What an unprecedented time we’re living in. We have had moments of confusion, concern, and disbelief at the events of the last several weeks. None of us ever expected that we would experience something like this in our lives. This global pandemic has affected all kinds of people, from all walks of life, with personal, spiritual, and financial implications. One question that comes to all of our minds is “what is happening, and what is going to happen?” And while we might not have chosen to experience this in our lifetime, in His sovereignty, God has ordained for us to be here for such a time as this, to witness this firsthand, with our own ears and our own eyes.
But we have also been grateful for the truth of Isaiah 43:1-4 which reminds us: “… Do not be afraid, for I have ransomed you. I have called you by name; you are mine. When you go through deep waters, I will be with you. When you go through rivers of difficulty, you will not drown” (NLT). We have a God who brings hope into our lives, even during the most challenging of circumstances.
Praying Around the Clock
We have started a 24×7 prayer chain. Since March 21, all our missionaries and their families, thousands of believers, and thousands of our house church leaders are all joining together in prayer for the nations and for the healing of the land. Every hour between 1000 and 1300 people are joining together in their homes in different states and locations, praying for God’s intervention.
So many people around the world don’t have the hope that we are clinging to right now. They live in fear because they don’t know what is going to happen. We want them to know Jesus, and to have access to God’s Word in a language that speaks to their hearts. We have started to record salvation messages, just five minutes each, and we are now sharing these messages with hundreds of people through WhatsApp. We have set up a phone number, where people can call for questions or spiritual counseling. We are receiving 100-120 calls every day, and most of the calls are from non-Christians.
Feeding the Hungry and Sharing the Gospel
At the same time, our commitment to the Lord Jesus and to His ministry has not changed. We have 86 young men who came for our 2020 Summer Outreach, to several different mission fields. Due to the total lockdown in the country, they will not be able to go out to share the Gospel. But we take this time as a privilege we have been given, to help the local believers, both spiritually and physically. Almost all the teams that came for the outreach are now involved in helping the people, alongside the government officials. In Bihar, our brothers have joined with the local people, serving in the community kitchen and feeding thousands of people. They are doing so while following all the recommended precautions. (We have not asked them to do this. Instead, our leaders asked them not to go out, but they felt they needed to help people.) It also gives them an opportunity to meet people and share and pray with them.
Food Bags for the Desperate
Millions of daily workers, slum dwellers, and migrant workers and their families are facing a hard time. They do not have food to eat. The authorities are trying to help but hundreds of people are not getting help in the villages. In response to the great need, all the churches that are involved with the ministry have come forward to help the poor, the needy, and the untouchables. By God’s grace and the sacrificial giving of God’s people, we helped 1,900 families with food bags. In each bag, we have one week’s minimum supply of food. This consists of 8 lbs. each of wheat flour and rice, 4 lbs. each of lentils, onions, and potatoes, 2 lbs. each of sugar and vegetable oil, 1/2 lb. of tea, 1 packet of salt, some spices, 1 bar of soap, 1 lb. of laundry powder, and some fresh vegetables. If the family has small children we also include some packets of milk powder and some other children’s food.
Hundreds of our believers who had saved wheat and rice for their families came forward to give to the needy. One of our leaders writes “Many people have said that the church in India is always a receiving church and that they have never learned to give, but after what I have experienced over the last two weeks, I can tell you that the Indian church is learning to give.”
On Good Friday morning, our mission leader from the state of Bihar, one of the poorest states in India, called a leader and said that there are hundreds of believers who are facing hardship since the lockdown began. In some areas, the authorities and villagers are targeting new Christian believers, by withholding government food subsidies and other benefits that people in the village are receiving. When the Christians questioned this, they were beaten up and accused of trying to spread the virus. Local Hindu radicals are pressuring the believers, saying “Reject your faith in Christ, come to the Hindu temple, bow down before the idols, and we will give you food.” Our coordinator told his leader that the situation is very grave. The believers are down to one meal a day, and they are not allowed to eat in the community kitchen.
The leader promised him that he would pray for them and try to do something. He and his wife prayed and called out for God’s provision and for His intervention. As they finished praying, they received a call from Surender Singh, a Sikh convert, a hard-working farmer who came to the Lord last year, through our Summer Outreach team. He said “Pastor, I just harvested my wheat yesterday. By God’s grace, we have a very good harvest. To honor Jesus, I want to give 1000 food bags to people in need.” (His field is only 5 acres, and he actually wanted to give 2 metric tons of wheat or 4400 lbs., but since it was impossible to transport, he sold the wheat and wanted to help with the food bags.)
The Indian government is planning to extend the lockdown until May 3rd. Our teams are praying and trying their best to help people with food bags, and many believers are coming forward to help.
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,