finding joy

Ahh I apologize in advance for not updating my blog very often!  It has been a few weeks since I last posted. So my days are pretty set now, and a week or two ago, I started counseling/discipleship with 10th standard (10th grade) boys in the afternoon. There are around twenty students the headmistress wants me to do discipleship/counseling with at least once or twice. After meeting each one, she wants me to then follow up and continue discipleship with the ones who seem to need it more. Please pray for the times I meet with these students and that God would use these times to plant and water seeds in their walk with Christ.

Also, on Thursdays, principal Chung and the headmistress asked me to lead teacher meetings each week. As that has been going on, please pray for guidance and even with my minimal knowledge and experience in teaching, that God would use that according to His will.


There was this one time I was walking home, and I passed by a home with a family of around 7-8 living in there. This home was just a small room with one bed. The children and everyone else were sitting on the floor, while some were working on homework as others were playing games or doing other things. As I walked by, I saw smiles on their faces and heard them laughing in their conversations. There was another time when I was lying in bed before going to sleep with my window open. And outside, I heard (what it seemed like) two siblings just laughing with each other as they were playing on the streets. These two incidents had me thinking, where do I find my joy? It was such a reminder this past week through these children and families that my joy should be found in Christ, even in times of suffering.

This was a view from the AECS chapel during morning (or evening, i forget...) service.

A birthday celebration for one of the sisters at AECS

Probably my favorite place to eat here so far. (I don't know if I uploaded a picture of Empire Chicken before or not, but...) This place is where I go eat if I am craving any of the foods back at home.

A care package from my lovely parents!

So last Friday was Teacher's Day. Teacher's Day in India is similar to Teacher's Appreciation day/week back in the states. However, it's a lot bigger here... the students came early to school to decorate the classroom and the chalkboard. They also brought cake and flowers (roses) for their teachers. I ate a few slices of cake that day and received a couple roses as well! These students really made it memorable for day experiencing Teacher's Day!

Ate samgyupsal with Pastor Yohan and his family. This meal was... DELICIOUS! (I also had the leftovers for lunch the next day!)

This is on the main street by St. Paul School. These are people worshiping a Hindu god on the street during one of the Hindu festivals/holidays.

The reason why I took this picture: One of my friends posted a link on my wall (http://www.wherecoolthingshappen.com/25-dangerous-and-unusual-journeys-to-school-around-the-world/) about different and dangerous journeys children take to school. One of the pictures on this site was several children riding a rickshaw to school. It reminded me of seeing students everyday who cram into a car or rickshaw on their commute to and from school.