IT'S A BIRD, IT'S A PLANE ...
        IT'S GOD'S WILL

They sure looked like the Russells. Well, at least at first.

As I stepped out of the baggage claim area pushing a cart that carried the two-week’s worth of belongings for me and a few teammates who had endured the two adjoining flights to India, I couldn’t help but feel relieved to see the familiar grins of Steven and Stacey Russell as they greeted our group of travel-wearied twelve.

Here they were, the couple that had sold, sublet, and packed up their Metroplex existence six months ago in order to fly half way across the world in an answered call to missions.

Soon, we were shepherded onto a bus that plunged us straight into Delhi for the next two weeks. From the moment we entered the rickety, motorized contraption, we began to see that these were not the Russells that many of us got to know before they had left. Sure, they showed the same upbeat, positive, warm personalities that draw people to them, but the bus might as well have been a phone booth. Over the extent of our stay, we would see that the Clark Kents that left the comforts of the U.S. in order to respond to the cry of a nation in distress had morphed into a couple of super prayer-warriors.

Like a wide-eyed Lois Lane hovering over the bright lights of a big city, our group of twelve took a two-week ride through some of the wonders of India holding onto the leading hands of a couple that continuously grasps the cape of God.

Before we navigated the choppy skies of daily Indian life that teems with a variety of turbulent gods, temples, gudwaharras, mosques, and traffic, Steven and Stacey always led us in prayer that requested less of us and more of God.

Throughout our time, it became clear that whether the Russells are helping to minister in their church, in their small group, in their community, at their local snack vendor’s cart, in the slums, or at an orphanage or church planting facility, they are in constant prayer for the people, God's purposes, and His far-reaching vision.

They give God the glory for putting in their hearts a passion for serving the Indian people, and how He continuously equips them with power, peace, and patience as they further their abilities to speak Hindi, foster relationships with believers and unbelievers, and dedicate themselves to lifestyle ministry that makes them less American and more Indian each day. As they led us through India, it became easy to rest in their local knowledge and experience as they coordinated prayer-walks, lodging, travel, sightseeing, and meals on a daily basis.

The couple that had left behind a comfortable life in order to help people come to know eternal life in Christ have found in Delhi a place to call home, people to call friends, and a purpose to call God’s will.

It is Steven and Stacey’s prayer that more people would come to know God’s passion for the nations and ask Him how they could become involved. They know that the gaps that separate Indian culture from American culture are best bridged by the cross of Christ. They know that the love of Christ can serve as holy kryptonite to any measure of darkness.

By the end of the trip, as we said goodbye near the same place that we had met weeks earlier, I didn’t see the same people as when I first arrived. Yes, they are still Steven and Stacey, a dynamic couple who make themselves available to be used by God and prayerfully seek His face each day. However, their skin color will never mask their heritage, and their mastery of Hindi will probably never be where they want it to be. The odds are against them being mistaken for Indian nationals and they probably will never get over their love for beef, American television, and family and friends within close proximity.

No, the Russells don’t look any more Indian than the day they set out. And they don’t look like Superman or Superwoman.

But, they do look a lot more like Jesus.

::Chris Howard

Editor's Note: You may want to read the 121 World News article written about the Russell's adventure before they left for India >>

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