Things not working out (Email to Parents)

(Pictures - bazaar pictures)

We drove through some rain and lots of mud today on the way to meet Anne for our storying session. We one point, half way there we were blocked by a MONSTER truck, and one behind us…and then one trying to squeeze by in the opposite direction. I could have reached my hand in any direction and touched the tires that are as tall as our bike. Anyway, we looked around and hanging from the back of one of the trucks was an old tennis shoe. For a second I felt very out of place- remembering the tennis shoes hanging from the phone wires in Newark, but unsure how the shoe got to be hanging from the back of this truck---and very muddy too, I might add.

We found out later from Anju that it is to keep bad things from happening or keep evil away. I said, “Isn’t that kind-of strange…or even silly?” She said “No” somewhat firmly…as if she really believes it. When I asked why cars don’t have them, Anju told us, “where would you hang it from a car?” I said, “So, do only bad things happen to trucks and that's why they need one?” She was silent for a minute realizing that the logic didn’t make sense.

Anyway, we finally got to our storying session, but guess what- Anne never came. We waited a half hour for her- we were already about 10 minutes later...but she never came. And since she lives in the village, there is no way to contact her. Ugh…

We came back, studied language some…ate lunch and waited for Precious to come for the back-translation, but she also never came becuase she forgot to tell us she was going out of town.

I was starting to wonder what exactly would be accomplished today as 2 out of 2 things “Failed” already…

We had our language sessions. That was interesting. I realized Uncle was teaching me two different dialects. Great. Okay at least I know why some things are different on different days- he switches dialects….ahh!!

We (Robin and I) went to Mr. and Mrs. Masih’s house to do the back-translation….they did speak SOME English…not much…but it was okay…I still think we need someone else….but all in all, it was more than I expected to come away with…so that’s good.

All in all, it was an okay day in spite of the cancellations that happened, and the adventurous drive to work….

I'm getting ready to go to the village tomorrow…the sky is getting grey- it will probably rain…

Hope you have a great few days- talk to you later!

~ Elizabeth

Re: Moon and Clouds (Email from Daddy)

Elizabeth,

This story is very cool. There is a verse that says "God is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine". Your story reminds me of Daniel interpreting the dreams!

I am very sorry your back is hurting you.

Love, Dad.

Moon and Clouds... (Email to Parents)

Mommy and Daddy,

How was the fair? I had a semi rough night last night…

First, I went to the store to get eggs and butter. It was dark outside. There was no problem with the store or the goods, but walking there I just felt this immense burden for the Kahani people. I felt like how will they ever realize and accept the truth? Bells were ringing in several houses nearby as people participated in their pujas (prayers), and I just felt really burdened for them. I believe I had tears in my eyes while I was at the store.

Then I looked up and saw the bright light of the moon behind the clouds- I could not see the moon, but the brightness of it shining behind the clouds. I felt like it was a picture of Kahan. The light from the cloud was God- and the realization that God is real. The clouds were the deep darkness that these people are in, but, God is there, but behind the darkness waiting to shine forth. Then I was thinking, I bet things might get worse before they get better. And about ½ hour later, I looked up again, and the clouds had completely covered the moon. There was a dim light shining from behind them, but it was fully covered. Then about 20 minutes later, the clouds were completely gone, the moon was shining brightly, nothing was hindering it….

Now, you know me, I don’t normally believe in special stuff like that. But I don’t’ think it was necessarily a coincidence either. I wouldn’t be one to go and say, “Oh, God made the clouds and moon do something to show us something last night!” It’s more like, I learned something from that. I learned that God IS here. He is in this region. But there is a darkness that is also here and blocking Him from shining. Not because He doesn’t have power to shine through, but because that’s just the way it is and it's in His plan like that right now for purposes only He knows.

And, things for the people here, or things for us, I’m not sure,- may get worse before it gets better. Whether we come up against more opposition, or people just don’t respond to the stories, or Robin and I get upset with each other, or whatever….things may get worse before they get better. And while I shouldn't expect the worse, I should be prepared for it, knowing that Evil is also there. But…no matter what, and who knows when (maybe this is only in Heaven)- at some point - God WILL shine forth, there will be no more distractions, no more darkness, no more clouds. Nothing to stand in the way….Yeah, I guess that will be Heaven- but I do hope we maybe get a glance of that here too….we shall see….

Anyway, it was an encouragement to me…..

On another note, my back is killing me these days, I have not done exercises for a long time, and so realized that I need to start doing them again- but it really hurts, I can’t sleep past maybe 5 or 6 in the morning, for a number of reasons. But the main one being because I’m in intense pain from my back, there is no comfortable position laying down….

Okay, talk to you later.

~ Elizabeth

Guess I'm still supposed to be here (Almost an email to Mommy)

Mommy,

So, I don’t think I’ll send this because it would be too hard for me to write and tell you, and too hard for you to receive…but I'll pretend to write it, at least write until you call…hopefully you will call soon…

I feel tonight like I want to come home. I just want to be back, with Trisha, Rahul- on the couch, eating Taco Bell, hanging out. Gajju fdgiting with some new gadget…
I want to come home and eat taco salad out on the porch. I want to come cut the grass in the hot sun. I want to jump in the pool, I want to let Natalie sleep over in my room. I want to drive my car. I want to stare out my window and wonder what in the world I’m doing at home. No, I don’t want to do that, but after all the fun and enjoyment, I could see myself doing that…Just sitting or standing, looking out the window, wondering what I’m doing there…

Guess, I’m still supposed to be here, huh? I mean, I know I am. But…even more so when I have longings of home and then come to a point where I realize that even those desires would wear out after some time…

Then I look out the window here- the people, the mountains…how could I leave? At least, right now- in the middle of the Cain and Abel story? How could I just leave? Of course, I couldn’t, and won’t…another 18 months…and then…actually who knows what will come after that? Home for a while, or not…or…what? Home for some time, for sure…but then…?

And yet, my Father will take care of me- as He has…He is awesome, and knows my needs and desires. He is in control over everything.

Here is a song that I’ve really enjoyed the past few days.

For you are Awesome, God of the nations
Light of Judah, Rock of the Ages
Alpha, Omega
Worthy of all praise
For that, these hands are raised

Cultural Notes from Storying Session (Journal Entry)

(picture - Aunty and Uncle's temple in their house)

Cultural Notes from This Morning Session: (quotes from Anne)

Me: Do you give things to your god?
Anne: Yes…
Me: What do you give?
Anne: rice, milk, flowers
Me: Why do you give things?
Anne: To keep bad things from happening.
Me: Does it happen sometimes that God likes what you give and doesn’t like what you give?
Anne: Yes…sometimes he is happy with it, sometimes he is not.
Me: How do you know?
Anne: If he is happy, then everyone will be okay, if he is mad or doesn’t like it then someone in the family may get sick, and maybe the doctor and even medicine won’t make him better- then we know that God is mad or doesn’t like the gift.
Me: If I have two jugs of milk- one is okay, but one is really good…does it matter which one you give to your god?
Anne: No, not at all- you’re just going to offer it and then take it back- he isn’t going to drink it because he’s not really there.

Hmm… “he’s not really there” – does she realize what she just said?
I feel a renewed burden for these people we live among. I feel even more today than before a real urgency to get these people these stories. I feel like how can they think these things and believe this? And then realize, they don’t know anything else…why wouldn’t they believe and follow what has been set before them for so many generations?

Oh, how hard it would be to live in a state of mind that bad things happen because God is angry, or that my offerings can make God happy…and yet- I do live like that most of the time. I do have the same mentality that if I bring good things to God, he will bless me. If I do not do good things or what He wants of me, then he may be upset. Yet, because of Jesus- God’s “happiness” doesn’t depend on me. He is happy with me and what I do- good or bad. Well, I mean, he doesn’t want me to sin and of course, I think he is “happy” when I please Him…but He sees us through Jesus and therefore sees us a perfect…

But you know what- I just realized their thinking of things doesn’t make sense to me. For example, if they give their god some milk (not the best milk, but just some milk). They said it doesn’t matter if it’s the best or not because you would just take it back anyway. So, say they give bad milk- then take it back…their god probably wouldn't like that offering since it was bad milk? Or, suppose they gave the best milk, but then something bad happened…what could they have done to avoid that? Is it just dependent on….say, the weather? I mean, is there any way to know what is pleasing to their god and what’s not?

Anne did say that you give different gifts to different gods…But, what if you were meaning to do the right thing, but accidentally gave Shiv some flowers, when he was really expecting rice? Oh man…to live having no idea if God would be pleased with me or not…to live not knowing which gift to give to which god, or if that god would only look at the gift- and not the motive of my heart. Even if I had right and pure motives, but unknowingly gave the wrong gift, or in someway displeased the god. I don’t think I could live like that- how can these people?
I guess, they just accept it…It’s something I noticed even working in the school for my student teaching- the way of education here is to accept everything you’re taught. Do not question your teacher- that would be disrespectful. Do not think for yourself, you obviously don’t know any better than these people who have gone before you and know more than you do.

I think that these barriers can only be broken if there is some major reason that causes them to wonder or really question what they believe- as long as life is going along as it should be…there would be no reason to change…Perhaps this is obvious; in any culture- if your life is “perfect” then why change it by trusting in something you don’t know much about…

Something needs to happen here- whether it is just individually, people realizing that there is no real peace in the gods they follow. Or if their lives need to have some harm come to them in spite of all the offerings they give…They need to realize what they believe in isn’t working, and will never work…and hasn’t work for those previous generations… What has to happen for them to realize that?

Wow…Father, please do your work- whatever that might be, however that might be. Through personal relationships with people, through these stories, through some dramatic intervention or some hardship, or some blessing that comes and is something beyond what their gods are capable of. Something that would show them there is something more- even if they don’t understand it all the way at first, but just something that will break them from their bondage of accepting the traditions. Something that will cause them to question what they believe, and really wonder about it- perhaps they will have to research it more to find out that it’s false. Perhaps they will start immediately looking for other ways…I’m sure it will be different for different people- but please, hurry and bring these people to you, however you desire for that to happen…

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Our session went well this morning. Our session went well- we finished the Fall, and started Cain and Abel- talked about half of it. We hope to finish talking about it next Tuesday and record it- thus we’ll have three stories….That doesn’t mean we have 3 stories completed. We still have to work on back-translations, sending them to be consultant checked, re-recording, testing them with groups of people, re-recording them if there is anything confusing in them or that needs to be changed. So there is still a lot of work to do before we can really say “we have 3 stories”- but still, it would feel good to have that done- especially since we leave on Wednesday for the village for a week and no storying stuff will really happen during that time.

Devotional thoughts... (Journal Entry)

So, I pulled out some of my devotional books and my Bible this morning to see if God might reveal to me more thoughts on the moving situation (maybe moving to Aunty/Uncle's to help with language stuff). I read Psalm 91…and found that God wants me to dwell in His presence…I am not sure where He wants me to “dwell” on earth, but know that He wants me to dwell in His shelter…

“He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the Lord, He is my refuge and my fortress, my God in whom I trust…

If you make the Most High your dwelling – even the Lord, who is my refuge – then no harm will befall you, no disaster will come near your tent. For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways, they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.”

The whole Psalm is about God’s protection and love for me, and how he will not let “pestilence” or “plagues” destroy me. He does care for me, and He wants me to focus on Him…

This was again confirmed in the devotion for today, May 11- from My Utmost for His Highest.

The title was first: “You Won’t Reach It On Tiptoe.” I thought I wonder if this is showing me I am “tip-toing” around situations and thus not reaching the goal of language, and stories, etc…But I was challenged, because the devotion was about love. It said, "God says, 'I will bring any number of people about you whom you cannot respect, and you must exhibit my love to them as I have exhibited it to you, You won’t reach it on tiptoe. Some of us have tried to, but we are soon tired…'

“Growth in grace stops the moment I get huffed. I get huffed beuase I have a peculiar person to live with. Just think how disagreeable I have been to God! Am I prepared to be so identified with the Lord Jesus that His life and His sweetness are being poured out all the time? Neither love nor Divine love will remain unless it is cultivated. Love is spontaneous, but it has to be maintained by discipline.”

So…hmm…a challenge to show love this morning. While I’m still trying to figure this out, I will accept your challenge this morning, Lord, and work at showing more love…I pray that our session this morning would be a good time of sharing together- that Anne would also feel “loved” by us, and that we would show love to each other in our communication.

Thoughts/Prayers for Partner... (Journal Entry)

So, we have no phone, no internet, and til yesterday we didn’t have water. Or well, we had water, but it had not completely filled up the tanks for the past few days. I have felt like I have no communication with the outside world…it’s strange because I don’t remember feeling this disconnected when we were in the village. I’m not happy or sad about it, it’s just a feeling I have. I have gotten over the initial shock of no internet. For the first few days, I check about 3 times a day to see if it would work. Now especially since we don’t have a phone line, there is no chance of it happening, so no point in checking!

Besides, I have a ton of work to do!!! Lord- I’m so glad you do know my heart. You know my desire for companionship- and a companion that longs to share struggles of serving you. A companion who can’t wait to get hot and sweaty, or freeze, for you!!! Someone who hardly complains, not because they are hesitant to share their true feelings, but because they truly don’t mind the negative circumstances. Or rather, they have such a positive attitude; they don’t see the circumstances as negative. A companion who is not blind to the world around him…someone who sees people as they are and can connect with them where they are…Someone who would be excited for me making a new friend or learning something new in a language. Someone who would encourage me when I don’t know what to do. Someone who would know when to give me advice and when to listen. Someone who is committed to you even more than he would be committed to me…

Right, I know such a person doesn’t exist. Haha, but that's good. I won’t have to waste my time looking :) And Father, perhaps I will go on several other trips like this one, and I’ll have a different companion for the journey- not a husband, but another partner. Goodness, I have no idea what you have planned- how cool to think that you know what’s going to happen this evening, tomorrow, next week, a year from now and the rest of my life!! Great!!! And, what’s even better, is I know I can trust you for that!!! I can totally trust you!

Thank you Jesus for restoring my relationship with God, so that I can call him Father and that I can trust him…

I also want to pray that I would become the woman you want me to become. I’ve asked you for a companion with specific characteristics, but have not in any way prayed about how I might be a companion to him!!!!

May you continue to work on me and show me my faults (uh oh, watch out!!!). Please show me where I can be a better companion, where I can improve in communication and can extend grace where it is needed, but also stand firm when I should. Please show me how I can encourage others, especially my partner. Help me to be able to read her well and know what her needs and wants might be and help provide for them as I am able, but also as you want me to- perhaps in some cases, you don’t want me to play that role- help me to know that too….

May you be preparing me now for the next companion I might have, whoever that might be.

Thank you for your provision for me. Thank you for guiding me thus far in working with my partner. Thank you for showing me your grace, when I’ve needed it (everyday!!). Thank you for helping me more recently to be able to stand firm when I’ve needed to and not give in to arguments.

I ask that you would continue to bless Robin’s and my relationship, partnership and friendship. I pray that you would continue to show both of us how we can work even better together, and how we can work in a way that brings the most glory to you!!! Thank you for giving us only what we can handle each step of the way…You are truly a good God.

Some people don't show up, others don't know the language (Journal Entry)

(picture- Robin and me, studying language)

The people we were supposed to meet today cancelled because they had company at their house. We drove over the NTD and found out only after getting there- ugh…All well. Sara had tried to call several times, but my phone never rang for some reason. All well…what to do.

We came back and Deepika and Pinky came over (the girls who live behind us). Deepika has asked us if we could type something for her. We asked if she could back-translate something for us. She had told us she doesn’t speak Kahani, but she can understand- we said that’s all we need- just tell us what the story says in English! She tried about 1 minute of the story- had to listen to it about 4 times before she could even attempt to tell it. She did okay, but I think we may know more Kahani than she does, so don't think that will work. I went to ask Precious to come to our house- but she had left for a wedding.

Anyway, we can’t go any further in the Creation story til we get it back-translated again…So we decided to start on the Fall story tomorrow with Anne. Then we’ll go back to the Creation story when we get it back-translated. Hopefully she won’t be completely confused about that!!! We will call our principal friend and ask him if he can do it for us tomorrow. We are also asking Anju if she knows of someone. We’ll see what happens…

The bike was fine today- stopping on a hill is tough, but we went through some areas today that were very similar to dirt biking- goodness, only God knew how that would be preparation for me!!

No water came again today…so no shower, which is nothing new. I had been washing my hair more frequently because of the heat, and sweating and especially because of the helmet! But I didn't not wash it today, and may not tomorrow too- I may end up looking like I live on the other side of the hill with the hippies!!!

A REAL motorcycle! (Email to Parents)

(picture - our bike in the doorway of the garage!)

6:05am MONDAY your time….(3:30pm, Monday, my time)
I’m writing to let you know we still can’t get on email….or internet at all- not sure why…other than it's Asia!

Anyway, if you don’t call before we get online, I’ll let you know we got another bike. It’s a “pukka” (real) bike…gears, clutch, etc…. It’s really great I went dirtbiking, because it is so much more similar to operating. Had I not gone dirtbiking, I am not sure I would feel as comfortable as I do---oh, we did kind-of hit someone on the way home. Our mirror hit theirs….we didn’t stop- not sure what to do in that situation....all well…..

Oh, and Daddy- I copied an article about our bike…it was rated #1 out of about 50 bikes…for being the best bike….I had the guy copy the article and I’ll send it to you. I think you’ll like reading about it.

I can’t believe we own a motorcycle….my goodness….so strange….I thought owning a scooter was odd…but a motorbike? And, especially since women don’t really drive them here….another advantage being a foreigner does for us. We can get away with that kind of thing!

Anyway…thank you for your prayers- please keep praying for safety especially as I learn more how it works!!!!!!!

Oh. I just found out that we don’t have any water. Or rather, we have some in our tanks, but they are really low….hmm. We have phone, but no water, no internet. I guess everything can’t work at the same time. That would expecting too much, or at least we can’t have it all at the same time for one complete day. They forgot to put that in the fine print on the registration form when I signed up for this! But then again, I believe I would still have come, even if I knew all these things. Who needs water anyway? We got a bike, what more do we need? Haha….oh goodness….can’t you wait to come here and visit me???? :)

Best Session Ever (Journal Entry)

Wow- today was perhaps our best session ever- a great note to end the week on. Pastor Moses was not there, we were not able to tell the story, our "plan A" was not possible. However, somehow, we were able to communicate to make the story shorter, to summarize, to put things in order, etc- and she did it…and we got it recorded. Anne made the comment when we were done, “I like being with you.” We told her, we like being with her too. We took some pictures too- and laughed a lot.

Anyway, I still think she is saying it from memory, rather than a natural story- but at least now it’s shorter, and more summarized, and things are in order more…I feel like we made great progress today. Now we have to get it back-translated and see if it’s biblically accurate!!!

We were a lot more relaxed in the session, and asked her a lot more questions - letting her lead in how to tell it, what to say, etc. We talked through each part rather than just try and get her to do the whole thing at one time. Don’t ask me why we didn’t do it like this on the first day…goodness!!! I apologized to Anne for mixing things up today- and told her we were learning about stories just like her- and she was doing an excellent job.

Another thing from today’s session- My limited knowledge of Kahani helped in several places. I was able to catch her saying the word for children (which is different than in Hindi), and was able to ask her to put that part later in the story (i.e. when God says to multiply and fill the earth). I was really impressed with how much I could follow along and stop her when I didn’t think something was right. Now, we’ve listened to the Book recording probably 5 times, and heard her tell the story about 10 times too- so you’d think I would have gathered something!

Another thing, and I have to write and tell Akash (my Indian friend from Delaware) this. Most of the words such as creation, sky, angel, etc- I actually learned when I was with Akash crafting the creation story. Those are words from Hindi- they don’t have them in Kahani and thus I had learned them with Akash when we did the creation story before. I would not have known much at all had he not helped me with that story. I’m starting to wonder about future stories- thinking I need to learn the vocab asap so I can at least follow along like I did for this one…Anyway, several times I thought back to those sessions in the Newark library or at BrewHaHa on Main Street with Akash discussing Creation and words, etc. It was not a crafting session like we do now, but similar, and lots of the words are the same as they are now…how cool….little did Akash know how much help he would be!

Anyway, the trip on the bike went well too; stopped to get gas- no problems. I am regretting only getting a scooter- it hardly has any power at all!! An actual motorcycle would have done better on the ruts and holes in the road, plus would have more power…more dangerous in ways, but actually more safe. Our little scooter isn’t make for these kaccha roads. All well- have to start somewhere…this gets us there and back…that’s good enough…for now… :) I do really feel like dirtbiking in Thailand prepared me best for driving here. I would be much more hesitant to go over the ruts and such here if I had not gone dirtbiking- and if you are hesitant, or go too slow, you just fall down (as I learned when we went dirtbiking). So key is to keep up speed (unless a truck is coming!)….and just take the bumps as best you can…our little bike hits them pretty hard.

It’s only 11:30- we are back already today…the whole afternoon to….study language!!! Well, maybe not the whole afternoon. We’ll have to get this story back-translated…Anyway, I’m disappointed, because now with a bike, I can only wear my clothes maybe twice before they are completely dirty and dusty. Before it was about a week I could go without washing them! Aw man!

Father, wow- thank you for an amazing week that is not over yet! Thank you especially for the time with Anne today. Not only did she seem more comfortable, but the story seems better too. Thank you that taking pictures seemed to ease any tension even more and that she is starting to see us as her friends- at least it appears that way. Thank you for her willingness to meet with us and for her interest in the work- may that develop into interest more in the stories and in You too.

Please give Robin and I a restful afternoon, but also productive. Help us to help each other with the work- and if we can split it up, help us to do that. Thank you so much for keeping us safe on the bike this week.

Through muddy puddles, cows, pigs (Journal Entry)

(picture - Panna - the lady who makes our lunch every day and helps us in the house!)

We are off to another storying session- this time we get to take the bike!!! Yeah! I hope we make it there!
I mainly pray for our session today- I pray that we would be able to complete the Creation story- not just to check it off and say it’s done, but to have a story as an example, and that Anne would feel like she has done something- one whole story. I pray that we would be able to explain the creation of the spirit world more and if she has more questions, she would ask- and I pray also for our comprehension- that we would understand her questions and when we ask her questions, that we would understand her answers. Please allow her to remember the stories- but not to have memorized them. Help the stories to sound natural- help Anne to relax….

I pray also for our meeting with these two other ladies- if they speak Kahani and understand English and want to work with us- praise the Lord! Even if only one of these things is true about them, help us to know how to best utilize them for the work and for your glory. I pray that we would have endurance to spend the time this morning- and into the afternoon in these meetings.

I pray also for both Robin and I to find someone to help us with language- I need to get to the neighbors house- help me to do that today. Help me to know if I should ask Precious to help or not…

Thank you Lord.

(picture: Me, Panna, Robin, Vivian)

-------------Later---------------
Goodness, another long day. We got the bike out from the lady’s roof- as she left us keep the bike inside her gate on her roof, up at the road. We set off- had trouble again starting the bike- but no problem, our friendly shopkeeper helped us. We traveled through muddy puddles, rocky terrain, cows, pigs, chickens, etc. Fortunately, there were no major problems- I put it on full throttle up the hills- we can only go about 40km/hour with both of us- Going down, we can go faster, of course. Anyway, we made it there- dusty and dirty, but safe and sound.

We met with Anne. She was surprised we were “early” (Even though we were 10 minutes late!). She retold the Gen 1-2 story. It was probably 10 minutes or so- WAY TOO LONG! She pretty much memorizes it- which is amazing, but not what we want! We discussed how to make it a little shorter. She had some good ideas. She then retold it from start to finish. We recorded it- it was 7 minutes. We said it would be great if the story could be about 5 minutes- so tonight we would think about it- and asked her to think about how to make it shorter, then tomorrow we would do it again, making it shorter still.

We then walked to Pastor Joseph’s- since it’s not far, and it’s also down some pretty steep kaccha rastas (not very good paths). We met two OLD women. Mrs. Alexander and Mrs. Wilson (!). Mrs. Alexander didn't speak English. Mrs. Wilson spoke very good English. In fact, though confusing, she said her mother was from Holland and adopted her, and that is why she knows English (we aren’t sure why she wouldn’t know Dutch- actually, maybe she does…).

Anyway, we explained probably 3 times what we wanted to do- Mrs. Wilson was quiet…We explained the whole thing- crafting the stories, taking them to the villages…Mrs. Wilson was concerned that the people don’t know how to read and write…

Us: Right! We aren’t going to write them down- just recording you saying them..
Mrs. W.- not write them down? Oh…that’s better…I think you need the younger generation for this- they can go places, I can’t go many places, I mean, I can, but it would be harder..
Us: Right! We do need the younger generation to take the stories, but we need you to help us make them!
Mrs. W- so what do you want us to do?
Then the whole conversation would start again…by the third time, she still seemed confused. We offered to show her what a session would look like- how to make a story. She agreed- Mrs. Alexander was a little lost throughout the whole thing as it was all in English- but Sara was there too and translated for her.

Mrs. A- I’m so old, you are young…(seeming to imply that she couldn’t do the work)…I said, “No, you are young!! We are all young- you can do it!!! We need you to help us!”
We asked Sara to explain that we can really benefit from her wisdom and insight and because she is old, people will respect her a lot more than they will respect us…Mrs. A seemed to be a little more willing after that.

So we played the Hindi scripture, and the Kahani scripture of the Tower of Babel story. I have to say, Mrs. A’s face lite up when she heard the Kahani scripture. She was nodding along with it in agreement and even speaking parts of it that she knew along with it! It was amazing- she was smiling the whole time. Her reaction was much more subdued when she listened to the Hindi. It was like the Hindi was even a foreign language for her- though she speaks it fluently. When the Word was played in her own language, she sat on the edge of her seat, much more interested. That was really cool to see- and just more confirmation that these stories, not just in a language they can understand, but in their own heart language can really make a difference…

We talked a little bit about it. We explained that perhaps since it was a short story- there wasn’t much to talk about. But for example, in the beginning it says that the people left and settled in a place called S...something. I said, for American people, they might not care about the name of that place or that they moved there, but perhaps for Kahani people that would be really important. If so, we’ll leave it in the story…if not, we don’t need to keep it in the story.

It was funny because Mrs. W said, “This is good but you need to start from the beginning..” We explained that yes, we were starting from the beginning- another girl was working on the first few stories. Mrs. W also said, “this story isn’t good- I mean, it’s the Book, so it’s good, but it doesn’t really teach anything- you need something like the Good Samaritan that teaches a good moral lesson.”

We explained, “Yes- and we might do that story! But, we want to start from the beginning and show them that God is powerful and different from their gods. We want to show that God wants to have a relationship with his people which is different from the Hindu gods.” They all nodded in agreement. “This story shows how man’s sin broke that relationship with God…” We also explained that this story is also not meant to be told in isolation- but along with other stories. We also said if we just tell NT stories, they may think Jesus is just another god- Sara agreed with us in that…

After some discussion, we asked Mrs. A- if she could retell the story in Kahani! She was really shy and nervous at first. After telling the story, Mrs. A seemed happy, but unsure how she did it. We all praised her a lot. She seemed happy. She said, “Today was my first day- I’m a student here.” We said, “You’re an A+ student. Great job!” Mrs. W also praised her saying her Kahani is really nice and she has a good voice.

Anyway, after arriving back, I tried to organize some language learning stuff- then headed to Champa’s to ask her if she could teach me. I was there about an hour or so, but with so many distractions- we didn’t really do any formal studying at all.

It’s already near 7:30pm- we’ve been working literally ALL DAY…I’m exhausted, but it does feel good to have done something today. I’m not sure when language learning is going to happen….hmm…Anyway, I need to go and try and get Precious from upstairs to back-translate this- I have no idea if she has time to do it or not…we’ll see…Then I plan to go to bed…driving the bike is also exhausting I think…riding a jeep is too- but bike is exhausting in its own way… Phew!

Indian comic

In the Indian newspaper I glanced at the store the other day, it had a picture of a man in the car shop. He had just bought a new car. He said to the dealer:

“I’m so happy I bought a new car. Now, can I keep it here til I find a place to park it and a road to drive it on?”

That is so true! Buying a car/motorcycle and keeping it somewhere and just driving it on the street is quite challenging!!

We got a bike!!!

So, we got a bike. It’s sitting upstairs right now. It’s ours…really ours. I drove it home today. We had to go around cars, jeeps, trucks, busses, cows, and a wedding parade. So much excitement!!!

A little bit after we left the shop, we ran out of gas…but no worries, I coasted back down the little hill and filled up the tank. Then we had trouble starting it…we asked two different guys, one finally did help us, but I think I knew more about the bike than he did! We said thank you and climbed on again. Man, it even has a rain cover on it and everything- so cool!!!!! It’s a nice little bike- I think more lightweight than the ones in Thailand as it seems a little more “skidish” and “wiggly”- which means it’s probably less safe, but it’s okay…

That was the most exciting thing that happened today…so far…

We did have our session with Anne- She retold both Gen 1-2. We discussed how to make Gen 1 shorter by summarizing what God made. At that point, Sam came in. We asked Anne what she thought about angels, and Satan…Sam kept butting in and saying, “she doesn’t know anything about them- we know, we believe this, but she doesn’t believe it, so she doesn’t know…” I would then ask her again and she would respond in agreement, “No, I don’t know…”

It was hard to get Sam to be quiet. Finally I didn’t yell but did kind of raise my voice a little and with a smile said (in Hindi)- “Yes, yes, we know she doesn’t know about this or understand, but we want to know whatever she knows- we want to know so that we can make the story more understandable for the Kahani people….if there is something they don’t understand, we want to know so we can make it easier for them…” I think he kind-of got it.

Anne then did tell us about something we think must be equivalent to ghosts. Unfortunately, the “ghost” means ‘meat’ in Hindi. I mean, if we say “ghost” it means “meat.” So, we tried to explain and they were totally confused why we were asking about meat. Ahhh!!! Anyway, I think we figured it out that when people are in the jungle, or it’s dark, they get scared and think that others who have died might be there…i.e. ghosts/spirits. Anne was cute in how she told it- unsure I think of Sam's response. He said, “What she is saying is true- this is right”- I think it was reaffirming for her to hear praise from him.

Anyway, we didn’t get much farther than that due to time. Then we went with Pastor Moses to get the bike- now we are at home. In an hour, we are going to Minna and Vimal’s to get some more Kahani recordings.

It turns out that on the way to our session this morning, Sara called me (pastor Joseph’s wife). She said she has two people who want to meet us tomorrow to find out more about our work and maybe they will help us. She said, “They are too old ladies…not very old, but pretty old.” Sara said, “They have some pahardi (mountina/Kahani) knowledge and also Bible knowledge.” I’m wondering if they really speak Kahani!! We’ll find out. We are supposed to go there after our session with Anne tomorrow- it will be another long day!

I really hope that these people can work out- mainly so that perhaps Robin and I can split up and work on stories simultaneously. We have been doing great together I think- but it will certainly speed things up if we can both be working on stories.

It may end up these women tomorrow may not know Kahani very well- but we could use them for cultural information or questions that we can’t understand Anne's answers to. Or, perhaps one of them could meet with Anita and us- and help translate stuff for us…though that might make Anita more nervous too. We are thinking that they may be more open with us and honest about cultural stuff since they are much older than us. We will see… I won’t get my hopes up for anything just yet.

"The Kahani people don't know this story." (Journal Entry)

Today’s session went well. It was just Robin, Anne and me. We started off with Anne retelling the story. She remembered the story and told it in Kahani really well (From what we could tell)! We praised her and then listened to Gen 1 in Hindi and Kahani. We talked about the story and asked her questions to get some cultural information.

What do you like in the story?
She hesitated at first, so we told her what we liked. I said I like that he made animals. Robin said she like how He made it “systematically.”
She then said she liked how he made the stars in the sky and the trees and plants.

What do you think Kahani people would like in the story?
The stars and the trees and plants.

What do Kahani people think about how the world was made?
I don’t know…God made it…I don’t know…

What do you think/what would Kahani people think about the part that God made people like himself? (For this, I had no idea how to say it, so I showed her the kumaoni scripture portion and asked her what people would think about that…)
They would think it was good. –She gave more answer, but we couldn’t understand, so we recorded it- will get it back-translated at some point.

What do you think/what would Kahani people think about God blessing people?
They think it’s good.

Does it happen here?
Yes…if you do your prayers and good work, then God will bless you. If you don’t do your prayers, then he won’t.

What do you think people will think about the story, since Adam and Eve (in this story) didn’t really do any prayers or work, but still God blessed them?
It’s okay…if God doesn’t bless someone then they will think that there isn’t a god, or that he isn’t here. So he should bless them. Again, she said more, but we had to record it, I couldn’t figure it out.
(picture - Hanging out with Aunty and Uncle)
What do you think about God making the earth in 6 days…is that important, or could you just say, “When God made the world, he made tress, animals, light, etc…”- is it necessary to say what happened on each day?
Yes, it is important…and then on the 7th day he rested. People don’t know why they have holiday on the 7th day- on Sunday. They will hear this and know why…

We discussed this for a while- trying to get her to think more along the liens of “summarizing” rather than mimicking the recording- as I think that is what is happening. She finally did say, “Either way is fine- to say each day, or tell all what he made, but that he rested at the end is important.”

We listened to the recording in Kahani and Hindi once more- and told her we would do the story tomorrow. We ended with her telling a childhood memory. She did a good job.

It was a good session. We go back tomorrow. I think the plan is to have her tell the story/what she can remember of Gen. 1- and then talk about putting the two stories together…PLUS adding the spirit world part. We got Pastor Moses to translate what we had written into Hindi and then we’ll have her translate it into Kahani. It is NOT how a story should be crated- going from English to Hindi to Kahani. But we don’t have the scriptures available for all the anchors for the spirit world story. And, it would probably be really confusing to Anne to hear all these references and then to be asked to make a little story about it- it was hard enough for us in English! We will come back to it- we’re just getting it done for now…That is what Jimmy and Jeff did too…so…guess it’s okay!! Haha..

So this afternoon or sometime today we still need to, get back-translation of Anita’s retelling of Gen. 2. That will involved either waiting until Precious is home from school and hopefully she would have some time…(Precious is the girl behind us who speaks English and Kahani). Or there is the retired principal who I met on the road one day who offered help who could do it. Or we could call one guy we met who works in a school and either he could do it (For now) or perhaps he could suggest one of his students. The issue right now is that all students are really busy with papers and exams. We may not have much luck with them right now.

---------Later--------

So you would have though most of our work was done for the day…but no, not quite yet.
I called the principal, he said he was busy, maybe we could come on Friday. He actually asked if we could come at 9am, but we told him we had other meetings then. About an hour later, he and his wife showed up at our house! We discussed the back-translation stuff with him and he back-translated our story!!!! We didn’t really tell him what we were doing, rather just that we needed a story translated from Kahani into English. After hearing the story the first time he said, “This is a story from Christian mythology…but she didn’t tell the whole story, there is more to it…” He then told us the story again and started telling us about the Fall too, and Paradise Lost!

Afterwards he asked, “Why do you want this?- This is not a Kahani story, this is an English story…The Kahani people don’t know this story…this is just an English story translated into Kahani…” It was really interesting to hear his point of view on the story- I wanted to say, “Right!!! They don’t know this story, that’s why we’re getting it into their language! Cool huh?”

Anyway, in the back-translation, it came out that Eve made Adam her slave and Adam forgot about his parents and left them and lived with Eve. They lived in nakedness and didn’t mind about it because they had pure thoughts….So- that’s one thing we have to fix in the next retelling!!! He said a few times that Eve was beautiful- I’m not sure if that’s in there, or not…but we may check that too.

I’m also a little concerned that the story was more memorized than a summary or a story form…but that may take time to happen…

We also asked the shopkeepers upstairs if they knew where we could park our bike if we get one. They were so helpful and nice and said they would help us. They said, “during the day, it’s fine- we are here, we’ll watch it for you…during the night, you can keep it in our shop…” We still have to “arrange” it with them for sure tomorrow- but in general, it’s such a sense of community here, I’m not concerned about it at all- I trust them to take care of us and the bike…and do whatever they can to help us.

You are like Daddy... (Email from Mommy)

Elizabeth,

...You are like Daddy in avoiding conflict and you are right - it is not always good. That is what Dave S. (associate pastor/former Worker in S. America) was trying to tell you - plan a strategy ahead of time of dealing with differences, disagreements, etc. I think you guys do that well. Of course it helps that you are so agreeable. But there are areas where you will not bend - like when it comes to the project - and that is healthy. Yes, I am the one with the job of bringing up unpleasant things with Daddy and he hates it - but it isn't always between us - it may be things that he needs to think about in regard to the kids or others. It's dangerous to think that you are humble - and be proud of it.

You are wise to guard against that, but you are wise to recognize that you are an agreeable person so that when you have an opinion it's fine to voice it and act on it. In fact it's very important to!

I can't believe your bruises from dirtbiking!! My word - you really had a rough day!

I am off and running to testing today and meeting with my two gals while the kids are testing. We are meeting at Laura's house.
Love and Miss you lots!

Mommy

The most agreeable person in the world! :) (Email to Mommy)

I am realizing that I must be the most agreeable person in the world. No, seriously, I very rarely bring up issues, I never start a conflict. I’m very agreeable and whatever anyone else wants to eat, or do, I’m fine with. Really….haha…I know I have my issues, of course.

And yet, I actually am not so sure this is a good thing- I think there should be someone in the relationship (partnership or marriage!haha) who isn’t “afraid” of conflict and can bring it up- because sometimes (though maybe not all the time) it does need to be discussed. Who usually brings it up between you and Daddy? I’m thinking you probably. I’m more like Daddy- avoid conflict at ALL costs!!! I am glad that Robin brings things up more, even though I know it's hard for her too!

Anyway, just random thoughts this evening.

Love ya!

Second Storying Session! (Journal Entry)

(pic- Robin, me, Anne)
------Before Storying Session-------
We’re off to our second storying session this morning…I’m excited and nervous again. I hope we get some kind of recording done today, that would be encouraging.

Both Robin and I think we should add Gen.1 to the story, but I don't think we'll add it today- as perhaps that would cause more confusion and would make Anne feel like there is a whole lot more to learn. We would try and do the Gen. 2 story, and then tomorrow add Gen. 1 to it…not sure how that will work, I still kind-of feel it would be better to add it all at once, but perhaps that Gen. 2 part won’t change that much after adding Gen. 1.

Basically, we have to try stuff- and this is one thing we’re trying…who knows how it will work.

Lord- I want to praise you today. After learning more about Daniel and how he praised you- I want to praise you too!!! I want to go up on the roof and sing your praises to all the Kahani people. If only that was an acceptable thing to do in this culture!!! You are wise and good and strong and kind and you are the one who determines everything that happens or doesn’t happen.

Father, I do not praise you because I want something. You already know my needs, and have provided for me. You know my desires too, and are answering those requests before I even ask of you. How great it is to be able to just sit in your presence and think about how wonderful you are! Wow! You are amazing, God- thank you for being you!

As we have already prayed, I will ask again for your blessings on the storying session today…Please guide our conversation- guide my Hindi and comprehension in the langauge. Please give Robin amazing insight into the language and the scriptures. Help me to humble myself to ask her opinions too. Help us both to realize we are in this together.

I ask these things in your name, Amen

---------After Storying Session ----------
So, we had our second storying session. It went better than the first I think…

We arrived a little early (since we take public transportation there is no knowing when we’ll actually arrive). We started right in on asking Anne some questions that she had been embarrassed to answer previously when Sam was there. She gave some interesting answers.

“What do Kahani people think about death?”
- If a man did good work in his life, he will be with God. If he did bad work, then… (I couldn’t understand what she said at this point- we asked her to repeat the answer, and we recorded it- will ask someone later to translate it for us).

“What do Kahani people think about the part in the story when it says, the man and woman will leave their parents?” (as in Indian culture, the woman moves in with the husband’s family). She said, "These days, this is okay. This happens. A man and woman do live separately.
I asked, “But normally it's not okay, right?”
She said, "Right, but if Kahani people hear that God said to do this, they will do it."

Well, that’s good to know. Robin made the comment that these stories could totally change their culture!!!

We asked to retell as much of the story as she could remember. She was nervous, but said okay. She asked if she should retell it in Hindi or Kahani. I explained that the final recording and retelling would be in Kahani, but since we don’t know Kahani as much as Hindi, she should retell it in Hindi.

And she did. She got nearly every single detail- amazing.

We listened to the Kahani scripture again (clarification - a translation team had previously translated Genesis and Mark at this point). At that point Sam came in. We continued listening and then discussed the story a little more. We then took a 5 minute break.

Then we asked if Anne could retell the story, in Kahani and we would record it. We explained it was the first time, so it’s okay if she doesn’t remember all of it. We explained that we would record it a lot, so it was okay if she messed up or whatever. She got a nervous look on her face, and asked to listen to the recording again. Robin and I explained that maybe it would be good for her to try first, then we would listen again, then she could record again…we don’t want her to just memorize the recorded scripture.

She was still really nervous and kept saying, “I don’t remember it…” We started the recorder and she kind-of started, but stalled a lot, and fidgeted with her hands, clearly very nervous. Sam kind-of tried to help, but we told him to be quiet…

We stopped the recording, and then listened to it again- unsure how to handle the situation. She had told the story so wonderfully only about ½ hour previously- what was the deal now?

After the recording, we asked if she could tell it. She said, “okay”- but still seemed very hesitant. She started, but stopped several times. It seemed clear that she was embarrassed because Sam was there, but we didn’t really know what to do because of that. I asked her, “Why is it hard- because there are a lot of people here? Is it hard because there is electricity? I was trying to make a joke and break the tension and it worked. We all laughed! Is it because it’s in Kahani now?

She said, “No, it’s because I can’t remember.”
I said, “No, that’s not true- you already told the story to nicely this morning…now you don’t remember?”
She said, “Right, I don’t remember.”

We listened to Genesis 1 recording in Kahani twice and then said we were finished with the story work for today. We said tomorrow we would put Gen 1 and 2 together.

Then, we asked her if she could tell a joke or memory from her childhood for us to learn language with. She said yes, but then couldn’t. I said, I think it’s because you feel embarrassed because Sam is here??? I was trying to make it a joke so Sam didn’t feel bad and so she could admit that was the reason. Sam actually got the hint and said, “Yes…tomorrow, just Anne will come alone, I won’t come.”

I said “okay…” amazed that he offered that solution on his own.

After this, we prayed- Sam prayed for us so Anne could understand. Then Anne went to her sewing class. We asked Sushil if he could read Hindi Gen. chp 1 for us and we could record him. Our recording of Gen. 1 was not very good so we wanted to get it again. He agreed. After that we also talked about Anne. I told him, before you came, she was talking a lot…He said, “that is the way with all Indian girls. In front of a man, they feel embarrassed and won’t talk…It’s okay- you try with her alone and see how it goes." I said, we would try and we would talk to him about it- I didn’t want him to feel completely left out or as if we don’t need him anymore.

We then talked with the ladies who were sewing on our way out. The teacher of the class said,
Teacher: “How long is the story Anne is supposed to learn?”
Me: “Not too long…”
Teacher: “She said she couldn’t do it.”
Me: “Oh no, she did do it- she did a great job too!!! She really did do it!!!”

I felt bad that Anne perhaps felt incompetent and even told her teacher about it. But I truly think it was because Sam was there- I can’t wait til tomorrow to see if she can retell it- just as she did the Hindi –nearly perfectly! I hope she doesn’t get discouraged from today. I had made a big deal when she finished the Kahani- saying, “Your first story- awesome, that was great, you did a good job…etc.”

Anyway, we talked with Pastor Moses afterwards about Sam. He totally agreed and he said, “Plus, Sam has a ‘christian mind’ so he doesn’t know about the culture and other things…” I feel like God is keeping Pastor Moses in step with us, or one step ahead – just knowing how and why things are the way they are. He was supportive of whatever we needed.

We also asked him how much a motorbike would cost. He said about 30,000 rupees- which is about $750.00. We asked about insurance, helmets, and didn’t think to ask, but Pastor Moses offered information about licenses too. He said he would help us get one if we wanted to get one.

I’m not sure what to do. We still need to find out how much gas would cost. Right now, we are spending about a dollar a day in transportation- so getting it would not cut down on cost of transportation- it’s still cheaper to go public transportation. It would cut down on time mainly…is that all? Is that reason enough to get it? It would add a little bit in other areas- figuring it out/how to drive in the mountains, care/maintenance- is that a reason not to get it?

I am still wondering if moving to the other side of town isn’t the best option…why get a bike if we should just move? I don’t know…the other thing is if we do move or if we don’t- there are still people on both sides of the city that we would need to be in contact with and use. The other people that Pastor Joseph’s wife told me about live on the other side of the city too…

I think later today, I’ll go ask that our neighbor who speaks English and Kahani if she can be a back-translator for us….hmm….we’ll see…I do need to research the Exodus story some more, maybe I’ll do some of that…how impersonal- sitting in front of the computer….ugh! Haha, all well.

First Storying Session ever! (Journal Entry)

Well, we had our first storying session.

It was…different than what I expected in many ways.

Anne was there when we got there, so we sat and talked with her some (in Hindi). I tried in my broken Hindi to explain what we were going to do. We listened to the Kahani recording first. When it was finished she asked, “Is there more?” I said, “yes, but we’ll do this part today.” She understood and said okay- then she asked if she was supposed to retell the story. I said, “no, we’ll listen to it a few more times, and talk about it.” She was relieved as she said, “I can’t remember all of it!”

Sam came in right about that time, and apologized for being late. He sat down and I explained slowly, (in English) the same thing I had just to Anne. He didn’t really respond, so I asked in Hindi if he understood what I said- he said yes.

We started with Genesis 2, thinking that would be a simpler story to start with. But Sam stopped us about ½ way through and said, “what about the first seven days? Did you just skip them?” We explained that we didn’t skip them, we would do a story about them- we were just starting with Gen. 2 for today. He was still confused for a long time as to why we didn’t include that part. Anne was of course left out since she doesn’t know the story of creation. It required a lot of patience from us as he kept saying, “on day one, day two- you have to include that…”

We kept listening to the recording… Sam stopped it again and said, “The names of the four rivers isn’t important.” Great! A great crafting note- we know not to include the names of the rivers. We asked Anne what she thought the Kahani people would think about rivers and names of rivers- she also said it wasn’t important.

Sam left at one point and I asked Anne what other part she thought was important or not important. She said that having that God made Adam and that from Adam God made Eve was very important. I didn’t get to ask her “why” it was important.

We asked Anne if had a story like this. She said yes, but she didn’t know the whole thing. Sam said that there was the science story that said we came from a monkey. I think he doesn’t know the Hindu/cultural stories. He has grown up a Christian and therefore, is also unaware (as we are) of the Hindu cultural stories.

Then, the instructor for the sewing class came in. We moved to another room. We had 30 minutes left, and at that point realized that no recording was going to happen today. We discussed the story- which was all in Hindi. I went through and asked how the kumaoni people would like/not like certain parts of the story. I asked what parts of the story were important and which parts weren’t. All of the answers came from Sam. Anne just sat there. I directed several questions to her, but he answered. A few times, I said, “okay, this is just for Anne”- she would kind-of answer, and then Sam would also comment. It was really hard to get Sam to be quiet and to hear what Anne's thoughts were.

It was hard becuase sometimes I could ask a question, but didn't understand their answers at all. So what was the point in even asking the question? Man, I have to learn more language!!

At the end of the session, we asked when they could meet next- Anne offered Monday...All in all, it was a good first session….but we have a long way to go!

Fasting and Prayer (Journal Entry)

Day of Fasting for Story-crafters and Kahani People

“Praise the name of God forever and ever,
for he alone has all wisdom and power.
He determines the course of world events;
he removes kings and sets others on the throne.
He gives wisdom to the wise
and knowledge to the scholars.
He reveals deep and mysterious things
and knows what lies hidden in darkness,
though he himself is surrounded by light.
I thank and praise you, God of my ancestors,
for you have given me wisdom and strength.
You have told me what we asked of you
and revealed to us what the king demanded.”

~ Daniel 2:20-23

Praise the Lord for our story-crafters. Praise the Lord for He alone knows who will be the ones to accomplish his work here among the Kahani people. He is the one who decides who the story-crafters will be. He is the one who knows who the story-crafters will not be. He knows how long we will have to wait until a story is complete. He knows how hard we will have to work to get a story right. He knows how patient our story-crafters will have to be with us as we learn. He knows how patient we will have to be with them as we work with them.

Father, you know all things- what a glorious thought. My prayer today is specifically for Sam and Anne. These two people have agreed to work with us- they know somewhat what they are getting into. Probably they know about as much as we do! We aren’t even sure what we’re getting into! We know it is your work and you’ve called us to it- and that is enough for me. I feel I have already learned a lot from researching all that is behind your word. Thank you for the provision of commentaries and resources to learn more from your word.

I pray now for Sam. He is a young man, eager to serve you. He seems a little more literate than we would prefer, but perhaps he will become more non-literate through this process! If he is literate, it is probably that he is respected, and that is not a bad thing. He grew up in the city- again not a bad thing, but does mean that his Kahani is not very good. Please help him as he works with us not to feel as if his Kahani isn’t good enough, but to acknowledge that he too can learn- from Anne. I pray that his background in the church and a Christian family will only aid the project. I pray that he will not try and force things just because it is the way he has heard them. The same prayer I pray for Robin and I- as it is so easy to refer back to the stories we heard in Sunday school and think they are direct from your word. However, so often they miss something amazing or they skip over something important. Please help Sam to learn so much about you through this process. Help him to be humble and really desire to learn. I pray that he won’t feel awkward meeting with three women- but that he would take somewhat of a leader role, but not dominating. I pray that he would see Anne not only as a partner in this work, but also as a girl who needs to know about Jesus. Please help him in his communication with us to remember that he is setting an example for her. I pray that there would be clear communication (in English or Hindi) between Sam and us. I pray that you would change Sam through this process- change him to be more like you.

I pray for Anne. Father, she is not your child, yet. She may never have heard some of the stories we will be sharing. Wow- what an opportunity for her to hear, and for us to share with her. Lord, please give her wisdom in knowing what parts of the stories will connect with the Kahani audience. Please help her to be honest with us in sharing aspects of the culture and religion that may affect the stories. I pray that she does not feel scared, worried or as if we are the ones with all the knowledge. I pray that she would quickly feel comfortable with us- not just as fellow workers on the stories, but as friends. May we somehow establish a great friendship with her. Through our friendship, through the stories- may she know more about You and your love for her. Please open her heart and mind to the stories and what you want to teach her through them. I pray that she would be a great story-teller too…that she would be able to craft stories that people would want to listen to and would want to hear more. I pray that she would craft the stories in a way that is accurate and true. Please help her not to feel bad as the first time a story is crafted it is just the beginning of the process and that it can/will be changed several times. Please help her not to be discouraged when we have to re-do a story. Help her to understand we want to make it better than it was before.

Father, please open the hearts of the Kahani people. Prepare them for the stories from your Word. Prepare the people in the city- the ones who speak Kahani and the ones who don’t- prepare them for the worldview shift that may come from these stories. Prepare the Kahani people in the village. They seem to far from knowing about you. Please give them understanding into the stories when they hear them. Give them a desire to know more and to know you. Show them that these stories are true and they offer eternal life and peace. Help them realize they do not need to change their lifestyle- they do not need to change their clothes, their language, or their culture. Give them insight into the stories- may they become even more excited about you than we are!! May the people worship you and praise you because of the truth they will hear in the stories.

I pray that the Kahani people would respect the story-teller who may travel to their villages and homes. I pray that they would not think the story-teller is anyone special, but that the stories are about Somenoe who is indeed special. I pray that they would see that Someone as one who is personal, unlike the ones just sitting on the shelf.

Meeting with Robin and Family stuff (Journal Entry)

(sign in the bazaar!)

So, today we to our friend's house and asked them to record the first few chapters of Genesis in Kahani. It was fun to finally be doing something related to our story work (not language or cultural learning) and that also involved the people directly. I can’t wait until Saturday!!! I’m trying not to get too excited!

Robin and I met today for about 2 hours. We had a bunch of misc things to discuss related to the Creation story for Saturday as well as references for Irene (the woman working in another city on the written Word for the Kahani people) for the rest of the stories in our story set. It was a lot of business stuff to figure out, and could have been really stressful, but I was amazed. With only 1 or 2 minor disagreements, we were able to accomplish what we wanted to and even decide our prophesy story without getting on each other’s nerves or getting into a conflict!

I do think both of us have pride issues. Our conflict seems to sprout when one of us is not good at something and has to admit it to the other, or has to back down from something becuase the other person can do it better!

Anyway, tonight I asked our neighbor, "Precious" to help me with some Kahani questions, and since she speaks English think she could work as a back-translator.

I talked to Aunt Gayle tonight- it's so strange to talk to someone from America besides my mother for more than 20 minutes. It was good to hear about some things happening at home, and I asked her to be honest with me and keep me informed and if she ever feels I need to come home to tell me.

I do feel burdened now more than before for my family. I am away from home, though not unaware that things are happening at home. However being away does distance you to some extent from the problems and things going on. No matter how much communication there is, I can’t know everything – and even if I did, what could I do? I'm so glad that Mommy does keep me informed as much as she does. At least I can pray for them.

How AMAZING! (Journal Entry)

HOW AMAZING! Can you believe it? Well, God, of course you can believe it- you orchestrated it!! I’m just shocked at how you answered my prayer (our prayers) in this way. And to think even this morning, I was praying to you and confessing my unbelief and doubtful attitude…and, boy you showed me. I thank you so much for showing me that indeed you are in control. I thank you for arranging this meeting. Even if nothing works out- I have new energy and excitement for the work and more faith in you!!

I praise you for Robin too- it seems that we have begun to enjoy each other more. It seems that we are both excited about this work- more than before. Just as I am adjusting to things and yes, as I change my perspective on things, she is too!

God, I do thank you for the attitude we have been able to have with each other- being away from each other some in Thailand was helpful and healthy. Please bless our friendship. Please bless our partnership. May we not just see each other as a co-worker. May we see each other as friends too and not lose that friendship. Please help us to be honest with each other and trust each other too. Please be in the midst of our communication.

Please help us to quickly figure out how to divide the work- as it already seems cumbersome to both be working on the same things. I pray that however we divide it will work out well and we will enjoy the part of the work we do- and that we will succeed in it…not just for our own sake, but for the sake of the project. I pray that the part of the work we dislike, we will persevere and do it anyway because it needs to be done, if nothing else.

Thank you for giving us this work to do…what an honor.

God provided some people to work with!!! (Email to team)

April 25, 2006- Email sent to supervisors, tr workers.

Hello! We met with pastor Moses today because he said he had two people who could possibly help us. (Pastor Moses is one of the local pastors we talked to about finding a story crafter before we left).

We met "Anne" and "Sam". Sam is a believer and attends Pastor Moses’ church. He wants to be involved with some sort of ministry and is currently traveling to different villages to preach there. He speaks English, Hindi and some Kahani and is free to work with us any time. Anne is not a believer. Right now, she is attending sewing classes that are held at Pastor Moses’ church. She lives in a village 5-6 km away (1 hour) but comes every day (Mon-Sat) for classes, which are from 11am-2pm. She speaks Kahani, and Hindi. During our conversation with them, Sam said that Anita’s Kahani was better than his. They also said that they speak the same dialect of Kahani. We kind-of explained what the crafting process will look like. They are both willing to work with us, without pay.

We hope that Sam will act more as a translator and since Anne's Kahani is better, she would take on more of the crafting role.

We have set a time to craft our first story, Creation, on Saturday morning before the sewing class. Pastor Moses offered the use of the church as a meeting place, so we’ll meet there.

We’re planning on asking two other friends to record Genesis 1-2 in Hindi. We will play this for Sam and Anne on Saturday, thus keeping the crafting process as oral as possible.

On Saturday, we’ll see how the crafting session goes and how often they can meet with us.

We also asked Anne today if there was someone else from her village who could come teach us language- possibly while Anne is in her sewing class. She said she would try to think of someone.

We never expected something to happen this quickly. We are both encouraged by meeting Sam and Anne and look forward to Saturday! Thanks again so much for your help and support.

~ Elizabeth and Robin

25 stories to complete by December!

Email Update- April 20, 2006

Short Version
Training…25 stories to complete by December!!!
P & P

Training:
Our training this time looked a little different from last time. While we had some group discussion time, we also had several opportunities to discuss our project with our consultant and with other teams. (Our consultant will visit the project at various stages to provide feedback and check the work. Once story-crafting begins, we will be in constant communication with her over email).

Meeting with other teams was a blessing and I think will be the most fruitful part of our trainings. Hearing other teams’ stories and what worked and what didn’t was encouraging and motivating. While figuring out our own plans was stressful at times, it was being able to talk it through with others who have gone before that helped make it easier!

We have a goal to complete approx. 25 stories by December. Between other trainings we have and other times when we’ll be away from our people, this comes down to completing about 1 story a week. Thus, we’ll be very busy from now til then! We also need to find a story-crafter to do the work with us!! Please be praying for this person over the next week. If we don’t find someone soon, we will attempt to work with our language helper and her sister to begin crafting stories.

We fly back on Saturday and will arrive in Kahan on Monday morning.

P & P
* Praise for productive meetings with consultants and other teams.
* Praise for encouragement from our fellow workers.
* Praise for times of “fun” during training too! (hiking, driving a motorbike and dirtbike, playing Frisbee, etc)
* Pray for safety traveling back (2 planes, 1 taxi, 1 train, 1 jeep)
* Pray for God to direct our steps to meet a story crafter within the next week!!!
* Pray for increased language learning- as we need to learn a lot more in order to understand the stories and really get into it!
* Pray for Robin’s and my relationship as we enter into a different aspect of the work now and figure out how to ‘divide and conquer!’

Thank you for your faithfulness in prayer and for the letters that some of you sent- they were a huge encouragement to me.

~ Elizabeth
“Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know.” Jeremiah 33:3

Ready to go!

So, I feel really refreshed and encouraged today. I feel ready to return to our people and start our work. I have SO MUCH to learn, but have so much excitement to learn it! I am not sure how I’ll go about it- but can’t wait to figure it out!

Another package!

YEAH!!! ANOTHER PACKAGE!!!

Twizzlers!

Yea for twizzlers that came in a package!!!

(Conor, Clayton and Nathan - sons of some of the teams here)

Devotional...

Streams in the Desert- April 9, 06

“Everything is against me!” Genesis 42:36
“All things God works for the good of those who love him.” Romans 8:28

“Many people are lacking when it comes to power. But how is power produced? The other day, my friend and I were passing by the power plant that produces electricity for the streetcars. We heard the hum and roar of the countless wheels of the turbines, and I asked my friend, “How is the power produced?” He replied, “It simply is generated by the turning of those wheels and the friction they create. The rubbing produces the electric current.”

In a similar way, when God desires to create more power in your life, He creates more friction. He uses this pressure to generate spiritual power. Some people cannot handle it, and run from the pressure instead of receiving the power and using it to rise above the painful experience that produced it.

Opposition is essential to maintaining true balance between forces. It is the centripetal and centrifugal forces acting in opposition to each other that keep our planet in the proper orbit. The propelling action coupled with the repelling counteraction keep the earth in orbit around the sun instead of flinging it into space and a path of certain destruction.

God guides our lives in the same way. It is not enough to have only a propelling force. We need an equal repelling force, so He holds us back through the testing ordeals of life. The pressures of temptations and trials and all the things that seem to be against us further or progress and strengthen our foundation.

Let us thank Him for both the weights and the wings He produces. And realizing we are divinely propelled, let us press on with faith and patience in our high and heavenly calling.

In a factory building there are wheels and gearings,
There are cranks, pulleys belts either right or slack –
Some are whirling swiftly, some are turning slowly,
Some are thrusting forward, some are pulling back;
Some are smooth and silent, some are rough and noisy,
Pounding, rattling, clanking, moving with a jerk;

In a wild confusion in a seeming chaos,
Lifting, pushing, driving – but they do their work.
From the mightiest lever to the smallest cog or gear,
All things move together for the purpose planned
And behind the working is a mind controlling,
And a force directing, and guiding hand.

So all things are working for the Lord’s beloved;
Some things might be hurtful if alone they stood;
Some might seem to hinder, some might draw us backward;
But they work together, and they work for good,
All the thwarted longings, all the stern denials,
All the contradictions, hard to understand.
And the force that holds them, speeds them and retards them,
Stops and starts and guides them – is our Father’s hand.

Misc stuff (Email to Parents)

This morning- Jeff, Shanna and Jimmy helped lead our session. Then I met with Lori- the language person. My Hindi is good, but Kahani is suffering- she wants me (And Robin) to meet with David or Stephen to discuss our dialect issues and what exactly we should do/where we should live/etc.

I walked away a little frustrated. I feel like we were told to find a story crafter- and not focus as much on language, and now she tells me our language basically isn’t good enough….Ahh!! I know, it’s all good- I really like Lori a lot- she is so good…

Anyway….it was good….but I feel a little overwhelmed too. Part of me really wants wants to go back (today even!) and started really cramming on the language…and start working with that girl I met who speaks English and Kahani- if her Kahani isn’t good- we’ll try her mom. So many of the teams had to try lots of stuff before they figured it out. We haven’t hardly tried anything.

Ugh.

Anyway, I went to dentist- the little thai lady doctor was so sweet. She said, “Oh, your tooth is so cute!” I tried to persuade her to just take it out- but she told me to come back Tuesday- the ortho. Doc. isn’t there today or something like that. Anyway, I also bargained for the price even though we were in a really sophisticated office building. It was $10.00 for the xray I had…she said it looks like it will come out- no problem, so that’s good….

I played Frisbee game with random people this afternoon- was really hot, but lots of fun..It’s so great to actually really run around- good for my body too I think….

We're going to listen to some Brian Regan (a comedian) now I think….Then bed…I feel pretty tired out already….

LOVE YA!

~ Elizabeth

Hello from Thailand (Email to Parents)

I’m here, back in Thailand, back from the retreat. All went well. Things are quickly getting busy around here- I had forgotten how last time things were actually pretty busy- even for email…I will try and stay in touch as much as possible…

Anyway, I'll try and use skype to call you...should be cheaper that way. I love riding my motorbike aroudn town…it’s so freeing!

It’s SO HOT here though. I had a nice afternoon- sat by the pool, (I’m really getting brown!!)…read some, read all my letters from people…and then played with the kids in the pool for a bit. Was really relaxing. Training starts at 9am tomorrow…

We (Shanna, Jeff- oh, they are now engaged!!!!!...Heather, Amanda, another Heather, Jimmy and I) went on bikes to this waterfall yesterday. It was REALLY hot, but really fun- Amanda and Jimmy actually slid down this rock slide thing into the water- was realy cool! And these Thai kids were jumping off this really high rock into the water…reminded me of when we went to the Lake and jumped off those cliffs! We had to hike a lot to get there, up rocks and stuff- was really fun and a nice chance to just relax!

Bye for now…

~ Elizabeth

NEWSLETTER (Jan -March 2006)

For January to March 2006 Newsletter, click on link below:

http://elizabethasia.googlepages.com/ElizabethNewsletterJan-March2006FORb.pdf

Note: You may need adobe acrobat to view the file. A free reader can be downloaded from Abobe. (http://www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/readstep2.html ).