It's over; 2010 is over and as we here at Hope and Help International reflect on opportunities, difficulties and blessings that this past year has afforded we can only pause and say once again with the prophet Jeremiah “Great is Thy Faithfulness”. What an awesome God we serve.
India is truly a needy country and one with countless opportunities for ministry. We thank the Lord for the privilege of being a part of what He is doing there.
This past year has proven to be a busy, but wonderfully blessed year for Hope and Help and its partners. With each passing year, I become much more aware of the goodness of God and of how fleeting time is.
We began the year in Andhra Pradesh at the Hope Bible Conference where we had the privilege of ministering to over 500 church planters, pastors and their wives.
Then February and March found us in Mission Conferences in Florida, Tennessee and Georgia. We praise the Lord for the opportunity of sharing the ministry of Hope and help with mission minded people and churches.
In April Trevor and Lori were in a Mission Conference in Pennsylvania.
In May Trevor began a new Timothy Leadership Institute with 30 pastors in Karnataka, India while I headed for speaking engagements in Texas.
Then month of June found Lori leading a team of nine to two different states in India for Children’s Camps where they ministered to over 1,400 children.
The last part of September and into the middle of October I left to teach in two different Timothy Leadership Institutes. We are doing more trips back to back in an effort to save on international airfares.
November found us sharing in another Mission Conference in Chattanooga, TN and then on to several speaking engagements in Texas for the rest of the month.
This year opportunities have abounded on every hand.
All we have to do is look around us and it does not take long to see or hear that we are suffering from an economy that's going badly. Property values are down, people have either lost jobs or they have had to take a pay cut, giving is down in churches, mission groups and charities of all kinds. Hope and Help has been affected as well. Our giving has been less this year but inspite of this our God has remained faithful and is sending some new partners.
Now let me share just a few of the blessings.
The Hope and Help Training Center is coming along beautifully.
Our partners have been able to reach an unreached tribal group and plant a growing church in this remote area.
Our donors have provided funds to build churches and Krupa Home for Aged and Abandoned women is now filled to capacity and we need to begin Phase two for expansion.
These are just a few of God’s blessings. Truly the Lord’s mercies are new every morning… “It is good that a man should both hope and quietly wait for the salvation of the Lord.” Lam. 3:26
In Stasi Eldridge’s book, Captivating, she makes the observation that a woman longs to play “an irreplaceable role in a great adventure”. And as much as that statement resonated with me when I read it in 2006, it came alive for me in June of 2010 as I set out on the 3 week “Kiddos & Widows” mission trip to India with Hope & Help International. Here is my story. My prayer is that some aspect of it may resonate with you in the same way that statement did with me and that you will find yourself willing to be swept up in your own great adventure.
As a 41 year old woman, wife of 18 years, homeschool mom to 4 amazing kiddos, founder & director of a blossoming hospitality ministry, one might say that my life is already a great adventure. My days are never boring. They are seldom predictable and they are always full. But quite honestly, sometimes they feel a bit mundane. I will go as far as to say that in the past couple of years I have even become a bit discontent and resentful at the traditional aspect of my life wondering if I am even making a difference in the lives of those around me. There is something inside me that longs for just a bit more…to be used by my Creator in a way that stretches me to be all that He created me to be… to be swept up in something much bigger than I could ever imagine.
So, God invited me to go to India. He actually used the person of Lori Overcash to do the asking, but I knew God was behind the whole thing! I said yes willingly and with great expectations. The promise of a great adventure had begun!
THE PREPARATION
My journey began by raising what seemed like an enormous amount of cash! But what God showed me was that He is my provider. His body is full of generous people who are anxious to come along side and make adventures possible. In fact, those people then become a part of the adventure. Preparations also included shots (ouch!) and paperwork (ugh!), but this part of the journey revealed to me that God is in the details. He sent me to an out of way the pharmacy to have the shots administered by what must have been an angel disguised as a retired nurse, who talked of her love of the Lord & her medical mission trip experiences the entire time she tended to me. As the departure date grew closer, God reminded me that He has surrounded me with trustworthy friends who are willing to serve Him by standing in the gap for me, caring for my kids and my home while I am away. He also showed me what a gift I have in my husband Phil who demonstrated supernatural patience with me as I obsessed over details and began to second guess whether or not I should even be going on this crazy adventure in the first place!
But before I knew it, I was standing in customs in India watching God give us favor with men as we easily sailed through to baggage claim. As much reading as I had done before I left, as many conversations I had with people who had traveled to India previously, nothing prepares you for the first wave of heat, unfamiliar smells and bright colors that surround you as you step out of the airport. And it was probably a good thing that no one had attempted to explain driving in India before I left because I never would have believed them. Riding in a vehicle on India roads is an experience that will leave you knowing without doubt that God is your protector! And I have to say that if the adventure had ended here…it would have been enough. International travel, new sights, sounds & smells, and driving in a foreign country were exhilarating. But it was just the beginning. The adventure was on!
The 1st Half of The Trip Chilakaluripet, Andra Pradesh
My first full day in India found me worshiping in an open air church with strangers united by The Spirit. It was a beautiful service in an unfamiliar language, but with many familiar traditions – prayer, singing, offerings, preaching, & communion. How beautiful it was to return to this same church a week later with those same strangers who were now lifelong friends. The worship all the more meaningful as we praised The One whom we had served together side by side all week long, ministering to 900+ slum kids and 23 widows in His name on the Veda School campus. Jesse, Hannah, Dolly, Joe, David, John, Twinkie, Krupa, Deepu, Gibson, Prem, Pretthi, Albert, Usha, and so many more. Friends that were a part of this great adventure God had prepared for me – to reveal Himself more fully to me and to show me how He has used me & continues to use me for His purpose & glory. Additional highlights during this first half of the trip have to include a visit to a leprosy village & the opportunity to prepare an American meal for our Indian friends. And if the adventure had ended here…it would have been enough. I would have left India content and fulfilled to return to my life. Happy to have been a part of a wonderful trip and satisfied with my role in it. Little did I know was that was not all God had in store for me….
The 2nd Half of The Trip Tezpur, Assam
We traveled for a day & half before we arrived in Tezpur. And as we stepped out of the airport into the sultry Northeast Indian air and were greeted by several Hope & Help TLI national missionaries, there was an overwhelming feeling that the real great adventure had just begun. We loaded the team into & our luggage onto two un-airconditioned Land Rover-ish vehicles and started out on our 5 hour trip from the Guwahati Airport to Tezpur. We laughed at each other’s dirt caked faces as we disembarked at our hotel. Lori and I had joked throughout the 1st half of the trip that it takes a person with a hearty spirit to thrive on a trip like this, but now on this 2nd half of the trip we decided that it required a true pioneer spirit! And what God revealed to me was that He had equipped me with the zeal for this type of service. We spent the next 9 days working alongside of some of the most inspiring Believers one could ever meet, ordinary men who have clearly answered God’s call on their lives to serve Him in the face of extreme conditions, serious adversity & persecution. Avi, Victor, Samir, Moni, Moti, Uttam, Punkaj, and several other HHI-sponsored national missionaries who in so many ways are just like any 25-35 year old guys. Our HHI Team partnered with them to conduct 2 Kids Camps in 2 different remote villages. We also held services in several village churches in the evenings. But where God truly showed me my value to His kingdom was that here in Assam my 13+ years of experience as VBS teacher/leader/director that was so often taken for granted in the States was needed. The opportunity to share philosophy of ministry, tools & techniques with these young missionary pastors, who are taking the Gospel into villages that are so remote their language is unscripted, was priceless. And suddenly things in my life that I had counted as mundane and ordinary became new and exciting and revolutionary. God had truly saved the best for last for me on this great adventure.
The Return Home
It is safe to say that my life was forever changed as a result of my great adventure. I played an irreplaceable role. I could never have imagined all the magical “just for me” moments God had written into the story. He showed me that the 18 years I have invested in making my home a sanctuary for my family has been worth whatever feelings of self sacrifice I feel I have made. My family didn’t just survive while I was away, but they thrived. And the values & life skills that I have worked so hard to instill in my children have made it past the lists I left for them and are actually a part of who they are. God validated His calling of me to be a wife and mother in a big way. And if that was all He did …if that was what this entire great adventure was for…it would have been enough. But, of course, there is more. He has left me with an insatiable thirst for more of Him, with the expectation that this adventure was just the teaser, and that as one phase of my life is ending, He has another wonderful phase in store for me where great adventures in which I play an irreplaceable role wait around every corner.
“Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct thy paths.”
While visiting churches in Texas recently, at the close of one of the services, I heard someone calling “Rev. Malone!” As I turned to answer, I was surprised to see a man with long unkempt hair, a beard and unwashed clothes. In fact it looked as if he hadn’t had a bath in days and was living on the street.
This man approached me and gave me an offering envelope. He stated that he had placed some money inside and he wanted it divided as he had written on the envelope. That night I had shared about the ministry in India. Then after the service, an announcement was made about the purchase of an electric piano for the church. This man had placed $1.50 in the envelope and designated $1.25 for Malone’s Mission in India and $.25 for the piano.
After having given me the envelope he walked away. I asked one of the church members standing by me about this man. I soon learned that he came fairly regularly on Sunday nights and that they were unable to learn much about him. They had tried to give him money and food, but he refused to accept any help or give them an address where he could be contacted.
I was able to catch him on his way out of church to ask about his relationship with the Lord. I learned that he is truly a believer in Jesus Christ. Upon learning this I asked if I could pray for him and he agreed. When I finished I was amazed that he immediately began to pray for me (eyes open looking around and somewhat timid and shy). After he finished I thanked him and we talked for a moment. I learned that he was intelligent and well read.
I left the service that night encouraged, but at the same time I was feeling a little shameful realizing that you can’t always judge a book by it’s cover. I still have questions: What would cause a seemingly intelligent person like this man to be in the situation he is in? Why doesn’t he change his situation? Why are we so quick to jump to conclusions about people?
One thing I do know is that God used a homeless man to encourage me and cause me to stop and think before judging someone in the future. One dollar and twenty five cents is small, but it’s a great gift in the eyes of the Lord. Thank you Lord for the encouragement.
Excerpt from a message by David Lawson, who participated in the Hope Bible Conference trip in 2010
I go to India and I see these children that are orphans. Man! I only want to adopt a few hundred of them personally, and bring back a few thousand so you can adopt a few hundred of them. It crushes you. It breaks your heart.
So what are you going to do? We’ve got to deal with the orphans. We’ve got to deal with the food problem. That’s the problem! Somebody has got to raise money and help out and start more orphanages and adopt more kids and feed these people. We’ve got to get on this problem.
I’m willing to step up and get engaged to the point that it would be a distraction. “No, David. Taking care of orphans can never be a distraction!” It can be. It can be.
Listen: I go to the doctor because my ankle hurts – it’s bothering me. I can hardly walk. He just keeps giving me pain meds. He’s helping the problem. My ankle doesn’t hurt. But is he really fixing anything? No. He’s not. It becomes a problem when I only deal with the symptoms and I never address the issue.
The issue in India is not orphans. The issue in India is a wrong religion, a wrong belief system. Yes, we help the orphans but we don’t let that distract us from telling the truth. They have got to be challenged with the Gospel of Jesus Christ because when they give their lives to the Lord Jesus Christ, they become part of the solution, not part of the problem.
“If you’re a sheltered, comfortable, “Sunday Christian,” you’ll have no passion for the gospel. Apart from a personal, vital faith in Jesus Christ, it’s impossible to wage a successful Rescue mission in the storm-tossed seas of lost humanity. Like tiny islands of truth surrounded by a sea of paganism, we must launch our ships and cast our lines every day, “redeeming the time because the days are evil” Ephesians 5:16” Chuck Swindoll
The philosophy of Hope and Help has always been to come along side national pastors providing training, resources and limited support so that they are able to lead doctrinally sound churches, disciple new believers, continue to share the Gospel with those yet unreached and show compassion and kindness to the needy. Believing that India is a nation searching for TRUTH and having seem the faithfulness of the pastors we are working with it is our desire to see our training programs continue and increase but we feel we must also make it possible for those who are equipped and are already engaged in the battle for souls to be encouraged and given the means whereby they can dedicate themselves full time to the task that their Lord has called them to. Full sponsorship for a national church planter/pastor is only $84 a month or you can join one other sponsor and have a part in his ministry for $42 a month. Will you join us in Rescuing souls in India?
By Larry Malone, 
