Pondicherry, Madurai, and Whats Next?

Dear Friends,

It has been a while since I updated you with what has been going on. After our crazy time in Mumbai; we were visited by Dr. Matt Benson and Bonnie-Marie Yager. They stayed with us for about three days, and then Matt left while Bonnie stayed with us to accompany us to our next Indian destination--Pondicherry.

Thus, all four of us arrived in Pondicherry, and we stayed there from July 6th to July 13th. When we arrived, the director ReshiDavid was excitingly telling us all that we could teach according to what he had heard were our strengths, but this did not sit well with me. In my own American-kind-of-made-up-Indian-way, I continued to ask him questions about the missionaries who would be attending the programs. This finally led to him revealing that almost all of them were new believers, and they had no biblical background, even about basic characters such as Moses of David. After this conversation in addition to some helpful comments made from our Indian friend Raju, a biblical seminary student interning with Word for the World at the same time we are, we decided to teach a miniature form of "An Introduction to the Bible" and an in-depth-study in the book of James.

We were able to make time lines, charts, fill-in-the-blanks and hand them out to the people due to the Xerox center right down the street; this proved to be so inspirational to the people as they realized how much they were learning and that they had all the notes they would need to later teach the material themselves. As I taught an overview of the Bible and then specific sections such as the Torah, Prophetic Books, Writings, I began to realize that there papers will filled with Tamil notes as they were diligently writing down everything. I was privileged to teach James 5 and sum up what we had concluded the theme of the book to be. This was very encouraging to me; at the end the missionaries spent so much time thanking and rethanking us for all the work we had done and all the material we had taught. Afterward, we came back to Chennai for a day; Bonnie left us; and Andrew, Kristen and I headed off to Madurai for another adventure--Madurai.

We stayed in Madurai from July 17th to July 21st. In these six days of reuniting with our Ebby Ana(His name is Ebenezer Christopher--his wife, daughter and he are very talented singers; they are asked to sing everywhere), we had fourteen programs to do. On Tuesday, we were scheduled for five. While this may sound like we three blind mice ran around exhausted from ministry; I would like to note how gracious God was to our team. As I taught and preached, I began realizing how God's grace was proportionate to the work He had called my and team and I to do. This has been one of the greatest joys of mine--"getting to sit back and see God move." His ways continue to keep me on the edge of my chair. To give a quick glimpse of my teaching/preaching ministry in Madurai, I spoke to a youth group on "You belong to God;" I spoke to a retirement home called Shalom Gardens and to a youth-confirmation class on "Guilt, Grace, Gratitude-Isaiah 6;" I spoke to a Teacher's Staff Devotion time on "Come to Me--Matt. 11:28-30;" and I also spoke on Sunday morning to a C.S.I church, Church of South India, on "But if God does not--Daniel 3:17-19." Then, I came down with a cold, and it was right in time for my talk to a hundred college women at the inauguration of St. Stephen's College for Women. The pastor at the C.S.I church asked if we would share at this college ceremony; it was very exciting and encouraging. The only problem was 85% of the women were Hindus, so after some prayer and consideration I spoke on "What is Truth?--John 18:38." It went well as I began to give them the old-one-two routine that I learned from my time at Summit Ministries at Bryan College before my senior year in high school. I only set out to stir their pots of presuppositions and ask them the intiuitive-morality spill on "What man is not a man who does not leave this world better." What does your religion say is truth? & Does it leave the world a better place? I think it went over well. That day, it was also time to say farewell to the missionaries in Madurai. This was very hard.

We came back to Chennai from July 22-July 29; we have a few more devotionals and a few more days before we head to Italy for a week. This is what's next! All the ACTS Interns meet in Italy for a week for debriefing, which translated means story sharing, reflecting, games, and places like Venice. This time promises to be filled with joy, but pray for travel mercies for all the team members coming from Asia, Africa, the Middle East, and other parts of Europe. In eight days, I will be heading home, and I cannot wait!!

In Christ Alone,
Seth Flores

"Mumbai"

Dear Friends,
What can I say? I have been in India for almost six weeks, and I am beginning to live life here very casually. As I am living my life day-to-day, I find that I am reminding myself, "Oh, wow, I almost forgot; I'm in India." This has happened more than I can remember.
I have finished my ministry in Mumbai, and it was incredible. I stayed with Uncle Pepin and his family, which included his wife Fatima, who I call Auntie, his daughter (Selena), and his son (Phillip). We taught in the slum schools every morning from 8-12:15.
I taught the 8th and 9th standard; there were about nine boys in the class and two girls. Andrew and Kristen both tackeled the 5th and 6th standard, and although teaching the 8th and 9th standards was hard; after hearing Andrew and Krsiten's repeated war-cries to quiet the class, I was very thankful for my bunch. My students did not get a break with me being the teacher; I thought to myself, "No blood, no foul," so I brought the heat.
I taught grammar, which included all eight parts of speech; I included infinitive verbs, linking verbs, gerunds, and participles. I taught "Maths" as they call it. We did problems usually for an hour straight with every other four or five being increasingly harder. We covered science--the solar system, the three laws of reflection, the parts of an atom, and the interior of the Earth (crust, mantle [magma is made here in some chambers; it surfaces as lava], outer core, and inner core). We covered composition and communications, as they wrote a page-long story with the words I gave them, and then presented it to the class. As a leader, this was rewarding. One day, we covered all the continents, oceans, special countries and their languages. Another day for History, we covered the fall of the Babylonian Kingdom by the Medo-Persian Empire. Let's just say, when it was push-up time (PE time), my kids were thrilled.
The kids were wonderful, and the ministry with Brother Lemma was incredible. He is a man, who has led most of all the believers in one slum, to the Lord. He walks around saying very loudly, "Praise the Lord," and funny enough believers on the street repeat it back to him, and then come to shake his hand. We did some house to house visits in the slums. We prayed over everyone who had us in their home. On our first Sunday, we three students ran around Mumbai preaching. We did this at four different churches! I preached twice, and Andrew and Kristen both preached once. This was a tiring day. At the end of our time in Mumbai, Dr. Matt Benson and Bonnie-Marie have come to take us back to Chennai. Their company has been incredible. I find myself thinking and speaking very fast English, because I have, for so long, been speaking so slow. This is my story for thelast two weeks. Maybe soon, like tomorrow, I can write some of things I have learned recently. Until then, I hope you enjoyed a little glimpse of our crazy, and yet, wonderful time in Mumbai.

In Christ Alone,
Seth Flores

A Leper Colony and Beyond

Dear Friends,
I have just finished three days of ministry in Chingleput, a leper colony. The leprosy that these people had was not as aggressive as I thought it would be, but it was noticeable as some ladies were missing all of their fingers and one man had a horrible set of lumps under his neck. Word for the World was able to pull off a mini-conference that lasted for the three days that we were there. The meetings were at night, and Kristen, Andrew, and I shared our testimonies at the night meetings. During the daytime, there was a women's meeting, a youth meeting, and on Sunday morning there was a regular service where we also partook communion. Kristen shared her testimony again at the women's meeting; Andrew preached at the youth meeting. I preached during the Sunday Service--Daniel 3:16-18--"But if God does not, Will you still trust Him?"
The meetings at night were good, and I think people were encouraged. On Saturday, we three were able to go and visit some of the locals. This was good, hard, and challenging. One woman, who had one tooth and no toes, spoke about how her son had kicked her out of the house when she contracted leprosy. She also spoke about how some Christians had come, and they brought her some food and danced with her in her house. She never heard from them again. But the Christians from the Word for the World brought the gospel of Jesus Christ, and they invited her to church and have been taken care of her ever since. It was incredible to discover that I am serving with an organization who talks and walks tall.
I will really need your prayers as I venture tomorrow to Mumbai by plane. I will be there for 12 days, and then Matt Benson and Bonnie-Marie Yager will show up to take us away and catch up with us. Supposedly, the people there in Mumbai work from 5:30 A.M. to 12:30 A.M. Augustine Asir says they are crazy, and I do not blame him. Be in prayer for my team as we miss our homes, as we all have so much on our minds, and as we try to follow Jim Elliots' words, "Wherever you are, be all there." The time here has been so great, and I am loving every minute of it. Enjoy the pictures!


In Christ Alone,
Seth Flores

"A home away from home"

Dear Friends,
I am doing really well today. I feel like I am running around enjoying the best of everything. Ministry has begun, and we are loving it. Our mornings consist of one of us preaching. So far, I have preached twice. Uncle Augustine is really impressed with our sessions; in fact, he is so impressed he told us to write out our sermons in essay form so that he can publish them in "Word for the World's" English magazine. I felt like a rockstar after he told us this, and it was very humbling for him to lean over after one of my sermons and really encourage me with some kind words. After the morning sessions, the headaches come as we tackle the language of Tamil. We have a ton of fun as we three try to pronounce the words. The Indians just have a fits of laughter as we are trying to say one word and accidentally end up saying another word. We eat lunch next and watch a cricket or cartoons. Then by three o'clock, all the young boys are done with school, and English class begins. Kristen takes the lead in this area; all though I find my knowledge of English grammar not to be too rusty as I occasionally can dish out a particular "part of speech." After English class, I am asked to do five different things for the fun portion of the day: cricket, chess, TV video games, or "business" (Monopoly with ruppies).
Like I said, life seems to have become normal, and our team is just fitting in, like we belonged here all along. If I am not teaching or preaching, then I am reading "The Way of the Shepherd," listening to my pastor's sermons on I John, or just hanging out with the young men. Last night, I dressed in my red kurta and went to a wedding of about 2,000 people. As some may know, people excite me. After the wedding, there was an incredible reception. It was not long before I went exploring and tried to fully experience my first, ever Indian wedding. I drank three cups of purple Kool-Aid, ate a bag of pop corn, ate some cotton candy, and had three bowls of ice cream after eating Breannie-a traditional wedding meal; it is chicken with rice...very good and very hot, hence the three bowls of ice cream.
After singing the doxology, I remembered "I'm in India...oh no...wait...I'm at a wedding in India!" This place, the people, and the times are starting to feel like "a home away from home." For this, I am very grateful and encouraged. I know I am starting to fit right in when I can fall asleep on the way home from the wedding. When we got back to the apartment, I leaned on the gate excitedly as Benesh talked to the woman who lives behind us, who seems "very much in the know of things." She was talking about the young lady, who lives beneath us, who was going to get betrothed soon, but complications have arisen. Before the night was over, the lady, a Hindu, asked us to pray for the money to send her children to a good school, bought us some ice cream, and finished up her thoughts on the engagement situation.
If you were to call tonight and ask, "So Seth, what's been happening lately?" I would simply and
happily respond, "Oh, you know, just life."
In Christ Alone,
Seth Flores

"Both are Favorites"

Dear friends,
I am enjoying these handful days in India as my friends and I have been at a beach front resort in full view of the Indian ocean. The Asirs are taking some much needed rest from ministry, and we are all enjoying the scenery, the beach, and the fun times very much.
It has been said by one very wise and clever comedian when commenting about his days in junior league baseball and his love for snow cones...."Cherry and grape...don't worry about which one to get...both are favorites, and if you only play half a game, you still get whole snow cone. So I would rather play half a game, because I still get a whole snow cone."
This is how I feel about two of my favorite activities in India thus far. I love getting Chai tea in the morning with the men, and I love riding on the back of Benesh's motorbike to and from the Asir's house. I will begin with going for tea.
In the morning, Benesh, Raju, Andrew, and I all wake up between 6-7:30 A.M. We live in a rented out apartment on the second floor. Adjacent to our house on the right are people doing construction--this means we wake up every morning and see men and women carrying anywhere between ten and fifteen bricks on their head up and down the stairs. We walk down the stairs to be greeted by the heat, the Hindu signs freshly drawn on the sidewalks in chalk, and, usually some India children all grabbing at Beneshs' arms. We take a left and start our walk down the street. At the end of our street, before we take a right onto a new street, there is a dump.
It is a place where everyone throws their huge amounts of trash like old rugs, old clothes, or broken appliances. The smell is thick and inescapable. It is about this time in the walk when we take a right, and the streets become strewn with trash and filled with people. Instead of being a street lined with houses; it is a street of commerce. People are selling food, newspapers, drinks, coconuts, and, of course, Chai Tea. When we get to the end of the street of commerce (about seventy steps), we are welcomed by the sound of bells of this elaborate and extravagant Hindu temple. The priests are chanting to the gods and ringing the bells. Two weeks ago, this raptured my attention, but it is now slowly becoming normalcy to my everyday routine. On the street of commerce, we take a sharp right and arrive at our Chai Tea place. We get a seat because we are Americans and some reading....then we try to blend in by smiling sheepishly and muttering a few words from our small list of Tamil vocabulary. The cups which we drink Chai Tea in are comparable to shot glasses. On the way back to the bachelor suite, we pick up an Indian newspaper written in English for Andrew and me. It is entitled, you would never guess, "The Hindu." We go home, take baths in buckets, and Benesh gets an auto for Andrew, Raju, and me to take us to the Asir's. Then when the auto (a yellow, three wheeled vehicle) arrives, I run up to Benesh and very excitedly ask, "Benesh Ana (older brother), can I ride with you on the motorcycle?" This begins my other favorite actvity in India thus far.
Riding on a motorcycle here in India gratifies my manly need for an adrenaline rush. It is everything, except safe. The ride lasts for about ten to fifteen minutes, but there are no stop signs or traffic lights where we ride. Thus, Benesh has to be able to turn, avoid being hit, or stop on a dime. The first time I rode; I almost pulled both of us off as Benesh weighs, maybe ninety pounds, and I weigh 210. He corrected where my arms should go, and we have not had that problem again.
In America, honking is rude, but here it signifies, "Hey, I am coming around a corner, or I am about to pass you." No biggie. The smell of smoke from the exhaust pipes fills my lungs, and the rush of passing people accelerates my serotonin levels. The-always-desired, but very-infrequent breeze pushes my wet-shower hair back off my forehead...and India, for a moment, almost feels cool. Instead of almost falling off or almost pulling Benesh off, I now feel like an expert at riding. I know how to turn with Benesh without making the back of the motorbike swerve. Also, when he turns, I can feel myself compensating for the turn by gently leveraging my weight to the opposite side to ensure a smooth turn. Whenever, we get where we are going, I am always disappointed, because I want to go further.
In my mind, I am comforted by the fact that I still have about nine weeks left to enjoy these things. So I dismount the motorcycle and smile to myself, because that morning I have been able to enjoy a motorcycle ride after some chai tea and "both are favorites."

In Christ Alone,
Seth Flores

Eyes to See and Ears to Hear

Dear friends,

We have just completed the Word for the World conference in Kodaikanal, India and have returned to Maudurai before heading to the Asir's home in Chennai. The conference was wonderful; it was held to encourage the sponsers in their spiritual walks. The conference emphasized the importance of not only praying and sponsoring Word for the World, but also the importance of partnering with Word for the World in their mission to spread gospel truth and love (especially in thier families and in their everday lives).

After having an intense discussion with my team last night, I realized how easy it will be to live in the safety of my team and to actually miss being here in India. The word for today is "do not hide." In all the missions' settings I have been in so far (Ukraine and Haiti), I have come to acknowledge how capable all the missionaries already-on-site were. They are following the Lord and are bringing in the Kingdom. Then, my team shows up. A rag-tag bunch from the "America" (in a country accent). The question always come to my mind, "Why am I here again?" In the briefness of the prior trips, I have only been able to answer this question when I have come home, but I am in India for another nine weeks.
I have met people here whose lives have been faithful to the Lord longer than my dad has been alive, and they, themselves, have been in ministry longer than I have been alive. Yesterday, I met a woman, who was sponsered to come to the United States to do research on cardiovascular heart diseases. Two days ago, I met a woman who, in my opinion, reminds of an Indian Beth Moore. To say the least, whenever this lady spoke, everyone's attention was captured, and everyones' hands were writting down her thoughts. During my first Sunday here, Uncle Augustine gave a message that challenged me as a man, as a Christian, and as a spiritual leader. Again, I am reminded of the very clear and sure leading I felt from the Lord to come to India. I am sure that I am supposed to be here. The question is, "Why?"
Because of my American mind, I am always trying to fix people and trying to become the Holy Spirit in their lives. In my short time here in India, God has called me to a deeper understanding of "humility." He has shown me that India belongs to Him, and not me. He has shown me that if I am to be used by Him here, then I, as one of His sheep, will have to learn to really listen to His voice. This is my plea for today that I would meet God in India as I determine in my mind and heart to surrender to His leading to serve the people here in anyway that He sees fit. All things belong to Him, and all things are being reconcilied to Christ's feet. May God give me the "humility" to not miss Him and to not miss India while I am here.

In Christ Alone,
Seth Flores

I have been trying to get around to posting a blog, but with three of us trying to do the same thing, it is difficult.

However, I am here now, and I would like to say, before I say anything, I love it here in India. I woke up this morning thinking, "How do I begin my first blog? How do I describe what I am seeing, smelling, feeling, eating, trusting, praying, and believing?" As already mentioned, it is incredibly hot; my skin has already negatively reacted to the heat and has developed a pretty disgusting heat rash that moved from my arms and my legs to my forehead and, now, my upper lip. Steriods and Benedryl are on their way, and I dearly covet your prayers right now and so does my skin.
Our hosts are the Asirs--Augustine (the Father); Auntie (his wife); Sharron (His daughter); Jim Assir (a handicap son of Augustine, who is completly responsive, but cannot take care of himself or speak, oh yeah, and he never stops smiling and laughing); Sam (Sharron's Son--Augustine grandson); Benesh and Raju (my and Andrew's roomates). All of these people and more make up the ministry based in Chennai, India known as "Word for the World." I could take five pages and tell you how I learned joy from Jim's effectious smile; how I enjoyed a blend of Indian food(igglee and Chai tea) and American food (fried chicken and panckaes) from Sharron's cooking; how I learned to live like an Indian man from Benesh (who takes us to Chai tea every morning in Chennai) and Raju (who talks to me about Jesus Christ with a faith that surpasses my own); and how I learned to teach sermons as God's messages and not mine from Augustine Asir (after he preached and said, "This is the message God gave to me to give to you; I hope it has helped.").

The driving is crazy, my skin is killing me, the smells are not so bad, the food is great, and the people are of the best quality. I love it here. I have not even been here a week, and God is being more faithful than I had anticipated. Isn't this always the turth? Pray for my sister Kristen as she builds relationships with the women here, pray for Andrew as his love for his family and friends occassionaly surfaces in homesickness, and pray for me to be healed of my skin rash and to be healed of everything inside that is not of Christ. My most frequent prayer is that Christ and His gospel would tear down every wall that I have knowningly and unknowningly placed around my heart and mind. Your prayers are my miracles, and I looked forward to sharing them with you face to face.

In Christ Alone,
Seth

Wanna Come

It means "hello, and good day to you" in Tamil. Greetings from Chennai, India. I hope these next few months God makes His Son permeate through my entire being. I want to be crucified with Christ, and I want Him to live through me. I want the people in India to see my life and be shown His Son (Gal. 2:20, Matt. 5:15-16). I hope to keep you informed as all of you have played a role in my being here whether it was from teaching me, praying for me, or supporting me in this trip. My life is richer, because of all of you. I hope to keep you involved in my experience here, so that you, like the first century church did with Paul, will become partakers in grace with me. (Phil. 1:6-9) By praying for me, you enter into this time with me and are very much involved with my ministry. May God be gracious to us as we serve together.

Safe in India

Thank you all for your prayers for us as we travelled. Andrew, Kristen, and I have safely arrived in India and are adjusting to life here. It is very hot! I will post more information soon. Keep praying for us to overcome the jet lag before we fly to Muaderai on Monday afternoon.