Arunachal Pradesh Pictures

Tawang Gompa

Tawang Gompa is a vast Buddhist Monastery that accomodates between 600-700 monks of many different ages. It's the second largest Buddhist Monastery in the world, after Potala Palace in Lhasa, and most of the buildings are at least 350 years old. We went there with a Monpa Pastor and he explained many things to us.

The day that we visited was a special holiday to the people there and so there were a few groups of elderly women circling the monastery, praying. There were so many young monks as well, possibly 5-6 years old. We found out from the pastor that every family in Tawang gives at least one of their sons to be a monk and sometimes even a daughter. There are Buddhist nuns as well, and they also have shaved heads, and stay in a different area of the city.

One day Houser and the American couple went early in the morning to see the monks chanting and they were only allowed to see the younger monks. The High Lamas were in another room that is forbidden to visitors.

The first morning that we were there, Houser found some people that he knew that were now living in Tawang. They invited us to dinner one night and we met with a group of believers living there. Tawang is a very "religious" city and the Christians have faced a lot of persecution there. The Monpa Pastor that we met had been rejected from his family and kicked out of his home. He is no longer accepted in his community and even his brother, a Buddhist Lama, won't speak to him. We met a lot of precious people there.

Arunachal Pradesh

The mountainous state of Arunachal Pradesh runs along the top of Assam, stretching from Bhutan, all the way to Myanmar. China invaded Tawang in 1962 as part of its claim to all areas formerly occupied by Tibet, but the Indian Govt. successfully repulsed the attack. As a result, there is still a heavy military presence in the state. It took us about 16 hours to get from Guwahati to Tawang, the place we stayed in Arunachal. The journey was very long, mostly because we were going through mountains. Part of the Himalayas run through this state and we went through the second highest pass in the world, Sela Pass, which is nearly 14,000 ft. high. The air was really alot more thin up there and we easily ran out of breath. It was incredibly beautiful and very different from other states that we have visited.

These densely forested hills of Arunachal are home to more than 65 different tribal groups. The area that we visited were home mostly to the Buddhist Monpa Tribe.

An American couple that works with the same organization that we do, recently came to our city and shared a dream of their heart with us. For a long time they had wanted to go to Arunachal Pradesh, a state in Northeast India, for research and making contacts. It is one of the few states in India that requires a permit and they have strict requirements for entry. You have to have four foreigners to register for a permit and each permit costs $50 USD. They asked us if we would consider going with them so that we would qualify for entry. We were praying and thinking about it and then decided we would go ahead and try to apply for the permit with them.

On Friday we got a phone call from the travel agent telling us that we got the permits and so we were trying to get everything organized and making plans to go. Houser was planning to go and visit Toshi on Sunday as he had been praying and fasting a few days, asking God to heal him. We were planning as a group to leave on Monday for Arunachal. Saturday morning we got a call from Guwahati saying that Toshi had become unconscious and been rushed to the hospital. We started praying more and Houser started packing to go immediately to visit him. About 20-30 minutes later we get a call that Toshi has passed away. Then we both started throwing things into a bag and made plans to go to visit his home and family right away. Houser was weeping and I was in shock, we had thought that there was so much more time.

We went to his parent's home and there were many people gathered outside, hanging out. We saw many people there that we hadn't seen for a long time. We went inside and nothing could really prepare me for what was there. His wife, parents, and various close friends and family were inside sitting around Toshi's body. I've never seen the body of someone that I knew and cared about that had passed away. The whole thing wasn't a reality until I really saw him lying there and I started weeping and weeping. It was just so final. His wife was near him, touching his forehead, crying, and many of us in the room were joining her.

His funeral was planned for the next day and so we stayed the night in Guwahati and spent time with others who loved him. There were around 400 people at his funeral the next day. Houser had an opportunity to share about Toshi and his life and multitudes were crying. He was a man deeply loved. We are rejoicing that his life was one well lived and that he is now free from pain and for all of eternity he shall never be touched by it again. His last words were "Praise the Lord," and "Hallelujah."

During the funeral I couldn't but help think of the brevity of this life and my heart is longing for the place where there is no more sorrow, no more crying, no more sickness, and no more pain. Our life is so precious and our friendships, family, choices, and time spent are of great value.

We had made plans to meet this American couple in Guwahati on Monday to go to Arunachal, so with heavy hearts we met them and begin a long, long journey.

sad news

This is an e-mail Houser sent out earlier this week:


Dear friends and family around the world.



This is the e-mail I never wanted to send, but it is true. Our dear brother Toshi Ao passed away Saturday morning at around 9:00. He died peacefully and in his sleep at Satribari Christian Hospital in Guwahati – a place his family once lived, where he did lots of ministry, where he met his wife while she was a nurse there. Among his last words several hours before were "Hallelujah, Praise the Lord, in the name of Jesus…" He then asked his family to sing a song "in the name of Jesus, we have the victory"





I don't know what to say other than it is extremely hard and painful to even think about.After hearing the news through a friend, my wife and I went down to Guwahati to be with his family in their home. I met again with so many friends, some of whom I hadn't seen in a long time. I kept saying, "It's good to see you, but not for this, not like this…" His family members were strong and steady, encouraging those who came and thanking us for our presence. I didn't realize Toshi's father had never met my wife, he said "is this your wife?" and to her "…wow, what a great day this is to have you in our house, Houser is also my brother."

I cried as I sat there and thought of so many dreams I had for what Toshi and I could do together in this life. His son , Yanger, is around three, and his daughter, Rachel, is around 1. He is missed by anyone who knew him. They say more than 400 people came to his funeral yesterday (Sunday). When I got there I was thinking about all the tribes and even nationalities who were present there. It was appropriate. He was a blessing to many nations and people. They asked me to say something on behalf of YWAM Shillong. I had actually been thinking of what to say for weeks now, but every time I tried to put it out of my mind and focus on praying for his complete recovery. I said that I didn't have words, and I'm sure it's even harder for the family to find words (although just before that his mother had eloquently given a great speech about him). I said that his family should be honoured, that their son, their brother, their husband, their father had brought joy to everyone who knew him. He was caring and compassionate, kind, sensitive, to others, unselfish in his way of giving his time and effort to everyone who needed his help. He was always there to crack a joke and get people laughing again. I kept thinking about that verse where Paul says "I desire to depart and be with Christ, which is better by far, but for you I desire to stay…" I said that we are happy for Toshi, that he has gone to be with Christ – which is better By Far, but for our sake, we want him here. For our sake he wanted to stay. I said that one comfort is that the joy that he gave so many people here - he will now have that joy and better joy than that forever from God. So many things that people say I did (like start Mission Adventures in South Asia) – he did with me, and without him it could not have been what it was. So much of what I know about this city of Guwahati, I know from him.

I had two prayers on my heart yesterday, the first is that his children will grow up to be just like him. The second is that God would call 100 new workers to the city of Guwahati to fulfill each every one of the dreams in Toshi's heart. I'm asking God that his life would be the seed that bears fruit one hundred times as much. I shared those prayers at the service, and I said that as Toshi always dreamed of a new Guwahati with better and smoother roads, he now walks on streets of gold. As I walked behind his coffin to the place they buried him, I was thinking about how after so many walks around this city and these streets, this was our last walk together. After he was buried, I started walking back to his house by myself. I started crying again, realizing again how I missed him when I walked alone.

I want to thank all of you for your prayers. I shared at his funeral about how people all over the world were praying and how his care and his concern for teams from around the world had caused the place of Guwahati and the Northeast to have a dear place in people's hearts around the world. After everything was over, his family thanked us for coming and his father said that "only because of so many YWAMers are we comforted today". I can only ask God to comfort them again and again.

It's still so sad on my heart, and I cannot believe this has happened. If I close my eyes I can still see him jumping around, making some joke, I can still hear the sound of his voice. Toshi was the first true friend I had in the North East. From 2000 until 2002, he was one of the closest friends I had in the world. Please pray for his family and friends as we walk through these incredibly hard days and as our minds keep slipping into those thoughts of "why" and "what if". Please ask God to be our strength. As I walked away from the house to the road to get a bus back to the city, I passed by three young girls standing on the road. One of them called out to me and said that she appreciated what I said. I asked them how they new him, and they said "uncle Toshi was our Sunday School teacher". I thought to myself "another ministry he was doing that I didn't know about, how many young people did he work with in this town?". I talked with them for a few minutes and then said to them "whatever Toshi did for you, you must now do for others." They nodded, and I walked away. I feel like I saw the first step towards the 100 new workers I am praying for.

As I said at the funeral, we miss him and we are so sad, but we are grateful for the time that we did have with him in this world.

Thank you for your prayers