I wake up to the call to prayer. ½ the population of the United States crammed into a country the size of Wisconsin. People are everywhere. Beautiful faces but broken hearts. Hopelessness is the overwhelming feeling you get when you gaze into their eyes. I want to look at them; stare, gasp even when the man with crippled hands reaches out to me. Maybe he will make 40 Taka, 20cents. How do you reveal a God of hope, love, and joy to the millions of Bangladeshi’s who everyday are just trying to survive? I want to ask about the slavery that happens here…am I too scared? Maybe I’m scared of the truth. “This is the real deal”, Justin whispers to me as we walk down the crowded streets. I want to grab his hand but have to resist. Even as a married couple we are not allowed to display any type of affection in public. Instead I walk a step behind him avoiding eye contact with any male older than me. I want to understand. The western context in which I was brought up in holds me back from engaging at a deeper level. I want to scream. I want to cry. I want to hold the old woman and laugh with the children. Instead I walk silently with my head facing the ground, careful of where I’m stepping. Garbage everywhere. Babies lying on the sidewalk, I don’t know if they are dead or alive. A single tear rolls down my cheek…I can still hear the call to prayer. This is the real deal...

Just a little taste of what we are experiencing in Dhaka, Bangladesh. This place is unlike anything i have ever seen. More to come.

So we are officially leaving TODAY for outreach. We will be in Dhaka, Bangladesh on Sunday Dec. 13 and spending a little over 3 weeks there before heading up to Darjeeling, India where we will spend the rest of our time doing ministry. I won't spoil all the details just yet because we just sent out an old school paper newsletter that ya'll will get by mail in the next week or so.

Our team is healthy and ready to go. They have been through three months of lecturing and now have the opportunity to flesh out everything they have learned. Please pray for the health and protection of our team as water-borne disease and malaria can be easily picked up in areas we are going to...we are asking God to give us a supernatural tolerance for this stuff!

Also be praying that God will use our team in incredible ways and that we will be a blessing, not a burden to our contacts.

We will try and update ya'll as much as possible but as you can imagine internet connectivity is about as reliable and available as clean water up in the villages we will be staying in.
So with that said, God bless, we love you all.

If you've never experienced it before, thanksgiving and christmas in the heat is something every single one of you should do. Perhaps so you can understand how truly awful it is. I know, i know, i shouldnt complain...i can walk 5 minutes to the beach from my front porch, but there is a certain something missed when you are just sweating as you eat thanksgiving dinner.

(at 4:30 AM getting ready to run)

I know what your thinking...It's been a while since we blogged last(!) A lot is going on so try and keep up!this past week to partake in one of the most beautiful events...a wedding! Justins best friend growing up Bart got married in beautiful Kona, Hawaii. It was tough to say goodbye to the school but we packed our bags and enjoyed ourselves tremendously for the week. It was so nice to sleep and eat (american food like; Taco Del Mar, Wendys, Macaroni Grill, etc.) it may sound crazy to you...but these are the little things that you miss when living overseas! It was also great to hang out with friends and family and talk God and life and dream crazy dreams.