Travel Blog Posts
September 11th 2010
Dear Friends, Last night we had the School of Ministry Graduation ceremony. It was a great night and the church was packed full. Its hard to believe that its all over, these past 3 months have flown in but what a fantastic 3 months they have been. I would love a job like this back at home, the whole experience has been fantastic. From administration work, to counseling, to marking assignments, to providing leadership within the class, it has all been a real adventure. I have grown a lot through my job here and God has definitely done a work in my heart. I felt so proud tonight as each of the students went forward to receive their diplomas. Having got to know them well through the duration of the course I have seen very clearly ... read more
September 4th 2010
Hi everyone, As I had said in my last blog I was about to leave to get an overnight train for a friend’s wedding. Well it certainly was a very enjoyable and very different experience. Thanks to the help of a sleeping tablet I got a good night’s sleep on the train so I was well rested for the wedding the next morning. As we(5 of us in total) arrived into the village where the wedding was taking place the bride and groom were just starting to walk through the village together towards the church. They were led by a marching band any about 300 - 400 people which included friends, family and the people from that village. The ceremony was very relaxed and quite similar to what we would have at home. Of course I ... read more
August 26th 2010
Hi Everyone, As some of you will know, Bronagh has arrived home safe and well and has started her new Teaching job. I’m am still in India for another few weeks and I have to say it is strange being here without her as we both were working very closely together at the Bible college. The students are missing her also. It’s coming near the end of the course so assignments are coming in and I’m starting to get a glimpse into the life of a teacher by marking, correcting and basically just trying to enforce deadlines (not an easy thing to do out here, there is such a laid back attitude). As well as continuing the work at the Bible College I got the opportunity to visit the Little Hearts Orphanage female hostel. Its approximately ... read more
August 17th 2010
Hi to all who are following, I can’t quite believe that this is my last night in India. The time has gone so quickly and so much has happened within that short space. The past few days have been spent enjoying the company of the students. On Monday we went for a special lunch which was very nice and it gave us a chance to relax with the students and have a bit of ‘craic’ with them. Then today (Tuesday) we had a staff and students picnic. We went to a nice retreat centre and played some games which included, finding dirty socks, live cockroaches and grey hairs!! The students also participated in some chili eating competitions. Needless to say neither Stephen nor I participated in those! The more time I spend here, the more I ... read more
August 12th 2010
The week began with a huge water fight involving 700 water balloons, a group of 12 Malaysian doctors and 20 kids from House of Hope. It took Stephen and I around 2 hours to fill the balloons and it was all over in less than 5 minutes but the craic was great! Thoroughly enjoyed by all! On Monday Stephen celebrated his birthday, his 34th birthday! What a celebration it was! It all began with a meal at a 5 star hotel which was fabulous, then came birthday cake number 1! We were so full from our meal that we could not eat it so we brought it home to enjoy later that evening. After arriving back at the church, one of the students had very generously ordered another cake for Stephen. It’s the culture here to ... read more
August 3rd 2010
Hi friends, Stephen here. Its hard to believe that we are into week five of the ten week course. Time is really flying and it seems like only yesterday when we were finishing our jobs to get ready to fly out to India. I have to say that these first five weeks have gone as well as could be expected. We are getting on well with the students and building up good relationships with them. We can see them growing in their faith which just elates us as we know the impact that the course had on us last year when we were students. Before we left we were very conscious that we could very easily come across in a superior way to the students as this year we have a position of authority in the ... read more
July 26th 2010
Hi, Bronagh today. I’ve had the day off and while Stephen has been at Bible college I have had some time to process a few things in my head. Please forgive the rambling that comes later but it’s my way of processing. I’ve included a few photos for light relief!! Things are continuing well, we are in the middle of a holy month for ‘Tamilian’ Hindu’s in which they worship extensively in the temples. Already we have seen many Hindu parades, women having sacrificed their hair and the temples bulging to the brim with worshippers. The culture has so many layers to it. Just when you think you are getting an inch of understanding, the rug is quickly pulled out from under you. We have to remain tactful at all times. For example, we had taken ... read more
July 23rd 2010
Dear friends, We hope everyone is enjoying their holidays at home although I’m sure they are mostly over by now. We have had a good week from we last put a blog entry up. The Bible college is continuing to progress well and it is a great experience for us both to be on staff. We are getting to know the students better and, to an extent, we are starting to get our heads round the cultural mindset out here. There is a good mix of students in the class (23 in all). Some who have just left school, others have their master’s degree in Theology, one student is a medical Dr, and another is a professor (who is the same age as me, Stephen). Most speak very good English but there are a few who ... read more
July 16th 2010
Hello again everyone, It’s hard to believe that it is the end of week 2 of the School of Ministry course and it’s almost 3 weeks from we arrived. So far everything is going really well and the students in the class all seem to be enjoying it. We are building good relationships with them and there doesn’t seem to be any cultural clashes as yet. We were able to purchase a new scooter (see photo) for the ministry we are working with and we know it will be a big blessing to them. Thanks so, so much to everyone who participated in the Belfast Marathon (Stephen Furphy) and the Lisburn run back in June (either the 10k or the 3k, Chris, Colleen, Emer, Mark, Alwin, Norwin and Matthew) and to everyone who donated, the money ... read more
July 9th 2010
Hi everyone, Just a quick update. Week one has started and finished very well. We have 20 students so far and one more guy is to start on Monday. They’re a great bunch who are sacrificing a lot to commit to the next 3 months so your prayers for them would be greatly valued. Many have reorganised working schedules, businesses etc to take the time to discover more of God. We’re trying to encourage them that God will meet all their needs, although sometimes that is difficult to comprehend when you are providing for a family and paying bills. Please pray that they would be challenged and rewarded for their commitment. God has been so good and has made Himself so evident to us this week. There have been a few situations when He has confirmed ... read more
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