And now a word (or two) from Emma...

Hello Everyone!
First I would like to say that I am really sorry for not putting this out sooner, I have a problem with staying on top of things. Anyway, I would like to talk to you about all the amazing opportunities we had while we were in India.


One of the big things was laying our hands on and giving blessings to everyone that came to the house churches. It meant a lot to me to take part in this spiritual practice, not because I feel that I am better then them, or that I can heal all their pain; but that they could see my love for them and my love for Christ through my touch. Mother Theresa was quoted saying, “we are all pencils in the hand of God”, during these times at the house churches I truly felt that connection.


Here are pictures of some of us giving the blessings.

I would also like to say how happy it made me when I spent time with all the little “shine brites”. As I am writing this I am looking at the orphan pictures that we have on our kitchen wall; I am remembering the times when they would just sit on my lap, or we would play hand clapping games. I loved being with them! I miss all of the children, but it makes things easier knowing that I will go back someday. (Hopefully two years!)
These are some pictures of me and the kids. . .

This little "shine brite" is extra special to me because she is the one I sponsor, her name is Archana...

While we were in India I made many new friends, some of which I am corresponding with through emails since we’ve come home. Pradeep, Novahu’s nephew is very good at keeping me posted on everything that is going on there. He also has been teaching me Telugu in exchange for some German vocabulary .
This is a picture of Pradeep, his sister Siri and me…

I am so grateful that my family and I had the opportunity to go to India and see the fruits and labors of Joyful Journey Ministry. I know that not everyone wants to go to India, or if you want to you might not have the means to go, but I hope that with these posts on our blog and the different stories we have shared with you, that you can know in your heart that this is a wonderful ministry. Whether your contribution is prayers, money, or time, it is making a difference in the lives of many. Thank you for your support.
My hope for all is that you can find the wonderful Joy of Serving others! As Gandhi once said, “the best way to find yourself is to loose yourself in the service of others”.

God Bless each and every one of you


~Emma


p.s. I will keep after my dad until he posts his final words! :-)

Jo's "better late than never" comments...

Hi this is Jo!

These are my favorite memory's that I would like to share with you.

The first day we went to Novahu's home , he said he wanted to show us the school from his house, so we went to the top of his home, and  we could see the kid's waving from the school just a block away. We all were filled with joy and we did not even meet them yet.

While eating  lunch we were all really excited to meet the kids, after we were done eating they asked if we were ready to see them and we all said "YES" and went down stairs. There they came, one by one with a brief pause for a  cow crossing.  "OH HAPPY DAY" are dream is finally coming true.

For Christmas my sisters and I bought all the school kid's a t-shirt with the Marshall Public School logo on it. Here are some of the kid's wearing them...

We each got a t-shirt too. I thought you would like to see a picture of my dad and Creamy Fester wearing theirs.  As you can see, the clothes sizes are different there then they are here, XXL just won't cover it!

Before we left for India the J.A.M. Time children and youth from our church raised money so we could put together a library while we were there and here's how it turned out...

Here are some of the kid's in the library.

Oneday we went to a field behind Novahu's house to play Cricket. They did not explain how to play it so I was taking pictures. The kids said "come play akka", and I said "maybe". Novahu said I should just try and once I hit the ball I did not have to play any more. So I said yes, and guess what happened, I HIT THE BALL on my first try. You know what that meant, I did not have to play any more. So here are some of the pictures I took. 

First here is me after I hit the ball.

Novahu...

Shekinah...

Rajany...

T-auntie

Uncle HeadBuck...

Auntie HeadBuck...

We have been back from our trip for about 3 weeks now, and I miss everyone there terribly!

What I experienced there was true joy in the simplicity of their lives, whether it was playing games on the bus, in the orphanage, or at the school, it made me feel so warm inside the way everyone was so connected with each other.

We have already decided to start "workin' 4 change" again so we can go back,

Madhavapatnam is my home away from home!

Thanks for following along on our blog,

keep checking back as we still have more to say.

Johanna