surprisingly well, but hit me as a little funny, so I thought I'd post it, haha.
Friday, July 23, 2010
Ebed-melech
Every morning at 8:30 (except Sundays), Living Hope has a service with all the students and faculty to start off the day. Each day, they read a chapter of the Bible, working through the whole Bible one chapter at a time. After they read it, someone will do a short devotion from that passage. Well, the whole time I've been here we've been in Jeremiah, and the passage for yesterday was Jeremiah 38. For some reason, I noticed something in there that I hadn't before - let me show you the passage, and then I'll explain.
At this point in the book, Jeremiah has been thrown into a cistern, where he will surely die. In verses 7-13 we see this:
7 When Ebed-melech the Ethiopian, a eunuch who was in the king's house, heard that they had put Jeremiah into the cistern—the king was sitting in the Benjamin Gate— 8 Ebed-melech went from the king's house and said to the king, 9 “My lord the king, these men have done evil in all that they did to Jeremiah the prophet by casting him into the cistern, and he will die there of hunger, for there is no bread left in the city.” 10 Then the king commanded Ebed-melech the Ethiopian, “Take thirty men with you from here, and lift Jeremiah the prophet out of the cistern before he dies.” 11 So Ebed-melech took the men with him and went to the house of the king, to a wardrobe in the storehouse, and took from there old rags and worn-out clothes, which he let down to Jeremiah in the cistern by ropes. 12 Then Ebed-melech the Ethiopian said to Jeremiah, “Put the rags and clothes between your armpits and the ropes.” Jeremiah did so. 13 Then they drew Jeremiah up with ropes and lifted him out of the cistern. And Jeremiah remained in the court of the guard.
The thing that caught my eye was the name of the guy who got Jeremiah out of the cistern - Ebed-melech. In Hebrew, "ebed" (it's actually pronounced eved) means servant, and "melech" (pronounced melek) means king. So, what they call this guy in this passage is literally "servant of a king".
Now, although there's a possibility that this was indeed his real name, I personally kind of doubt it. I mean, for you parents out there, does "servant of a king" make it into your top 5 baby names? Didn't think so. So, although Ebed-melech is what the Bible calls this fellow, it probably wasn't what his buddies down at the synagogue called him.
Through this realization, the Lord really showed me something that I shared with my Hebrew class yesterday. In this passage, Ebed-melech is pretty much the sole reason that Jeremiah doesn't die in a pit, and we don't even know his real name - just his title and what he did for the Lord.
For us, it may often be the same way. We can minister to others and live our whole lives for the Lord, and many people will walk away only knowing us as "pastor of a church" or "director of an orphanage", "that nice person who shared Jesus with me" or "the person who fed me when I was hungry". There's a good chance they won't even remember our real names. However, like this passage in Jeremiah, what they will remember is what we did for the Lord in the position that we were in. That takes a lot of focus off of us and puts it back on the Lord, where it belongs.
There's also a little bit of poetic irony in Ebed-melech's name. You see, the king in "servant of a king" undoubtedly refers to Zedekiah, the guy who allowed Jeremiah to be thrown in the cistern. However, the king that Ebed-melech is really serving in this passage is the Eternal King. Regardless of the "title" that the world gives you, always remember who you really serve.
At this point in the book, Jeremiah has been thrown into a cistern, where he will surely die. In verses 7-13 we see this:
7 When Ebed-melech the Ethiopian, a eunuch who was in the king's house, heard that they had put Jeremiah into the cistern—the king was sitting in the Benjamin Gate— 8 Ebed-melech went from the king's house and said to the king, 9 “My lord the king, these men have done evil in all that they did to Jeremiah the prophet by casting him into the cistern, and he will die there of hunger, for there is no bread left in the city.” 10 Then the king commanded Ebed-melech the Ethiopian, “Take thirty men with you from here, and lift Jeremiah the prophet out of the cistern before he dies.” 11 So Ebed-melech took the men with him and went to the house of the king, to a wardrobe in the storehouse, and took from there old rags and worn-out clothes, which he let down to Jeremiah in the cistern by ropes. 12 Then Ebed-melech the Ethiopian said to Jeremiah, “Put the rags and clothes between your armpits and the ropes.” Jeremiah did so. 13 Then they drew Jeremiah up with ropes and lifted him out of the cistern. And Jeremiah remained in the court of the guard.
The thing that caught my eye was the name of the guy who got Jeremiah out of the cistern - Ebed-melech. In Hebrew, "ebed" (it's actually pronounced eved) means servant, and "melech" (pronounced melek) means king. So, what they call this guy in this passage is literally "servant of a king".
Now, although there's a possibility that this was indeed his real name, I personally kind of doubt it. I mean, for you parents out there, does "servant of a king" make it into your top 5 baby names? Didn't think so. So, although Ebed-melech is what the Bible calls this fellow, it probably wasn't what his buddies down at the synagogue called him.
Through this realization, the Lord really showed me something that I shared with my Hebrew class yesterday. In this passage, Ebed-melech is pretty much the sole reason that Jeremiah doesn't die in a pit, and we don't even know his real name - just his title and what he did for the Lord.
For us, it may often be the same way. We can minister to others and live our whole lives for the Lord, and many people will walk away only knowing us as "pastor of a church" or "director of an orphanage", "that nice person who shared Jesus with me" or "the person who fed me when I was hungry". There's a good chance they won't even remember our real names. However, like this passage in Jeremiah, what they will remember is what we did for the Lord in the position that we were in. That takes a lot of focus off of us and puts it back on the Lord, where it belongs.
There's also a little bit of poetic irony in Ebed-melech's name. You see, the king in "servant of a king" undoubtedly refers to Zedekiah, the guy who allowed Jeremiah to be thrown in the cistern. However, the king that Ebed-melech is really serving in this passage is the Eternal King. Regardless of the "title" that the world gives you, always remember who you really serve.
Wednesday, July 21, 2010
One jar down, one to go
An important event in my trip occurred the other day when I finished the first of the two jars of crunchy peanut butter that I brought with me to India. Now, I realize that this may seem fairly insignificant to you, but it is quite important to me. You see, everyone has a weakness - for some people, it's popping their knuckles, for others biting their nails - you get the point. Mine happens to be the consumption of large quantities of crunchy peanut butter. I'm pretty sure I could go anywhere in the world and still feel somewhat at home as long as I've got a jar of it with me.
Anyway, since I had so many books and stuff for the students on my way over here, I was only able to bring two jars of peanut butter with me. I've been pretty conservative with it so far, thus the first jar has lasted for more than half of the trip. However, the longer I'm away, the more I feel a need to eat the stuff, so I'm not sure that the second jar is going to last as long as the first. However, I was reading the other day about how the Lord used Elijah to give a woman an unlimited supply of oil and flour during a famine, so maybe He'll do the same for my peanut butter! Or maybe the multiplication thing like with the loaves and fish!
All right, I'm done....let me get my tongue out of my cheek and I'll tell you what's really been going on...
Well, all of my American friends are officially gone as of today. Jean headed out on Saturday, and Jacob and Christi just left today. Jean got home fine, but pray for safe travels for Jacob and Christi...they'll be in Bangalore for a day or two and then fly back to the states. It was really great to have them here...there's just something about having Christian people from your own country to fellowship with.
Classes are going pretty well - we finally got all of the copies of the Hebrew text printed, bound, and distributed to the students last night. It took almost 2 weeks (India time!), but it's done. Hopefully each student having their own copy will help them to learn a little better/quicker. Before Christi left, she showed me how to do some stuff in Microsoft Excel, so I've been catching up on my class attendance stuff the last day or so. I think I'll be giving my finals a week from this coming Saturday, so be praying for us - that both the students and I would finish strong and that they'd really come away with a desire to learn more and an appreciation of how much Greek or Hebrew can help them.
Umm....yeah, I think that's about it. Thanks for reading, and thanks for the prayers...keep 'em coming!
Anyway, since I had so many books and stuff for the students on my way over here, I was only able to bring two jars of peanut butter with me. I've been pretty conservative with it so far, thus the first jar has lasted for more than half of the trip. However, the longer I'm away, the more I feel a need to eat the stuff, so I'm not sure that the second jar is going to last as long as the first. However, I was reading the other day about how the Lord used Elijah to give a woman an unlimited supply of oil and flour during a famine, so maybe He'll do the same for my peanut butter! Or maybe the multiplication thing like with the loaves and fish!
All right, I'm done....let me get my tongue out of my cheek and I'll tell you what's really been going on...
Well, all of my American friends are officially gone as of today. Jean headed out on Saturday, and Jacob and Christi just left today. Jean got home fine, but pray for safe travels for Jacob and Christi...they'll be in Bangalore for a day or two and then fly back to the states. It was really great to have them here...there's just something about having Christian people from your own country to fellowship with.
Classes are going pretty well - we finally got all of the copies of the Hebrew text printed, bound, and distributed to the students last night. It took almost 2 weeks (India time!), but it's done. Hopefully each student having their own copy will help them to learn a little better/quicker. Before Christi left, she showed me how to do some stuff in Microsoft Excel, so I've been catching up on my class attendance stuff the last day or so. I think I'll be giving my finals a week from this coming Saturday, so be praying for us - that both the students and I would finish strong and that they'd really come away with a desire to learn more and an appreciation of how much Greek or Hebrew can help them.
Umm....yeah, I think that's about it. Thanks for reading, and thanks for the prayers...keep 'em coming!
Monday, July 19, 2010
All you need to know about Jesus in 5 minutes
Yesterday evening, I got to go out and do some village evangelism with some staff and students from Living Hope. Earlier yesterday, Joel let me know that I was going to be the designated gospel-giver for the event. No biggie, right? I mean, I've been immersed in the gospel story my whole life. Well, I asked Joel how long I was going to have to talk, and he told me like 5 minutes, maybe 10 if I'm lucky. Apparently people start leaving if you talk for too long.
So, yesterday afternoon I sat down to figure out how to fit the most important message people are ever going to hear into 5-10 minutes, with translation. Witnessing to Vairavan on the way over here actually proved to be very helpful, because talking to him made me realize some things a Hindu would need to hear that I take for granted. Things like why Jesus came to earth (salvation), which ties into the nature of sin, Jesus divinity, etc. Also, Jesus being the only way to God is a very new idea to Hindus, because they are big-time polytheists. They don't mind admitting that Jesus is a way to God, but the idea that he's the only way is pretty far-out to them.
Just preparing to present the gospel in such a condensed form was a really good exercise for me, because it made me think about what parts of the gospel message are absolutely essential for people to know. I basically came down to these: 1) Sin - why we need salvation, 2) Jesus - who he is, why he came, what he did, and 3) Our role - believing in faith, surrendering. I really think that the surrender aspect is absolutely essential, because so often we present the gospel as just being a way out of hell, without telling people that there's a sacrifice involved on their part.
Anyway, we all piled into a couple of vans and headed out to a village about 15 minutes away. We basically pulled up and set up in front of the one Christian home in the village. Apparently, in India, if you want people to come, you need one main thing - noise! So they set up a couple of amps, and started singing and banging on drums. After a little while, a crowd started gathering to see what was going on. A guy did a magic trick, they danced some, and there was also a skit of the parable of the good Samaritan.
As I was watching the village folks gather, it quickly became apparent that the majority of the audience was composed of kids. So, I quickly began reassessing my message and trying to figure out how to connect with them a little better.
So...after a little while, they pointed at me and I figured it was my turn. I started off by telling them how I got to go see some waterfalls last Sunday, and how there were hundreds and hundreds of people all waiting around for the same reason - they wanted to bathe in it so that their sins could be washed away. From there, I basically talked about how sin isn't a problem that can be washed away by water, because it's a problem of the heart, then went on to talk about Jesus, salvation, etc.
After I was done, Joel did some kind of a prayer with the kids. Once we were finished, all of the kids lined up so that Jacob, Christie and I could pray for them, which was really cool. Then, we all jumped in the vans and headed back to campus. Really great experience!
I'm not sure how much of what I said connected...pray that some of it takes root in their hearts and that the Holy Spirit will continue to work in them. Hardly any of the parents are Christians, so that makes it a lot tougher for the kids to commit.
Also, be praying for my roommate Jacob...he came down with something last night and has been feeling pretty bad today. God bless!
So, yesterday afternoon I sat down to figure out how to fit the most important message people are ever going to hear into 5-10 minutes, with translation. Witnessing to Vairavan on the way over here actually proved to be very helpful, because talking to him made me realize some things a Hindu would need to hear that I take for granted. Things like why Jesus came to earth (salvation), which ties into the nature of sin, Jesus divinity, etc. Also, Jesus being the only way to God is a very new idea to Hindus, because they are big-time polytheists. They don't mind admitting that Jesus is a way to God, but the idea that he's the only way is pretty far-out to them.
Just preparing to present the gospel in such a condensed form was a really good exercise for me, because it made me think about what parts of the gospel message are absolutely essential for people to know. I basically came down to these: 1) Sin - why we need salvation, 2) Jesus - who he is, why he came, what he did, and 3) Our role - believing in faith, surrendering. I really think that the surrender aspect is absolutely essential, because so often we present the gospel as just being a way out of hell, without telling people that there's a sacrifice involved on their part.
Anyway, we all piled into a couple of vans and headed out to a village about 15 minutes away. We basically pulled up and set up in front of the one Christian home in the village. Apparently, in India, if you want people to come, you need one main thing - noise! So they set up a couple of amps, and started singing and banging on drums. After a little while, a crowd started gathering to see what was going on. A guy did a magic trick, they danced some, and there was also a skit of the parable of the good Samaritan.
As I was watching the village folks gather, it quickly became apparent that the majority of the audience was composed of kids. So, I quickly began reassessing my message and trying to figure out how to connect with them a little better.
So...after a little while, they pointed at me and I figured it was my turn. I started off by telling them how I got to go see some waterfalls last Sunday, and how there were hundreds and hundreds of people all waiting around for the same reason - they wanted to bathe in it so that their sins could be washed away. From there, I basically talked about how sin isn't a problem that can be washed away by water, because it's a problem of the heart, then went on to talk about Jesus, salvation, etc.
After I was done, Joel did some kind of a prayer with the kids. Once we were finished, all of the kids lined up so that Jacob, Christie and I could pray for them, which was really cool. Then, we all jumped in the vans and headed back to campus. Really great experience!
I'm not sure how much of what I said connected...pray that some of it takes root in their hearts and that the Holy Spirit will continue to work in them. Hardly any of the parents are Christians, so that makes it a lot tougher for the kids to commit.
Also, be praying for my roommate Jacob...he came down with something last night and has been feeling pretty bad today. God bless!
Saturday, July 17, 2010
Good week, but time for a break
Well, I've gotta say, I'm glad it's Saturday. This past week has been pretty full, and I'm glad to have some time to just chill out a little. So, here's what's been going on:
Classes
Are going pretty well overall. This past week has been tough because as we're getting into some more difficult subjects in both Greek and Hebrew, students' efforts or lack thereof are starting to show. I've got some students who I can tell are nailing this stuff to the wall, and others who are a good week behind. The good students are the ones who keep me coming back every day....the others (the ones who aren't applying themselves) tend to drain my energy. I came to the realization this week that I'm probably going to end up failing several students who are just missing classes and quizzes left and right, which is kind of depressing : ( I keep having new students injected into the classes, even though we're like two weeks into it right now, and that kind of adds to the stress.
Because new students just keep coming to the school, I keep having brand new people injected into my classes. Between Greek (40ish) and Hebrew (33ish), I've got over 70 students right now! It's great to have the opportunity to impact that many students, but it's also presents a few problems. 1) Connecting with classes that large is hard, 2) Catching the new students up to speed is tough, 3) Grading - class attendance and quizzes both get a lot more interesting with 70 people! All in all, though, the students are learning, grades are looking good, and hopefully they'll leave the class with some good tools to help them in ministry.
Kiddos
Been getting to spend some more time with the kids this week. One of the nights earlier in the week, Jacob, Jean, Christy and I all sat down with a bunch of the girls and helped them with their English, read stuff to them, etc., which was a lot of fun. Up to that point, I'd mainly been hanging out with the boys, so it was good to get to connect with the girls a little.
Speaking of the boys, I'm making some good progress with them. I had been struggling up to this point to find a good balance between having fun with them and getting mobbed. You see, if you pick one of them up and swing him around, etc., you automatically have a line of like 10 other guys pushing each other to get in line so that you can do it to them. Well, this week I started playing this finger/number game with them. Basically, you hold up numbers and they try to guess what the number is (it's not usually what you're holding up - there's a secret they have to figure out). Anyway, they really like it, and I think it's a lot better for them than me just being a human circus ride, haha.
From day one, there has been this one little guy, Esaran, who has always kind of made a point to find me whenever I'm around. He's 11 years old, I think, and really seems to be mature for his age and has a great attitude...not really grabby like some of the kids can be. Anyway, I've kind of been trying to make sure I get to hang out with him a little more lately. One of the things that God's been teaching me in the last week or so is to really envision the potential in people, my own actions, whatever. I have no idea of what impact I could have on Esaran or someone like him, but God has great plans for him, and anything that I can do to invest in him is automatically worth it.
Classes
Are going pretty well overall. This past week has been tough because as we're getting into some more difficult subjects in both Greek and Hebrew, students' efforts or lack thereof are starting to show. I've got some students who I can tell are nailing this stuff to the wall, and others who are a good week behind. The good students are the ones who keep me coming back every day....the others (the ones who aren't applying themselves) tend to drain my energy. I came to the realization this week that I'm probably going to end up failing several students who are just missing classes and quizzes left and right, which is kind of depressing : ( I keep having new students injected into the classes, even though we're like two weeks into it right now, and that kind of adds to the stress.
Because new students just keep coming to the school, I keep having brand new people injected into my classes. Between Greek (40ish) and Hebrew (33ish), I've got over 70 students right now! It's great to have the opportunity to impact that many students, but it's also presents a few problems. 1) Connecting with classes that large is hard, 2) Catching the new students up to speed is tough, 3) Grading - class attendance and quizzes both get a lot more interesting with 70 people! All in all, though, the students are learning, grades are looking good, and hopefully they'll leave the class with some good tools to help them in ministry.
Kiddos
Been getting to spend some more time with the kids this week. One of the nights earlier in the week, Jacob, Jean, Christy and I all sat down with a bunch of the girls and helped them with their English, read stuff to them, etc., which was a lot of fun. Up to that point, I'd mainly been hanging out with the boys, so it was good to get to connect with the girls a little.
Speaking of the boys, I'm making some good progress with them. I had been struggling up to this point to find a good balance between having fun with them and getting mobbed. You see, if you pick one of them up and swing him around, etc., you automatically have a line of like 10 other guys pushing each other to get in line so that you can do it to them. Well, this week I started playing this finger/number game with them. Basically, you hold up numbers and they try to guess what the number is (it's not usually what you're holding up - there's a secret they have to figure out). Anyway, they really like it, and I think it's a lot better for them than me just being a human circus ride, haha.
From day one, there has been this one little guy, Esaran, who has always kind of made a point to find me whenever I'm around. He's 11 years old, I think, and really seems to be mature for his age and has a great attitude...not really grabby like some of the kids can be. Anyway, I've kind of been trying to make sure I get to hang out with him a little more lately. One of the things that God's been teaching me in the last week or so is to really envision the potential in people, my own actions, whatever. I have no idea of what impact I could have on Esaran or someone like him, but God has great plans for him, and anything that I can do to invest in him is automatically worth it.
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