April 1, 2005
Dear Friends and Family,
I apologize for the delay in writing. I wanted to give you an update about three stories I shared in my previous letter and also to write about an upcoming trip to Sri Lanka at the end of March.
I hope these updates will 1) share some more information regarding the miracles happening in Nepal 2) provide some details regarding my trip to Romania in December, and 3) fill you in regarding my brother Rob.
Updates:
1) This is from Brook Birch who is serving in Nepal. She sent this e-mail a couple months ago. Also, please read the next issue of The Cry for more news about Nepal.
After church Ranjit asked me to speak at tonight's service – our International English service. He was like, “You've been fasting almost 40 days now so God will really anoint you.” So I offered to do that, but then didn't get home from church until 11pm!! Then got home at 11 and went up on my roof and cried for about 3 hours for these 3 boys. Jable, Sonu and Capital. They are the 3 that I'm closest to, but they haven't been taking things very seriously and I've been sad to watch others step up and was getting worried that they'd fall out of the flow and we'd fill the house before they were ready to come. So I was just up on my roof praying and pacing and weeping for them for a LONG time. Praying that God would not let them slip out of the grip and that somehow something would click in them and they'd get serious in one day! I was like, “I'm NOT going to let myself believe it's impossible for them to get serious.”
And then today. The long day. I woke up and had to meet a lady from the church at 9:30am. Me and Maggie. She took us to another family's house from the church. Then Jable calls and says he needs to meet me. So I went to where his dad's vegetable stall is and met him and Sonu. They tell me that they are going out to Ranjit's to “talk” to him. I don't really know why but they look serious. So then Maggie and I spend the whole day walking around meeting MORE families and getting homes figured out for the servant team. I spoke the ENTIRE day in
Nepali. Every word. So that in itself is exhausting. Then it's 4pm, church is at 5 and I still don't know what I'm going to speak about. So we sat at the church and Ranjit shows up with Jable and Sonu.
They walk up to me and say, “Didi. Guess what?” And I just sit there…”what?” And they said, “from church guess where we're going?” And at this point I can kind of tell what they're going to tell me. And they say, “We're not going back to Thamel Didi. We're finished. We've met with Ranjit and we've decided to go to the house – treatment
center. We saw the house today and it is perfect. We're ready. Something happened last night. We broke down together and cried together and decided that it's time to get serious. So we're going.”
I just about passed out. I just stared at them and said, “You guys don't know what this means to me. You just gave me one of the happiest moments of my life. Just now. I'm so proud of you.” They were beaming!
So we all go into church. I'm exhausted still wondering what I'm going to talk about. We start worship and it was one of those times when I'm so exhausted…dirty…overwhelmed emotionally…thinking about all I have to do. And then I got up to talk. And I just went NUTS! It was amazing. I wept in front of everyone and told them how this week I've been crying out SO much to God asking him for more…more depth of spiritual gifts, more revelation, more of something tangible from him…but that I felt like I was getting nothing. So instead every night I just wept for hours on end for my Thamel boys. And then I realized that it wasn't that God was giving me nothing – he was giving me a deeper understanding of who he is through the outpouring of LOVE for the boys into my heart. I told them I was learning that Love is greater and more important than ANY of those other gifts. And I just looked at the boys sitting there, and I told them in front of the church that I've wept and wept over them until I don't have a single tear left to cry and that is greater than any vision, or prophesy, or spiritual gift I could ever be given. And it was great.
Afterwards Jable and Sonu ran straight up to me and gave me HUGE hugs (which I just soak up, because it's rare that I have a moment that it's culturally appropriate to even shake their hands let alone hug them – very frustrating) And then I told them I'll be praying for them for the next couple of days since it will be very hard for them during detox. But they just looked at me and said, “Didi – after what you just shared in front of the whole church we don't care what we have to endure. We will NEVER go back to drugs again. We can't believe you love us so much that you would weep in front of everyone just to say you love us like that.”
It was beautiful. Absolutely a perfect moment in my life. Perfect.
2) My trip to Romania was tremendous. I can't say enough how much I love being there in Galati and how much I respect, admire and love the staff members that serve there.
I spent two weeks in Galati in mid-December and stayed with David and Lenuta Chronic. In Galati, staff members serve among children living on the streets. From hot meals and hygiene, to education, Word Made Flesh provides a drop-in-center to meet a lot of the physical needs of the children. Also our staff meet the children on the street twice a week, play soccer together and share a meal.
In a number of ways, Word Made Flesh: Romania leads all the other Word Made Flesh organizations. They have demonstrated true partnership between North American and national (Romanian) staff, even when this has not been easy. WMF, Romania also has a vision for sending staff to other countries as well….possibly Turkey, Ukraine, etc. We hope that this leads to cross-pollenization where Nepalis, Peruvians, Romanians travel across countries to serve Jesus among the poor. Finally, WMF, Romania also leads in its focus on discipleship and accountability. They take the first hour of each weekday, the time of day most devoted to business and devote that to time together in the Word and in worship. They also encourage each other by openly and honestly sharing with an accountability partner. This reciprocal mentoring allows for great personal and spiritual growth.
I think about the folks in Romania often and always feel a sense of home when I return.
3) My brother Rob is doing well at home. He is working for a friend who has a construction company. Rob seems to be losing some of the hardness that seems a necessary personality trait in prison. I think that Rob is incredibly bright and gifted and could contribute a lot in this world. I look forward to seeing how God woos him to Himself.
By the time you read this letter, I will be in Sri Lanka. The leaders of the Word Made Flesh organizations will be traveling at the end of the month to discuss roles and responsibilities throughout the organization. We hope and trust that this will be a great time of reconnecting and allowing that time to serve as a springboard for future growth.
I will be gone from March 23rd through April 3rd.
Please pray for us as we all travel. Just a final disclaimer: I did not share about Nepal because of the fruit that is being experienced. I just was really encouraged by reading the news of transformation for these boys. A lot of our other staff are not seeing these kinds of breakthroughs, but we know that they are still being obedient and are seeing a different kind of fruit. The kind of fruit where Jesus suffers with….
We know that this is an important sign of witness as well….that Jesus suffers with those who are suffering.
Love,
Brent