He is Building His Church in India

We are seeing the Light of the Gospel is shining in the remote corners of India, where spiritual darkness has greatly prevailed for many years. Despite human limitations, economic hardship and lockdown, severe persecution, and the murder of some missionaries, God’s people continue to share the message of the Gospel to unreached people groups and villages that have little or no Christian presence. Our Native missionaries in northern India are reporting from their mission stations, saying “our Lord is building His Church” by the power of the Holy Spirit, through the preaching of our local missionaries who are called to share the gospel. Our Lord is confirming His Word through signs, wonders, and miracles.

A Miracle Opens the Door

Our native missionary Naresh reports from the tribal area “we are seeing many people from unreached villages come in ox carts and other means from their village to the prayer groups or house churches.” These people bring their physical and spiritual needs, and we are hearing their testimonies, that they have experienced the presence of the Lord in their lives. Most of the people who came had never heard the name of Jesus in their life. They came simply because they were desperate.

House Church in Lockdown
A House church during the Lockdown

Our gracious God healed them and delivered them. They experienced the presence of the Lord in such a way that they were transformed. The following week or the next meeting they return, bringing with them more people who need prayer. As a result, several villages are now open to the Gospel message because they have seen friends and relatives made well. Prayer groups and house churches are growing among the K* people group, a tribe of about 8 million people living in India. Over the past six months, we have started 79 prayer groups and house churches in their formerly unreached villages. As the Bible says, “the disciples went everywhere preaching, and the Lord was with them and confirmed what they said by the miracles that followed their messages.” Mark 16:20 (Living Bible)

John preaching in the slum
John preaching in the slum

The Church is not Locked Down

From another village, we have received a report from our missionary John (name changed). Their ministry started three years ago with no Christians in that area. By last December they had 32 baptized believers in their area. When the COVID situation came and the lockdown started, they thought the ministry was over, since they could not meet or visit one another. But God kept everyone safe and built their faith. Brother John encouraged their 32 believers to share their faith with their friends and relatives. God moved in those situations. Within the last seven months, they have welcomed 292 newly baptized believers in that area! Most of the people became followers of Christ after experiencing the power of God in their lives through physical and spiritual healing through prayer. Through them, the message of the Gospel spread, and more people were drawn into prayer groups.

Baptism candidates
Baptism candidates

Locked in to Preach the Gospel

One of our missionaries, Ramu, along with his wife Reena, was working in an unreached area. [Reena had become a Christian when she was 19 years old after she was delivered from an evil spirit. As she began to go to church regularly, because of the pressure from the villagers and Hindu radicals, her parents forced her out of their house. Sometime later, church people arranged her marriage with our young missionary Ramu.] They were both serving the Lord in an unreached area during the lockdown. In April they came to know that Reena’s father was very ill and wished to see her. Ramu and Reena rode on their bicycle for three days, 92 miles, to see her father. When they reached her father’s village, they thought they would not be allowed to enter, but the villagers gave them permission to stay. They stayed a few days, and then they came to know that one family in the village had tested positive for COVID. The entire village was immediately closed, and no one was allowed to leave the village for three weeks. So Ramu and Reena shared their faith and their testimony with their captive audience and prayed for many people with many different needs. Almighty God, in His mercy, touched many lives and healed many people. Alcoholics were desperate because they could not find any, or when they found it they did not have money to buy it. They came to Ramu and Reena, and in their desperation, many were delivered. Last week 78 people declared their faith in Jesus through water baptism! Ramu and Reena report they are reaching the neighboring village, as women are forcefully bringing their alcoholic husbands to the prayer groups, for prayer to get delivered!

Prepared Ahead of Time

Yet another missionary reports that “in the last six years of his ministry I have not seen such a great harvest as in the last six months! People came to me asking for prayer and I prayed for them. God has touched many lives and healed many people. Because they have experienced the power of God in their lives, 37 new families have come to the Lord. And many young people are committing their lives to the Lord.”

We praise the Lord for the God-given vision of our “Christ Discipleship Training Centers.” Through the training centers, we have trained over 4000 men and women who were the frontline spiritual warriors of this COVID season. Since churches could not meet for the last seven months, they were the ones who were leading the house churches and prayer groups in their areas. These native brothers and sisters are being used by God. They are having a great impact on building His Church in the remote villages of India.

Help Us Share the Gospel

Will you help us continue sharing the Gospel in the darkest places of India? Psalm 119:105 says ‘Your word is a lamp to my feet And a light to my path.’ You can share in the blessings! To find out how to contact us, and to read more inspiring and exciting testimonies of what God is doing among the unreached people groups of India, click the links on the right, and keep reading!

With your help, the Gospel will be proclaimed, and you will be blessed, along with thousands of others!

Proclaiming the Gospel…

                      …until He comes,

October 2020 Letter

Dear Partners and Friends,

While the world is in turmoil, the Gospel of the Kingdom is forcefully advancing. According to Matthew 11:12, forceful people lay hold of it, they take it by force. What is this force? Our faith is the force with which we fight against the powers of the darkness of this present age. Using our faith is how we overcome the world (1 John 5:4).

May I exhort you, dear Brother or Sister, be a force of faith in your sphere of influence. When you encounter someone who is afraid, give them an answer for the Hope that you have within your heart. Offer to pray with them and ask God to both comfort them in their current situation and for Him to reveal Himself to them in an irrefutable way.

Our dear Brothers and Sisters in India are fighting the Good Fight of Faith, with spiritual weapons. This month we have several testimonies of how God has responded and shown Himself strong! As you read these testimonies, be encouraged! God wants to give you your own
testimonies to share. And when He does, write us, and tell us your story. We will rejoice with you!

It never gets old for me to say, “don’t give up!” Keep seeking His face and expecting His provision. God wants you to be equipped for the end-time harvest. Receive His power in your life, for yourself, your family, and for those around you. If you are not sure how to do this, contact us and we will agree with you in prayer, and help in whatever way we can.

And as I say every month, any time you need prayer or help in any way, please feel free to reach out to us. And please keep our brothers and sisters in India in prayer, as they face the same kinds of challenges that we face. Together we will overcome, and God will be glorified.

Blessings in the Wonderful Name of Jesus,

                       Thomas