After days of travel (literally), we finally arrived in India at 1:30am Tuesday morning (Indian time). Praise God! For a while, I felt like I lived on an airplane and would never see land again so I definitely enjoyed getting my feet on the ground again.
Almost immediately, we went through immigartion – no problems! Next we claimed our luggage, and miraculously, all 40+ pieces arrived right on time. I know God did this for us because I have travelled with teams many times and have rarely seen all the luggage arrive without delay. Thank you for praying our luggage safely to India!
After baggage claim, we had to go through customs, and there we ran into some trouble. The customs officials noticed the large number of bags and boxes we brought so they asked us to open them. When they saw the large quantities we had of each item – hundreds of backpacks, thousands of crayons, etc. – they accused us of planning to sell them. They labeled them “commercial quantities” and told us we would have to pay duty (tax) on them.
Enter Alli Mellon – our fearless leader! Immediately, she began to explain that all of the supplies were for the orphans. Still, they wanted us to pay. Alli asked how much, and they told her to name the price. Instead, she said, “Every penny you charge us, you take away from young children, orphans, your own people. You examine your hearts and tell me how much to pay.”
After a prolonged silence, they let us though, free of charge.
Praise God! Our team, of course, prayed the entire time, but I know that many of you prayed as well. I truly believe that this combination of prayers from all around the world granted us favor and helped us clear customs. Thank you so much for joining in our ministry and helping us enter India with your prayers!
