Hello Dear Family in Christ,
I hope you all are doing well. I want to thank you for faithfully praying for and supporting the work that is happening here in my country. May God bless you all and keep you safe. I have been praying for you.
“The word of the Lord spread through the whole region.“
Acts 13:49
It is our Lord’s heart to spread the Word and preach it with boldness and power. One of the signs that the Lord is in our midst is that His Word spreads and the church grows. It has been so encouraging that what Lord has started in the midst of us is about to bring a long-lasting impact on everybody who is serving and also everyone who is being served.
We are so thankful to our Lord for opening many doors to minister in word and also in deed. Below are the few good things God started.
Cottage Prayer Meetings
God has helped us start prayer meetings everyday in houses of those we have lead to the Lord, to strengthen them and encourage them grow in their lives in Christ. They have truly felt God’s comfort and love all through this difficult season. Our staff was asked to share the Word, so that they could be used to expand the Kingdom of God. The Lord stirred up the hearts of these believers to bring in and invite more of their family members and friends to listen to the Gospel.
Wednesday Bible studies have been a blessing to the church. Many of the sisters in the church are being filled with the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
Brother A* has been leading the youth (teenagers and young adults). We are studying the Gospel of Matthew in our Saturday youth Bible study. God has been so gracious over all of the youth. They are getting to know that Jesus is King. He is still reigning. No matter what. Lately, all the brothers and sisters have had a very good time of fellowship by ordering KFC. We are hoping and believing that the Lord has great things in store for the future through this small little flock.
Passion Week
Being followers of Christ, we are commanded to remember the death and resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ. As a church, we all gathered for Good Friday and Resurrection Day. All the believers assembled on our college campus and remembered 7 sayings of our Savior on the cross. This prompted all of us to look unto Jesus. The Good Friday service was followed with dinner. It was so powerful on Resurrection Sunday to experience the joy of knowing that our Lord conquered death. We celebrated the resurrection and are eagerly waiting upon our bodily resurrection.
Outdoor Meeting
God, in His mercies has allowed us to travel to a nearby district to share the Word of God. It seemed so impossible because of power cuts (lack of electricity) and many interruptions. Nonetheless, the Lord was so powerfully manifest among us that I preached about the will of God in a Christian life in the open air. Believers really were convicted of their sins and recognized the need of having a personal relationship with our Living Lord.
The Lord has been so faithful in providing for the church rent for the past few months. We pray and believe that He will provide in the coming months as well. Please pray for this.
Praise God for another young brother named V* (right) who I met in our local outreach program. He is a young man who came here for a way to make a living, from a neighboring state. He had never heard about Jesus and His glorious good news. Sadly in his state there is no presence of Christians and people are not aware of Christianity. We hope and pray that we could reach his village through this first fruit. Brother V* is filled with hope now to continue in the quest for truth which is only found in Jesus. Please pray for brother V*.
Gospel Outreach Program in Our City- May 16th
In May, we are planning to do a Gospel outreach here in our city. We want to conduct an outreach program where people can come hear the Gospel on the streets. Right now, we are going out for prayer walks and sharing the Gospel on the streets. On the May 16th, we are planning to bring more people from the area we are in. Over 150 people are expected. This will be the first time we are arranging a Gospel outreach program in this new place. We are excited to see how God works in their lives and how the Holy Spirit moves. This has always been in my heart to see people worship our great King who is on the throne. I believe and proclaim this outreach will brings many to Jesus and to transform their lives.
Bible College Outreach : May 23rd – June 6th.
We will be having an outreach with the students of our Bible college to go out and preach the Gospel. We are going to 2 different states that God is leading us to go preach Gospel in. In these states, people are not allowed to speak about Jesus. The students and staff will be joining in this outreach. The outreach will last 15 days. We will be preaching the Gospel on the roads, arranging youth meetings, having fellowship, sharing the Gospel door to door, doing personal evangelism, and performing dances and skits on the streets to catch people’s attention and then preaching the Gospel. We are excited about how the Holy Spirit is going to lead us and to see people come to Christ. Pray for us as we prepare for this outreach.
Our Interns
I want to share about our interns. They are fruit of our labor and the work of the Holy Spirit.
Called to G* – Brother A*
Here is the vision of our Bible college student who is doing internship right now. After this, he will be sent out.
“And when he found him, he brought him to Antioch. So for a whole year Barnabas and Saul met with the church and taught great numbers of people. The disciples were called Christians first at Antioch.”
Acts 11:26
“Although I grew up in an orthodox catholic family, never ever was I given knowledge of Jesus Christ or taught about the significance of the Word of God. God, in His gracious plan saved a sinner like me to be a witness of His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ. For the past 4 years, as a new believer I always have been enthusiastic to know the truth of the Bible.
“The Lord heard my cry to reveal Himself through the scriptures and helped me to experientially know Him through His word. What I have been taught in this training period is that I cannot be called a Christian if I am not a disciple of Jesus Christ. I am very inspired by the lives of Paul and Barnabas and similarly praying for the purpose Lord has chosen me for.
“Lately, the Spirit of God has been laying a burden on my heart to reach the city of G*. G* was the first destination for Lord’s work in medieval missions. To make a long story short, G*s are now badly affected by Catholicism and its ritualistic religion. If the Lord permits, in His timing, I wish to see what the Lord has for me in the future. I pray that G* will play a prominent role in the coming future just like Antioch, which was the mission station for Paul and Barnabas to reach the surrounding regions. Please uphold me and my brothers as we are praying and planning to spread God’s glorious Gospel to many other people groups.”
About this area:
G* is a state on the southwestern coast of the country. It is the 4th smallest state by population and the smallest by area.
Religion : Hinduism 66.08%, Catholicism 25.10%, Islam 8.33%
Called to go A* – Brother C*
“It has always been my ambition to preach the gospel where Christ was not known, so that I would not be building on someone else’s foundation.”
Romans 15:20
“Ever since I accepted Christ, I always had a deep desire for indigenous tribes. I prayed, fasted and sought for the Lord’s guidance over time. Time passed by, and God, through Christ and His mission for the lost, has encouraged my soul to seek for Indigenous tribes. As I am being trained as an intern, I believe that I am very close to my ambition to preach the Gospel where the name of Christ has never been preached or known.
A*, is one of the districts which is very little influenced by Christ and His church. It is the district with the highest population of Indigenous tribes.
I am beyond blessed and thankful to God that He has blessed me with a very encouraging team whom I could share my vision and burden with. Your prayers and intercession are very much needed for me as I am praying to be sent.”
About this area:
A* is a city which serves as the headquarters of the district. T* is the native language. It is located about 304 kilometers (189 mi) north of the state capital. A* is called the “gateway to the south (of the country)”.
Population: 1,39,383
Languages : T* is the most spoken language
Religion : Hinduism 65%, Islam 30.59%, Buddhism 2.60%, others 2.44%
If God puts the burden in your hearts for these people, please do not forget to pray.
Prayer Requests:
- Pray for our team to grow more in the knowledge of Christ
- Pray for my mother’s healing. An iron plate accidentally fell on her toes, and broke 3 toes.
- Pray for the students.
- Pray for our outreach program on the 16th of May. Pray for the financial needs for it.
- Pray for our Bible college students outreach in 2 states. We will start on May 23.
- Pray for my sister, she is expecting a baby and is in her 9th month. Be praying for a safe delivery. Her due date is on the 1st week of June.
- Pray for my wife and daughter’s health.
Thank you,
Pastor 6* and Family
*Names and faces have been changed or omitted for security reasons.