Still no diagnosis!

Wednesday, Feb 13, 1:30 pm

Mike just received an email from the doctor's office. No news till later this week or next week on the malaria test. It has to be read by a pathologist...In the meantime he is feeling much better and we are heading out to Wichita either tomorrow afternoon or early Friday morning.

I hope it isn't malaria!

Thursday, Feb 7
6 pm

A quick update and prayer request...
Mike got sick almost immediately after we got home and the concern is that he might have malaria. He went to the dr today and they are running tests but it will be about 3 days before the results are back. His symptoms are highly suspicious of malaria.

Our dr is from Africa and she is quite suspicious also. We are grateful for her...she is a Christian and a very encouraging person.

We are both exhausted as we are not sleeping...back to the melatonin tonight! I've been awake since 3 am and Mike didn't sleep much better last night. He has been sitting up in his recliner a lot.

Well, enough of that...just pray and we love all of you!

Denver, CO
Feb 7, 2013
5:30 am

We are home! I have been wide awake since 3am and Mike has been up and down all night. I didn't even to go sleep til after midnight. Trying to work my way through Anna Karenina! Why did I start this book? I think it was to help pass time while we were away and I thought it would be interesting. Well, may in some places and extremely boring in others but I am persevering. At least it puts me to sleep now and then.

We had an uneventful trip home. I do recommend Economy Comfort status when flying! We paid about $100 extra per person on the leg from Delhi to Amsterdam and it was so worth it! We did that going over, also.

Both of us are not feeling super good right now. I'm a little concerned about Mike as he is running a slight fever and chills...seem to come and go. We wonder about possible malaria symptoms. We took our pills while there, but only had them for 2 weeks and probably should have taken them for at least 3 weeks. In a couple areas there were huge numbers of mosquitoes!

To reflect back on the past month will indeed take some time. We saw God's hand at work in so many ways...his protection over us while traveling; his face in the lives of the Indian people; encouragement at times we needed it most!

Someone asked me if I kept up my list of God's goodness to us after I posted two weeks ago...well, no, but I am going to try and go back and see them again.

Saturday, January 26...went to Hyderabad and got some good sleep and some American food. Chili's restaurant became our favorite haunt while in Hyderabad...they served the most refreshing lemonade (just don't ask for it salty)...yes, you could get it sweet or salty.

Sunday, January 27...Rest, sweet rest! A little shopping and another bus ride that evening to Karimnegard! I always will wonder what we missed along the way as we always traveled in the dark!

Monday, January 28...But Karimnegard was a delight as far as the people...we had great meetings and a wonderful translator! It was always a blessing to have a translator we could really talk with and this was a woman!

Tuesday, January 29...I did not forget my routes...Kansas Day! Memories of growing up and learning and celebrating Kansas history came to me! In 5th grade we celebrated the 100th birthday of our state and had a special program...learned to square dance...I remember mom made us long, ruffled pink print skirts and white blouses. It was so fun!  But back to Karimnegard...driving through the streets of yet another town teeming with people, animals, smells, pigs! Yes, pigs! and they were the ugliest pigs we had ever seen! God is working in this city...

Wednesday, January 30...We went back to Hyderabad last night! Now we are riding on regular buses...there  are so many different kinds. Sleeper buses, air conditioned buses, buses without air conditioning, buses that look like they have been through a war. And the bus stations are kind of creepy...the homeless and the beggars tend to hang out in them especially at night. Of course, they think we are rich and come up to us begging all the time. We had been strictly warned not to give them anything but to give through India Christian Mission! Sometimes you just have to walk (or run) away! Being in Hyderabad again even for a few short hours did help...always good to spend some time with Doug Kelly who heads up The Covenant School of Worship! We would kind of unload on him, but he was most encouraging to us.

Thursday, January 31...I was really counting down the days by now! But this day had to be a highlight! We got to ride a camel! I was so excited...you are really up in the air when on a camel. I could not help but think about the story of Rebecca coming to meet Jacob...I had just read that a few days earlier in my read through the Bible plan! India is probably not that much different today in many ways than it was 4000 years ago! Yes, there are new things, but so many people live the same way they did then...actually the people who had the camels looked like nomadic people...living in tents, cooking outside on the ground! They did want to take advantage of the fact we were Americans but our hosts wouldn't let them. They told us it would be 200 rupees to ride but it ended up costing just 50 (that is actually less than $1). The next day we were told by a visiting pastor that they are indeed Christians and had attended his church.

Friday, Feb 1...again we had such a great interpreter. This young man has had many problems in his life, but the joy of the Lord was so evident in him. He always had a huge smile for us and showered me with Oreo cookies when he learned that I like them! The people were so nice and I was always blessed by their enthusiasm and colorful styles!

Saturday, Feb 2...We had traveled back to Hyderabad during the night on the worst bus of our trip! I did not sleep at all and actually spent much of the time texting with my dear friend, Deb, who lives here in Denver! I shared some of the things we were experiencing and it was so encouraging to have a friend help me through the night! We ended up getting off the bus in a weird area of Hyderabad...literally in the middle of nowhere. But I never felt scared! In fact, for all the stuff that could have happened the whole trip with CRAZY traffic and such, I rarely felt any fear at all! It had to have been all the prayers of our faithful friends! We slept til noon and spent the afternoon shopping, visiting with a volunteer from Sarah's Covenant Home and resting! God gave rest when we needed it, but he gave us supernatural amounts of energy when we needed it, too!

Sunday, Feb 3...we attended church at Pearl City. It is a large English speaking church in Hyderabad and was such an encouragement to us.! The worship was awesome! Much like churches in the US! and we needed that! To sing the songs we know and love and can understand was a gift from God! And the message was encouraging to our souls!
Sunday afternoon we left Hyderabad and flew back to Delhi! Mike admitted he was excited to be going home and this came as a shock to me. Not that he wanted to go home but that he was excited! He rarely gets very excited! Well, maybe when his Wildcats are playing!

Monday, Feb 4...our last day in India! Mike told me to call home as I had minutes left on my international phone plan. What a joy to talk to all the kids while they were watching the Superbowl game. Just to hear their voices was awesome. We spent the day shopping once again and had a great taxi driver who spoke English and spent the whole day driving us around the city. I think it cost 1500 rupees (about $30) for the whole day! He was very careful and warned us about being careful and even went into some of the shops with us. He would tell us if we were getting a good deal or not!

Tuesday, Feb 5...Our flight left Delhi at 2:30 am. By the time we arrived in Denver at 4pm MST, we had been up for nearly 36 hours. I did sleep on the planes...actually quite a bit but...

That sums up the last month...I do still plan on posting pics soon. Probably have to enlist the help of one of my kids to get it done! We love each of you and I pray this blog has given you a little of the flavor of India!

February 3, 2013

This afternoon we leave for Delhi! We are both so excited to begin our journey home! Even Mike is excited and he does not get excited very often. In ways it has been a long month and in other ways it does not seem long at all. Much of it is kind of like a blur. there have been so many sights, sounds, smells, etc.

we came back to Hyderabad from Kurnool Friday night. That was a pretty crazy bus ride. We didn't leave til 11 pm and half the bus was snoring and the other half was watching this crazy movie that was blaring so loud...I don't know why they turn the movies up so loud and they have the dumbest plots! I could not sleep! The ride seemed interminable! Is that a word?

There was a lot of confusion as to where we were to get off the bus here in Hyderabad...our tickets said one thing, but the people from the Covenant School of Worship wanted  us to get off somewhere else. And of course, we could not understand the bus driver...he talked to us like we were crazy but in the end he even talked on the phone to our 

 contacts so we did get off. It was a strange place we thought. No one around, 4 am, just a street corner.. We ended up hiring an auto cab and coming back to the CSOW by ourselves. 

We slept til  noon yesterday and then got up and went shopping and had some American food. 

We spent last night talking to Doug Kelly, the director of the CSOW and a girl who had been in Ongole volunteering who is headed back to the states this afternoon also.It was refreshing to not have any demands on ourselves but rest and packing for the trip home. 

This morning we attended church at Pearl City. It is an English speaking church...mostly Indians but several Americans also. Very encouraging service and great worship. I was really touched in my soul. It was just what wee needed. The message was good...on how we should live our lives as we wait and watch for the Lord's return.

There is so much to say and as the days and weeks go by I will try to reflect on a few of our experiences. Just let me thank all of you who have been praying. We have felt those prayers and have been encouraged. It has not been easy, but amidst the stresses there have been some wonderful blessings and experiences.

Who  would have thought that I would get to ride a camel or a motor scooter for that matter? In  this country, that is a real experience. The traffic is CRAZY!!!!!!!!!!!!! to say the least. 

Who would have thought of all the people wee have had the privilege of praying for? Holding and praying for a new baby and her mom! Praying for all the children and the churches, the hurting, the sick....Unforgettable!

We love each of you! I would like to have an idea of who has been reading this blog, so if you could just post your name in the comment section, I would appreciate  it. 

See you all soon!

Hyderabad, India
January 30, 2013

Today has been a day of rest...kind of. We came by bus last night from Karimnagar, India. It was  about 3 hours away from here by bus. Now that is an experience. Mike describes India like a box of chocolates..you never know what you are going to get! and how true   that is. The bus last night was not too bad, but there was a communication mix up on arrival in Hyderabad and we ended up sitting at the bus station for nearly an hour until the director of the Covenant School's of Worship  decided we should just get in a pedicab and head out of that area. Just as in the US, the bus stations attract an interesting array of people.

We arrived at CSW amidst a power outage. That is very much  the norm for this country. I'm sure there has been a power outage every day since we arrived in India. Some are just momentary but at other times, they may last for several hours.

We must confess that we are tired of the food here. It is very spicy and who really knows what it is? And since we have been cautioned against eating fresh fruits and vegetables because of cleanliness, it has been a very starchy diet...that leads to other problems for us.
We only drink bottled water and soda and chai.

But we experienced so many blessings throughout this trip. The people of India are very friendly, open, gracious, and giving for the most part. We certainly know this is true of the believers. They do not call themselves "Christians". The hospitality from them has been overwhelming!

And they are so responsive to the word of God. They have so little opportunity for real training. The pastors readily admit their inadequacy and are  so grateful for the lessons we have been teaching. We have just scratched the surface...they almost always ask when we will be back.

We did speak at a couple of evangelistic outreach meetings in Vijiayawada where a total of17 people either indicated they were trusting Christ as Savior for the 1st time or rededicated their lives to Christ. Praise God!

I am ready to come home...it has been a long month but we felt the prayers of all of you and know that you were indeed a part of this adventure!

We leave again tonight for our final city meetings in a city called Kurnool. Every    city is different and wee never know what to expect! But God is faithful and has enabled us to meet the challenges of each.

God is faithful

We arrived in Vijayawadu this morning about 5:30. Since we understand so little of the language, when the bus stopped and they announced the stop we did not think it  was our time  to get off the bus, but suddenly two young men appeared at our compartment and told us to get off! So we did! Then we waited for a 'car' for about half and hour and arrived at this wonderful hotel just after 6am. This hotel is amazing! New interior, very hot water and lots of it; western style toilet and toilet paper, a great bed...and clean as can bd knew I needed this today! My nerves have been on edge for a couple of days and a couple of times, I was close to tears...actually shed a few here and there!

But yesterday while we were teaching, God spoke to me about loving those that most of us find hard to love and I decided I was going to review this trip and think of something each day that showed God's love to me! So here goes....

January 8: safe travels

January  9: arrived in Delhi safely...flights were on time and not too long

January 10: delightful trip to Agra to see the Taj Mahal and other sights; wonderful tour guide

January 11: changed hotels...what a relief...hot water, clean; great taxi driver who spoke English and took us shopping and then a tour of Delhi

January 12: flight to Hyderabad, met my Philemon our translator...great hospitality; kept safe when truck side-swiped our car

January 13: Village church; such a lovely welcome, they gave us an offering for coming and shared that they had been fasting for 41 days for our coming!

January 14: Family conference began...about 30-40 pastors and their wives and children come together for this...again sweet hospitality

January 15: evening church services are wonderful; amazing joy and love seen in the faces of the villagers; they treat us with such honor

January 16: Conference ends...today they gave me a beautiful sari and Mike received a traditional off white Indian suit, beautiful flowers

January 17: Moved to a different village...they so willingl give us their bedroom and anticipate our every  need and then some. Another suit and gorgeous red sari, flowers and shawls....they just keep giving and giving

January 18: Our lst day in this area...tearful goodbyes, a child's birthday party

January 19: Hyderabad...lunch at Chili's...wonderful refreshing lemonade and some shopping; Went to a fun market, bought earrings and cute elephant toe ring!

January 20: Ongole...church with other belieers; spoke in village church; again they gave us  the ost beautiful flowers

January 21: Tour Ongole...this ws hard, but we did visit 2 girl's homes that were wonderful, these young orphans had me in tears, they were so sweet and loving. Sarah's Covenant home was so hard  for me, but I know that God wanted us there and we met our adorable little boy that we sponsor! Quite a character...had to bribe him  with cookies, but after that he wouldn't let go of Mike!

January 22: Vizag....much cleaner and our hotel was on a hill overlooking the Indian Ocean...looked much better from the top of the hill than down on the beach. A beautiful red hawk with a white hd soared right outside our balcony

January 23: Teaching for the first time at Vizag Covenant School of Worship...the young men told Mike that this was the teaching they had been waiting for.

January 24: More teaching...Mike was able to summarize some much-needed materials so were able to cover more than we thought! 

January 25: Here we are in Vijayawada...gorgious hotel! God did know I needed this today! 

I am in the hotel today...after having to squat all the time to use the baathroom and most bathrooms are noot very clean, I decided to ahng out in the hotel this moroning. Watching TV (Australian Open), erading, sewing, 

We are on the downhill  side of this trip...although we have 2 more cities in which to teach about 3 more overnight bus trips. But wwe will be going through Hyderabad a couple of times and be able to ret there a bit!

So gratefull for the words of encouragement, prayers, and comments! You don't now what it means to me to be able to communicate with you this way! 

Lovce to all!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Non-stop!

what a whirlwind we have been on since Friday! Took a late overnight train to Hyderabad, slept a couple hours, got up and went to church, slept a couple ore hours; spoke at a village church; and toured two girl's homes, Sarah's Covenant Home and School of Apostolic Ministry construction site...oh, yes! We left Hyderabad on Saturday night and took a sleeper bus to Ongole.

Monday night we boarded another sleeper bus and came too Vizag where we have been teaching today at one of the Covenant School's of  Worship here.. We teach again tomorrow and again travel all night to another city to do the same thing over again. In all we have 4 more cities to teach in. For two people our age it is a bit hard.

Our sleep has been haphazard at best! The  students are very receptive and for that we are very grateful! It is just very tiring...I am reminded of Mark 6:30-31. "The apostles gathered around Jesus and reported to him all they had done and taught. Then, because so many people were coming and going that they did not even have a chance to eat, He said to them, "Come with me by yourselves to a quiet place to get some rest."

We also are called to pray for nearly everyone we meet. At a church the other night I think we prayed for nearly 40 people. That involves laying hands on them and praying for their needs and they have so many needs.

The other day I tried to share a couple of humorous stories with you and kept losing my blog. I will try again to relate to you what happened Friday afternoon. We were  resting in our room in a small village and getting ready to travel to Hyderabad. We were laying down when we heard something in our room. Mike had already seen signs of a rat and we jumped up and ran out of the room. One of the women called her son to come in and check it out. I was in the kitchen of the home,  in my robe and didn't have my glasses on. Out comes this young man holding a gray object up by the tail. I screamed and grabbed onto the lady nearest to me. Everyone laughed as he had a gray stuffed toy by the tail.
There really was a rat, but he got away!

With nearly two weeks left to our trip, I would be amiss to not say....this is very hard and we need your prayers. You cannot imagine the filth, the noise, the demands of keeping up a schedule like this. We have had hot water most of the time, but hotels here are not at all on the par with the ones we are used to in other parts of the world. I read today that India is one of the dirtiest countries anywhere. There is trash everywhere and the sewers are right outside the stores and homes...usually covered by cenment...sometimes not and it stinks. Cattle and water buffalo roam the streets in the largest of cities. At night they just lay down by the median or side of the road to sleep.

I think I may overwhelm you if I say much more so I'll quit for tonight..Keep praying for us. Mike has had some diarrhea a couple of times. We both have these little read spots (some kind of bites?) that concern me. They don't itch though.

We miss all of you. Love each of you!