Blog

There was a foreign serenity in my soul. I had just come from an encounter with a prayer warrior in Northern India, a woman who has committed her life to intercessory prayer and caring for the spiritual needs of the Indian people. She and her husband came to India on a mission’s trip in 1964…
Read more

Hope Ascending partners with local churches in India and Nepal to restore hope to populations that have been marginalized by their societies. These partnerships work to foster upward mobility in communities where discouragement prevails. We mainstream children who live in poverty by tutoring them to pass their grade entrance exams, and we encourage them to…
Read more

This morning, I awaken to music coming from the “Dance Studio” outside my second floor window at 5:30 AM. Not the worship kind you are seeing in the photo. I had been tossing and turning on what seemed like a sheet stretched over a piece of plywood for a bed, and then this music invaded…
Read more

There is a reality of desperation in these young people’s souls. On some level, they know they live in unjust circumstances. Every day is a battle – for food, water, love. They may seem like they are reaching out for a few rupees – but it’s more than that. They want normal lives; the kind…
Read more

Even better than a birthday or wedding celebration, these boys have reason to share their joy! I’ve known these kids for five years. One of our main objectives is to mainstream slum-dwelling children into the educational school system. Otherwise, they would have no future to speak of. You see, these kids grew up scavenging their…
Read more

It’s been two months since I returned from India and its people. Already, my built-in “forgetter” is performing its handiwork. The month-long journey chafed my spirit and kneaded the tendons of my soul, but life is back to normal and the daily stresses of the “good life” have returned. The scrapes with adversity, drudgery, and…
Read more

For a year now, we have been identifying the most “pushed to the side” people within the geography where Hope Ascending operates in northern India. In a matter of months, we have developed relationships with the Banjara Gypsies and a community called the Singhiwala. Both groups are migratory untouchables or Dalits. All gypsies can trace…
Read more

For a time today, there was a foreign quietness in my soul. I had just come from an encounter with the magnitude and reality of God in people. A woman, they call her “Christa Mum”, invited us into her home for Chaï. This is a highly respected Christian woman of faith in the community here…
Read more