Part 3 “Missionary To India”

Below is part 3 of a series by Tamar Childs.  If you missed the first two parts, go to the Mission’s page.  Keep in mind, this adventure was not sponsored by any Mission organization nor was  there much in the area of finances.  Tamar also had no prior experience or training.  The fruits of her efforts, however, are beyond comprehension!  For more information, please contact me at drewstine@gtcom.net.

India Volume 3~

At the end of my nine weeks of being in India, my heart began to yearn to go and visit
Joseph and Prema. It worked out perfectly for both of us for me to come on July the
15th, so I started organizing my plans to travel. We decided that it would be best to
travel by train a quarter of the way and then fly the rest of the journey to Andhra
Pradesh. The evening I was leaving arrived and many of my friends came to see me
off at the train station. That night proved to be a night of nights. I had also never been
on a train before. We said our final goodbyes and the train departed. I was positioned
in a small and semi-uncomfortable sleeper seat. That night was long and I had a hard
time resting, so I listened to the Bible and watched the passing lands of India out the
small window. During the night, the train lurched and swayed proving to be a scary
experience. One thing that was very new and exciting was the eastern toilet, on the
train. As I was using the bathroom, the room tilted and shook as I lowered myself
over an open hole in the floor of the train. Haha It was quite an experience to see the
railway pass under the commode’s (if you could call it that) opening. After a long ride
of 12 hours the ride was over. I was on to finding my flight down to Hyderabad. When
I got to Hyderabad I thought I had landed in Pakistan due to the number of Muslim
people who I saw in the airport. I was so excited and desired to set up tent in the lobby
and just start to evangelize but I decided to find a taxi and make it to my hotel before
it got too late. That night I was amazingly refreshed in my hotel due to warm running
water, a large plush bed, and a nearby KFC.   Note: This was the only American
restaurant that I saw the whole nine moths of being in India. The next day, I had one
more plane trip that would take me to Rajamundry, a city that was close to Joseph
and Prema. This was another local plane and once again I was gliding through the air.
I thank the Lord for the experience of seeing the sky so far above the earth. It is so
amazing.
  I arrived in Rajamundry airport, a small back country airport. I waited and waited for
Joseph and Prema to arrive. Once they got there, their children, a pastor, and flowers
greeted me, such a warm welcome after long travels. As we traveled in a rented van
we talked about my trip. Going through their village as we neared their house, I was
curious to see white powder lining the streets. Later I found out that it is a custom
when receiving honored guests. Lol I was greeted and welcomed far beyond my
expectation. They had flowers, petals and wreaths to place on my neck. To tell you the
truth, I felt rather embarrassed by the attention that was lavished on me although it
was amazing to finally be meeting Joseph, Prema, and the family. After a prayer of
thanksgiving for my safe arrival they showed me to a small prepared bedroom. Once
again I was overwhelmed by their generous love and preparations for my arrival.
  The next day they desired me to say a few words to the congregation and after that
we took pictures of me in my newly made Indian clothes. That is one thing that I like
about India. Their traditional clothes are both comfortable and modest, two things that
I look for in clothes.
  Over the course of the next couple of months they had planned for me to travel
around to all of the Pastor’s village churches. It was so encouraging and strengthening to
share the love of Jesus and get to pray for their members. The distances to travel were
sometimes great and traveling in an auto rickshaw was a little slower, we all were tired.
During prayer at these churches many miracles happened that caused my faith to grow
immensely. The first miracle occurred in a small thatched roof church building. A mother
brought a small boy with a heavy fever to me for prayer. I prayed for the mercies of the
Lord God and next thing I know the child’s forehead was so cool. All I could do was
thank the Lord and see Jesus’ love for the small children. Every church was its own
experience. We (Joseph, Prema, and I) laughed so many times together as the Lord
would amaze us. It was wonderful to have them as partners. Joseph would translate
for me at every church, something that he did quite wonderfully. It was truly a gift  from
God. In Andhra Pradesh, they speak primarily Telegu. although the national language
of India is Hindi. It was difficult for me at times to fit in since I was almost the only
English speaker other than Joseph and Prema. It was a little hard at times. Quite a few
of the villages that I entered never had a white person come into them. I feel honored to
be the first American to set foot into these villages. They received me with great love and
many flowers, as is custom.
  During our free time in the evenings, we would sing with the children and tell them stories.
That was something that brought them and I great joy. Their little faces would light up with
joy, as we would tell them stories of the Bible. Their favorite stories were Jesus stories, as
they called them. They also could not speak much English but we could get by pretty well
on hand signals and then Joseph or Prema translating for me. I had the thought that I would
learn to speak and read Telegu but after figuring out that it has 16 vowels and 40 consonants
and with a difficulty of Chinese I decided not to attempt to learn it.
  In the inner villages I saw so much poverty. The city of Siliguri is vastly different from the
tribal villages and forests of Andhra Pradesh. My heart was so stirred as I saw so many
people who were dying without the love of the Savior in their hearts. In one village, I saw
a mother holding a small mal-nourished child. That was very sad. We saw a few cases of
malaria, I am amazed and thank Jesus that I did not contract it. I also saw many beggars
with missing limbs. It was especially profound in Andhra Pradesh, so many crippled and
deformed people. I had never seen anything like it. It was amazing to feel like I had gone
back in time to the villages that Jesus walked in. Joseph explained to me that the primary
problem is lack of nutrition. Please pray for the needs of these souls.
  I would like to share another miracle that happened in another small church. Some people
brought a crippled hindu women to be prayed for. We prayed for her and then left that
church. A couple days later we received the report that she was up and walking around,
something that she was not able to do for some time. I was amazed by this miracle and
praised the Lord that He heard our cry. That miracle gave her faith in Jesus and she has
become a Christian as a result. God is so good. I have a picture of her if you would like
to see her. (Give Drew your e-mail and I will send you a copy.)

India Part 2

Below is part two of a series told by India missionary Tamar Childs.  Enjoy!

India Volume 2~

  The beginning of 2007 was an amazing time of preparation. I felt God preparing

my heart in different angles. It was truly a leap of faith. I had never met the man who

I was supposed to be traveling with; I was also leaving a wonderful job, and a family

that loved me dearly. A few times in that course of three months I thought myself to

have gone crazy but the Lord, I believe,  gave me peace although I was lost in the

shuffle of my own emotions. The days moved quickly but were filled with many

blessings, then the day finally came. May 23rd, 2007 was a day of great joy. The day

had finally arrived that I was to actually start my journey to another country. The

travel from Chicago, Illinois to New Delhi, India was the longest, most amazing

travel that I had up until this time. (Btw I had never traveled by air.) It was close to

23 hours of travel in total. One thing that frightened me during the flight was turbulence

due to a storm, in the middle of the flight. It was dark outside and the plane was

bouncing up and down. Jesus protected me through that trial and so many more to

come. We landed in New Delhi in the evening time and I was welcomed by the

bustle of the Indian airport and once outside the warm humid air. I felt at ease. What

a miracle to know so many people were praying for me. We hurried off in a taxi to a

nearby marble-floored hotel. That night was a night of tiredness, excitement and jet

lag which was so bad that even as I rested on the bed I felt as if my body was moving.

Although I praise the Lord for His benefits. That night I was comforted by the Lord

and the promise of Psalm 91:4.

 The next morning I dressed in a semi-similar pattern to what those in India wear and

got ready for my travels deeper into the country. We were heading that day to a small

airport called Bagdogra airport. This airport was a few miles away from Siliguri, the

city that I would be living in for the next 2 1/2 months. The local airport was also an

experience. The tiny plane soared through the air feeling more like a tiny paper airplane.

At the Bagdogra airport, we quickly found a taxi that would carry us into the city. From

there, I was taken to another American missionary’s house where I would be spending

the night. It was a long story, I was supposed to be moving into an apartment with

another Indian sister upon my arrival but for many reasons that did not work out, so

mid-road we had to change plans. My second night in India was a little scarier than my

first. It was dark by the time they came and got me and it was my first night on the streets

of India. We were riding in a rickshaw (a man-powered bicycle cart) through the dark

roads and alleys of the city of Siliguri. That night was an experience that I wish I could

have avoided although their kindness was a gift. Anyway, the night was uneventful and

the next morning I was amazed to look out the window to the sights of INDIA. I was on

the second story of a house apartment and looking through the iron cage window bars I
would see plants, a river, and strange houses being constructed with bamboo for helps

to the structure. After that couple kindly helped me that evening and morning I was taken

the next day back to the main part of Siliguri. The whole problem of my apartment was

solved in about 2 weeks and I was given my own apartment to rent.

  For the next two months, I learned and helped the ministry that Don had established.

He had just returned back from a two month traveling evangelism in America before we

came back together. Every morning at 7:30 a.m. he taught the Bible and english to two

Indian brothers and one Myanmar brother. At times also some sisters would come but

that was rare. Among many new things, I learned how to hand wash

clothes, eat mangoes, and keep the kitchen ant free. This time was a great joy to me.

 I feel so privileged to be able to quit my job and learn full-time the work of knowing 

Christ deeper. There is such a strength in the fellowship of fellow disciples. We laughed,

learned, and grew in those two months of physical, spiritual, and mental challenge.

…………………………More to come………………………

 

India Mission (Tamar Childs)

Below is Part One of a series told by Tamar Childs.   Read and find out how a young Christian girl ends up in India without any training or support from a large-scale mission organization.  The only support she received was from her local Church, Family and Friends. 

Here is my story of going to India:

 

  In the middle of 2005, I met an Indian brother on the Internet. His name is Joseph. He ran a ministry 

in India called ”Jesus Echoing Ministries”. At that time, I was working at a Christian bookstore here in 

Florida. We formed a simple relationship over the internet based on Christ’s love. He was unlike any of

the foreign ministries that I had met online since he did not ask for money only for my prayers. At that

time he was going through  many troubles. One, being his wife being an invalid due to weakness and

sickness. Joseph was trying to run an orphanage  and ministry without the support of his wife.

 We sent letters and chatted back and forth about the needs of the orphanage that he was running and

my heart was stirred. I desired to help with what I could. The only thing that I can say is that the Lord

had brought us together at the right time.

  The orphanage, at that time, held around 27 children and Joseph was clothing, feeding, and supplying the

children the parental care that they desperately needed. Joseph struggled with debt due to the needs of

the children and his own family, including Prema with her health concerns and his own children who are

enrolled in boarding schools. Joseph also is a pastor who not only had his own congregation but who also

was leading  a number of pastors; he encourages them and helps them keep their faith in spite of great

financial burden and ministerial trials. This team formed into what today is called the ”Jesus Echoing

Ministries”.

  I desire to give you some background to Joseph and Prema’s early ministry. They were young and full

of faith when they met at an orphanage that Prema was working at (Prema also was an orphan, thus her

great desire to help the orphans.) Prema had been praying for months that Joseph would become her

husband. That did not look like a possibility due to Joseph actually being engaged to another woman.

God has other plans for these faithful children of God. The engagement was broken off and Joseph’s faith

was tested as the Lord spoke to him to take Prema to be his wife, who at that young age had adopted a

small baby who was left on her doorstep. They married and suffered troubles that caused them to move

into a small village and take a small plot of land to live. This is another evidence of God moving his children

where He wished them to be. From this position, they reached out and started going door-to-door

explaining the gospel. God allowed them to buy some land across the road from their previous dwelling and

they took some money to build a two-story building that now serves as their home and church building.

God has built their ministry peg upon peg, month after month. His faithfulness is clearly seen as the foundation

of this work. As I sat with Joseph and Prema, I was amazed by story after story of God’s faithfulness to

supply, money, food and strength day after day.
 By summer of 2006, Prema’s health had improved to the point of recovery. We rejoiced very much over

this answer to prayer. The time increased that we knew one another and the love grew between us. We both

had a desire to meet, although I had never imagined actually going to India. It seemed to be an unreal

aspiration. Joseph would send me pictures of the children and also told me that they were praying for me,

it moved me in a wonderful way. I had never known of children that prayed for me as they have.

  In the fall, my plans began. I did not know if I would ever be able to go to India or even if God would open

the door but I began to apply for my passport. I feel like I took baby steps of faith and God opened mighty

and powerful doors for me. All throughout the winter of 2006 I was in great turmoil. I got to the point that I

 was not sure if I was going to live or die. My heart was in such a depression. God had given me hope that

I would live and still go to India, which strengthened my heart. From that point things began to move quickly.

I had contact with an Indian sister who was living in the states with her husband. They invited me over one

afternoon to look at pictures from their recent travels to India since they heard that I was also interested in

traveling there. On this visit, a new angle opened up to me. They discussed with me an American brother

who was looking for more people to come and volunteer energies to help his ministry in the Northern part of

India, in the state of West Bengal. It was not the destination that I had in mind but it was a large answer to

prayer for me since I would have a travel companion. He also turned out to be a great inspiration to me in the days that followed.