India update || Zach Fry || 7/28/2024 || 8:30 am

this morning. Those of you who are here live, would you stand and join me in prayer? Father, we thank you for this opportunity this morning to come and worship in song, to study your word, to just fellowship with you and one another. Oh, we thank you for your love, your grace, your mercy, and your sovereignty, Lord. Would you encourage us and strengthen us today?

You are strength. You are everything, Lord. Without you, we're nothing, Lord. We thank you, Lord Jesus. Just please bless our time, Lord. We praise you this morning. In light of us, in each of our hearts, we can trust you. I thank you for the promise of your word that in our weakness, you're made strong. To each one here this morning, as they praise you, as they glorify your name, Lord, in whatever situation in life they're in, that they can

trust you, Lord. You may be seated. Every song we could ever sing. Oh, give us a hunger for your word, Lord, a desire for the things of you. So as we are in your word, as we get to know you better, and as your Holy Spirit is in us, we can trust you, Lord. We thank you for the promise of your word. Holy Spirit leads and guides us, sensitive to what your word says. We can trust you, Lord,

give you thanks. On this earth, we want to serve you, worship you, be able to you, continue. We'll be worshiping you, and Lord, it is day. But oh, help us be faithful, Lord, as you are faithful, as long as we're here, Lord. We thank you for your loving kindness. We thank you for the way in which you work in everyone's heart, and we're individual, and you treat us individually.

This crazy old world.

Bless you. It looks a little chaotic sometimes. Behind the scenes, we serve you, God, who is in control. Oh, so blessed. Now continue to bless this service. Now, as we continue, Zach will be coming up shortly. Praise in Jesus' name. Amen.

It's so cool to see everybody just visiting. I love it. And anyway, welcome to Calvary Chapel. Okay, we'll do that. Okay, announcements. If you get out your bulletin, a couple things aren't going on. Over on the left side, Ryan won't be back yet, so there's no college group this evening. And I know about that isn't going to be going on is this Tuesday fellowship

over at my mom and dad's place. We're going to be gone for the next two Tuesdays, so we'll bring that back. We're going to be back up and running in three weeks. But otherwise, everything is going on, and definitely, if you can find yourself into one of the home fellowship studies, that'd be wonderful. I know that you'd really be blessed doing that. The other activities that are going on, the Calvary Ladies event that's going to be on the 3rd.

Make sure that... If you want to do that, that you get signed up today. Today's the last day, and I understand the reason for that is they've just got to get all the supplies together. So use that QR code that's there. If you don't know how to use that QR code, get a hold of me. I'll try to help you. Try. Okay. The Kansas Bible Conference, which is also that same weekend,

definitely a really enjoyable study that Ryan is actually going to be teaching at. If you can make it up there, there's no cost to the conference, but you're going to have to find a place to stay unless you like to drive to Kansas City and back and forth. That's your call. The baptism goes on the next weekend, and definitely if... You're interested in getting baptized and you haven't talked with Ryan, please, he will be back

tomorrow. So please get in touch with Ryan, or let me know, and I'll pass the word so he can get in touch with you. Then in September 13th through 15th, as it says, there is a women's retreat, and there is a cost to that, and that registration closes on 8-10. Otherwise, um, Things are going as, as normal, and that's a praise the Lord. Um, I know that we have a, a guest speaker today, and that's going to be Zach Fry and his wife and his family is here from Elk Falls, and, um, they're going to be sharing about a missions that they're involved with over in India, and, uh, so,

that sounds, exciting. So if Zach would come on up, and we'll get things rolling. Good morning. I'm excited to be here. Thank you for all for having me. Um, I was here about a year ago, and some of you may remember, I briefly shared about a ministry that my wife and I are involved with over in India last year. Um, but we were able to return this year as a family back in January.

So I wanted to give you all an update, a current update of what's going on. You all, um, have been your church has been supporters of this ministry since the very beginning when it started. Um, so I just kind of wanted to give you all an update of what's going on over in India, um, and, um, just share some of the stories from our time there this, this past, this past visit, um, for the sake of the, the privacy and security of the ministry in India and the children that are involved. I won't be saying any of their names.

Um, it will be on the slideshow, which the slideshow won't be live streamed. Um, so for those of you who are watching online, I apologize. It may be maybe not the most interesting message since you can't see the photos or hear the names of the people I'm talking about. Um, but we just have to be careful. Um, we've always had to be a little bit careful because of some of India's regulations and their laws.

Um, but it's become increasingly difficult really over the last, um, several years, uh, under the current political administration there. It's, uh, it's a very, uh, Hindu nationalist, um, government and their ideology and many of the local ministries that are, um, involved in orphan and child care have almost, many of them have had to close. And almost all foreign ministries that have any ties to Christianity have had to leave the country, um, and close down In fact,inge Compassion International, which I'm sure most of you are familiar with they had to leave the country of India in 2017 because the government was blocking all their funding,

And unfortunately, at the time when they left, they had—they left 147,000 babies, children, young adults, and mothers that were no longer able to receive the benefits of Compassion International. And there were 589 churches that they had to end their partnerships with and over 127 staff members in India that they were no longer able to employ. These people were committed to helping the poorest of the poor in their own communities. But the government just made it really difficult for any outside organizations, specifically Christian organizations, to do ministry and do work there.

So because of that, we had to be very careful when we share what's going on over there. And so that's why I won't be sharing their names. Hopefully, I can make it through this message. It's really hard when you're talking about friends not to just want to say their names. So hopefully, I'll do well on that. And actually, along the same lines, during our last trip there,

we were able to— we were able to visit the orphanage where we adopted our own daughter about 10 years ago. And we were sad to learn that they will be closing their doors this summer after they place their final two remaining girl orphans, again, because the government regulations have made it so difficult.

And many of the other large orphanages that we visited in India have also closed since we were there last time. So it's a heartbreaking reality. And it's— it's apparently becoming more and more common in India. And again, our experience is only with one specific location in India. And India is a very large country with multiple states, multiple cultures and languages.

So I can't say this is happening all over India, but I do know it's happening in southern India, which is where we're more familiar with. And typically, southern India has been more receptive to Christianity, and there's parts of it that are called the Bible Belt of India. So to see this happening there and to see these ministries closing in southern India is really sad. So to give you a little back story on—about this ministry, it started—well, okay, so back up before that.

So 14 years ago, my wife and I were involved—we did a discipleship training school with YWAM, Youth of the Mission. And we were sent to India for a three-month—for a three-month outreach. While we were there, we were involved in many different ministries. We were involved in leper ministries, going into the slums, village ministries, evangelism. We were involved in some orphanages, and Laura and I were always drawn to the children of India.

We loved working in the orphanages any chance we got, just spending time with the kids. And we met a young couple, a pastor and his wife. I think if you go to the next slide, I—yeah, there we go. We met a young couple. That is their names. And one thing led to another, and we found out that the wife—one of her dreams was to start a children's home. And that was one thing she'd always wanted to do.

And we fell in love with this couple and built a relationship with them. And when we came back to our church, Calvary Chapel, over in Elk Falls, we shared their stories and we shared their vision. And one thing led to another, and a check was written, and their ministry was born. They started by just taking two boys that needed a home. And they quickly grew to 11 boys when we returned the following year to go visit and see what they were doing.

And over the years, the numbers have gone up and down. It's never been a big facility. It's always been relatively small.

But they were able to operate this children's home and fulfill some of their dreams and what they felt was a calling on their life. And it's not an orphanage that many of us would think of in the traditional sense, the way we think of orphanages. Many of these children do still have parents, though not all. Many of them have lost both parents. But for many reasons,

their parents are unable to provide or unable to care for them. Some of them have a single parent that works all the time. Some of them have parents that are in jail or have alcoholic fathers or mothers that are involved in less than reputable professions. And other siblings, other of them are being taken care of by older siblings that are also trying to go through school and various things.

For the first three or four years, this couple took care of children and just brought them into their one-bedroom home. In fact, I think the next slide shows, yeah, this was the home. It's actually a rented home so that the bottom floor, the bottom level, was someone else's home. And then the top level is where this couple lived and where they opened the children's home and started bringing children in.

There was one bedroom, a kitchen, and a small common room. And so they began by just bringing the children in there. And they remodeled it to be sufficient, but they were able to provide these kids with things they had never had, genuine care, consistent meals and education, Christian disciplines, and a family atmosphere. Now, whenever my wife, Laura, retells this story, she always highlights the power of saying yes, saying yes to God whenever he prompts.

And I'm struck by the profound impact of the ripple effect of yes. It's like the power of God's words. It's like the power of God's words. It's like the power of God's words, because God is sovereign in his plan, and he can accomplish his will absolutely without our help. Now, I know God is sovereign, and he can accomplish his will absolutely without our help.

But for whatever reason, God chooses to use us, all of us, in accomplishing his plans. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them. And I find that fascinating that God prepared beforehand, in advance, the good works for us to do. And all we have to do is simply say yes. All we have to do is walk in obedience to the calling that the Lord puts in front of us,

and he takes care of the details. He's prepared the way. He's lined it all up. And this married couple in India simply said yes, and just brought these boys into their home. And they could have easily said, we need more money. We need a bigger home. We need a separate facility. We need more beds. We need a promise of continual support or financial stability.

But they simply said yes. And they said yes. And they said yes. And they started off bringing these two boys in. Someone in our own church said yes to the Lord's prompting when we shared this story. And a check for $1,000 was written, and the ministry was started. And if we go back up the line through the ripple effect of yeses, my wife and I contributed our

small yes when I decided to put my work on hold, and my wife resigned from her job, and we stepped out into the discipleship training school, which led us to India, where we found lifelong friends. So as I share stories today, and I share some stories of India, I don't want you just to hear the stories from some random couple that's sharing about a ministry in India. But I want you to rather hold on to the hope of what God can do through all of us when we step out in obedience. And we don't have to see the whole picture. In fact, God rarely gives us more than what we need to just

take the next step. So just consider, do you feel a prompting in your own life? For something that you think might be on God's heart? Or is God asking you to take a small step of faith? Be encouraged that a simple yes can have a ripple effect with other yeses. And we may get to play a part in God's unfolding story and see lives transformed.

Over the next several years, we raised well over $100,000. And the couple were able to purchase land in India. They were able to buy land in India. And they were able to buy land in India. They were able to build a three-story home eventually. And they were able to bring new children into their care. I'm going to show a short compilation of photos, a little video

that shows that building progress. And I apologize, I didn't, the video was put together of another video and sped up. And so hopefully you don't get motion sick. It is a lot of zooming in and out, but it's what I got. And it has, but it shows the progress of where they started. And it'll show you where they're at today. So if you want to go ahead and play.

Play that video. And it's not important, but I think there is sound that goes with it, but it's just music. Since the music isn't. So there was a, at the end of that video, there was a, it was just one floor and then a roof, which is how it remained for a number of years. But they finally had their own building. They were no longer renting. And then this is

what it looks like present day, where they're able to eventually add on two more levels to expand and to take in more children. Because again, some of the government restrictions, they never were able to grow it to the size that they anticipated when they built the building. But I'll, and I'll share a little bit later, but they are using the building for some other neat ministry opportunities. So it is getting utilized, just not entirely in the way that they initially anticipated. And seeing some of those

photos, I'd kind of forgotten, but just how exciting that was at the time. That's been over 10 years ago now, but when they were finally able to start the construction of this process, and when they were going out every day, the couple and their kids and checking on the progress or doing some of the work themselves. And that really was a really exciting time for the ministry to see it finally grow and become its own entity, I guess. I've shared this before, I think maybe when I was here in the past, but this couple, they're both first generation Christians. They're coming from Hindu backgrounds. And I've heard the pastor refer

to the children in their care, as second generation, or what he likes to refer to as a Joshua generation. And back in our church, Calvary Chapel, on Wednesday nights, we've been reading through the Exodus account. And I've seen how that first generation, they died in the wilderness, and that second generation had a much stronger foundation. Joshua himself was encouraged and mentored by Moses. And when he

died in the wilderness, the second generation was encouraged and mentored by Moses. And when he died in the wilderness, the second generation was encouraged and mentored by Moses. And when he wasn't able to do things that Moses was not able to do. The second generation had the benefit of being raised with the law and not being raised in slavery. And they had a different worldview than

their parents. And there's so many interesting parallels when I hear the pastor refer to their children as the second generation and being excited about the impact they can possibly have in India, being raised from the beginning, as Christian and how he's excited to see that, that multi-generational effect play out down the line. This past Wednesday, when we were reading Joshua, we read Joshua 24, the famous part where Joshua tells the Israelites to put away other gods. And he says, he famously commands them to choose you today who you will serve. Are you going

to serve the gods of your ancestors, the gods of the people in the land where you're living, or are you going to serve Yahweh? And so I think it's so fitting to see that comparison in a country like India, where there are thousands of other gods, and they're surrounded by a culture that worships other deities. And these children are being raised with a counterculture worldview that, like Joshua and his generation, has a potential to change the trajectory of their lives and their family lines. On our third trip to India, we were able to live in the children's home for over four months.

And that was a very impactful experience. That's when we really got to understand what their ministry was like and to get involved in the kids' lives. And the children that we got to love on and that we worked with daily, those children will always hold a special place in my wife and my heart. It was a very incredible time for us. So now that gives you the opportunity to share your story.

I want to share about the update. We were able to go back the end of January. We took our whole family. And it had been six years since we'd been back. So it was a long period of absence. Before that, we tried to go every year, every other year. So it had been a while. We had planned to go March 2020. You can guess why that didn't happen. So this is the first

time we've gone back since prior to that. We took our pastor from Calvary Chapel over in Elk Falls. So he finally was able to go over and to see the ministry and the faces and the people behind the children's home. And there were many new kids that we'd never met before because it had been so long. But over the three weeks that we were there, we got to know each and every one of them. And I don't think I can adequately put

into words the emotions that Laura and I felt walking into this home, seeing, in some cases, these kids now growing into young adults, new faces, and just being reunited with really good friends. Seeing the couple's own children now grown brought us so much joy. And walking through the large open halls on the ground level just brought back floods of memories from our previous trips. I want to invite my wife to come up and share about their family in particular, the couple and their three now-grown children. And she's

going to share some stories about their family. This is going to be really hard to do. Without saying their names. So I will try. But every time I get the opportunity to speak about this family, I feel like this huge overwhelming pressure, how to convey how amazing they are and make you understand how much they radiate Jesus. We homeschool our three children. And the

other day I was teaching our youngest son about the moon. And as Felix and I were talking about the moon, I got the feeling that it was going to be really hard to do without saying their names. So I will try. But every time I get the opportunity to speak about this family, I feel like this huge overwhelming pressure, how to convey how amazing they are and make you understand how amazing they are And as Felix and I were talking about the moon, I feel like this huge overwhelming pressure, how to convey how amazing they are And as Felix and I were talking about the moon, I feel like this huge overwhelming pressure, how to convey how amazing they are

And as Felix and I were talking about the moon, I feel like this huge overwhelming pressure, how to convey how amazing they are And as Felix and I were talking about the moon, I feel like this huge overwhelming pressure, how to convey how amazing they are And as Felix and I were talking about the moon, I feel like this huge overwhelming pressure, how to convey how amazing they are And as Felix and I were talking about the moon, I feel like this huge overwhelming pressure, how to convey how amazing they are And as Felix and I were talking about the moon, I feel like this huge overwhelming pressure, how to convey how amazing they are out to him that we are the moon and Jesus is the sun, and we are reflecting Jesus to others.

When I speak about this amazing couple in India, I can't help but think of them as the moon reflecting Jesus in such a broken country. They open their home, they give generously when they have so little to give, and they invite the broke, or they have so little themselves, but so much to give. They invite the broken, the wounded, and the most difficult children into not only their home, but also into their family. This is a couple that started the children's home 13 years ago.

So these three kids that you see in this picture have grown up in a home where they shared their parents countless times with other children. So when we look at this home, that was one thing that struck me when we went back is the sacrifice that these children made sharing their their family. Their parents with other kids that have had trauma and gone through all sorts of difficulties. So Zach and I enjoyed watching these three grow into God following men and women in a very Hindu country. The oldest two children in the picture are in college, and the youngest one is in ninth

grade. I remember the first time we were there carrying the youngest one through the streets of India because she was a baby in a diaper. So we've really seen them grow into amazing men and women. Zach and I spent many late nights visiting with the three of them after the children in the children's home would go to bed. We would stay up and sit at the table or on the floor and just talk

with them. And every time I would go to bed that night and I would think to myself, these kids are amazing and what amazing fruit has been produced from their parents. Like this is the fruit of their parents' obedience to saying yes and opening their home. But that has really shaped these three individuals. And it's just really cool because they're going to now be impacting the nation of India because of just all these little yeses along the way.

So this amazing couple and the way they live their life has spoken volumes to Zach and I over the years. We've watched as they opened up their one-bedroom home and invited neglected children into their very small living quarters, which Zach touched on that earlier. They have not only loved on these children but also extended love to the families. So these kids, as Zach said, are not actually orphans. They actually have their own parents, but they have been neglected or had trauma or

parents just cannot take care of them. And so the people that run this children's home have actually extended God's love to the parents of these children. So it doesn't just stop with these kids in the children home. It just continues to go into their family and saturate the love of Jesus into those homes. So it's really neat to see how they have woven the gospel into just

every part of their lives and in their own family. Since I can't say his name, I'm just going to call him pastor because that's technically what he is, the man that you see in the picture over here. He is super, super diligent and intentional with leading worship and Bible time with these kids every single day. Sometimes they were up at like 10 o'clock at night and they still hadn't done Bible time or worship. And so he would quickly sit down and make sure that that

was a priority, that they always got fed every single day spiritually. Many of the kids have come from Hindu backgrounds. And so it's an amazing opportunity for them to speak truth and share the gospel. At one point years ago in 2011, pastor made the comment that this children's home was seeking to raise up the next generation of Christians in India. This was going to be a Joshua generation. Those were his words. His heart was all for

transformation. So typically moving on to the pastor's wife and I speak about her, I'm very much a Christian. I'm a Christian. I'm a Christian. I'm a Christian. I'm a Christian. I'm a Christian. And so it's very important for me to help other Christian kids. But I still lenses of what it's like to do that. I'm not the pastor, right? Just something for the church, right? I'm a medical

psychologist. Like I said, we're in the home of together and we've been together and we've been thriving together. I do that as a child over無 so often in my school life. But that's why I made that comment. He gave me a sister before he first came on board that he wanted to say, I just want to stay in India for ten years. So everything is coming since then until now. And he's grateful

though, right? I don't know how to write the morning prayer in English, I want to practice it and I want to write. Can you read it? Trust me. And then I want to go to New damp. Just thh part three children that need three meals a day, three children that need to be shuttled to daily activities, three children that need to be reminded to pick up their toys. They're all

grinning at me and pointing at their siblings. Three children that require time and attention and three children that the Lord entrusted us to teach them about the gospel to win their hearts for the Lord. The pastor's wife in this picture has 11 children on a daily basis that she is managing. I have three children and I sometimes struggle in the day-to-day monotony to be virtuous, strong, and selfless. For 13 years now, I have watched off and on through countless trips

to India as this amazing woman continues to embody the Proverbs 31 characteristics as she raises 11 children. Every time we take a trip over there, I always, always observe her and the one thing, the absolute one thing that speaks volumes to me is the amount of hunger that she has. For the Lord, when she's not busy with her day-to-day task, she's in a room reading the Bible, she's worshiping, or she's praying. She's constantly doing life with the Father.

She recognizes that nothing can be done apart from him. She looks to him to fill her up so that she can continue to be virtuous, strong, and selfless. She does not get caught up in the busyness that our culture here in America reeks of. It was her dream from the beginning to run a children's home. It's so obvious that the Lord laid it on her heart and she said yes. Even 13 years ago, she was so

completely close to the Lord that she was in tune with what he wanted for her life. She could easily feel him nudging her and speaking to her about a children's home. How faithful is our God? By her saying yes, he produced so much fruit through her obedience. The more I observe her, the more I want to know Jesus in a deeper way. What a testimony to have so much fruit through her obedience.

It's interesting because she's their mother, but she's really showing them a piece of Jesus. You know, even though she's not their father, she's really demonstrating the Father's heart. So I wish I could just say that she's a mother, but she's really showing them a piece of Jesus. I think my five-year-old at one point, when we came back from India, I think he said, I wish we could just take all of them home with us, Mom. And I said, oh, that'd be so cool, Felix.

But I wish I could take all of you over there because I just truly cannot convey to you how amazing this family is. And it's a real honor to be able to share with you just how much they love Jesus and just want to share with others. So while we were there, we did a lot of different things. One thing that we tried to do daily was to help the kids with their reading. Laura taught some basic phonics.

We started a cognitive therapy program with the children. We taught them English worship songs. We just tried to spend as much time with them as we could. When you don't speak a common language, one of the best ways to make connections is through play. So we joined in in their soccer games, and they taught us a lot of different games we had never heard before. And so we

just enjoyed being with them. Every day after school, they get about an hour free time before they have to start their studying. So that's often when the games would happen. And so we would make it a priority to try to, even if we were tired and we didn't feel like it, to just engage and to go out and to play with them. After speaking with many of the kids who grew up in

the children's home, who were able to come back and visit us while we were there, we were able to connect with them. And these children who we had visited several times over the course of their childhood, and in some cases spent months at a time with, we learned that our feeble efforts to teach English actually made a difference. They shared stories with us and memories of us teaching phonics and how that actually really did help them, and how they would watch the DVDs of basic phonics that we left. They'd watch them over and over and over again, and all that they learned from those. And Laura and I were struck with the realization

of maybe the first time that some of these short-term trips that we would make actually had long-term lasting impact. And so it was because of hearing these stories from these older children that we were encouraged and inspired to invest as much time in just a short three weeks that we were there in these new children that we'd never met. And because we want to have a relationship with them, and we want to impact them in some small way. As the children, the older, the children that grew up returned, it was really neat to hear them reminisce about some of the things that we had done with them.

They shared memories with us, how we would get them up before dawn to go up to the roof and do daily exercises. They reminisced about a talent show that we put on, and each of their acts that they rehearsed over and over. surprised us by still being able to sing the English worship songs we taught them over a decade ago. Every night while we were there, the children, Laura touched on it, have a daily Bible time where either pastor or one of his kids will teach a section of scripture and retell it again, and then they do a time of worship. And our son, Ruben, got to join in that experience.

He got to share some Bible stories and then through translation get that shared. So it was neat to get our whole family involved. Our daughter was able to help teach some of the cognitive brain training games and activities that she herself does in therapy every day. And we just really enjoyed our time there. Overall, it was probably one of our best trips to India, just to see our family, our boys thoroughly engaged and to love them and to see

the children. I'm going to talk about in a minute who had grown up, come back. It was just a really, really encouraging trip. I mentioned earlier that they're not using the full building for a children's home. The second story of that building, they're currently renting out to YWAM, Youth of the Mission, to host a School of Biblical Studies. So it's a nine-month course where young adult

Indians are being trained and equipped to know the Bible. They learn the inductive, metaphorical, and biblical scriptures of the Bible. They learn the inductive, metaphorical, and biblical scriptures of the Bible. They learn the inductive, metaphorical, and biblical scriptures of the Bible. They learn the inductive, metaphorical, and biblical scriptures of the Bible.

They learn the inductive, metaphorical, and biblical scriptures of the Bible. They learn the inductive, metaphorical, and biblical scriptures of the Bible. They learn the inductive, metaphorical, and biblical scriptures of the Bible. They learn the inductive, metaphorical, and biblical scriptures of the Bible. They learn the inductive, metaphorical, and biblical scriptures of the Bible.

They learn the inductive, metaphorical, and biblical scriptures of the Bible. They learn the inductive, metaphorical, and biblical scriptures of the Bible. They learn the inductive, metaphorical, and biblical scriptures of the Bible. They learn the inductive, metaphorical, and biblical scriptures of the Bible. They learn the inductive, metaphorical, and biblical scriptures of the Bible.

the first time they read through each book in one sitting out loud so every book of the bible will read through in one time in the sitting the second time they read through the bible they highlight and color code the text for observation the third time they create these horizontal charts for each book the fourth time they create vertical charts for each segment of the bible and the fifth time they go through the bible they write out the main idea and they use a critical method to discover who wrote the book who it was written for from where it was written when it was written key words key ideas and the big picture for each book and all of this is without using any commentaries or any bible dictionaries they're encouraged to find everything

in the bible and become extremely familiar with the text so to say it's an intense course is an understatement while we were there the pastor's family their oldest daughter was actually going through the course so she was in the middle of it and we didn't get to see her a lot because she was always away studying she was always reading the bible always just in study the text and one of the older boys that had already left the children's home and got a degree came back and he went through half the course just the new testament portion of the course and then our pastor pastor he was able to go and teach on the book of jonah while we were there and so that was a highlight

for him i think just to be able to share with these young adults who have such a passion for the word i've shared a little bit about it but the absolute highlight of the entire trip for us was seeing all the children that we had known previously as kids return now as grown young adults it was one of the most rewarding things i have ever experienced we got to see the children see fruit from the ministry and not just as i mentioned before some of the few things we had done but to see how this ministry has had an impact on these children's lives and how they're now grown young adults so this slide shows two young men brothers the on the left side was maybe 2012 and this on the right is their current photo these are two of the original boys

in children's home they were not the first two boys but they were the first two boys that were the first two but some of the first that came in to their home at the old the old house they have different fathers that i from what i understand were never involved never in the picture their their mother would be away working long hours before they came to the children's home and the older of the two was really taking care of them and he was he would make rice and pour water over the rice for their meals because he didn't know how to cook a curry um these boys were really financially stable both of the boys came from a hindu background but now they're they're both christian young men the next slide it shows the older the two he's 22 years old now he was

actually working at a children's home while we were there he was between jobs so he came back so it was a real joy that we got to see him every day and interact with him and to see what he's become it was really neat to spend that time with him i remember spending hours with him as a child helping him with his and he's a bright kid but studies were always challenging for him but now he has received a degree in biomedical engineering and he hopes to work in chennai he's a very responsible young man he has a quiet presence and he's always willing to serve the next photo shows his younger brother all right sorry that's another photo of um builder you go on to the next one after that there we go

um this is the younger brother he's 20 years old and he's currently studying to be a neuro-optometrist he was doing an internship while we were there and he came to visit us several times and seeing him walk in if you go on the next slide walk into the children's home wearing his scrubs just brought us so much joy to see what these boys are doing now one of the neat things that i didn't anticipate was many of my old photos that we'd taken over the years were backed up to the cloud so i had them on my phone and these boys just loved seeing old photos from their childhood they didn't have any other memories in a photo form so they loved going through my phone looking old photos and then asked me to send them to their their whatsapp

or their instagram accounts um so this young man he just finished his diploma in optometry and was doing and just finished his internship last month i talked to him yesterday and he is has now started his full degree in optometry and he's staying in a hostel in a large city but he's currently struggling to pay his fees for for college but he's doing well the next slide shows one of the other boys that grew up in the home he used to be one of the most challenging the difficult and one of the toughest children that were in the home i remember having numerous conversations with the pastor where he was wondering you know would it be best just to send him back home he made it hard for the other kids he made it hard for them

it was he was a real challenge but he had a rough childhood he had been through a lot of trauma when he was very young he witnessed the murder of his own father um and he lived with his mother and younger sister in a small palm leaf Texas she loved him very much and she would always come to visit any chance she got and one time my wife and i were able to go visit his mother and to visit her home uh the the leaf hut i remember we arrived at her home in the evening after after a long bus ride and she was so excited to see us she she invited us into her hut and she quickly began cooking a meal for us i remember she was cooking it out over an open fire outside and we were sitting in the hut while

she was preparing it and it got dark and so the hut was just dimly lit by a candle or a flashlight i don't remember how it was lit but i remember just being struck by this woman's circumstances but how much joy she had and how willing she was to serve and to love us who were strangers to her in it was a small hut there wasn't room to stand up the the floor was kind of a dried polished cow dung floor but she shared what little she had with us and anyone who's been to india or really a lot of southeastern asian countries will instantly recognize their and can attest to their extremely generous and often over-the-top hospitality and that has made a profound impact on laura and i just seeing

this country and the generosity and the hospitality that you run across anytime you you go to someone's home they always invite you in for tea or for a meal and provide you with the the little things they have this boy left the children's home when he was in ninth grade and he had not been back since so nobody had seen him in about five years no one at the children's home the pastor his family or his family or his family or his family or the other kids

we learned when he came back to visit us while we were there and we learned that he is now working with his local pastor two days a week and he received some sort of degree in like hotel management which the way we basically means he's learned how to cook for a hotel or restaurant while we were there he came back he butchered a chicken he made us barbecue chicken And everyone was shocked and surprised to see the transformation of this boy. Again, because he was such a challenge, and to see now the transformation after leaving, what he's become. And our kids loved him. He spent a lot of time with our kids, and he bought them way too many sweets from the local bakery in his hometown.

The next slide is another young man. He came to the home when he was 13 years old. With his younger brother. He's now 22. And his younger brother is still in the children's home. Before coming to the children's home, they lived with their sister. Because their parents had passed. And it was difficult for the sister to provide for them because she was also going through school.

So that's why they came to the children's home. And he actually came back to the children's home also over there and was working there. Though that's not his long-term plan. He's an extremely talented young man. He's extremely intelligent. He's extremely mechanically-minded. Anything hands-on. Plumbing, electrical work. He went to some sort of, the best I can understand it would be the equivalent to a vo-tech school.

Where he got some kind of hands-on training. And our kids loved him so much. He always brought a smile. He could make anyone laugh. He was just a really fun personality.

The older sister that he was living with before he came was Christian. But they are... They are a Muslim background. So unfortunately, what sometimes happens when a Christian girl doesn't have Christian parents or Christian relatives to arrange a Christian marriage for them, they don't get an offer for marriage. So afraid she would never marry, she converted back to Islam and married a Muslim man.

So now, this young man, who was very involved and very active in the church, he's conflicted and he's facing pressure to also join the Muslim community. So if you think about it, pray for this young man. He's going through a lot. And then to complicate it further, because of a single letter difference in the spelling of his name, he's not accepted by the Muslim community because he has a Hindu name.

And because both of his parents are deceased, he doesn't have a family certificate, which, as I understand it, is an important government document that serves as official proof for your family history. And it's required... to get any sort of career-type job or to navigate various legal situations. So he can apply for a new certificate, but because of the misspelling of his name, it's not accepted and he can't get the certificate.

So I spoke with the pastor at length, trying to understand his situation. So he's able to do odd jobs for people, but he's not able... it's impossible for him to get any kind of salary job. The pastor is looking into getting him a job overseas, possibly in Dubai. He said it would be easier for him to get a passport and a visa and figure out all the logistics in another country

than it would be for him to get a job in India. So it's really sad. And part of that is still in the caste system, is where some of that comes from. But there's just a lot of challenges on this young man's life. But he never let it get him down. He always had so much joy and he always was so happy to serve and so willing to help out any way that he could. The last boy I want to...

share with you about... I almost said his name. There's his name, you can read. But he really stood out to us while we were there. Our boys instantly befriended him and he won all of us over with his contagious smile. He also has come from a lot of trauma in his childhood. Before he came to the children's home, he was living on the streets. His mother was an alcoholic and his father died from an alcohol addiction.

His mother remarried. And the new husband didn't like the boy. So he was left to run the streets. The neighbors would give him food. But he was not getting an education. And he certainly didn't have any sort of stability or consistent care in his life. He's in third grade. Or was. I guess he probably just started fourth grade. And he's incredibly smart. And he does really, really well in his studies.

And he was always asking us to read with him, to teach him English. Or to... To work with him on the cognitive brain training games. I see a lot of potential in that young boy. These are the seven children that were at the children's home while we were there. And each one has a story similar to those that I've shared. I'm not going to share all their stories.

But we thoroughly enjoy getting to know each one of them. And I wanted to share some of their stories with you. Because I think it's so neat to see. These aren't just faces. These aren't just some ministry. But there are lives that are being changed. And to see the older kids come back. And to see how their lives and the trajectory of their lives have been completely altered.

It was so encouraging for Laura and I. It's been incredible to watch them grow up. To see how far they've come. And to know that their lives have been forever altered. And I think it's really neat how the ministry provides opportunity for them. Provides opportunity for these kids to go on and get a higher education. If that is the path they choose. One thing I did want to mention.

And I think if you go to the next slide. Yeah, okay. So this is the couple's oldest two children. That Laura spoke about briefly. They're also both going back to school. Their son will be starting a second degree in artificial intelligence and data science. He's starting next week. And his daughter has just started a medical college for a physiotherapy degree.

The pastor asked me if I could find a sponsor for the college tuition. Or maybe provide a loan to help with the education for his children. And I was kind of confused at first. But then I realized he didn't want to assume that he could use the ministry money to pay for his own children's education. For their higher education. So we met as a church board to discuss it.

And we unanimously agreed. That it was absolutely fine to use the ministry money to pay for their education. The couple has never received a salary. The money that we're able to raise and send provides for the needs of the family. The needs of the orphanage. But they don't get any extra. And we watched over the past 13 years that they had proven themselves trustworthy and faithful stewards.

And so. I just wanted to let. We're in the process of letting all the supporters know that the money that is going to this ministry isn't just for the boys that bring in. But it's also for their own family. For their own children. And their education. So we just want to be clear and transparent about that. And not. Yeah. That's what. Partially how the money is being used.

So Laura and I were both blown away with the maturity of their children. And seeing. As Laura said. Just the love of God in them. We recognize the sacrifices that they had to make. As a family to make this ministry possible. And we'll never know what would have been of any of these boys. Any of these children had. This couple not said yes to the Lord and not decided to take them in.

But I do know these boys lives have been changed. And I want to thank all of you for your part in that. In sponsoring this. This ministry as well. And they're continued to be being changed. I talked to the pastor just yesterday. And he told me that they've taken in another boy into their care. And I wonder, you know, what does his future hold? I wonder what God has planned for this new child.

They just took in. And I wonder. Will future generations be impacted. By this couple's yes to choose to take in one more. So I want to end. By showing a. A video is a brief compilation of some photos and video from our trip. To show you some more of the faith. To show you some more of the faces. But I just thank you all for letting me come this morning. To share about this ministry.

To give you all an update. And hopefully you're able to get a feel for it. More than just the facts and figures. But maybe to get an understanding of the heart behind it. And the people that are involved in it. So if you want to go ahead and play the video. I think it's starting over. There we are. So that is the ministry. And I hope you have a fuller understanding of it now.

Than maybe some of the brief updates that we've been able to share with you all in the past. So I just want to close this morning. With a prayer. Lord thank you for this opportunity that we have. To share this ministry in India. And the work that you're doing there. Through the lives of these young boys. Their families that are also being touched by the gospel.

Lord I pray that you would just continue to strengthen this couple. To continue to strengthen this ministry. And to provide for their needs. And provide for the needs of the children. And the young men and women. As they grow up and leave from that home. Lord I thank you for this. This church and their faithfulness. And supporting this ministry. Lord I pray that you would just give each of us clear vision.

And opportunities for us to step out in faith. And to say yes to what you're prompting of us. Give us the courage and the boldness to say yes. When we sense your leading. And Lord I just ask that you would just encourage this group. That you would meet their needs. And provide for them as they go out. And to all the various places of influence that they're involved in.

And the people that they get to touch on a daily basis. So I pray Lord that you will encourage them. That through you. Lives are transformed. People are changed. And transformation does happen. In your name we pray. Amen. Wow. The love of God. Amen. How rich. How full. How measureless. Thank you Lord Jesus. You all stand with your arms. Thank you. For this opportunity to listen to the blessings of what's going on.

Ministry. Continue to encourage Zach. And heart to minister. In that particular. Bless the pastor and his wife. And all that they're doing there. We give you thanks now. And just bless our way. And give us a good week. In Jesus name. Amen. Lord bless you all.