I would like to introduce you to Esther...

This is Esther. While I only got to spend 24 hours with her, she will always hold a special place in my heart.

Esther is, in essence, a working mother. Although in this case it is not as it seems...Esther and her husband are church planters and they have two beautiful sons, Jose and Joel (pronounced Jos and Joelle). While we were visiting Esther's husband was in Sri Lanka for a few weeks, but that did not stop her from continuing her ministry. One of her friends, affectionately referred to as "Teacher", travels to the different villages with her to care for Joelle, age 2, and keep an eye on Jose, a 2nd grader. During our short visit, we headed to many people's homes from cell groups Esther runs nearby villages, as well as visiting some members of her church family. One of the things that I admired about Esther is that even though her ministry and these people are extremely important to her, her priorities are straight. God, family, ministry. While we were heading from home to home Joelle became extremely tired (he was getting over being ill) and Esther told us we were going to speed up the process of our visits in order to get Joelle home as quickly as she could. People were counting on us visiting them, and no one was left out, yet she altered her plans to care for her son.

Esther is also a very humble woman. Sometimes in America people try to act humble, who really don't have a humble spirit. Esther has the humble spirit. Everything she has - her gifts, her home, her family, her words - she constantly reminds us are all because of God's grace. I could feel the Holy Spirit moving through her and through her love. Her love for God, her love for her family, her love for her church, her love for the village people, and her love for us.

I never realized before I went to India that I could love someone so deeply in such a short amount of time. She truly encourages me to be a better woman of God, just by being her. She is an example of who I want to become. Esther is a woman I view as a mentor, which is ironic since she is just a few years older than me. I will never forget Esther, or her amazing smile - I see God in her smile, and I hope someday people can say the same about me.