mustard seed

singing and sickness...june 6th

2009-06-07T05:42:00.000-07:00

i woke up this morning sick...lets just say i drank some bad water and i was torn up. after taking some medicene and a few bathroom breaks, we walked to church where i was met by hundreds of nepali Christians (many walked for over an hour to come). even though i did not understand much of what was being said or sung, i knew it was for the Lord's glory and was to praise Him. this caused an overflow of emotions in me and the tears came. as i listened to them worship, i prayed and prayed over them. for sunday school, i got the privilege to go to the young children's class where i taught them a few songs. there were about 4o children and their excitement and energy was beautiful. they are so receptive and the light shining from them makes my heart smile. comparing their sunday school with ours in america, i guess you could say they are literally 2 worlds apart. back home children have to have a craft, a snack etc. but here they do not even have any sunday school material. they read a Bible story and then they sing. if a child has a song to share, he comes to the front and sings. it is very simple, but it is wonderful...im sorry that i am not posting regularly, but the internet here is not very accessible...ill do my best...for the next week and a half i will not be able to write at all because we will be in the mountain village, but please continue to pray...great things are happening and He is completely providing...thank you for reading...love and miss you all...

heading north from the city...june 4th

2009-06-07T05:30:00.000-07:00

today was my last day in kathmandu, which was bittersweet. i am ready to get out of the city (alot of traffic and exaust) but i am going to miss many of the people here. so today kamala showed me some more of the city that i hadnt got to see. we went to the tibetan section of town to see the tibetan rug factory. in my americanized mind i was thinking we were goin to enter a large building full of huge metal machines. when we walked in there were huge looms one after the other, but instead of machines weaving the rugs, there were tibetan women sitting on thin pillows on the floor weaving as fast as their hands could weave. they worked beautifully and as i stood there watching, I at first felt sorry for them. i thought of how bad their backs, shoulders, and legs must ache. but then i noticed how happy they looked. yes, their legs were probably asleep, but they were in fellowship with one another and they were weaving string into a beautiful rug. it was like God squeezed my heart...sometimes we (me especially) complain about certain situations or feel uncomfortable in certain situations, but as long as we are focused on that loom, He will work through us to make something beautiful...a saved soul. After we went to buy some nepali bible tracks we went back to abraham and kamalas house where me, abe, kamala, and their two nephews worshiped in both english and nepali...this completely rejuvenated my soul and reminded me of how BIG God's love is. before we ate supper we all went on a walk to the outskirts of kathmandu where we could look down on the entire city. this sight i will never forget--a city that is hurting and yearning for something more...Lord lay your hands on them...

*let all the earth tremble before Him. the world is firmly established and cannot be shaken. let all the heavens be glad, and let the earth rejoice! tell all the nations that the Lord is King.
~1 Chronicles 16:30-31

you are my brother and sister...june 3rd

2009-06-07T05:19:00.000-07:00

*may the Lord of peace himself always give you his peace no matter what happens. the Lord be with you all.
~2 thessalonians 3:16

the lord wants to be central in our entire beings. when we focus firmly on Him, His peace displaces fears and worries. there is no fear in His love, which shines continually. this morning was my last breakfast with rachel and jenn--what a good breakfasts' we have had; i am going to miss those two...today abraham and kamala came and got me and once again God blew me away with His blessings. they are so down-to-earth, sweet, caring, talkative, interesting, and passionate about the Lord. we packed up my stuff and headed toward the southern part of the kathmandu valley. we went to lunch and talked about our plans. kamala and i are leaving friday morning for pokhara where i will stay with all of their family. we will be there for four days so i can get oriented with nepali culture and prepare for the hike to the village. we will be in the village for about a week and a half, come back to pokhara for two to three days and then head out again hiking to different villages in and around the area. abraham told me that his father was one of the first muslims in nepal to convert to Christianity and after he had accepted Christ he spent the rest of his life traveling from village to village spreading the good news. abraham has the same passion that his father had and is continuing that legacy. i praise God for people who are this passionate about saving souls...i am so blessed to be able to live with abraham and kamala and to share God's love thoughout the villages. Lord, take my fears away about teaching English--sustain me Lord.

never felt so right...may 31st 2009

2009-05-31T23:15:00.000-07:00

after a sleepless night, we agian got into an indian taxi and prayed the entire time that we would make it to the airport in one piece. the flight to nepal was extremly fast and absolutly beautiful. this was the first flight we could actually see the land through the little windows. i wish i could describe in words the himalaya mountains from that high up, but words just do not do a justice. when i walked down the steps of the plane and looked at the mountains completly surrounding me, i felt so small, but for the first time since i began my trek i felt confident and free--no nervousness or stress. kristen, an american missionary was at the airport to pick us up (what a beautiful person she is, inside and out, along with her famil--her husband ryan, and two sixteen month old twins gracie and keane). we dropped our stuff off at our hotel and then walked down to mainstreet kathmandu where kristen gave ua a tour. this amazed me and i wanted a photograph of everything so i would have something concrete to capture all the emotions and feelings i had. the streets werer full of smiling gaces of broken and lost people. even though i will be traveling to pokhara in two days, and not staying in kathmandu to work, seeing the neplai and tibetan people talking, working, walking, and just living their daily lives reassured in me the plans the Lord has in store the next six weeks.

Downtown Kathmandu:
*motorbikes, small cars, and toyota vans are everywhere, driving just as the indians drive
*shop after shop full of anything and everything--rugs, cloting, buddhist gods and shrines, shoes
*fresh produce everywhere--fruits, veggies, spices
*trash everywhere
*beautiful people

after walking the streets we went and had supper with a tibetan family. this was absolutly amazing and the food was delicious. the family lived by meager means but whold heatedly opened their homes to us. we ate outside and on rugs on the floor--the tibet family served us all first and would not eat until we were done. they truly humbled themselves before us and shoed a kindness this rare today. they showed me what kind of attitude i need to have throughout this entire trip and that i should show daily--its all about humbleness and love and allowing God to work through our weaknesses. everything is wonderful and i am truly content here...

*He must become greater; i must become less.
~John 3:30

home alone IV...may 30th

2009-05-31T22:19:00.000-07:00

starring: rachel, jenn, and jordan

last night our plane was supposed to depart at 6:40pm, but because of weather and other delays we did not leave until 8:30pm. everything was wonderful on the plane ride--no sickness, had plenty of room to spread out, great food, and alright rest. everyone on the plane intrigued me; how different each of us were and how different our lives must be. i just wanted to sit and listen to each one's story; however, i didn't not get to talk to anyone because i was on the whole middle row by myself. what blows my mind is that God does know each story and know the future of each of these stories. as me, rachel, and jenn slobbered on the courtesy pillows, oblivious to what was going to happen next, He knew and he was completely in control of the situation. one of the attendants came by and told us that instead of landing at 8:30am, we were going to land at 10:15am. our connecting flight was to depart at 10:30am--to sum it up, he told us we were not going to make our flight, but it was going to be okay because they would put us in a hotel until the next day. this would have been a wonderful pitstop along the way if we had not already booked our flight from india to nepal. if we spent the night in paris we would have not made that flight. from then until we landed, we prayed. our plan was to just book it as fast as we could to our boarding gate, all the while hoping there had been a delay. with stiff plane legs we sprinted through the glass tunnel (abby i did this in my grandma dress and my braid flying in the wind) and by the grace of God as we were running through the glass doors, rachel saw a man holding up a sign with delhi and our flight number written on it. the plane was waiting on all of us, but we had to run to some vans, run through a security check, and run to our boarding gate. so this is what we did; ran, all the while saying merci veucoup. after all this i asked myself, “why worry about things”—God will work it out and turn it into an adventure…

we landed in india at 11:30pm, went to claim our bags and of course my luggage was left in paris. we were picked up by a young indian who drove us to the missionary hostel—i thought i was going to die!

indian driving rules:
*no speed limit
*honk if you want to get through and push hard on the gas
*very, very few stoplights
*a lot of cars and motor bikes that drive extremely close together

"I am with you, watching over you constantly. I am Emanuel, God with you; My presence enfolds you with radiant love..."
~Jesus

beginning journey blessings...may 29th

2009-05-31T22:06:00.000-07:00

right now i am waiting for the plane to take off...it has been a nerve racking, scary, line waiting, exciting, and blessed day! rachel and jenn are the two ladies from southeastern that i am traveling with and they are perfect, or should i say a perfect fit...what a blessing they have been for me. the drive to washington was smooth and even as nervous as i was the airport hooplah was even smoother. even though my suitcase recieved a "extra-heavy" bright orange tag, i did not have to pay one cent...and we did not have to even wait ten minutes for our security check. throughout the day, the Lord has completly confirmed his will and power and upheld His words in the verses that i just read before writing this, oh how the Lord speaks...prayers are being heard and the Lord is providing...

*peace I leave with you; My peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid*
~John 14:27
*and we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to His purpose*
~Romans 8:28

the beginnings...a tiny seed

2009-05-26T21:54:00.000-07:00

truly this journey with Jesus all began 13 years ago at a billy graham crusade. with Jesus in my heart i felt invincible and free. sometime within the next few years i heard a missionary speak for the first time; a seed was planted and with time it grew. since i was eight, i feel like missions have been a part of me...truly it is what a Christian life should be about. when i was 15 the thought of international missions began tugging at my heart; however, the Lord still had a lot of work to do within me (and boy is He still working on this daily). with time the call became stronger and stronger...i felt like i needed to listen and feel Him out as much as I need cold, juicy watermelon in the summertime! the Lord opened a door in july of last year and with reluctance i stepped through. the preacher i had been working with contacted me and told me there was a mission opportunity in nepal. after some questioning, pleading, and talking with the Lord, i told him i was in and to sign me up. so now, after many emails and a lot of reading about nepal, i am headed out, hand in hand with Jesus to pokhara to love on some precious children. pray for safe travels, my heart, the hearts of the children, and my daddy and mama. i believe seeing how hard this has been on them has been one of the hardest parts for me. we found out sunday there was a bombing in khatmandu, which un-nerved them even more. BUT we know God is greater; "you are powerful and mighty; no one can stand against you...dont be discouraged by this mighty army, for the battle is not yours, but God's." 2 Chronicles 20:6,15. (Thank you for the encouragement timmy).

love in Christ,

jordan