Sep 25 2009
A Gift to the South Asian Community: Aradhna Concert Series
“I was planning on staying for only a half an hour or so to be with my friends, but the music was so engaging, I decided to stay the whole time.” – Indian Student at the UTA Aradhna Concert
Nearly a year ago, as our ISI DFW team was considering how to touch the large S. Asian community in the Metroplex with the love of Christ, we were challenged from many different quarters with bringing the Hindi worship band Aradhna to sing in the area. S. Asians comprise the largest group of students in the metroplex by far. At UTA, for example, there are over 1300 Indian students and around 500 Nepalese students not to mention the many Pakistani and Bangladeshi students. At Northlake College, approximately 800 of the nearly 1200 international student hail from Nepal. 
At the same time, outside of the Big Howdy and some of the special work Vinay is doing at UTD, we were having limited impact with this community. We felt that God wanted us to build bridges with this special and important community – to show them how much He loves them.
“When I was in India, I had Christian neighbors who sang Bhajan music in their apartment and many in the neighborhood came and also sang these worship songs. I really enjoyed it. So when I came here, I recognized many of the songs and it reminded me of home. I loved it then and I love it now.” - – Indian Student at the UTA Aradhna Concert
Aradhna is a Hindi word which translates to “Worship”. This band was formed by children of Americans, followers of Jesus who grew up in Nepal and India whose heart languages were those of these special lands. Under the watchful eyes of India’s best, they mastered the sitar, tabla, tambura, key instruments of Indian culture in addition to more western instruments like bass, violin and guitar. They became students of “bhajan” the worship music of India and they formed Aradhna. They play concerts for groups of followers of Jesus (but also they have played in Hindu temples as a testimony) both in India and around the world.
So less than a year ago, our team in cooperation with several other groups like BSM, churches, etc. felt challenged to bring this group to the North Texas area for a series of concerts as a gift to out South Asian friends. Assignments were passed out, (Ron was chosen as point with the rest of us coordinating the rest of the work on the different campuses and doing the things needed to make all this happen) prayer teams were mobilized, research was done and we set off doing something we had never done before. We chose Northake College, UTA & UTD, the campuses with the largest populations of S. Asians.
This last weekend was a culmination of all that work and what a special weekend it was. (see pictures) As one expected the band was truly delightful. For many of our American friends who were in attendance, they were amazed at the professionalism and quality of the band. The sonorous tones were so deep and rich. Each instrument were played as if by a craftsman. The response of the students was even more profound. I could hear people around me talking about how genuine and real this band was. Looking at students’ faces you could see that the band was touching students at a heart level. 
It was really touching to see. In one Indian Hindu student who has been meeting regularly with some followers of Jesus lately to learn more, you could really see the joy in meeting the band and hearing what they had to say. It was almost like students were being exposed for the first time to the idea that it was okay to be an Indian and still be a follower of Jesus.
The band is touching the students at a very deep level – Vinay ISI Staff at UTD
One interesting side story was the response of the Nepalese speaking students. They were so touched that they were not bunched in as Indians but had songs in their own language as part of the program. Chris, the lead sitar player, grew up in Nepal and is fluent in Nepali and spoke directly to many of them. Many of the students were Nepali and Anugraha, a student friend and Nepali Christ follower was able to strengthen relationships that could help him as he seeks to start a Nepali church. 
One special story is of two separate groups of Burmese refugees who lived in Nepal for nine years but recently immigrated into the DFW area. We saw several of them at all three concerts as they truly connected with the music and specifically with Chris. Interestingly, Chris’ 2nd grade teacher from Nepal now lives near Dallas and was at the UTA concert and she told me that Chris’ mother has a ministry to these same types of refugees.
A special byproduct of these concerts was that it put before the Christian community the great opportunity to share the love of Jesus with S. Asians and to be able to do it together was a special undertaking. Many followers of Jesus who love S. India were there and most of them did not realize how many others also had the same heart. To see them interact with each other and with students was a thing to behold. Much like when God encouraged Elijah in his isolation that he was not alone in his faithfulness in Israel, so it seemed the spirits of all were lifted. Trust was being built, in each other but also in God. I really believe something very special will come out of the relationships made. This was no small or insignificant divine purpose for these concerts.
I am waiting on hearing the exact number of attenders though the qualitative results were enough to make us smile and for God to be glorified. I believe there were at least 450 total attenders at the three concerts. (approx. 150- UTD, 180- UTA, 120 – Northlake) Students from as far away as Tyler and Wichita Fall came to see the concerts. The other special thing was how God provided the funds for this. This was an area of tremendous risk and faith building for us and God provided!
Each concert touched had a unique feel. Northlake was outdoors and was the first major events by more than one faith organization there in a while and so really was a kick off of working together. UTA was a continuation of the work already done through the Big Howdy, etc. And UTD, UTD was special because the students did most of the work and you could see God working in developing them as leaders. In addition the band played at three services at 121 community church, exposing the whole church to S. Asian culture. In addition they went over to SMU on Monday to play another concert under Chi Alpha.
So was it worth it? No question! God was there, and he touched many… Will we do it every year? I don’t know… It was tremendous work for the team and disrupted some of our regular work… but the gains and the potential created made it important that we did it this year. Perhaps every other year… Still… no doubt this was a work of God! Thanks all for praying!
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was a wonderful opportunity to talk about Texas history and the type of man that Sam Houston was. (He was an incredible general)
We were able to go to Galveston by early afternoon and our plan was to go to the beach. None of our kids ever swam in the ocean before. We passed the really crowded beaches around the Galveston Strand and drove a little further up the island to Galveston Island State Park. It was wonderful there. The water was not too rough and was very warm (thanks gulf), the sand was very fine and soft, the beach only gradually sloped into the sea. Honestly, it was a better “beginner” beach than anything that we grew up with in the LA area. The kids had a blast! They swam, they built sand castles, they ran, they dodged waves. One especially fun activity was digging up live sea shells and then watching them dig themselves back into the sand when the water came up. It was great… the wonder in their eyes… I was never a beach guy… sand gets everywhere. 
But this day was especially nice. After a filling meal at Olive Garden (the incredible sea food restaurants in Galveston were incredibly full this night…), we drove up near NASA to spend the night (and lots of showering off the sand) with everyone extremely tired but very happy to be together.
After visiting 
After a long day of exploring the outer reaches, we went below the sea as aquanauts as we had dinner at 
The next day, after a dose of late morning TV cartoon, we piled into the car and headed home. I remember on the last evening as the children slept, I was reflecting on how nice it was to be able to get away from computer, phone, and all the stresses of the typical week and just spend time together. It really was a huge blessing in so many ways. In some ways, it is during these vacations that we see the progress that our kids make: physically as well as as a person. It was fun seeing how much they have grown but also how much they (and we) need to grow.
Every year we (ISI and many different ministries, churches and organizations) welcome new international students to UTA. The whole month of August is devoted to this activity. This is true at TCU and all our other DFW campuses as well. It is a very special time when we get to meet some new friends. We welcome them in many ways! (see 
Organizer) as a sample of what was happening on all our metroplex campuses (including UTA, UTD, TCU, SMU, UNT, Northlake, UD, Collin, Navarro, & Northwood):
200+ volunteers who provided food, did airport pickups, transported students to Wal-Mart, lifted and delivered furniture to students apartments, and many other acts of love and kindness.
Thank you for praying and giving!
good friend Jessica passed away. She was only 36. Lisa and I met her the day she first met her husband Sean. The two of them were a match made in heaven (I guess we all are in some ways…) She was young, sweet, sophisticated, had traveled the world and a firm Believer. Sean was gentle, kind, passionate about people from around the world. We all were part of a team of people led by our mentors Dan and Tammy who were all in our twenties and thirties who loved international students and did all kinds of crazy things together. Looking back it was a very special time. Sean shared during the memorial service that we used to call them the velcro couple… I don’t remember that… sounds like something our buddy Warren would say… but I believe it might have been true because they really were. I could still see her that first night at the Samuels’ house. I think she was wearing a red beret or something…
Then last week, we got a call. Sean called us, “Jessica was in the hospital and was just about to go home for hospice care.” We jumped in our car and went to go see her. Even in the midst of her suffering and difficulty, she still was the same optimistic Jessica. Her brother, Jasper, an officer in the US Navy was there and was gently and faithfully helping her. They must have had a special family judging by the products.
I recently got an e-mail from a dear friend with the picture here with the subject as, 
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