I can certainly say that I feel like a richer man as a result of the things I've experienced. It's hard to say though how much, if at all, it's really changed me. I guess only time, and other people's observations will tell.
I'm still not planning to sell all (or even a large percentage) of my possessions, or give away large chunks of my income. We will up our giving a little though - specifically we plan to start giving regularly and directly to Asha (we already support Tearfund), although we haven't decided how much yet!
I certainly encountered a lot of wealth - as I expected to - in the lives and character of the Asha staff - particularly Dr Kiran Martin - and in the lives of, and the welcome we received from, those in the community at Anna Nagar. One of the great things about Anna Nagar (and materially, on the surface there are a lot of not so great things!), is that it is a community - much more so I think than any place I've ever visited in the UK. This is partly unavoidable in Anna Nagar because everyone lives so close to each other in such a confined space that they have no alternative but to be a part of each other's lives, but it's also been by choice - it's an intentional community. People have chosen to work together, look out for each other and support one another. This has made it into a stable and healthy community - not without significant problems of course! - and is surely responsible for the sense of peace we felt on the first day we arrived.
Dr Martin (the founder of Asha) is someone who lives life from a Kingdom of Heaven perspective (see previous post). Her passion for the poor and for justice is an inspiration and a joy to behold. We saw her on the Monday afternoon of the second week, just after she'd been in a meeting with various government officials and bankers to try to make educational loans available for slum dwellers. She'd managed to convince them, on the strength of the improvements that slum dwellers have succeeded in making in their lives and circumstances, that these loans should be available for them, as they are for other Delhi residents. In addition she'd managed to agree a 10% rate of interest (13% for everyone else), to be reduced to 9% if they're consistent with their repayments. She was over the moon! The day before I'd prayed specifically in a team prayer meeting about banks and God making resources available to Asha, without knowing anything about this meeting. I told Dr Martin about this and she immediately accredited her success to this!
Dr Martin lives for the poor - and for Jesus. Their success is her success, their joy is her joy and their pain is her pain as well. You might think that someone like that would feel more pain than joy and less hope than despair but the opposite appears to be the case - she is always bubbly and full of energy and is a delight to be around!
This is real treasure - joy in the middle of pain, hope in the middle of despair, light shining out of darkness! I was reminded while we were in Delhi of the intense pressure India is under at the moment, from poverty, over-population and shortage of resources to name just a few things. The church in India is also under great pressure - available figures suggest that India is one of the worst places in the world at the moment for persecution against Christians, mostly coming from Hindu extremists [there are probably much worse places though, from where such figures are less freely available!]. I was reminded as well, that diamonds are formed under great pressure. I had a picture of a great diamond, emerging from the heart of India and reflecting rays of light and truth across the sub-continent.
"The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not overcome it."
- John's gospel chapter 1, verse 5
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