Jaimashi! This saying is how Christians in India greet each other. This past July I had the privilege to go on missions to North India with KCM. Initially, I wasn’t sure how to react when I was told I would be going to North India. I half knew I would get India because I marked the country preferences equally but I still thought there might be a slight possibility that I go somewhere else. But lo and behold I was placed in North India with a few people I had previously known, but many that I didn’t. But after meeting our leaders and the rest of the team I felt a little relieved because I could tell everyone was willing to serve, and I was excited to know that these would be the brothers and sisters I would walk, sweat, and serve alongside for the next couple of weeks. 

As we trained week after week and the trip got closer, I became more thankful that God placed me on this team to see how He was moving in India. It was so hard for me to imagine how God could move in a country where almost 98% of the population is Hindu. I was limiting God’s power to only the things I’ve seen and experienced, so as the trip got closer I became more curious and excited to experience how God was moving in India.

It was so surreal to see our home base in Jalpaiguri because the campus is a testament to the missionary and staff’s faithfulness to serve and God providing everything to build that school through the years. We got to talk with our missionary and hearing his story and heart of how he came to start the school humbled me. It put into perspective how willing the missionaries in India are to sacrifice their wants and needs to serve the kingdom of God. I also got to talk with some of the staff at the school and I was just able to hear of the different ways God has provided and moved in each of their personal lives. 

One thing I was blessed by in India was the privilege to love on the kids and build relationships with the staff/pastors in these different villages. It was such a joy to love the kids through the littlest of things like a high five, waving to them from afar, or even just standing near them to remind them that they are seen. I was reminded of the song “For the One” and strived to have a heart like the chorus says: 

“Help me to love with open arms, like You do

A love that erases all the lines, and sees the truth

Oh, that when they look in my eyes, they would see You

Even in just a smile; they would feel the Father’s love”

Of course, it wasn’t always easy. Throughout the trip, there were moments when I was impatient, tired, hungry, and annoyed by the heat. And it was in those moments when I had to look to God and ask for His love and strength that I was able to truly experience what Acts 20:35 meant when Jesus says “It is more blessed to give than to receive”. It is not my love that I’m giving but the Father’s love, and what a joy and blessing it was to be the vessel to show these kids a glimpse of the love that God has for them.

As I come back home, I understand how important it is to love and serve the lost sheep and pray that God plants a seed of faith in them. Although they might not fully understand the gospel yet, I pray that they can feel the Father’s love. All I can do is love and pray for them and surrender it to God. And I find peace in knowing that it’s all in God’s hands. God will move and work according to His will. Thank you for all your support and dhanyavad!