There and Back Again: India and Beyond

     What is ethnocentrism? According to dictionary.com, ethnocentrism is: Belief in the intrinsic superiority of the nation, culture, or group to which one belongs, often accompanied by feelings of dislike for other groups. The tendency to evaluate other groups according to the values and standards of one's own ethnic group, especially with the conviction that one's own ethnic group is superior to the other groups. The belief that one's own culture is superior to all others and is the standard by which all other cultures should be measured. What is the problem with ethnocentrism? Ethnocentrism, at its heart, is an absence of love for people who are different from oneself, which is antithetical to the Christian life. Ethnocentrism is an issue that all humans, regardless of their country or culture of origin, have.  It is one that I struggle with, and it is one that I blatantly see among many people all over the world.  This is ...

Beautiful Southeast Indian scenery from my first trip to India. Hey all my wonderful readers! A number of months ago, I had posted about some new and exciting things coming up this year. I finally have some updates to share! 1. My all-new blog, which I had share the vision of previously is now LIVE!!!!!! You can check it out at redeemingasia.com . I am so excited for this new avenue of ministering to ministry leaders in Asia as well as providing resources for churches that are looking to teach their people about missions! 2. I have decided to go ahead and continue writing on There and Back Again , but it will primarily be my personal blog with stories of my adventures both at home and abroad. And, of course, I will update it periodically with links to the other site where you can find all my Bible/missions/theology writings. 2. India is calling my name again , and I will be traveling back in October to spend a couple weeks with my boyfriend and his family in their home c...

Hello my friends! The last few months have been crazy busy as I have been adjusting to being back in the U.S., spending time with my family, and preparing for future plans. As many of you may know, the last year has been full of new experiences, new friendships, and all kinds of changes. I met and began dating my now boyfriend, returned to India for a three-month stint visiting and assisting several organizations who are doing wonderful work promoting the well-being of thousands of Indians, and came home! Whew! Over the past several months, I have been contemplating many questions, most of them along the lines of these: What now? Where to next? What do I do with what I have learned? Those questions are largely unanswered as of this moment. And yet, as many of us know, when one comes to the point of considering such questions, there is a high chance that some potentially major changes will result. The old must pass away. One of the biggest areas I have been contemplat...

After my three week stint in Hyderabad, I returned to Orissa, where I would spend the next five weeks teaching in the school and renewing friendships. It was wonderful to have more time to learn more about how God has been moving there during the past four years since I last visited. As I have mentioned in previous posts, it was in this place that I first fell in love with India and its people. After the past four years of ups and downs, and continual confusion as to where God may be calling me, it was fitting to end my second trip to India by spending time in the place where it all began, and doing many of the same things I did during my last time there. My whole experience over the past summer in India has taught me so much about myself and revealed many significant things to me about what God is calling me to do. While in Orissa, I spent most of the daytime teaching English, as well as substitute teaching for other subjects whenever the need arose. I was delighted to inter...

Photo credit: Sundeep Goel As I had mentioned in my previous post, I spent my first week in Hyderabad working with a sports ministry team teaching volleyball and playing games. After the team left to return to the States, I remained in the city where I spent the next two weeks with the Indian organization we had been partnered with. During the rest of my stay in Hyderabad, I was able to further explore the organization and participate in its ministries. On my first day (which was a Saturday), I was asked to share at a women’s Bible study, so I prepared a study on John 15 and what it means to abide in the True Vine. It was a joy to fellowship with the group of ladies and to hear testimonies of God moving in the hearts of women in India. The next day, I and another intern attended church with the family who founded the organization. I was surprised by the fact that the church service so closely resembled a Western megachurch service in the stage setup, service format, us...

Namaskaaramu! Greetings from India! After spending a week in Orissa, I traveled to Hyderabad, which is a city in the state of Telangana. There, I met up with a couple other ladies from the U.S. who I would spend a week with, teaching kids how to play volleyball. My initial task was to make sure they got settled into the hotel and had everything they needed. This was my first opportunity to act as hostess of a team, and though I was exhausted from traveling (as were they), we all managed to settle in and spend time resting before our busy week began. I went to sleep in my hotel room, excited about spending the next day (a Sunday) attending a church service, and spending some time playing games with the kids. But, I woke up in the wee hours of the morning with a major stomach virus (essentially traveler’s food poisoning). I ended up spending the entire day in my room nursing myself back to health. Not exactly what I had in mind for the first day in the city, or really for any ...