January Pastor's Note

Greetings from Nabarangpur! So far our trip has been rich, full, and a bit exhausting, but we are all grateful to be here at last. We will have a full week here, getting to see what God is doing. The welcome has been overwhelmingly warm. I told the children, “We’re here because of you!” One responded in Oriya, “We’re here because of YOU!” 

That YOU includes all of you. The ten children who are living in this home have had their lives changed just being here. Little Ahaan, the smallest and youngest, is the one whose surgery we provided funds for back in the spring. He wasn’t able to walk, and now he is running, jumping, and causing mischief, just like any five year old! 

Ahaan and his sister, Mira, are both living at the Mercy House. Their mother is a widow who works as a house cleaner to provide a very meager income. Haresh told us that when he first saw their home, he was shocked. They had nothing, aside from the blankets that had been given to the children with a Christmas gift from Trinity a year or two ago, and a few pots. Haresh plans to take us around to see some of their homes, and of course to meet the other children who are not living at the house. 

We will have more to share when we return - both in worship and Nurture on January 11. We will try to keep our eyes open as we continue to readjust to our time zone! Thank you for your generosity that has enabled all of this to happen, including our visit. There is no substitute for being here in person, seeing things with our own eyes, and breaking rota or naan together. 

The Narrative Lectionary reading for January 11 is the story of the wedding at Cana - just one of many times Jesus’s ministry happened over a shared meal. Just prior to this story is the calling of the disciples, which is different in John’s gospel than in the others. When John the Baptist points out Jesus to some of his followers, they start following Jesus, literally. Jesus asks, “What are you looking for?” The disciples respond “Where are you staying?” Jesus invites them: “Come and see.” 

“Come and see” is Jesus’s invitation to discipleship and relationship. Following Jesus is inherently relational. While our time here isn’t a “mission trip” as we often think of mission trips, it is a ministry trip, as we are deepening relationships with these members of Christ’s body who live very far away. We are also witnessing to the love of God at work here in Nabarangpur.

This work can be risky. We’ve taken risks to trust and send funds to this family we met on the internet. When we made a commitment to more regular funding, at least for a year, Haresh and Hamitha took the risk to open the Mercy House. They prayed and invited ten children to make this their new home. Our trip here involves some risk, not only or even primarily for ourselves, but for Haresh and Hamitha, too. Our group doesn’t exactly blend in, and the attention we are drawing in our visit is a risk for them, too, but they have embraced that risk and many more as they are following God’s call.

We have much more to learn, and more meals to share. We are grateful for the opportunity to do so. Continue to keep us all in your prayers, not only for safety, but that this visit will be what it needs to be for all of us. Pray for the children - those who live in the Mercy House and those who don’t. Pray for Haresh and Hamitha, and those who are helping to support them. Pray for our ongoing learning and discernment, and for clarity around next steps as we move forward. 

God is at work here! We have been invited to come and see. Thanks be to God!

Grace and peace,

Stephanie