Every sunday night all 77 of the girls go walking about 5 “blocks” up the street  to the college to get some exercise and relax in the grass. This is one of my favorite parts of the week because it is so freeing! We can play cricket if we want, we can sit in a circle and talk, we can play tag with the little kids, we can watch the sunset while sitting on the water tower, and we can laugh and play with the girls. We decided that since it was such a wonderful time we wanted you to come along with us, so we posted some pictures so that you could be here with us.

We are doing very well, and really love it here. We feel at home and we feel at peace, and that is the best feeling in the world! God is blessing us and challenging us EVERY DAY and we are doing our best to rely on Him ALWAYS! Thank you for your prayers, please keep praying. 

We love you and miss you!

 

We got really into the whole cleaning thing!

Fact: Vicky and Lisby have officially become moms…. without birthing children. Today the power was out, so we couldn’t do any office work and had the morning off. What do we decide to do? Yep that’s right we CLEANED! WE CLEANED! The average 18 year old in a foreign country with a day off would do one of the following: go to the market and shop for clothes, get and make food, sleep, email, read, listen to music on their ipod, etc. But no, Vicky and Lisby decide to clean their apartment for three house straight! Now when we say “apartment” we are talking about two bedrooms, a kitchenet, a small bathroom and a room that acts as the living room/dining room. Yes that took us three hours to scrub clean! We bought lysol up the street at a little shop and boiled some water  on the stove. We got down on our hands and knees and scrubbed every inch of the apartment, from floor to wall to ceiling! There was a lot of dirt, a lot of bugs, and a lot of gunk. It wasn’t pretty, but it was exhilerating! After conquering the apartment Vicky and Lisby felt up to conquering the world, and so they did… by taking a nap! 

 

India has changed us a lot for the better, but our mom will appreciate this change the most. We are still a little confused as to what compelled us to do such a thing, but we have a clean living space out of it, and there’s nothin that’s gonna stop us from doing it again!

Being in India has been a really amazing experience. I am aware it’s been a really short time but so much has happened in me in that short time. Unfortunately, I have been fighting this feeling that I need to be at home for most of my time here. I have sought out advice from others, prayed over and over about it and I the feeling remains. I waited it out, gave it a couple more days as most people suggested – didn’t go away. The only way I was able to find peace was when I considered the idea of leaving at an earlier date.

 

So that’s what happened. I will be coming home in the next week and as sad as it is to leave the girls (believe me it seems like an impossible task to tell them I am leaving early), it feels right. In changing the date I have been able to allow myself to fully be present with the girls and throughout my days. 

I have written lists and lists of the amazing things that have happened here and will gladly share those with you sometime There is nothing here that makes me want to go and nothing in particular at home that is drawing me home, it’s just an overwhelming feeling that I need to be there so I am finally doing what people always tell me, taking care of myself and listening to my body. I’m coming home. 

 

Thank you all so much for your prayer and support during my time preparing for this journey and my time here. Continue to pray for Vicky and Lisby, we need all we can get

 

Kara

About two weeks ago I found a guitar sitting up on a shelf above our kitchen table and decided to try and get some of the dust off of it. The strings were thrashed and half of them weren’t there, some screws were missing, dust was all over the place, and I had no clue if I could get some sound out of it. I had hoped to find a guitar so I brought two sets of strings, a capo, tuner, pick, and strap  from America, just  it case.. It’s a good think I did. I found some screws as a local market, cleaned the guitar, strung it with new strings and took about an hour to tune it. After two days of playing and tuning, playing and tuning I finally got some sound out of it, and it actually sounds pretty good! I was very impressed.

On monday I took the guitar out in the yard to play in the morning and have my own little worship session. Joy Joseph (one of the pastors and very involved in the ministry) came to work about half an hour into my playing and was super excited that I knew how to play. He first asked where I got the guitar and I informed him that it was his, and then asked if I could teach the students and staff and children. I said “yeah sure, why not.” , but I didn’t know if it would really happen.

Today I had my second day of teaching classes, two classes, each an hour long! One to the Bible college students and one with some of the older girls at the home. I also spent a majority of the day trying to fix a VERY old guitar that they found on another shelf in an office. This guitar doesn’t have a bridge and the tuning keys are rusted together… let’s just say it’s taking A LOT of time and I don’t even know if it’ll work! I got the bridge figured out and got the strings in tight, but the tuning keys are just not doing their job, so that’s my big task for tomorrow. I also will be teaching two classes again tomorrow… I probably should go prepare for those : D.

Teaching is fun, but oh so exhausting! It takes a lot of patience and a lot of thinking to try and explain everything, especially when you’re students know VERY LITTLE English, so most of it is pointing and making sounds while speaking a mixture of English and Kannada. 

The students are VERY EAGER to learn guitar because music and instruments is the “next big thing” in the up and coming Indian church, so if they know the basics of guitar they can lead music for their churches which is HUGE! Arun and Joy are very excited about it too, and want me to teach EVERYONE, but I’m not sure I can do that. So I’m going to do what I can to equip about 20 people, and they can teach others, who can teach others, who can teach others. I’m excited to be a part of this ministry, and pray that I can do everything in my power to explain everything clearly and equip them to be able to lead worship, or at least know how to get to the point of leading worship by the time that I leave.  Please pray that they can learn fast, because we only have 5.25 months to do EVERYTHING and guitar takes time and practice. 

I’m excited that I’m able to share a passion that I have and connect with the people here even more! Joy is making the students call me Professor Lisby (which I think is very unnecessary) and he is trying to convince me to teach a class in the Bible College, which I feel VERY UNDER QUALIFIED for. Please pray that I can do everything in my power to help this ministry and to connect with these wonderful people.

Peace friends, I’m going to go prepare for class.

I am pretty sure our yearly meeting family just grew. Alleluia? Praise the Lord. Alleluia.

(try and find us…it’s like where’s waldo…just a little easier)

Last week we traveled by train with Arun and Shoba and some of the staff of Caring Hands for 2 days to reach Kerala where the EFM Indian Yearly Meeting was held. Despite the billions of hours it felt like traveling, India Yearly Meeting was such a great experience. We were welcomed by Benson Sam who put together this year’s Yearly Meeting in his hometown.

 

About 150 people attended India’s 2^nd Yearly Meeting. I believe 4 states were represented as well as us from the NWYM. John Williams and Chuck Mylander also from the US were the main speakers. The theme was “Equipping the Saints”. It was a very fitting theme I realized after hearing the Mission Reports from all the groups.

 

We heard from a group who is starting Youth programs and churches in Calcutta, a group from Missourey who has an amazing disciple-ship training and spreading program. Our group from Dharwad who runs the Caring Hands ministry which deals with Temple prostitutes and their children as well as runs a Bible College. It was really exciting to hear all of the reports and the work being done throughout India and some neighboring countries. I was so impressed by everyone there. Persecution is so much more real and visible in everyday lives of these people but they persevere like no other and stand firm.

 

The first message from John Williams was on standing firm and always give yourself fully to God because the work of the Lord is never in vain. Everyone there was such a great example of that. 

 

Leaving Yearly Meeting was as hard for me as leaving our own NWYM. In the amount of time we spent there, only 4 days, my family grew. One night we all danced together. No one danced any particular dance it was just dancing in a community. I know God was smiling because I could not refrain. I was so overwhelmed with joy when I saw people who didn’t know each other who spoke 4 different languages and probably spanned 3 or 4 generations simply dancing together and singing praise songs to God. It was so wonderful. 

 

I will leave the elephant riding and beach trip to vicky or lisby to write

 

 

A

our first try at Indian dress

Vicky being a big sister (Acca)

The first Friday of each month the people at JCH who aren’t in school fast from the time they wake up until lunch and they pray continuously. Kara Lisby and I were able to catch the last half hour of their prayers. We sat on mats in a square and listened to the women sing songs of praise in Kannada. Their voices were beautiful. Their passion couldn’t be missed. It was really neat to see and experience. God was present. 

After they sang we broke off into groups of four or five and were asked to pray. We prayed in a circle, Lisby Kara and I were all in different groups…They asked us to pray first. We prayed, then each girl began to pray with such an intensity and such a faith, that despite the language barrier, I knew they have a heart for Christ and they are a light to the three of us. They pray a lot. They pray for things that I take for granted daily. They pray for each girl specifically. They pray for their country. They pray for us. 

They pray with great intention and without hesitation.
That is something I seek.

So much has happened in the last four days I don’t know where to start..

First, we made it safely! We are in Dharwad and we LOVE it! The trip was LONG LONG LONG and very exhausting but we made it and are getting over Jet-lag pretty well.

Second, we are right where we need to be! I personally feel at peace with being here! I am RIGHT where God has led me and I feel at peace because I feel I have found what I have long been searching for and awaiting..what an amazing feeling!

Third, the children are more than wonderful. They are cute, tiny, colorful, funny, kind, servant-hearted, silly, smart, bright with laughter, loving, and interested in EVERYTHING. They want to hear English, speak English, sing in English, hear about America, about our families, about our jobs and where we live. They want to know EVERYTHING about us! The first time we came to the home 77 girls came running to us and introducing themselves, name after name after name. Then they would test us to see if we remembered… naturally we hadn’t remember a single name, and were very overwhelmed. Today we spent the WHOLE day with them, because they had a holiday from school. I learned a few words in Kannada like how to say “come here” “go away” “i love you” “little sister” “big sister” and “hello.” I also learned how to write my name, I am very proud that  I can write better than Vicky and Kara and the girls are so excited!

Forth, living in India is very different than living in Newberg, but it is fun and exciting. The electricity will randomly go off for two hours everyday, but those two hours switch every week, so you never know if you’ll have power or not.  We can only drink bottled water and we take bucket showers (which are actually a really good idea because they save a lot of water and are really easy). We eat on the floor and use the fingers on our right hand to eat with (very fun!) and we walk around barefoot, sing, dance, laugh, tickle, run run run, and get very dirty, hot and sweaty, and nobody cares! We are full of TRUE joy and we are where we need to be! God has prepared our hearts and minds for this place and we are at peace. 

pictures to come soon.

Thank you for your prayers and please keep praying!

peace!

I can only imagine what it’s going to be like to live at the girls home for half of a year, but I am confident that it is going to be life-changing, spiritually maturing, and challenging in many ways. I’m going to get sick, I’m going to mess up, I’m going to be frustrated with the language, I’m going to miss my family, I’m going to make amazing friends, I’m going to become part of a new much bigger family, I’m going to be living on much less than I am used to, I’m going to be challenged in new ways, I’m going to be stretched to the max, I’m going to have “off” days, and I couldn’t be more excited! God has  a great plan for this trip, and He has great plans for my life, all I have to do is trust Him. Pray to Him. Serve Him. Love Him. Accept His love. Learn from Him. Live for Him. Laugh. Play. Smile. Pray. Pray. Pray. Trust. Trust. Trust.

We leave in 4 days!

• Visas: check. Vaccines: check. Bags: check. Tickets: check.

We are set and ready to go! 

Many people have  asked “Are you nervous?”, the answer is always: “No, not really.” The reason is because God has really put a verse on my heart for this trip, and it has really helped me put everything in perspective. 

“For do not worry about tomorrow; tomorrow will care for itself. Each day has enough trouble of it’s own.” -Matthew 6:34

I can not predict the future, and I do not want to be able to. But I can not worry about what is going to happen tomorrow when that time is not here yet. Today is what I put on my heart. How am I serving God TODAY? How am I being the light TODAY? How have I treated my friends and family TODAY? Tomorrow and the next day and the next day are in His hands, and that’s not ever going to change! 

Thanks friends, and please pray for us.

Peace,

Lisby

We had to the chance to spend three days with the whole Caring Hands Staff. This is made up of almost 30 full time workers (some single, some married couples) and their children. While together, I took the time to sit down with each person and interview them; asking about their ministry, the ways that they have seen God at work, and their prayer requsts.

These are incredibly hard working, courageous, and faithful people. They carry out their ministry in the face of persecution and the threat of persecution. Some of their homes have been ransacked. Some have been taken to jail. Some have been dragged from their houses and beaten, yet still they return to the same village because of an undenyable love for the people and for God.

Not only do their homes serve as the meeting places for their church gatherings where they pastor groups of 5-50 people. But they each oversee HIV programs that provide counseling, life saving medication, and monthly nutritional packages. More important than these things is relationship. With the Caring Hands staff they find friendship, dignity, and the compassion of Jesus. When their villiages and even their own families kick them out and reject them they find love and acceptance in at least one place. I sat in a room with 50 HIV+ villagers an listened to their songs of worship, saw their tears as they sang about the unending love of God, shared a nutritious meal with them that had been catered from a local hotel, and watched as they received a Christmas gift from the Caring Hands staff.

These pastors and social workers also oversee 25 “Share and Care” programs in small villages that provide tutoring, encouragement, and love for more than 2,000 children after school, 6 days a week. These programs are so effective that even the anti-Christian politicians and elders of some villages praise the work that they are doing. This is the love of Christ being lived out.

I heard first hand stories of exorcisms, paralytics being healed, cultish prostitutes becoming full-time ministers, children half dead coming to life and thriving, people literally trusting God for their next meal. God is ALIVE and at work and people are responding!