Saturday, October 10, 2009
Thursday, January 15, 2009
Jesus thirsts
As some of you know, I’m leaving for India next Thursday, January 22nd. I am not going as a tourist, but as a seeker of Christ with a strong desire to be changed by serving the poorest of the poor. This letter is to share with you how I made the decision to go, what I will be doing there, and also to ask you if you’d like to partner with me as I go, through prayer, finances, or both.
This trip has been mulling around in my mind since last year around this time, when I first read the book "No Greater Love" by Mother Teresa. Through her selfless life of love for the poor and dying in Kolcata (formerly Calcutta), she came to know Jesus in a most disturbing yet beautiful and deeply intimate way.
One of my favourite quotes is from her chapter on prayer. She writes,
“I shall keep the silence of my heart with greater care, so that in the silence of my heart I hear His words of comfort and from the fullness of my heart I comfort Jesus in the distressing disguise of the poor.”
In Matthew 25:35 Jesus says,
“For I was hungry, and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me a drink, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me... for as you did to the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.”
I would like to invite you to send me on your behalf, to go visit Jesus as he lays dying in the Missionaries of Charity homes, to offer him a drink, to comfort him and be with him as he returns to his Father in Heaven. Through this experience I hope to gain a deeper perspective on what it means to know Jesus by serving the "least of these," and return with the humility and insight to encourage others to press onwards towards the goal of knowing Christ and making Him known.
The practical details of the trip are as follows:
I’ll be in India month total, from Jan. 22nd – Feb. 22nd. The first two weeks will be spent volunteering at Mother Teresa’s Homes for the Dying in Kolkata (Calcutta). My duties will include bathing, feeding, and looking after the practical needs of patients who are dying of such diseases as tuberculosis and leprosy. While these seem like daunting and drudgerous tasks, I'm looking forward to a good dose of humility as I take care of the poorest of the poor in their final hours.
I'll be then flying to Bangalore, in the south of India, on February 7th to teach English at the ACTS Institute. "ACTS" is an acronymn for Agriculture, Crafts, Trades, and Studies, and it is in these areas that the students are trained, alongside theology, and Biblical Studies. The students are preparing for a life of ministry in various Indian communities, but also are in need of "tent-making" skills to provide income for their families, as the communities are usually too poor to support them financially.
My father and my church from home, Harvest Bible Chapel in Barrie, Ontario, have been connected to ACTS for a few years now. My parents visited the school for the first time in 2005, and I visited them there for 10 days. We'll be returning together for the second time, and my father will teach theology and Bible and my mother and I will be teaching English. Although India is technically considered an English-speaking country, most of the students at the ACTS Institute are from poor villages that speak a variety of dialects, and English is rarely even heard. It is crucial that the students develop their English skills, as all of the ministry-related instruction, such as Bible and Theology, is done in English. As well as teaching, I'll be spending my time getting to know the students, building relationships with them, and assisting them in their community projects (children's Bible camps, etc) in the surrounding villages.
As for the financial details of the trip, I'm budgeting as follows:
Airfare: Busan-Kolcata, return : approx. 1.5 million won ($1500 CDN)
Kokata-Bangalore, return : approx.100,000 won ($100 CDN)
Food and Lodgings, 4 weeks: approx. 400,000 won ($400 CDN)
TOTAL COST: Approximately 2 million won ($ 2000 CND)
The reason I'm asking for financial support is three-fold: I'm in the process of saving money for seminary starting next year, and I'm trying putting all my savings now towards that. But more importantly, I think that when people give financially to a project such as this, there is a deeper sense of connection between the go-er and the senders.
I would love to have the support of my spiritual family, so they feel like they are going with me, and I feel like I'm going on behalf of them. Also, using other people's money gives me a sense of responsibility, like I will be held accountable for how I use it. And I would like to be held accountable, for using my time and resources on this trip to serve Jesus and to serve others, and not simply to go to a cool new place for my winter vacation (not like there is anything wrong with that, of course, but that's just not the purpose of this trip).
Besides financial support, I would love for you to support me in through your prayers. Please begin praying for me, that my heart will be right, that I will be teachable, humble, and hard-working, and that I truly learn what it is like to serve Jesus through the poor. And please pray for those that I come in contact with, be it other volunteers, the patients, the students, or other travelers, that Christ may use me to shine His light into their lives.
Thank you for taking the time to read this letter, and for considering supporting me in this. My thoughts and prayers are with you all.
Your sister in Christ,
Jen
p.s. donations can be made through pay pal (login, go to the “send money” tab and enter my email address - jengal4@gmail.com), or by giving to me directly this Sunday (for those in Korea).
This trip has been mulling around in my mind since last year around this time, when I first read the book "No Greater Love" by Mother Teresa. Through her selfless life of love for the poor and dying in Kolcata (formerly Calcutta), she came to know Jesus in a most disturbing yet beautiful and deeply intimate way.
One of my favourite quotes is from her chapter on prayer. She writes,
“I shall keep the silence of my heart with greater care, so that in the silence of my heart I hear His words of comfort and from the fullness of my heart I comfort Jesus in the distressing disguise of the poor.”
In Matthew 25:35 Jesus says,
“For I was hungry, and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me a drink, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me... for as you did to the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.”
I would like to invite you to send me on your behalf, to go visit Jesus as he lays dying in the Missionaries of Charity homes, to offer him a drink, to comfort him and be with him as he returns to his Father in Heaven. Through this experience I hope to gain a deeper perspective on what it means to know Jesus by serving the "least of these," and return with the humility and insight to encourage others to press onwards towards the goal of knowing Christ and making Him known. The practical details of the trip are as follows:
I’ll be in India month total, from Jan. 22nd – Feb. 22nd. The first two weeks will be spent volunteering at Mother Teresa’s Homes for the Dying in Kolkata (Calcutta). My duties will include bathing, feeding, and looking after the practical needs of patients who are dying of such diseases as tuberculosis and leprosy. While these seem like daunting and drudgerous tasks, I'm looking forward to a good dose of humility as I take care of the poorest of the poor in their final hours.
I'll be then flying to Bangalore, in the south of India, on February 7th to teach English at the ACTS Institute. "ACTS" is an acronymn for Agriculture, Crafts, Trades, and Studies, and it is in these areas that the students are trained, alongside theology, and Biblical Studies. The students are preparing for a life of ministry in various Indian communities, but also are in need of "tent-making" skills to provide income for their families, as the communities are usually too poor to support them financially. 
My father and my church from home, Harvest Bible Chapel in Barrie, Ontario, have been connected to ACTS for a few years now. My parents visited the school for the first time in 2005, and I visited them there for 10 days. We'll be returning together for the second time, and my father will teach theology and Bible and my mother and I will be teaching English. Although India is technically considered an English-speaking country, most of the students at the ACTS Institute are from poor villages that speak a variety of dialects, and English is rarely even heard. It is crucial that the students develop their English skills, as all of the ministry-related instruction, such as Bible and Theology, is done in English. As well as teaching, I'll be spending my time getting to know the students, building relationships with them, and assisting them in their community projects (children's Bible camps, etc) in the surrounding villages.As for the financial details of the trip, I'm budgeting as follows:
Airfare: Busan-Kolcata, return : approx. 1.5 million won ($1500 CDN)
Kokata-Bangalore, return : approx.100,000 won ($100 CDN)
Food and Lodgings, 4 weeks: approx. 400,000 won ($400 CDN)
TOTAL COST: Approximately 2 million won ($ 2000 CND)
The reason I'm asking for financial support is three-fold: I'm in the process of saving money for seminary starting next year, and I'm trying putting all my savings now towards that. But more importantly, I think that when people give financially to a project such as this, there is a deeper sense of connection between the go-er and the senders.
I would love to have the support of my spiritual family, so they feel like they are going with me, and I feel like I'm going on behalf of them. Also, using other people's money gives me a sense of responsibility, like I will be held accountable for how I use it. And I would like to be held accountable, for using my time and resources on this trip to serve Jesus and to serve others, and not simply to go to a cool new place for my winter vacation (not like there is anything wrong with that, of course, but that's just not the purpose of this trip).Besides financial support, I would love for you to support me in through your prayers. Please begin praying for me, that my heart will be right, that I will be teachable, humble, and hard-working, and that I truly learn what it is like to serve Jesus through the poor. And please pray for those that I come in contact with, be it other volunteers, the patients, the students, or other travelers, that Christ may use me to shine His light into their lives.
Thank you for taking the time to read this letter, and for considering supporting me in this. My thoughts and prayers are with you all.
Your sister in Christ,
Jen
p.s. donations can be made through pay pal (login, go to the “send money” tab and enter my email address - jengal4@gmail.com), or by giving to me directly this Sunday (for those in Korea).
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