one week shy of a month

Hi friends and family,

Well we are finally hooked up to the internet (no more 1o minutes per week!) so hopefully communication will get better. We also got a phone yesterday and we all crowded around in utter joy for our first phone call from Trilby and Theresa. We must miss Canada and all of you more than we know!

This past weekend we were in a little town called Dehradun where we did childcare for this church who was taking a retreat up there. It was such a treat for us! There was no pollution (so we could see the blue sky during the day and the stars at night), the home we stayed in had beds off the floor, we had good indian-cooked food, and there were fruit trees everywhere! (tangerines, grapefruits, etc...) That part made me happy cause it reminded me of Kelowna. I got to play some soccer and volleyball too! Okay, so I was the only girl, but I didn't really care. The little kids loved it and they call me "Didi" which means "Big sister." They laughed and cheered any time Greg or I did anything with the ball. We went into the weekend thinking that we would be taking care of about six English-speaking kids and it turned out to be about twenty English-speaking and non-English-speaking kids in one group, for a total of 12 hours. But of course, God in all his faithfulness pulled us through and softened our hearts for the kids. Six of the boys are AIDS orphans and are so darling. The joy and the hope on their faces, despite what their lives look like, reminds me how all that is important in life is putting our hope in Christ. What else is there to live for?

We have been going to these ESL conversation classes on Tuesdays and Thursdays, and tonight the level 3 class threw us a party! They're so excited to have Canadians chilling with them for the next while. They made us a cake that said, "Get together with Canadian." Hehe, so awesome. We are starting to get to know more of the Muslim students there which is great.

I have mentioned this to a couple people, but last week we were on an auto-rickshaw and my backpack got driven off with (intentionally we think). It had all of my Hindi notes in it, all of my month's spending money, a cell phone, and my new Bible. So I have been praying for the driver, whoever he is. The team was great to be behind me though, lending me a little bit of cash, and one person even bought me a soccer ball...what a blessing!

Although things have been hard here--in more ways than one--God is so evident and encouraging. He reminds me so often of His perfect love that he wants to pour out on me. And when I make mistakes, his grace is never-ending. I know I have made mistakes leading this team but it's a learning process and it's awesome how God uses those mistakes to strengthen us....."Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us."--Romans 5:3,4

Please continue to pray for the five of us as we are still figuring out how to love with 4 others and how to be useful for God's kingdom at the same time. Hindi is coming slowly but surely...Indians just love that we know any words or phrases at all like, "What is your name?" or "How many brothers and sisters do you have?" (Aap ka nam kya hai?, Aap ke kitne bhai bahan hai?). Prayers are always welcomed!

Blessings from India...I love to hear how you are doing. Even if I haven't had time to respond, it's great getting mail! Bye for now,

Beth

p.s. Photo #1: Our day trip to the Taj Mahal...we had random people coming up to us all day asking to take their pictures with us. Photo #2: The sitting room in our appartment, my favourite room in the place. I think I caught Jon off guard. Photo #3: A few of the boys that we looked after this past weekend, taken right after a big game of soccer (football). The little Christian school in the background is where we spent most of our time watching the kids.

Cultured? for a week now...

Namaste! (Hello in Hindi)

Well, we've been here for almost a week and it's seemed like a lot longer. We 3 girls live in an appartment in a relatively nice area (which means that we get hot water for about half of our showers, as long as we remember to turn the hot water on), and people have cars around here. The guys have their own appartment right around the corner so it's good, cause as girls we can't walk around alone at night. That brings me to my next topic...it's crazy being a girl here! Men are ALWAYS just standing alongside the streets, in the middle of streets, or hanging out of buses, and because we are white we all get a lot of looks. Sometimes whistles and swooning songs sung to us too. (So some might ask, what's the difference from Canada eh? haha)

We have been learning a little bit of Hindi...it's been so frustrating not knowing the language! People kinda take advantage of us in the market and when we get rickshaw rides (which we do pretty much every day), just because we are white. But it's okay...we just have to be patient with ourselves and keep praying that the language will come in His timing.

Prayer requests:

--That we will not be fearful in this place.
--That the language will come quickly.
--For us as a team, that we will learn to have some fun together...it's been tough to just relax and have a good time.

Thank you everyone for praying and for your comments...I feel your prayers very much! I hope you are doing well, and I will keep trying to get on the internet...it's not readily available. (maybe a good thing, hey Mom? :)

God bless,

love, Bethany

p.s. There is a market right near our place called Masi Ghar, which means "House of Christ"...which is actually the meaning of my name! I just found that out today...thought it was kinda cool. Bubye...