Greetings from Goa, India. We have been in Goa for 4 days now. We took the train from Hyderabad to Goa on Tuesday night and arrived on Wed. The train ride was amazing. The scenery is so beautiful. This train took us through mountains, and we got to see valleys, srteams, waterfalls, and many more breath-taking scenes. The 4 of us went to one of the doors and just stood there looking out over the mountains. We actually hung out of the doors a little. It was so cool. But don't worry, the train was moving very slowly. It was just breath-taking though. It was amazing seeing God's creation, so beautiful. I love taking the train from place to place. It's so cool standing at the door watching everything pass us by. I really wanted to hike through those mountains and the huge waterfalls. Maybe we will be able to find a waterfall during our travels.
Last week we were working with an organization called Oasis World Ministrties. We were doing a crusade event in a city called Kottakota. During the day, leaders of Oasis held a Pastors seminar for local pastors. Then at night we had a service where people would come from all around Kottakota. There was a worship leader from India who led worship for the group. Then a man names Darrell, who works for Oasis in the states, would get up and speak. Every night the American team would do a skit portraying a story from the Bible. Darrell would then preach on what the stories were saying. The skits were always very powerful for the people, and they responded very well to them. Twice we did the story of Jesus' crucifixion and ressurection. The people seemed to be very touched by that, and they responded to Jesus. People came up every night for the alter call. I am still waiting to hear the final count of how many people came forward for the whole week, but the first night we counted about 300 people who came forward. Praise God.
The first night the audience was a little small, but each night Darrell challenged the crowd to bring family and friends from their villages. People were being healed every night. People were healed of being blind, being deaf, having stomach problems, and having body aches. God was moving every night and touching people every night. Each night the crowd grew bigger and bigger. By the end of the week, the Oasis staff estimated there were about 10,000 people attending the festival. Praise the Lord, God was touching and reaching so many people.
Every night after the service, the American team would pray for the people. There were always crowds around us to be prayed for. People were so desperate for prayer, and for God to touch them. It was very humbling to see their hunger and desire to be touched by God and to be prayed for. We had a lot of younger people who wanted prayer for their education. They would go from each team member asking for the same prayer request. One night I prayed for an elderly women, and after I prayed for her, she bent down and touched my feet. Who am I that she should touch my feet. Then another night a women handed me her baby and wanted me to rename her baby girl. I didn't know what to say. I thought for a bit and she just looked at me waiting for me to answer. The name Esther popped into my head, so I said that. She liked it, so she renamed her child Esther after Queen Esther in the old Testiment. The people treated us like celebrities. They would always come up and shake our hands, and they would crowd around us. The last couple of nights the Oasis staff asked us to stay behind the stage so we wouldn't be a distraction. It was overwhelming at times when they came around. We wanted them to focus on Jesus and what He wanted to share with them. It was such a blessing though praying for them. There were a few people and children that I connected with and I definitely miss them.
It was a challenge though not being able to communicate with them. There were so many times I wanted to speak with someone about God, but I couldn't. There were a few times that I wanted to talk to our driver. He was not a Christian, but he was with us for the whole week. At the beginning of the week, he would just sit in the car. Then towards the end of the week, I noticed he would stand outside and watch the skits and listen to Darrell. But I couldn't ask him what he thought or felt because he didn't speak english. And we never had enough translators, so I didn't get a chance to really ask him. But I just tried to show him God's love. Please be praying for him, that what he heard those last few nights would resonate in his heart. His name is Oslum. I pray that God would continue to put people in his life that would lead him to Jesus. I know God was touching him those last few nights, so please pray that his heart would be open to Jesus.
God touched a lot of people this week, but please be praying that what God started wold grow into a personal relationship with Jesus. Please be praying for the churches in the Kottakota Area. God is moving in powerful ways there, and there are amazing men and women of God. Pray that they would continue to follow God's call, and build relationships with the new believers. Pray there would be a sense of community among them. The people there are so wonderful, and I praise God for the work He is doing there. I feel so blessed and honored that I am able to come and be a part of it all.
I love you all and miss you terribly. Thank you so much for your love and support. God's blessing to you all.
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