(November 7, Sunday)
Dear Family and Friends:
The meeting last night was very good but the busses didn’t all get their load of people to the site until past 8. So everything was later. Once again we went through the garlanding which takes up valuable time. We appreciate the sentiments and desire to make us feel welcome, but we really came here to preach the Word! So Glenn didn’t get to start preaching until 9:20 and he went until 10:30. The people stayed and listened carefully and Paulson again made his speech about coming earlier to get out earlier. Even an hour and ten minutes sermon is only 35 minutes (plus translation) to present the heavy topic of the Judgment. We just go with the flow and trust the Lord to work it out with the people.
Today we had a reckoning of the finances with Paulson. The budget is over by about $2000 and he would like for us to pick up the difference. His treasurer that we met at General Conference Session in Atlanta had assured us that $6000 would be sufficient and we based all our planning on that. But he had not consulted with Paulson who told us that he was thinking only of the cost of the ten village preparation by the local pastors and volunteers. He has not had the experience with it that Paulson has. Glenn had to tell him that we don’t have that money and do not expect to try raising it when we get home. We had to borrow from our personal family emergency fund (about enough to bury one of us economically or cremate both of us—our first option if that need arises) and felt we needed to restore those funds first from our monthly pensions. We also contributed to the budget for this series but our borrowing was for our personal expenses getting here and sustaining ourselves here. So we are all looking to the Lord to provide in His way what is needed here. He will do it. They may have to shrink some other plans to accommodate this.
Already the harvest is coming in from the investment here. This morning we were taken by car to a nearby village to witness the baptism of 19 in a small lake they call a tank. People were there washing clothes on the rocks by beating and rubbing and some even had soap. So there was a lot of cleansing going on simultaneously—people and clothes. We took video of it and some photos to share with many who want copies.
We were included in the photos they wanted of the group and one pastor offered to use Glenn’s video to record it. Glenn tried to tell him we only needed short clips to tell the story. He assured that he knew how to video but the resulting 10 minutes of it will take a lot of time and computer memory to process. So we face the option of just erasing it and not having coverage of that part, or wait till we get home and try to edit out most of the rambling and weaving of everything in general and little in particular. The sky and ground and feet and bushes and even sideways footage that must have come from not being able to turn it off don’t really enhance the record.
The road to the baptismal site gave way to just rocks and a footpath. Our car driver tried to get us closer but would have destroyed the car if he had gone further. We were glad to walk and didn’t need all the help offered in doing so. We do appreciate their care and concern for our welfare. The road and path were uphill and not well traveled. The scenery was rugged with jutting rocks (reminiscent of Tanzania) but very beautiful.
Rather than have one large baptism of all those who have made decisions during the preparation time and the series, we elected for them to just have little ones in each village as the people are ready. We don’t need or want huge numbers just for the show. We stress we are interested in people properly prepared that will still be around when we move on. The Lord knows those who are His and will follow Him faithfully. In all our prayers for and with them we stress the need for continued growth by keeping in touch with God, their Best Friend by Bible study and prayer and sharing with others what they have learned. We can only leave them in God’s keeping power.
A couple of the people baptized dunked themselves first and had to be “officially” dunked again. We learned that they had felt they had to get used to the cold water. We weren’t in it so don’t know what the temperature actually was. It was a very joyful experience for all of them.
Even at the baptism we were given a garland of flowers each. The previous night at the meeting we each had twelve garlands put around our necks. We thanked them for their acceptance and love, but Glenn reminded that the glory is to go to God, not man. We are only simple instruments to share His good news.The garlands were so heavy and cumbersome that we had to take them off before attempting to preach. And the marigold flowers stain white shirts badly. We still appreciate the motives that prompt the gifts. They so badly want us to feel loved and accepted. The stain in Glenn’s white shirt that would not come out completely will be a continuing reminder of their good wishes. We wonder when garlands came into use. The Bible speaks of Paul and Silas receiving them when doing missionary work in Asia Minor at Lystra. (See Acts 14:13)
It occurred to us that the garlands might be the source of a series of bites around Glenn’s neck. With the flowers come the bugs. Of course it is hard to positively identify because the lights bring a cloud of insects to the area of the computer and to get rid of them all is impossible. We just hope they don’t turn into computer “bugs”.
New Telegu Bibles were given to those baptized. Many of them have never held a Bible before, much less own one. We think they will spend significant time in study to continue to grow up into Jesus.
Last night at the meeting the simple cloth that serves as a screen was moved forward enough that we can do rear projection within the enclosure and the cords reach much better. The image is also brighter for the audience to see. By the time the meetings are over we may have it just right.
When doing the reckoning of finances, we insisted on paying the rent on both houses for us and the pastors and for the food. It figures out to be just about what we would have paid for just us in a hotel and the hotel accommodations closest to us would be about 20 miles away with the ensuing travel added. And we might not have had it much better than here. Maybe even a few rats that we don’t have here YET.
Glenn asked Paulson and our good translator, A. Kumar, if it would not be better for us not to come and send money instead for local pastors to do the evangelism. But they assured us that our presence and presentations mean very much to the people. Especially when we also visit them in their homes in the villages. We get to see much more than the tourists do, just breezing through and staying in posh hotels and looking at forts and shops and other attractions. We believe the rewards are much greater as we are doing it.
For at least two nights we had lots of competition in barrages of fire crackers. It is the festival of Divali. We want to learn much more about it but it involves some goddess who spared people from demon control. It seems to us that the demons are personified in the festivals. Satan transforms himself into an angel of light, as Paul writes to the Corinthians.
Mary Alice is almost keeping up with the laundry. Water outages and electric outages to pump the water to the roof tank that serves this building are the problem along with a full schedule otherwise. In spite of the good food we get once a day here we are glad we brought as much from home as we did to fill in between. The healthful crackers she makes keep a long time when very dry to start with. And the apple rings fill in a taste of home amid the fire in the food.
We’ll try to get these off while the computer from Jun with his Internet connection is available. Last night he played on the recorder a plaintive melody that was beautiful but on the last part the drums and other “music” kicked in and drowned out that beauty. So it goes in India!
We surely appreciate our MacBook Pro laptop given by the Decatur Church when we retired. It has served so well and still is. What would we have done without it? Thanks again to all who participated in that gift.
With love,
Dad and Mom, Grandpa and Grandma, Glenn and Mary Alice