2019 Field update from Easter Gospel Outreaches
“The heart of man plans his way but the Lord establishes his steps.” Proverbs 16:9
Thank you for faithfully supporting Easter gospel outreaches. This year, God worked in ways we had not originally planned in Odisha, a place known as the “land of temples.” Odisha, the poorest state in India, is a treacherous place for Christians. Christian converts are banned from their villages; one was slain by the water well in February. Our field partners were even threatened there.
As field partners prayed in preparation for the Odisha outreaches, Cyclone Fani hit and ripped through the land with 130 mph winds, causing heavy devastation. What began as plans for Easter outreach dinners had to adapt to the reality of the situation: Relief. Yet God’s Word worked even through the aftermath of the cyclone.
More than 1.2 million people were evacuated. Because of supporters like you, our partners were able to arrive even before the government took initiative. When local, devout Hindu victims discovered that our partners were Christian, they initially rejected the help. But after receiving no other support, they begrudgingly accepted. This is what our partners shared [para],
“With God’s mighty grace, we could pray and comfort them in their time of need. We read out Psalm 46:1, ‘God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.’ The victims were moved and surprised that we came to their need when no one else would reach out. The people were hungry and impatient because received no help from their government or other charities, but Mission to Children was there! 250,000 people were in that colony. We filled plates and boxes of food for 4,100 and provided roof tarps, medical kits, and glucose.”
Reaching out with God’s love
God used the effects of Cyclone Fani to soften hearts, particularly the heart of a woman named Suramma who is a day laborer and “lover of Hinduism.” She hated Christians and practiced untouchability, never eating anything given by Christians. Out of desperation, she accepted help from the Christians she loathed. As a result of your support, our partners were able to feed her both food and the gospel message. She became ashamed of the person she was and turned from the caste system and her oppressed Hindu life.
Veni was another woman deeply touched. She shared, “We are so grateful for this support, my relatives dint [sic] give us money to buy it nor our temple management, but you have given us hope and comforted us in our need. So why will I go to the temple to which it dint [sic] gave [sic]even a pat on our shoulders, but you did and we thank your God, who from today will be my God. Thank you.”
Praise the Lord for your part in reaching the people of Odisha! Please join us in praying for God’s continued strength and protection over our Indian field partners as they step out in faith to reach and serve the lost and oppressed people of India like Suramma and Veni.
“After our Easter outreach in Odisha, a Hindu extremist group came from there [and] threated me & my wife. [They] stopped us on the middle of the road, warned us not to spread Christianity in their places. They said, ‘Do you think you are a hero to preach gospel in Odisha even when other local pastors don’t dare to do it.’ They hold my collar of the shirt and spoke in foul language abusing me and the Lord. We were so scared, they even threated to close [us] down.” – Christian national, India.
Beracah Ministry Hubs
…for there they blessed the LORD! (2 Chronicles 20:26)
At the August Beracah ministry hub leadership meeting in Bangalore, India, field partner staff expressed excitement about continuing to spread the gospel and provide family-based care for orphans and vulnerable children in their community.
Your help enables these Beracah ministry hubs in India to continue spreading the light and hope of the gospel to marginalized children. Beracah means “blessing.” This term was inspired by God’s mighty deliverance recorded in 2 Chronicles 20.
Beracah ministry hubs are places of refuge where God meets marginalized children in their time of need and ministry leaders are equipped so that His name is known in their surrounding communities.
Your support helps enable Beracah ministry hubs to:
- Provide educational assistance for up to 800 children through an on-site school, which strengthens impoverished families
- Provide Bible teaching for the children
- In extreme situations, care for orphaned and vulnerable children through residential care with an end goal of reunifying them with safe families, relatives, or other Christian families in the community
- Spread the gospel in impoverished communities, reaching over 13,000 each year through Christmas and Easter Gospel outreaches.
Today in India the visibility of these hubs puts them at high risk of severe persecution from Hindu nationalists. God is delivering them and there they bless the Lord! We thank God for all of you who stand with them, in prayer and through monthly support for the Beracah ministry hubs!
“In spite of the major threat from the high caste community instructing Christians to not share the gospel, we still reached the community by faith. Trusting that the Lord will protect and grant us the wisdom to continue to care and love them! Twice our Easter outreach got cancelled due such threats!”
– Christian national, India.
From My Heart
True love spreads the gospel.
“Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful; and let us consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds, not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another; and all the more as you see the day drawing near.” Hebrews 10:23-25, NASB
Dear Christian, through faith you possess a hope that will not fade or be blown away. It is a costly hope—not billed to us—but paid for us. This hope is eternally anchored in Jesus Christ whose scarred hands remind us that our redemption was purchased with His blood.
It is incredibly freeing to know that this salvation comes from outside of us, from God Himself. It’s not hinged on our merit—but on the merit of Christ! Jesus promised in John 6:40, “For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who looks on the Son and believes in him should have eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day.” This news is too good to keep for ourselves—it must be shared with others!
God’s promises stretch over the canvas of history. Not only do we have a future hope, He is our present help. He is our rock when everything in this world that we thought immovable is shaken from our fists. The Psalmist (46:1-3) declared, “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear though the earth gives way, though the mountains be moved into the heart of the sea, though its waters roar and foam, though the mountains tremble at its swelling.”
Oh, how important it is to know that God’s word is not an empty one. He doesn’t call us into a life that His word cannot keep.
(This article is a tribute to my cousin, Troy Knechtel. Troy went home to be with the Lord on July 23, 2019, after battling Multiple Systems Atrophy. Along with his wife, his son, and his daughter, Troy left behind an enduring legacy of patience through faith, reminding us that the line of God’s grace plumbs down deeper than anything we’ll face in this life.)
“Remember those who led you, who spoke the word of God to you; and considering the result of their conduct, imitate their faith. Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.” Hebrews 13:7-8, NASB
