Hey ya'll!  I will be participating on the World Race next year and so have a new blog set up for that (I will be abandoning this blog and focusing on that one starting in January).  Check out my journey: taliabarnes.theworldrace.org.  Love ya'll!

As an adolescent and college student, I generally spent the summer on mission trips.  Before I set out on various trips, I prepared myself spiritually.  I knew that the summer would be intense and that the enemy would attack me relentlessly.  Now, I am in full time ministry and realize that although I am not necessarily actively on the field, the enemy is attacking nonetheless.  

This past week I have been plagued with nightmares, my prof died, and I had two pseudo-meltdowns.  Today I was crying in the car, begging the Lord to rescue me, so confused about where I found myself.  Shortly after, I got a phone call from a worried friend.  She'd had a horrible nightmare about me last night - in which I committed suicide - and has frantically prayed for me all day long.  As she told me this dream it dawned on me that I was under attack!  So, I want to expose the lies for what they are - lies from the pit of hell!  I rebuke the enemy and all his conquests against me, I am a daughter of the Most High God!!  And praise the Lord Jesus Christ for his victory on the earth and in my life!!  He reigns on high and I count myself worthy to be one of his servants.  Please continue to pray that the Lord would protect me and deliver me.  Thanks all you prayer warriors!

June 22, 2001 - my eighteenth birthday and the first day of pre-orientation at Grove City College.   I was visiting the school with my father, scoping out the other students, determining my major and trying to decide which classes to take.   My trusty father accompanied me on the trip and also decided to throw in his two cents about the most beneficial classes.   My writing was atrocious - both of my parents had let me in on that little secret a number of times.   They never attacked my ability to write but rather the lack of instruction I received on how to write.  

"Effective Writing, Talia you have to sign up for it."   
"Dad!   I hate writing.   This is the only college in the history of the world that doesn't require an English 101, please don't make me take anything English."
"Talia, if you want to get anywhere in life you need to learn how to write."
I begrudgingly followed his advice and effectively earned my first C ever, albeit the knowledge I earned.

The following year I signed up for an additional writing class and the year after that the advanced version of Effective Writing - Advanced Writing.   (I had Dr. Price again and this time earned an A+).   Throughout the years I stopped over in Dr. Price's office just to say hi and we became friends.   He was one of my favorite professors, he challenged me and believed in what I didn't think existed - talent to write.

Over the course of my four years at Grove City I took six different writing classes as well as six other courses in literature.   I'm a year out of college and have signed up for another writing class - I love to write!   A couple of people have taken notice and asked me to help edit a couple of manuscripts.   This part of my life can mostly be attributed to the professor I learned so much from my very first writing class - Effective Writing, Dr. Price.  

In the past year a number of times it has popped into my head to write Dr. Price a little note just to let him know the influence he has had on my life and how I am succeeding at what he taught me.   I always made a mental note to figure out his email address and write him but never followed up.

Dr. Price was killed in a car wreck two weeks ago.   I found out last night.   This comes in the wake of multiple other deaths that surround me (and marks the 4^th for GCC this year).   I am beginning to resonate with the adults who complain that adolescents think they are immortal.  While aware of my own mortality I never took it seriously, but life is short.  Praise you Jesus for life.  It also makes me more aware that I want my life to count for something.  Unless the Lord specifically told me to be a missionary to the secular work place, I don't think I could do it.  I have roughly 70-80 years on this earth to make an eternal difference - I'm praying that I can.

COLUMBUS, GA (May 1, 2006) - Hopegivers President Dr. Samuel Thomas received bail today from the Jaipur High Court and will be released tomorrow after spending 47 days in Kota Central Jail in Rajasthan. Dr. Sam, as he is known to millions around the world, has been held on charges that he "created communal disharmony."
        Hopegivers Founder Bishop M.A. Thomas was also granted bail on the same charge from India's Supreme Court on April 20. 
        The news of Dr. Thomas' release is being applauded by supporters of the humanitarian mission worldwide.
        "We praise the Lord for this decision. The Lord has heard our cries and those of his children around the world! Now it is time to get back to focusing on what we do best, caring for abandoned and orphaned children," said Hopegivers Program Director Shelley Thomas, also the wife of Dr. Sam.
        Hopegivers is still waiting on decisions from the courts for their operating licenses to be restored and for their bank accounts to be unfrozen in Rajasthan.
        Hopegivers International is a global child care agency with a vision to rescue orphaned and abandoned children. 

Thanks for all ya'lls prayers!

Here's a short update I wrote last week after spending the morning at a nursing home.

Georgiana, an elderly lady with Alzheimer's or some sort of dementia told me "yo mama" jokes for an hour yesterday afternoon, only they weren't jokes, she was serious.   Humorous at first, I had to bite my tongue to keep from laughing and then I had to bite it to keep from crying.   I realized, this isn't funny, it's sad, Georgiana at one point was probably a lady full of sprite.   Now her mind had fled, I often found our conversation going in circles.   She was purposeless, an existence, and it frustrated me - is this the culmination of life?   But somehow in my sitting with her I felt like it gave her some meaning, some purpose.   Eventually our conversation lagged and Georgiana's eyes began to droop - I looked over at a tiny lady in a wheelchair sitting by the window, dabbing her chin with a tissue.   I smiled at her and she smiled back and waved.

At that invitation I found new sitting companions for Georgiana and went over and sat down by my new friend.   Her name is Bernise and we began talking about life.   She has lived in New Orleans all her life and at this particular nursing home for four years - she hates it, she says they never get to go outside.   After asking my name she asked me to write it down and had me write down my address as well.   She asked if she could write me, I said I would love to get a letter from her.   Then she asked me to get her a drink for her from the vending machine, handing me her little wallet and demanded I get something for myself as well.   I sat with Bernise for about an hour - sitting and talking and drinking our sodas.   I asked her if she knew Jesus and she said, Oh yes, I love him.   So then we talked about the party we would have when we were both in heaven.  

When I left shortly after that, I had already given away bits of my heart to both Bernise and Georgiana.   It was good to be touched by them and hopefully touch them as well - it's what life is all about, touching others, impacting lives for the kingdom.

So far the trip has gotten off to a great start.   Everyone has had places to go and the Lord has started working in the youth's lives and its so neat to see and talk with them.   I have been slightly organized - only by the Lord's grace - and so we have a schedule and I haven't lost anything!:)   I wanted to share a story from one of the girls, Liz from yesterday.   God used her and broke her heart - praise you Jesus!

 Liz writes:

Monday, a group of us went to the Distribution Center to give out food and clothing to the victims of Katrina.   Normally, I'm a very outgoing person and I had an arrogant attitude of, "Oh I can easily hand out food and clothes, no problem."   Then, the man in charge, who was explaining a few things before we started, said that the people were going to sign in, be handed a cart, and we would walk around with them, encouraging them, sharing our faith, and walk them to their cars and pray with them.   And suddenly, I felt like I was three inches tall, and knew I couldn't do it.   I was right; I could not do it, but God could through me.  

Everything started, and people were meeting and greeting people and walking around with them.   I was hoping for a sweet old lady who would not intimidate me, and around the corner walked a big, buff man in his early thirties, holes all over his clothes, duct tape holding together cuts and scrapes, and I quietly turned around and whispered, "Here's someone, who's going next?" But when I turned around, no one was there… OK God, I understand.  So we started walking, as we walked, the pain in his eyes made my stomach churn; he looked so emotionally scarred as he told me about how the hurricane has changed his life.   We then went to the clothes shop, and he explained to me, with tears in his eyes, that it didn't matter what clothes he got because his wife of ten years left him the other day for "a better option."   My heart was so broken for him that, with God's help, I knew I had to pray for him.   We walked outside, and with God's strength, I asked him if I could pray for him.   He literally stopped moving, and starred at me saying, "You…you would do that…for me?"   We both bowed our heads, and prayed that God's love would fill him up, and that God would heal the emotional and physical wounds.   We thanked God for knowing the past, present, and future.   When we finished praying, he hugged me and his voice was quaky. He couldn't even look up but he got these words out, "I have never felt like this before…you have no idea what that meant…thanks kiddo…"  

I was able to hold it in for a little but then sat and cried for ten minutes, in complete awe of our awesome God, and what he can do through ordinary people.   We are nothing special, and I was reminded that even though we came to help these people, they are helping us so much, it's unbelievable.  

Through a series of unfortunate events last fall, I ended up in Baton Rouge working in the shelters.   I saw a lot of pain and stress and hardness during my time down there, thousands of people smooshed together on cots and mattresses, and annihilation galore.   One day I was walking around outside and saw some kids playing on a playground.   They yelled for me to come swing them on the swings, so I walked over and started pushing them on the swings.   I began chatting with them and I asked them if they got caught in the flood.   One of the boys nonchalantly told me he swam out of New Orleans, I was completely floored.   I couldn't believe a little 8-year old boy had to swim out of New Orleans.   I couldn't believe that trauma.   And it was like that all around.

The devastation there has been tremendous and the work left to be done is even more tremendous still.   And it isn't just tangible.   Katrina wreaked havoc emotionally, separating families, destroying memories, and leaving so many people feeling empty.   I am leading a project in New Orleans starting tomorrow.   Please pray for me and for all that the Lord wants to do while I am there.   I am super excited but I need your prayers!   If he shares something with you, please pass it along!   Maranatha!

The news is filled with stories of despair, death and destruction. These seemingly
ubiquitous tragedies of life often slowly deplete us of hope. Too rarely do we hear stories
that breathe life. Occasionally though one comes across like this one and it reminds me,
there is a God, he's my God and he's a God of hope and deliverance! He loves us and
wants good, not despair.

Ten years ago a family from the Pittsburgh area (not far from where I went to college)
reported their 14 year old daughter, Tanya, was missing. When I see flyers for
missing children, I generally assume they have died or are unfindable. I wonder if this
family ever gave up hope. But, praise Jesus, they just found her!

Tanya had been living with a (now apprehended) security guard from her middle school
for the past ten years - only two miles from her father's home. The man manipulated her
mind, convincing her that she was unwanted, undesirable - he was the only one who
cared about her. So she stayed with him, believing a lie.

Six months ago she started visiting a nearby convenience store. The owner befriended
her and offhandedly she shared her story, still believing it for truth. God redeemed, and
the girl has just been reunited with her father and will see her mother today for the first
time in 10 years!

I read a story like this and think, man, how can there not be a God? And not just an existing
God, but a God who so passionately loves his children that he continues to try and save them.
It was he who put the flicker of a thought to visit the corner store.  And it was he who helped
the owner recognize the need for friendship. Jesus is victorious and Satan loses!

To read the full story go here: 
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060323/ap_on_re_us/missing_girl_found;_ylt=Ak6s5HmvEoxSqqP3mRblUiSs0NUE;_
ylu=X3oDMTA3ODdxdHBhBHNlYwM5NjQ-

India: Dr. Sam Thomas was just arrested by a dozen men claiming to be police officers.

I received this information from their ministry.

Michael Glenn, Executive Director of Hopegivers International, called upon Christians around the world to pray and work for Dr. Thomas' safety. He also said that letters of protest to Indian government leaders are very effective and that contributions are also needed to the emergency Legal Defense Fund that the faith-based charity has established.

"We need to pray and work for the release of Dr. Samuel, the other Indian staff and the children in Kota," he said.

Meanwhile local anti-Christian hate groups continue the 25th day of siege against the 2,500 orphans and abandoned children protected at the Emmanuel Hope Home in Kota, Rajasthan. The orphanage is supported by Hopegivers International based in Columbus, Georgia as well as donations from the Indian churches and general public.