Loaves and Fishes

My Pastor Rich was the first person I heard say this about our Nepali- Bhutanese church plant. They are like "loaves and fishes" more and more keep showing up.

When the opportunity came for me to first interact with our Nepali girls, it was to drive them about an hour and a half to a youth conference. I borrowed our Pastor's mini-van and according to the numbers and seats in the car we were good to go. Until that afternoon when there were even more kids who showed up.

Two weeks ago was the first time I met with the young Nepali women to disciple them. Six girls showed up. My heart was full.

This time however, a larger group gathered including the teens, one young girl and several older women, including a sweet old lady dressed in traditional clothes with paint on her forehead who pressed her hands together in a prayer pose and greeted me with "namaste".

We gathered in a cozy room filled with sofas and as I began to speak, there was a knock at the door and one woman entered. Another knock, another woman. "loaves and fishes" came to mind as this happened over and over again. The last I counted was about 14 women. And again, my heart was full.

The age range, the culture, the Gospel being told with the Bible and life stories, sweet translations of a foreign tongue. Captivating.

I'm learning more and more that 1) "missions" isn't a place, it is a mind-set, a way of life and 2) I always thought God would bring me overseas to serve as a missionary, but here in our great city of Manchester, NH, God has brought overseas (international people/ refugees) to me. What a beautiful thing.

Our new dear friend Silvanus reading Abigail her favorite Dr. Suess book after
 introducing him to a dinner of chicken pot pie and pumpkin scone.