Isaiah 58:10 & 11

“and if you spend yourselves in behalf of the hungry and satisfy the needs of the oppressed, then your light will rise in the darkness, and your night will become like the noonday. The Lord will guide you always; he will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land and will strengthen your frame. You will be like a well-watered garden, like a spring whose waters never fail.”

Since arriving in India, I have been overwhelmed with the needs of the people of India. Arriving in a very poor and underdeveloped town has been eye opening in that I see the enormity of the work before me. Poverty is rampant in India and it is easy to become overwhelmed with the tasks before me. India with its heat, dust and frequent power outages, I see parallels to Isaiah’s mention of a sun-scorched land. The needs are great, the workers are few and the heat is relentless. Perhaps some may even question what can be done when there are such great needs in a community and in a country. However, I see hints of a garden here in India, small plants taking root and sprouting out all over the place. It is clear that God is working in this place, he is using his people in incredible ways and it is through these observations that I have been humbled and realize the significance of trust in the One who is faithful in all he does.

Arriving as an economic development practitioner in training, I was eager to start assisting in any and all tasks for this particular internship. After getting over the initial shock of arriving in a new place, I found that before doing any work it was absolutely crucial to take the time to learn and observe what was happening around me and I had ample opportunity to do so. What I initially thought to be a fairly desolate place with enormous needs turned out to have local people already doing incredible work to empower their people, particularly their women. I have been humbled in getting to know a woman who runs a vocational training center out of her home to train young women in skills of sewing and tailoring so that they can find jobs and earn an income. To see local women making beautiful handicrafts to sell in the local markets, traveling hours on a hot bus just to make a meager income for their children. To see a woman begin a small organization which assists women who were once trafficked in securing jobs after a period of training and education. There is no end to this work already occurring here in India, by women, to empower their local people and to do economic development work on the ground. I am humbled by this work, and find that this sun-scorched land has begun to show signs of blooming into a beautiful garden.

What is so incredible about being in this place, is seeing how God has already been present here long before I came. He has been working in the hearts of the people here to do great work in his name. I have met many local Christians who have been doing economic development work for many years here in India. I am excited for this period to learn from them, to learn about their local knowledge and their methods to empower their women. To learn about their culture, language and customs, all the while developing relationships with them. I truly realize now after being on that ground, that this will take enormous faith and trust in God, that he is and will accomplish his work through these people and even through me. The work before them and myself is challenging, but we follow one who is faithful in all he does. I am hopeful that I will learn much while I am here from those who are already working in this field. My devotional themes this month are humility and trust, and I believe they will be a constant source of encouragement for me during this time in India, a place not as sun-scorched as I believed it to be. This is a unique and excellent opportunity to learn and to grow, and I embrace the challenges set before me as God leads and guides during these three months.

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