Category: Uncategorized

Uttar Pradesh is a state in North India with over 200 million inhabitants. It is the most populous state in India, as well as the most populous country subdivision in the world. According to the Joshua Project the Christian population is 0.1%. But in the last 10 years we are seeing a great move of God in that state. Thousands of house churches have started functioning in the villages. At the same time the pro-Hindu governments and radical Hindu groups are involved in attacking Christians and house churches in the villages and targeting native village pastors and evangelists. This has been very regular and recently the attacks have spiked and spread. These attacks on Christians are instilling fear in congregations throughout the state. According to native brothers, the frequency and intensity of the attacks on house churches, new believers, and Christian workers is growing every day. At least five to seven incidents are reported every day, from different parts of the state. The local brothers also reported that many pastors do not know what to do, and some of the house churches were not able to continue meeting. Fear and insecurity are growing among the new believers and house church leaders.

Twenty-five years ago, Steve Robinson and I (Regi) travelled to Jhansi, a city in central India to meet with Edwin Simon, who was a native missionary. The area is called “Bundelkhand”, and it was one of the poorest and least educated areas in central India. People lived in total spiritual darkness, engaging in witchcraft, superstition, idol worship, and sacrifices. The people were regarded as the untouchable caste, and alcohol and drug addiction were common. There were no active mission activities in the area during that time. While we were there, we met with a few young people who had a great burden and heart to reach their own people, but they did not know how to start. In our hearts we heard a “Macedonian call” (Acts 16:9).

Under the leadership of Edwin Simon, we started a summer outreach with 12 young men. This was the beginning of the Exciting Word ministry in that area. Over 25 years we have sent out numerous summer outreach teams to the area, trained up native brothers and sisters, and sent them to the unreached villages to share the Gospel. Our Lord in His mercy worked miracles and wonders through the native brothers, drawing hundreds of people to Himself, and establishing them in faith and starting hundreds of house churches in and around the area.

It was not easy. Our brothers faced great challenges: persecution from the upper caste Hindus and Hindu radicals, and discrimination in the villages. Despite the hardships, our Lord continued to use our brothers to carry the Gospel to the unreached villages, and the light of the Gospel began to shine in the darkest areas.

Brother Edwin Simon and his family have sacrificed their lives building our Lord’s Kingdom in Bundelkhand. In 2013 they lost their 14-year-old daughter, and in 2021 brother Edwin and his wife laid down their lives serving the Lord. They were working as volunteers in the local hospital and in their neighborhood, showing Gods love to the needy who were infected with COVID by carrying medicine and food to them. While doing this, they, too, were exposed and infected, and laid their lives down fighting the pandemic. Edwin and his wife were a great man and woman, with great vision and God used them to reach thousands of villages and start hundreds of house churches in that darkest part of our nation.

In one of my trips to that area I met a young man named Jeven, an alcoholic who was attending a small public meeting. I was preaching to the people in Hindi and a local brother was translating into the local language for me. Jeven, who himself was unable to stand due to being intoxicated, came forward to try to correct my translator, who was not translating correctly. When Jeven’s interference became a great hindrance to my preaching, I reluctantly agreed to let him translate for me. To my surprise, he did very well. By the response of the people, I understood they were getting my points and at the end of the preaching, I gave an invitation for people to confess their sins and receive Jesus as their personal savior. More than half of the people who were in the meeting responded to the altar call. As they came forward to be prayed for, Jeven was the first one who came forward and knelt before me asking me to pray for him. Jeven dedicated his life for the Lord and God gave him a burden to reach other young people who are alcoholic, and drug addicted.

Just this month, Dec.1st to 3rd, I (Regi) was with Brother Jeven who invited me to speak at a three-day youth meeting. It was held in the same village where Jeven translated for the first time. We had around 200 young men and women from different villages of that area. Young people from the age of 16 to 26 years old, who are being transformed and delivered by the power of the Gospel. This three-day meeting was a time of great revelation and a realization of God’s faithfulness and rejoicing in the harvest. During the three days, a great number of people dedicated their lives to serve the Lord and reach their own communities with the message of the Gospel. Through them we heard great testimonies of God’s protection and deliverance from the hands of Hindu radical groups.

As a Christian leader in the area, Brother Jeven and his family are facing constant threats from the authorities and Hindu radical groups. He has been arrested 6 times by the police and spent several weeks in prison, but he continues to serve the Lord and reach the unreached people. According to the Joshua Project, there are more than 750 people groups yet to be reached in that area.

Help Us Share the Gospel

The youth of India are searching and open to the Gospel, despite the persecution they face. Join us in this work with your prayers and financial support.

To find out how your support will help us, click here. 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!

Proclaiming the Gospel…

                     …until He comes,

Christmas is the time of year when we pause our busy lives and thank God our Father for giving us His Son, Jesus Christ. In addition to the spiritual blessings, we remember all the other blessings the Lord has showered on us, including the numerous times when God protected us, delivered us, provided for us, and for our loved ones.

Not only do we have reasons to be thankful in our own lives, but we can be thankful that God is still moving on the earth. The Gospel message still has power, and people who put their trust in the Lord are still being touched by His love and His mercy. I know that we all have struggles and challenges. I am not trying to minimize the real issues each of us is confronted with. I just want to remind us (myself included) that we each have a choice regarding what we will focus on. Instead of dwelling on the struggles, let’s make a conscious choice to dwell on the blessings we have received.

Our brothers and sisters in India have a much lower standard of living than the average American. In fact, if you can afford to own a car, you are richer than most Indians. Can you imagine going to work in an ox cart? What about shopping? How far could you travel? Every time we get in our car, we have something to be thankful for. Our brothers and sisters in India still find ways to be thankful, even at a much lower standard of living.

By the time you read this, our Christmas Outreach program is in full swing. More than 500 house church trainees are sharing the Gospel message door-to-door in the villages. Thousands of people are being touched by the Gospel message, but we still need your financial support to continue reaching them and discipling them. Will you consider a monthly gift to help us reach more unreached people with the message of Christ? Just $30 a month will reach 30 people with the message of new life in Jesus. That’s just $1 a day to change someone’s eternal destiny. You will be storing up treasures in heaven, and when you get there, these grateful people will thank you for your faithfulness!

Every believer has been given the mandate of the Great Commission. The only question is, how will you participate and carry out your part in this command? If you decide to join with us, we will gladly work together to reach the unreached. We believe that 200,000 people can hear the Gospel this month, and then we will endeavor to disciple them into 2023. Just think of the positive impact that can result by having so many new believers! India will be transformed, and Christ will be glorified!

Blessings in the Wonderful Name of Jesus,

Thomas

This is the time of year when we stop and look back, reflecting on the year that is quickly coming to an end. Thanksgiving is more than a time to enjoy a wonderful meal with our families and friends. It’s a time to thank God that we have made it through another year, because of His faithfulness to us.

As we give thanks to God, let’s also remember that many people in India have never heard about our Lord Jesus Christ, or His love for them. We want to share the message of hope with them. The year is quickly passing; the Christmas season will soon be here, and with it comes our Christmas outreach program. This year we have 19 training centers in 6 different states where 543 house church leaders are being equipped. As part of their practical training, every year we send them out for our Christmas outreach. This year also we are planning to send them out to go door-to-door from December 12^th to the 22^nd, and then from December 22^nd to the 27^th they will have public meetings with the help of other churches in the area.

Our goal is for our brothers and sisters to reach 50,000 unreached homes with Gospel packets and New Testaments during the 10 days of door-to-door outreach. Following that, we are planning to conduct 38 public meetings during the 5 days of Christmas celebrations.

To accomplish this, we need your support. Specifically, we need the following:

• 50,000 Gospel packets,
• 20,000 New Testaments
• 2000 Bibles
• Finances to help rent tents and sound systems for the 38 public meetings

Please pray and ask the Lord Jesus whether He would have you be involved in supporting this effort. If He speaks to you, our partner, and you are prompted to give, we can potentially reach 200,000 people with the message of the Gospel. Just think of the positive impact that can result by having so many new believers. The villages will be transformed, and you will be blessed, knowing that you played an integral part in getting the message out.

Thank you for continuing to pray for all of us here at Exciting Word Ministries. We are a small ministry by natural standards, and we depend on the faithful gifts of our partners and friends. If you believe in the power of the Gospel, please prayerfully consider supporting us with a monthly gift. And please tell all your Christian friends to visit our website where they can read the same newsletter stories that you enjoy! To read about our annual pastors conference, click here.

Blessings in the Wonderful Name of Jesus,

Thomas

We want to thank you all for your prayers and support for the annual missionaries and pastors conference. Since 2019 we have not held our annual meeting, although we continued to hold quarterly statewide meetings, and monthly area-wide meetings. From the morning of November 1 through the evening of the 3rd, we held our annual conference, where 156 of our pastors and missionaries came together to seek the face of the Lord, to pray for one another, and to fellowship with one another. It was a time of rejoicing for all of us.

The theme of the conference came from Matthew 8:3, “I AM WILLING.” From the first session until the last session, everyone spoke on the subject and the Holy Spirit was speaking very clearly and specifically to everyone. Almost every session we saw our Pastors and missionaries respond to the move of the Holy Spirit and come to the altar and our brothers were ministering to one another.

One session was set aside for praying for one another. It was really a blessing to see they were ministering to one another in the gifts of the Holy Spirit. Two afternoon sessions were set apart for sharing testimonies, and there were some amazing testimonies that came out of these sessions.

A village church grew from 19 to 312 in the past 3 years. One of our missionaries came from a remote tribal area where many people practiced witchcraft, and other evil practices are followed. He reported that at the last mission conference he attended in 2019, the theme of the conference was “not to be served but to serve.” He said he went back with a heart to serve, and he continued to serve the people in whatever way he could, even in the pandemic seasons. His love and willingness, and his serving attitude drew many people to the Lord and many of them became followers of Christ. Many experienced physical and spiritual healing through prayer in the church. This encouraged many new believers to invite more people, their friends and relatives, to visit the church. Today his church has grown from 19 to 312 baptized members! And most importantly, four of the witchcraft doctors came to the Lord and got delivered. Today they are going through our house church leaders training program.

Another missionary, who works on the Nepal border, reports that they are seeing supernatural displays of God’s power among the Nepali people in their area. In every meeting, they are seeing people transporting their sick in ox carts to the village church. When the church prays for them, they are seeing more miracles than before.  God is healing people from many different sicknesses, then the ones who experience the healings come back the following week with more sick and demon-possessed people to the village church. Several villages are now open to the Gospel message because they have seen friends and relatives are being healed. Over the past three years, our 5 missionaries in that area have started 63 village churches and last year trained 28 house church leaders. Another 32 are going through the training this year. New churches have been started in these areas and many of the tribesmen have been trained to do evangelism and church planting.

Yet another missionary reported that in their area many Muslims are drawn to the Lord, many house churches have started and 103 Muslims were saved and received baptism. This is in an area where asking someone to change their faith carries a mandatory three-and-a-half-year jail sentence, and baptizing a person into the Christian faith carries a seven-and-a-half-year jail sentence!

Christianity is growing despite the obstacles. Another missionary reported they are seeing a great move of the Holy Spirit in their area. This county, which has a population of 2 million people, only had 230 known Christians 5 years ago. Today there are more than 4,500 Christians! According to him, God is using native believers to spread the Gospel among tribal people in different areas.

Due to the growth of the church in these areas, the Hindu radical groups are attacking the house church leaders and, with the support of the local authorities, are making false cases against them and arresting them. Seven of our house church leaders were invited to conduct a meeting in someone’s home, only later to realize the people were Hindu when they were arrested. By the grace of God their congregations were able to keep meeting, and all of the church leaders have since returned home. One of the missionaries said “there is a sense of fear in the atmosphere. Not knowing which church would be attacked, or when, is a constant threat in the hearts of the house church leaders”

During the conference, we made sure to minister to all our brothers who have suffered persecution, have been jailed, or have been humiliated in any way by anti-Christian groups.

Help Us Share the Gospel

Hearing the reports of our brothers from different areas, truly we can say our Lord is moving in a very special way, and He is building his church in India, despite all the hindrances, persecutions, and hardship.

To find out how your support will help us, click here. 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!

Proclaiming the Gospel…

                     …until He comes,

Where does our victory come from? Does it come from large numbers? Does it come from human strength? No! Our strength comes from the LORD, the maker of heaven and earth. When Gideon faced the Midianites, the LORD told him to send all but 300 of the soldiers away, because there were too many. If Gideon had won the battle with 32,000 troops, God would not have received as much glory for the victory. Instead, because there were only 300 troops, it was clear that God did a miracle that day.

In the same way, God wants to receive glory for all that He does in our lives. We would like to operate from a position of strength, but many times God encourages us to step out and act at a time when we feel weak. Paul tells us that God told him “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.” (2 Corinthians 12:9)

Our Nepali brothers started by simply believing the Gospel, and then sharing this message of hope to their friends and loved ones in their community. God responded with His power, demonstrating His love with signs, wonders, and miracles.

May each of us be inspired by the courage and faith of our Nepali brothers. May we step out and share this message of hope and love to our friends and loved ones. And may we trust God with the results and expect Him to respond in power, just as He did for them, because “there is no favoritism with God.” (Romans 2:11)

Thank you for continuing to pray for all of us here at Exciting Word Ministries. We are a small ministry by natural standards, and we depend on the faithful gifts of our partners and friends. Thank you to those who support us sacrificially every month. Your support is the only way we can do anything for the Kingdom of God. If you haven’t yet supported us financially, but you believe in the power of the Gospel, please prayerfully consider supporting us with a monthly gift. And please tell all your Christian friends to visit our website where they can read the same newsletter stories that you enjoy!

Blessings in the Wonderful Name of Jesus,

Thomas

Twenty-two years ago, our summer outreach team was working in the mountains. On our way back from a village, we passed through a valley and saw a group of around 20 young men, breaking stones. On seeing the group, we approached them, wanting to share the gospel with them. When we reached them, we realized they were from Nepal. They had come to India to find work, and except for one or two of them, no one understood Indian languages. We told them we wanted to share the gospel with them if they were willing, and I asked one young man who understood our language to translate it into their language.

They had never heard the gospel, or the name of Jesus, in their lives, so it was hard for them to understand and hard for us to share. After spending 45 minutes with them, sharing the story of the prodigal son, we prayed for them and went back to our camp.

We repeated this day after day. We would go to the mountain villages, share the gospel and distribute literature, and every day on our way home, we stopped and met with the men. It was a convenient place for us to rest on our long walk, so every day we shared the gospel with them through the translator and prayed with them for their families and parents back in Nepal.

After this had gone on for a few days, they asked us to share the story of prodigal son with them one more time. We shared and explained to them what that story meant to us, and as we shared, we felt the move of the Holy Spirit in the shade of that banyan tree. We gave them an invitation to respond to the gospel, and on that day sixteen of them responded and received Jesus as their personal savior. That was the beginning of our Nepali church in that area. These brothers were thirsty and hungry after God’s word.

Through them we came to know that there were thousands of Nepalis in the mountains, working in different fields. It was eye-opening for us. These new Nepali brothers in Christ led our outreach teams to other Nepali laborer’s camps in the surrounding areas. They mostly lived in tents in groups. Not being able to speak to them in their language was the biggest obstacle, but our brothers managed to share the gospel through a translator. After 9 months of people accepting the Lord, we had our first baptism service, where 32 Nepali brothers and sisters received baptism. Out of those 32, six brothers were sent to Nepal to attend a six-month Discipleship Training program. When they came back, we sent them to different locations where Nepali people were working. This was the beginning of our Nepali fellowship of churches.

Over the past 22 years, thousands of Nepali brothers and sisters have crossed the border into India to find better jobs and earn some money to support their families. They work as farm laborers, on construction sites, and other odd jobs. Many of them have gone through great struggles. But for thousands it has been an opportunity to come out of the darkness, and into the marvelous light of the gospel.

Today there are hundreds of small house churches and prayer groups among the interior villages in different states, where they meet and worship the Lord in Spirit and in Truth. They come together and meet in plastic tents or under a tree, but they carry the glorious Gospel with them to every remote area.

Last month three of our Nepali church leaders went into some of the remote areas in our country. They visited some of the believers who move into the mountains every summer, to farm green peas and potatoes. The roads to this area are open only for 5 months. The rest of the time they are closed, due to snowfall. After visiting over 32 prayer groups and spending time with them and conducting several baptism services, they reported that “it was amazing to see what our Lord is doing, among the Nepali churches in those remote areas. They are seeing wonders and miracles every day. We ourselves have seen with our own eyes that in those small prayer groups and house churches, God moves in a mighty way, delivering people from addictions and evil spirits and people are being healed. They have very little in the way of ‘facilities’ in that area, but they are not bothered about it; their trust is in the Lord.”

We met local people who testified they were healed from tumors by the prayers of house church. We baptized a 32-year-old woman who was diagnosed by a doctor with ovarian cancer. She was healed by the prayers of ordinary believers, and now, after 9 years of marriage, she has given birth to a baby girl and, along with 7 members of her family, received baptism. There are many other testimonies of people who were delivered from demonic oppression.

Today our Lord is not only moving in a mighty way in the Nepali house churches in the remote villages, but He’s using these simple Nepali believers to carry the gospel to some of the darkest and most remote places in our nation.

Help Us Share the Gospel

What began as a very small thing, God has blessed and has become a great work. Under the leadership of these 6 men, the Nepali fellowship is now spreading the Light of the Gospel in the darkest places. It is growing and reaching to the unreached areas and spreading the light of this glorious gospel!

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!

Proclaiming the Gospel…

                     …until He comes,

Sarala is the sister of one of our Tribal missionaries, Balwinder, who is reaching his tribal community with the Gospel. They are gypsies, living a nomadic life in tents. They travel together as a tribe, stopping to set up camp in their own slums. Balwinder came to the Lord from this same community. When I (Regi) met him for the first time, his family of eight lived in a tent in very poor condition. From there, God chose Balwinder and saved him. He went through our house church leaders’ training program, and God used Balwinder to establish the first church among his community. Through his ministry thousands of people came to know the Lord from his community.

Three years ago, his sister Sarala was married to Vijay who is also from the same tribe, and they moved to a new place which was 100 miles away from her home. Sarala was a wonderful worshiper and Sunday school teacher and actively involved with her brother’s ministry. But in the new place she did not know any other Christians. It was a large slum, with over 800 families in it, but not a single Christian except her husband. She felt lonely and depressed. The spiritual atmosphere in the slum was very low. Drug and alcohol addiction was very common, with 70% of the men and women being habitual drinkers. Along with her husband, she visited a few other slums nearby, areas where their relatives lived, but there, too, she could not find any Christians to fellowship with. She became increasingly lonely and more depressed spiritually. Several times, she asked Vijay to move from that slum to some other place where she could have some Christian friends, but Vijay could not leave his aging parents alone. Her spiritual depression got so bad that it began to affect her physical body. She was desperate, not knowing what to do. She wanted to help people, and share the Gospel with them, but how?

The following Sunday, her neighbor fell sick, and they took her to the hospital. Since they have three children, ages 7 to 12, they asked Sarala to keep them at her house and watch them until they returned. She agreed. It happened to be on a Sunday, and Sarala and her husband were just preparing to have a time of prayer. They spread a mat on the floor and asked the children to sit on the floor with them. Sarala and Vijay started singing a worship song, and as they were singing, the neighbors’ children tried to follow along. Sarala stopped, and taught them the song, and the children learned fast. Meanwhile, a few other neighbor children heard the singing and came to Sarala and Vijay’s tent. She shared the story of the lost sheep with them. Then she asked the children to pray for their parents. She led them in prayer, and the children repeated the prayer after Sarala.

This was the humble beginning of the house church that Sarala and Vijay started. First, it was a Sunday school for the children, and very soon after, the Sunday school turned into a Sunday church service. Sarala now realized that God had a plan for bringing her to these slums, her spiritual loneliness was the catalyst that opened her eyes to see the needs of the people around her. Sarala and Vijay started to pray fervently for God’s wisdom and His favor.

Shortly after this, Sarala and Vijay came to one of our regional pastors’ meetings and shared about the open door before them, and the need to reach those people in the slum. By this time, they had visited around 13 such slums in the 40 miles surrounding their home and had met with numerous people. They were literally begging us to send some missionaries into those slums. After they shared, we called them to come forward. We laid hands on them and prayed for them and sent them as missionaries to those slums. It was almost a year ago today that me (Regi) and Sherly were in one of the slums to baptize 29 people. Last month Balwinder came and gave baptism to 32 people in another slum. Sarala and Vijay both work hard to reach all the 9 slums where they started house churches in the past year. More than 123 people took baptism from these communities. God is using Sarala and Vijay to deliver so many people who are addicted to drugs and alcohol. When we visit the slums, non-believers greet us and share testimonies of their good works.

Today we visited four slums in different areas with Sarala and Vijay and met and talked with newly baptized believers. Upon seeing and hearing the transformation that took place in their lives, we rejoiced with them.

Afterward, we attended the house church leaders training center that we started last month. Many people can’t write and read but they listen carefully, and 24 men and women from that community from different slums come every week, leaving their work to learn God’s word. As I was sitting with them and watching them, I asked the Lord to give me such a hunger and thirst for His word. During the class I asked them what they wanted God to do in their community. Most of them said there are 21 different camps or slums in that area, and they wanted to see a house church in every camp. I gave them a homework assignment, due by next April or May. The assignment? “Your training will finish soon, but before that happens, we want to see a house church started in all these 21 slums. Once that happens, you all will have passed our training successfully.” Everyone agreed, and we prayed together for God’s divine wisdom and strength for each one of them. We will stand with them in prayer for these slums and for their community.

As I write this testimony, I know the Indian government is coming against all Christian churches. Each state parliament is passing new bills and introducing new laws, mercilessly attacking the Christian churches, missionaries, and even ordinary believers. In spite of all this, our Lord is building His Church, drawing people from all tribes, castes, and religions.

Help Us Share the Gospel

This is just the beginning of the story. We know that through these children our Lord will do a mighty work in each of their families and in the villages. Our primary focus was to teach prayer: How to pray, to whom to pray, and what to pray. And we know that prayer can change every situation in our life!

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!

Proclaiming the Gospel…

                      …until He comes,

Sometimes we complicate the Gospel. We think that people must read the Bible before they can come to faith. But Jesus said in Luke 18:16 “Permit the children to come to Me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these.” All these children knew was that this was a nice man who healed the sick. This was all they needed to know to embrace the kingdom of God.

In fact, He goes on to say in verse 17 “Truly I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child will not enter it at all.” In other words, we should follow the example of children, set aside our skepticism and unbelief, and open our hearts to the One who loves us.

Do you have a need in your life that only a miracle can resolve? Do you want to see God’s promises manifested in your life? Are you praying for something that only God can do?

Come to Him as a child and you will not be disappointed. He tells us that “whoever does not receive the kingdom of God as a little child will by no means enter it.” But He also says, “the one who comes to Me I will by no means cast out.” Set aside your intellect and just receive the answer to your prayers.

And along with seeking God for your needs, pray with us for the families that are being impacted, as their children come to faith in Jesus Christ. Remember, the US ministry team is completely staffed by volunteers who receive no compensation other than the simple joy of serving. Apart from office expenses, more than 90% of our funds go directly to the ministry in India.

Thank you to those who support us sacrificially every month. Please tell your believing friends to visit our website (on the letterhead above) where they can read the same stories that you enjoy!

“Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.” (Romans 15:13)

Blessings in the Wonderful Name of Jesus,

Thomas

The past six weeks have been a very busy time for all our brothers and sisters working in our children’s ministry. We held a 4-day training seminar where more than 900 young men and women were trained as Children’s Bible School teachers. Through these 900+ young people, and with the help of hundreds of believers who volunteered as assistants, we started a 4–6-week Children’s Bible School in over 342 villages. For 75% of these villages, it was the first time anything like this had been done. Over 14,600 children between the ages of 6 and 16 attended the Children’s Bible School. Most of these Children’s Bible Schools were in villages and slums in remote tribal areas. During the school, we gave them books with different parables, that also included moral lessons suitable for the older children.

It was really hard work for the teachers because most of them were first timers, but the Lord gave them grace. In some villages, we only had 10-15 children, but in others we had 150-200 children attending the Children’s Bible School. The schools were in session 3 hours a day for 4 days a week. Often the daily highs were above 110° F. There were other difficulties too, such as finding a suitable location, dealing with opposition from Hindu radicals, and so on.

Through the Children’s Bible School hundreds of children’s lives were touched by God. In one school, many of the children were filled with Holy Spirit. Many others experienced healing and deliverance in their bodies during the Children’s Bible School sessions. And as a result, we have started regular weekly worship services in 63 villages, where these children along with their parents are now attending.

After the Children’s Bible School, our leadership team reported that over 1,200 children between the ages of 12 to 16 had received Jesus into their lives and indicated a desire to live for Christ. Many more made the decision to live a better life by being obedient to their parents, to focus on their studies and to change their attitude toward one another.

The most amazing experience was hearing the responses of the parents. We have reports of hundreds of parents coming and thanking our brothers and sisters for the Children’s Bible School because they have noticed the change in their child’s life. According to Manoj, a farmer and father of four, “My children were very arrogant and disobedient. I tried everything to get them on the right path, but it always failed. My wife and I were worried, but yesterday when I came home my children came and touched my feet (a sign of respect to parents and elders). I hugged them for the first time in years, and with joy we cried together. I realized my children had been longing for an affectionate hug from me, while I had been looking for some respect from them. I don’t know what changed them, but I love it! Please continue to come and teach our children!”

Manju’s Story

Manju is a brilliant 15-year-old young girl. She grew up in an idol-worshipping family where girls were viewed as less valuable than boys. Manju’s father was addicted to alcohol and used to beat up his wife and daughter and curse her for all the hardship he was going through in his life.

As a result, Manju struggled with many emotional issues. She was stubborn and disobedient, and in the beginning, she was hard to control. Her stubborn nature caused issues with other children, but slowly her attitude changed, and she began to be friendly with others. As the days passed, she became much happier and more confident!

Manju encouraged herself by singing songs and listening to stories about Jesus. She didn’t know much about Jesus before, but she believed everything she heard. Before long, she had a few Scripture passages memorized!

Manju began to trust in Jesus and started to pray for God to change her father, too. Manju brought her mother to the Children’s Bible School. Shortly afterward, she received Jesus into her life because of the change she saw in Manju. Manju and her mother are afraid of Manju’s father’s response to this turn of events. Please join them in prayer for him to give up his addiction and surrender his life to Christ.

Sanu’s Story

Sanu grew up in a traditional Hindu high-caste home. His parents were very religious, and they taught him all the Hindu religious practices. He attended the Children’s Bible School in his village along with his friends without the knowledge of the parents.

The first day, the lesson was entitled “How to Pray.” This simple lesson on how to pray (and to whom to pray), and the meaning of prayer touched Sanu. He had never understood the Hindu prayers he was taught by his parents. He would simply recite prayers in Sanskrit. But in the Children’s Bible School he understood every word, and it was easy. During a prayer session as he was praying tears began rolling down his cheeks. He kept praying with great passion, and suddenly, the Holy Spirit came upon him, and he began to speak in tongues. Once he started, many other young boys and girls were also filled with the Holy Spirit. After that session, the atmosphere changed! Sanu’s distress turned to hope, and an unexplainable joy came into his life.

Sanu’s newfound faith and experience in Christ impacted his parents. Sanu’s mother had issues with headaches for several years. Sometimes she was in bed for days. After the experience in the Children’s Bible School, Sanu went back home. Finding his mother in bed, Sanu felt the Lord leading him to pray for her. He prayed, and the Lord instantly healed her from 20 years of headaches! The following day Sanu’s parents came to the Children’s Bible School, and they too received Jesus into their life. At the end of the 4-week Children’s Bible School 72 children from 12 to 15 years of age received Jesus into their lives. Since then, regular Sunday worship has been going on in the village, with over 120 people attending! Recently, Regi was in that village fellowshipping with the new believers.

Help Us Share the Gospel

This is just the beginning of the story. We know that through these children our Lord will do a mighty work in each of their families and in the villages. Our primary focus was to teach prayer: How to pray, to whom to pray, and what to pray. And we know that prayer can change every situation in our life!

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!

Proclaiming the Gospel…

                      …until He comes,

How many times have we been hampered in relationships with others, waiting for them to respond in some way, only to later discover they were waiting for us? That’s what one father came to realize when his children attended our Children’s Bible School during their summer vacation. He had been waiting for them to show him respect, and they had been longing for him to show them affection. When the children’s lives were impacted with the Love of Christ, the emotional logjam was broken, and relationships began to be healed.

Sometimes we may experience this in our own relationships. Instead of waiting for the other person, why don’t you reach out and take the first step toward reconciliation? Regardless of who is right and who is wrong, “love covers a multitude of sins.” (1 Peter 4:8) Peter, the hot-tempered, headstrong apostle knew this very well. He thought he was never going to deny Jesus, yet in the heat of the moment, he did, not just once, but three times. The love of Jesus covered Peter’s sin of denial.

In this day when much of society is polarized, those of us who believe the Bible is the Word of God may tend to use it as a hammer against society around us. While the Bible is clear about God’s position on many things that trouble our society, there are many people who don’t hold that view. Without relaxing our personal convictions, let’s purpose in our hearts to reach out
to them with the Love of Christ, because “the kindness of God leads [them] to repentance.” (Romans 2:4)

Sometimes this same situation occurs in our relationship with God. He has given us “everything pertaining to life and godliness” (2 Peter 1:3) and yet there we sit, waiting for Him to give us something He has already given us. Our life becomes a stalemate. He has already taken the first step. Let’s respond by thanking Him and expecting to see His provision in our lives. That’s what our Bible School teachers did, and the results were amazing – over 14,000 children impacted with the Gospel!

“Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.” (Romans 15:13)

Blessings in the Wonderful Name of Jesus,

Thomas