Saturday, August 2, 2008

KL ~ Tracts On The Street

August 2, 2008
Bus Station
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Handing out Tracts

Our last day in Kuala Lumpur and we still have lots of Malaysian tracts left. We are taking the bus to Singapore and have a little bit of a wait in the bus station, so we decided to hand out tracts at the station. We worked in shifts so two of us could keep an eye on the luggage. Reid and I went first. We tried giving them out to people as they walked past us but found that few would take one. We then walked around to those sitting and waiting. It is obvious when you are handing a tract to a Hindu or a Muslim here. I was thrilled each time someone who was obviously not Christian would accept the tract. I found this to be a great place to give out tracts. These folks have time on their hands and nothing to do but wait, so they read our tracts! As we finished, Reid and I prayed for those who had received that God would plant seeds in their hearts to come to know Him.

Hatcher and Harrison went next. I kept an eye on them and an eye on Reid and the luggage as they went. It was interesting to watch the people watch my children as they moved around the station. Hatcher later told me that one of the men asked if he was selling the tract. When Hatcher said no, the man began reading the tract.

Please pray for those who accepted and read the tracts, that God will touch their hearts.

Thursday, July 31, 2008

KL: Man In The Street

Man in the Street
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

We have had two days of rest in the hotel. The boys have been able to play on the hotel’s internet and watch TV. I’ve had some quiet time and have gobbled up a couple of the books Barbie brought me. We decided today we would venture out into the city. Our cab driver had told us that Times Square was the place to go (shopping, movies and even an indoor roller coaster) and it was within walking distance of our hotel so we headed that way.

I must share that spiritually I am drained. I have come to learn the signs of my own spiritual drought and when I recognize those signs I know it is time to replenish for I have nothing left inside….I need a refilling of the Spirit.

The city was interesting and busy. As we walked, we suddenly passed a beggar. He legs were maimed and I didn’t have it in me to even look at him. We passed him and then Hatcher stopped. He didn’t have to say anything, because I knew too we had to give the man something. We dug into our pockets and pulled out a couple of remigetts (Malaysian currency). I also dug for a Malaysian tract. Hatcher walked back and gave the items to the man. “Mom, I think he was happy to get the tract.” Hatcher said. I was relieved we hadn’t passed him by. Soon we saw another and again gave.

As we walked the last block to Times Square, the number of people walking with us grew. I looked ahead and saw something in the street. My heart lurched and my soul started to cry out to the Lord, “God, please don’t let that be a person.” I kept repeating that in my head, but God was not answering my plea.

In my life I have seen many hurt and wounded people. I have hugged children laden with lice, kissed the hand of a man who was covered in scabs and held and prayed for a woman with leprosy. Yet, this sight before me now was one I could not handle. I don’t know that words can begin to give you a picture of how it felt in my heart. This was a man who was lying on the side of the street. His leg was displaced from his hip and stuck out to the side, he had a large open wound on his leg and many wounds in various stages of healing. He was very thin and barely clothed. His arms and legs were all wounded and frozen in certain positions. Most disturbing of all, he was lying face down. His mouth was pressed against the road. My insides were panicking….I wondered if he had fallen and no one had stopped to help him. I walked towards him to check on him. Inside I wanted to run in the opposite direction. He was conscious and then I saw the cup in his hand. He could not move his body but he could bang the cup against the road. Inside the cup were a variety of bills. I reached in my pocket and gave him everything that was in it, then walked away.

The boys followed close behind. We walked up a short set of stairs to the entryway of Times Square. I immediately saw large advertisements for beautiful clothes and name brand watches. The advertisements and the vast materialism that lay before me made me want to vomit and I wondered if I could walk through this building. I had to stop and lean against the wall. The boys gathered around me and I grabbed the first one I could and began to weep.

I wept for the man. I wept for this country. I wept for the people who walked by him. I wept for the family member who must take him there regularly in order to get financial help to care for him. Then I wept for me, that I couldn’t touch him, speak to him, pray for him or even look at him. I felt I had let the Lord down. I had allowed my own fear, hurt, pain, whatever it was to stop me from showing the love of God to him.
I will not be the same since this event. I will forever wonder if I was his chance for healing or salvation and I missed the opportunity. The image of this man will forever be etched on my mind. I cry now as I write this.
Later I prayed and asked God why I couldn’t reach out to this man. I don’t know the answer and don’t feel like God has given me one, but I do know that I was not “prayed up”. I know by the Word that in our weakness God is made strong (2 Corinthians 12:9)….I wonder if I had reached out in faith (in the weakened state I was in) if God would have moved with great strength. I’ve seen God do it before, yet I didn’t give Him a chance this time. I see in hindsight I was more focused on my needs than his, yet how much greater his needs were than mine.

I have prayed for this man and I have repented to the Lord for my weakness. I have prayed that God will send another who is stronger.
Please pray for him too…God knows his name.

New friends we met in Malaysia…please pray that God will speak to their hearts.

Monday, July 28, 2008

Kuala Lumpur

July 28, 2008
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

This country and city are so very different than what I expected. The official religion here is Islam. It is a very diverse group of people and several natives have said the country prides itself on welcoming all religions.



Kuala Lumpur has the largest buildings in the world…the Petronas Twin Towers. They are striking and I remember seeing them on TV for the 2000 New Year Celebration.
One of these building houses an opera house and a huge mall. We visited the children's museum inside the building and it was terrific.

Friends we met in the museum…everybody wants a pic with us. :-)

Our taxi driver from the airport to our hotel was a delight and gave us the history of Malaysia as well as many other parts of the world…he was like an encyclopedia and we thoroughly enjoyed our ride with him.

We made friends at the Starbucks in town. These guys were very friendly and we were able to share the Gospel with them.
Two of them said they were Christians and a third was Buddhist.
Please pray for them.

Monday, July 7, 2008

God touches hearts

Monday, July 7, 2008
Another small village in India

God touches hearts
By: Gloria Gault Geary

I don’t believe in coincidences anymore. I believe that everything is a part of God’s plan. I also am beginning to understand that when God uses us to bless others He also blesses us in some way.

Today is the 7th anniversary of the death of my husband. I don’t dread this date like I used to. I accept it as a day to thank God for the time I had with my husband and also to thank Him that I know my husband is in Heaven. This year it was also a time to see how far God has brought my family. I awoke early in the morning and realized the date. I spent time with the Lord and feel back asleep, I did not think about the anniversary again until I was in the middle of my talk to a group of widows.


As I began talking God prompted me to tell them the story of how He spoke to me that morning Bill died. As I began to share the story I remembered it was the anniversary and shared that with them too. After we shared the Gospel with them we prayed over them. There was a woman who requested prayer whose husband had died within the last year. She has two girls and her mother has leprosy and she is also sick. The minute she and I touched hands she broke down crying. One of our team members was praying aloud over her. The widow cried and began praying aloud too. Of course we could not understand what she was saying, but I knew she was pouring out her heart to God. I also knew that was exactly what she needed to do and I knew God was reaching down into her heart to give her healing. It touched my heart that God would use my story to touch these women half a world away and I began crying too. We cried and prayed together. Soon the team stopped praying out loud and just let her cry and pray as we quietly prayed around her. It was a precious time for all of us.

It was interesting to me that on the morning of Bill’s death, God would have me speaking to a group of very young (early to mid-teens) widows here in India. I felt blessed to be with these young women whose struggles are more than I have ever imagined having. It is very possible that is the reason God put me with these women today. If I would ever think to fall into self pity about the fact that my husband has died I need only to think of these young women. They are more on their own than I have ever been. My church, my family and my friends gathered around me to support me enormously after Bill died. These women have few to none who have surrounded them. I have the peace of knowing my husband is in Heaven and one day I will see him again. They often do not.

There were 10 students and 3 past students there for the meeting, Eight of them accepted Christ after we spoke. God was there with us and He was speaking to hearts. We gave them Bibles and they were truly thrilled to receive one.

Please pray for these precious young widows. Pray for God to draw them near to Him and use them to be a witness to others. Pray for provision for them and this ministry.

Tuesday, July 1, 2008

The Medical Clinic

Chilakallu Village, India

This year the ministry has opened a medical clinic for the local citizens.
The cost to the community is minimal (approximately 2 rupees for 2-4 visits) and has proven a great way to minister and share the love of Jesus.
We visited the facility which is right outside the compound.
They see about 30-40 patients a day.
There is one doctor (thanks to a Canadian mission team who raised the funds to pay his salary for one year) and several nurses and nurse helpers. Because it is a small community the women will often make visits to homes to encourage those who need to come in to the clinic.
The clinic is bright and cheery and very clean looking. We heard a little about their ministry and how they have seen what a blessing it is to the community.
We laid hands on each of them and prayed for God to pour out His healing touch on each of them.

Visiting The Children of India

Tuesday July 1, 2008
Chilakallu Village, India

Today we are finally getting on track with the time change. The first big event this morning was that Harrison got invited to go see the local monkey. There are many different animals and bugs here that the boys are enjoying seeing. Wild monkeys are all over the place and suddenly show up in trees above us.

We spent time with the boys from the orphanage in the morning and shared the Gospel with them using the salvation bracelets and soccer ball. They were quick learners. My boys stayed there and played with the soccer ball and match box cars with the local boys. I rarely saw them the rest of the day.

Visiting the Widows

Visiting the Widows
Chillakalu Village, India

I must admit that this is one ministry I have really looked forward to being a part of.
Being a widow myself, I always feel an immediate connection with other widows, especially younger widows. And when I first learned of their program here, my heart leapt with joy at the thought of coming and seeing this first hand.

First you need a little background on the Hindu faith and widows. It has been a custom in this culture that if a husband dies, then the widow would be burned to death with her husband’s body. The Hindu faith taught that this would move the family 14 steps closer to nirvana. This practice was officially outlawed almost a century ago. The practice continued long after that and to this day there are still some widows who die along with their husbands. Because of this custom, widows who lived were considered outcast and often not helped by family members. Widows receive little sympathy in this culture.

In order to minister to these widows, IPCC has created a sewing school. The widows take 5 months of sewing lessons. When they graduate they are given a sewing machine, table, chair, material and all they need to start a sewing business so they can support themselves. There are two classes on the compound and several others locally.

When I walked into the first class, it was all I could do not to burst into tears. They were all standing at their sewing machines to honor me coming to visit them. As I looked around the room I was overwhelmed by their youth. I never asked their age, but there were many there in their mid-teens. Even Reid noticed their youth and asked me how old they had to be to get married.

The widow on the left accepted Christ after we shared the Gospel with the women.

We gathered around in a circle and I shared with them about us and our mission call. We shared the Gospel and they each got salvation bracelets. This would be our first of several visits with this group.
We were blessed to have one widow pray to receive Christ that day.

Monday, June 30, 2008

Backpack for the kids of Chilakallu Village, India

Chilakallu Village, India
House of Hope
By: Gloria Gault Geary

We got settled into our rooms and had lunch. Jaipaul went over some of the customs and guidelines we needed to know. After a time of rest, we got to meet and play with the orphans for a while. They currently have 35 orphans. We had purchased school backpacks for all the kids and some toys and games (thank you Calvary United Methodist Church for your support of this!). They were thrilled to get the goodies and it turned into a playtime for all of us. We had bought some tea party type toys for the younger girls. When we gave them the toys, it didn’t appear they knew what to do with them, so I sat down in front of them and started playing.

They laughed as I pretended to drink tea and gobbled up the chicken.>
I offered the tea cup to a little girl who just looked at me, so I drank it again and then offered the cup to another. She caught on. My boys couldn’t help themselves and they jumped in too. Soon all the girls were cooking, serving and eating.


We had purchased games for the older kids and match box cars for the little boys. I wish I could have caught on camera the eyes of the little boys when they saw the cars. Everyone one of them came up to me at some point and showed me the car they had gotten.

Making roads in the sand for their cars.



They were proud of their car and wanted me to know it.>

The event turned into a giant playtime for everyone and at one point I stopped and just looked around. A very simple toy and some time focused on a child. I began praising God for bringing us to these precious children. What joy I felt to spend time loving on them and what joy exuded from their hearts to just be kids and play.


<Katrina and Hepsa

Katrina is part of our ministry team.
She grew up in Haiti where her parents were missionaries. She has a depth of knowledge about the Lord and a humble, giving heart.


Chilakallu Village, India

Monday June 30, 2008
House of Hope
By: Gloria Gault Geary

We left the hotel at 5:00 am to travel to the village. We were a convoy of three SUVs, the last one was carrying all the luggage. It was a 4 hour plus drive and we slept a good portion of the way. The Indian countryside was a mixture of beautiful sights and fascinating people. Watching individuals live their daily lives of walking their oxen to get water or move their lambs and goats to market provides great entertainment for new visitors.

We passed many shrines, temples and too many idols to count. Seeing the locals drive is a whole different story. In order to get a driver’s license in India, one simply buys it at the store. Traffic was heavy and there is a mixture of buses, large trucks, auto rickshaws, motorcycles, oxen, goats, bikes, and pedestrians, not to mention the occasional Mother Hen and her family.

In order to pass the slower traffic one must get in the lane of oncoming traffic. The traffic going in the other direction is also passing the slower traffic. There were many moments I spent in prayer for our safety as we would narrowly miss a head on collision going about 60-70 miles per hour. I noticed the locals were not the least bit fazed by it. This is normal travel for them. I felt like God had sent out an extra army of guardian angels for us this morning and they were going before us making the roads safe. My guess is the guardian angels who take care of India must do a lot of overtime on the road.

We stopped at one point and watched a local woman prepare a fresh coconut for us to drink. It was delicious. Suddenly our cars stopped and there seemed to be a parade in front of us. Isaac put the car in park and said, “It is a welcoming party!” We all jumped out and there filling the street were about 100 kids and adults. There were 5 men with drums beating them wildly and as we walked up each of us were greeted with a lay of fresh flowers. Harrison got two. They were shooting off fireworks and paper poppers everywhere. I was handed several small flowers from different girls and women and everyone was saying welcome to us. It was an overwhelming and humbling welcome. The boys were being welcomed too and everyone was trying to get close to shake hands or touch us and the girls who were a part of our team.

The welcoming party began walking down the street and locals were standing on the side watching and observing these missionaries who were visiting their village. We walked a couple of hundred feet and then entered the House of Hope compound. I looked up to notice large signs welcoming us by name. The fireworks and drums continued. We were all covered with colorful confetti. As we came near the main house, they brought our team up to the porch and the others stood on the lawn. Jaipaul spoke briefly in their native language and made some introductions. He then asked me to pray. I was so humbled by their warm welcome I wept as I prayed for God to bless these people and our time with them.

"Whoever welcomes one of these little children in my name welcomes me; and whoever welcomes me does not welcome me but the one who sent me." Mark 9:37

Please pray for us as we minister, that God would guide us and would touch those here.

A scorpion comes to dinner!


We were enjoying a lovely dinner with our Indian friends when a scorpion showed up without an invitation!

Yes, George (far right) caught it and brought it in for us to see.




George is known for the animals he catches…snakes, monkeys, rats, and more.


Jaipaul offered to deep fry it if one of us would eat it!

We love our new friends and invite you to pray for them too!