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Letters From India
Rise and Expansion of the Christian Church
In India
Introduction
This booklet began as an e-mail correspondence between two friends. Michael and Sangat were Bible school classmates in the United States during the early 1980's. Both went separate ways, Michael a businessman in Virginia and Sangat an evangelist in India. The friendship was renewed a year ago and grew as Sangat shared with Michael about his Christian home fellowship ministry in India.
Gospel of power
These letters record the growth of a Christian church based solely on the power resident in the gospel of Jesus Christ. It is the calling card of signs, miracles and wonders that most of us have never seen but have only read about in the pages of our Bibles between the Gospel of John and the Epistle to the Romans. This is the story of a 21st century Book of Acts. Without radio, television or relentless appeals for partnerships and funds, this ministry is changing lives from the teeming streets of Delhi to the mountain villages of the Himalayas and the plains of south India. Hindus, Sikhs and Muslims are responding to the gospel of Jesus Christ because of its power to heal, raise the dead, cast out devil spirits, and meet the basic needs of daily life are never guaranteed.
Family construction business
In these pages, you will meet Sangat Bains, born of an Indian father and a Japanese mother. Sangat was raised in Japan and India, but it was at a college in the United States where Jesus Christ changed his life and future. This is not the account of an individual but of a family construction business:
Jesus Christ is the foreman and God the sole proprietor. In these pages, you will meet fellow laborers-Bhupinder, Gulab Singh, Gopal, Shanti, the unforgettable Mohan Lal, and many other members in God's family construction crew.
Sum of all teaching
Look Only To God, is the basic message that Sangat has been teaching in India since his arrival in the early 1980s. In many ways it is the sum of all teachings in that trust in God and God alone is the desired end result of all biblical activity be it bible study, prayer or church attendance. The joy and charm of this study is its simplicity. The reader will feel his ability to look to and trust God grow, with each turn of the page.
The Amazing Testimony of Mohan Lal Sharma
Hi Michael,
God bless you, Marsha, your children and the believers abundantly.
The following are testimonies and principles on how people receive deliverance from God. You will see that it is done by declaring the absoluteness of the Word of God and His wonderful works. This certainly inspires many to have faith to receive deliverance, be saved, and to come to an accurate knowledge of God.
I visited Mohan Lal Sharma at Ashok Vihar, Delhi, with Ashish and Rajan this Sunday October 12, 2003. We went to hear how God's Word was spreading in his hometown, Adhiaksh, in the Amethi district, about 500 miles east of Delhi. In the past nine-month period, as he injured his leg, for the recovery he went back to his home.
Mohan Lal became a Christian about a year and half ago and as far as knowledge of the Word of God is concerned, he did not know much. While he was in Delhi, he was busy with work and did not attend any Bible classes, but he was faithful in attending fellowships. Mohan Lal knew the basic Truth that God is able to answer prayers and the importance of sharing his testimony of what God did for him and that God can do the same for them.
Broken leg opens doors of utterance
About nine months ago, Mohan Lal suffered a broken leg in an auto accident. He returned to his hometown, Alam, to heal. He walked quickly, believing God would heal him as he walked.
One day, while he was walking in the market of his hometown, a Muslim acquaintance, Alam, about 35 years old (same age as Mohan Lal), a businessman and a leader of Muslim community; saw him and called him to come to his shop. Alam asked him how he could walk so quickly since he had only recently broken his leg. Alam had also been in an accident a long time before Mohan Lal and suffered a leg injury. Alam was curious since he still had serious pains in his knees.
Mohan Lal then told him that God healed his leg. He was able to walk so quickly because that he had made his request known to God with thanksgiving. He told Alam that if he wanted to walk, then he too should pray to the True God and he would be walking right away.
The next day Mohan Lal saw Alam walking nearby his house so he called him and asked him why he was walking. (God had already shown Mohan Lal that Alam had been healed.) Alam explained to him that he did exactly what Mohan Lal told him to do, that is, to make his desire known to God with faith and thanksgiving that God has heard his prayer. He said that immediately after he had spoken to God, the pain in his knee vanished, and he was able to walk.
300 Muslims and 200 Hindus converted
Alam then began to give his testimony to his many Muslim friends. Today about 300 Muslims are attending Mohan Lal's fellowship, in addition to 200 or so Hindus; daily the number is increasing.
I asked Mohan Lal what he did in his fellowship since he was a new believer and while in Delhi, he did not conduct his own fellowship, even though he witnessed to people a lot. He said that he had fellowship daily in his home which is a big one and able to accommodate a large number of people. He said that he began his fellowship with prayer and a time for sharing of testimonies. The sharing lasted over an hour since many people had testimonies of deliverance or answers to prayer from God. We too had a time of sharing of testimonies during our fellowships here in Delhi and Mohan Lal incorporated that into his fellowship.
I believe declaring God's great works to others and praising Him during fellowship is one of the great keys for God to add people to the fellowship.
Acts 2:47
Praising God, and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved.
Sharing the great works and deliverance from God and giving glory to God is our praise to Him, and this inspires people to believe Him. It shows people that indeed God is able.
The power of Absolute Truth
After sharing of testimonies, Mohan Lal would teach the simple Word of God that he knew which is: Our God is able. Nothing is impossible for God to do for people. We are to make requests to Him with thanksgiving and with faith. We shall absolutely receive the answer to our prayers.
He really believes these, and so he taught these Absolute Truths with all boldness to the believers in his fellowship. Mohan Lal would then close his fellowship. At the time he did not know how to speak in tongues, interpret or prophecy. But he did know he could heal the sick and cast out devil spirits, and he did know God would give him knowledge and wisdom. Yesterday I led Mohan Lal into speaking in tongues, interpretation of tongues and prophecy. I showed him how simple it was operate these manifestations, so that he could do the same for the believers in his hometown.
Signs, miracles and wonders
One day during a fellowship, a high-ranking police official from the district came to his house accompanied by his security men and several vehicles. The saints did not know why the police force came to the house. Some said they came to arrest Mohan Lal for conducting religious activities. Mohan Lal is a man with courage and boldness, and he told his nephew, Bhola, to go to the entrance gate of the house and not to let the police officer to enter.
He instructed Bhola to ask him why he came to his house. Bhola stopped the police officer at the gate and asked the nature of his visit. The officer said he came to see Mohan Lal and that this was a personal and not an official visit. He said his eighteen-year- old daughter was blind. He had heard from someone that Mohan Lal could heal the sick. Bhola, who is seventeen years old, said to the high-ranking police officer that if he desired deliverance from the True God, then he had to be humble. He should take off his uniform, which manifested the pride of man-given power and authority. The officer immediately returned to his car and changed into simple clothes and entered Mohan Lal's house with his daughter.
Blind girl instantly healed
Mohan Lal said to the officer that his daughter would immediately recover her sight if he believed that God could do this. The man said he believed that God could recover his daughter's blindness. Then Mohan Lal asked his daughter how many fingers she saw while having his hand opened with his five fingers. She said five. Then her father, the high-ranking police officer, gave thanks to God. Mohan Lal told her to tell the color of his clothes; she said the correct color. Since this time, the police officer has become a regular member of the fellowship. He too has given testimony to many of the great deliverance and the wonderful work that the True God did for his beloved daughter.
Chief voodoo magician believes
One of the greatest voodoo magicians in his area who cast spells, (that is, to send a devil spirit to harm people by receiving payment from his clients) also began to attend Mohan Lal's fellowship because he understood how the power that Mohan Lal demonstrated was greater than his own spells. He had placed a spell on Mohan Lal and not only did it not work but the devil spirit involved returned and attacked the voodoo chief. This made a great impact on his community and many attended Mohan Lal's fellowship.
Voodoo priests kill: True God restores life
A newly married girl, about twenty, who lived near Mahan Lal's home had a problem with fits. The family invited voodoo priests to their house to cure her. During the exorcising ritual the priests beat the girl on the back to drive out the evil spirits. During the violent beating, the girl fell to the ground and died. When the family realized that the girl was dead, they beat their chests and howled in extreme anguish and sorrow.
Mohan Lal heard the commotion and as he entered the house, he saw many in anguish and beating their chests, showing their
extreme sorrow. Mohan Lal, before entering further, prayed to God that He would give him the boldness and strength to raise the girl from the dead. He confronted the voodoo priests, saying that they worked for wickedness and their curses had taken life, but His God would restore life. God inspired him to put his hand upon the dead girl's head and as he touched her, she began to breathe. All who saw the girl restored to life were amazed, and the voodoo priests immediately fled from the house. Now this family and the girl attend the daily fellowship at Mohan Lal's home.
The Word of God and nothing but the Word of God
Mohan Lal told me that they wished me to visit his hometown to meet the believers. I too wish to visit them and teach and guide them so that they may be strengthened and established in the faith and that the Word of God grows mightily in his area and surrounding areas. I continue to see the importance of keeping teachings simple. It is the wonderful truth and simplicity of the Word of God that inspires people to have faith in God. It is helpful for believers to see that God is indeed able to deliver them from any situation. This is why it is important to have a time of sharing of testimonies of what our wonderful God has done. This builds our believing and inspires believing in others.
There are many verses regarding speaking the wonderful works and deliverance He makes available to us, but the following are some of them:
I Chronicles 16:24-29
Declare his glory among the heathen; his marvellous works among all nations. For great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised: he also is to be feared above all gods.
For all the gods of the people are idols: but the LORD made the heavens.
Glory and honour are in his presence; strength and gladness are in his place.
Give unto the LORD, ye kindreds of the people, give unto the LORD glory and strength. Give unto the LORD the glory due unto his name: bring an offering, and come before him: worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness.
Psalms 9:11
Sing praises to the LORD, which dwelleth in Zion: declare among the people his doings.
Psalms 66:16
Come and hear, all ye that fear God, and I will declare what he hath done for my soul.
Psalms 73:28
But it is good for me to draw near to God: I have put my trust in the Lord GOD, that I may declare all thy works.
Psalms 107:22
And let them sacrifice the sacrifices of thanksgiving, and declare his works with rejoicing.
Andhera Pradesh and Peddapuram Visits to Strengthen the Saints and Establish Home Fellowships
I left Delhi station at 8:30pm 27th Jan and reached Samalkot station (railway station for Peddapuram area) at noon of 29th Jan. This was my first visit to Peddapuram in twenty years. Previously in 1982 I visited this area frequently and taught pastors and believers and ran a Foundational Bible Class. Since then I maintained communication with Victor Emmanuel who is the pastor of this area through letters. I sent elders from Delhi periodically, and Victor visited me in Delhi once or twice a year.
Travel difficulties and meeting the believers.
When we reached Peddapuram a goods train had been derailed somewhere around Rajahmundry station, so my train stopped until the track was repaired. Since the station where we were stopped was just 2 stations away from Samalkot, I proceeded to take a bus to Samalkot station, which was about 48 miles from where Victor Emmanuel, a pastor in this area, and others were waiting.
When I reached Samalkot station, Victor and others were waiting for me at the platform and were surprised to see me there at the station without the train having arrived. I explained how I came to the station. That day we had a fellowship at Victor's home. There were wonderful believers present, young and old, and some had taken the Telegu Foundational Bible Class given by Victor.
Believers healed of various infirmities
Victor had arranged a lot of meetings for me where I could teach the Word of God. Since there happened to be a strike in Andhera Pradesh, I was able to meet with some believers in the morning and taught them various things from the Word of God. At 3:00pm, we went to the home of one of the believers, Prasad Rao's, for a fellowship at the rooftop. He covered the rooftop with a structure using palm wood and palm leaves. He told me that God had put it in his heart to construct this structure at the roof top so that many people could come to fellowship; God had given him the design, what materials to use, and how to construct the structure.
Power and authority of God evidenced
As we began, many people began to come; there might have been around 40 people or so at this fellowship. I taught the simple basics from God's Word with the help of Victor interpreting it into Telegu language. After the fellowship was over, some of the people desired to be healed and came forward to be healed. These people had great faith and thus, one by one, various sickness, joint problems, eyesight problems, heart problems, devil spirit oppression, and sickness due to devil spirits were removed by the power and authority of God. As I ministered, more and more people came forward for deliverance. All of them received deliverance instantaneously.
In the evening we went to Yerampelem, a village about six miles away from Peddapuram, to a home fellowship conducted by Raja Rao, a 65 year-old believer who had attended Victor's Telegu Foundational Bible Class. Victor told me that Raja Rao began to preach the Word of God in this village where he worked as a health officer before retirement. The villagers very much appreciated the Word he taught, and they asked him to stay to teach and help them to learn God's Word. I cannot describe to you how the village was, except you must come and see it yourself; I liked the place very much.
Crippled child healed
There were about thirty saints present that night in the village. They sang songs of praise with beautiful voices. There, too, I taught the basics of the Word of God: to have confidence in God our Father and to recognize the importance of knowing one's position in Christ. After the meeting, some of believers wanted me to minister healing to them, which I did, and they received healing. There were back pains, knee joint pains and one woman had an issue of blood problem, and various other needs were all healed. A seven year old child had never walked (she could not move her leg at all) from birth. Her legs began to move, and I instructed her mother not to fear but to encourage the child to walk. After ministering healing, we went back to Victor's home about 11:00pm.
Prostitutes respond to Word of God
After breakfast, Victor heard from the believers in the village we had visited the night before. They said that as a result of the healing service at the end of the fellowship, all that had come forward, including Prasad Rao (at whose home the fellowship was held), were healed. Victor and the others were excited to hear it; although we knew at the time we ministered that everyone had received deliverance.
While we were speaking together, one of Victor's friends came over to meet me. We discussed various things from the Word of God, and I encouraged him to continue learning the Word of God from Victor. We were invited to Kruparao's home for lunch (he had taken the Foundational Bible Class some time in 1982 with Victor but was not so much involved now). After that, a Lutheran pastor who was also Victor's friend invited us to share the Word of God to those who turned to God from prostitution. Victor told me about this after we returned to his home from this meeting. The believer women had been sharing the Word of God with the prostitutes. No one else had been willing to speak God's Word to them; the Word of God delivered those who heard.
Alcoholic healed
At 3:30pm, we again had a fellowship meeting on the rooftop of Prasad Rao's home. One of the ladies brought her husband who had been a drunkard. When I ministered to him, the day before, I asked her to believe from this day onward he would stop drinking. She joyously told us while standing with her husband that he had stopped drinking since I had ministered to him. Her husband asked me to heal the pain that he had all over his body; the pain went out of his body instantaneously. Due to the deliverance he received, they had witnessed to their relatives and neighbors. Many more came to be healed. I ministered, perhaps to 30 or so people at this time.
Since we had to meet someone at Victor's home and it was getting late for that appointment, we decided to return to Victor's house. Later Prasad Rao told us that many more came to be healed after I left since some of the ladies who were healed today were boldly witnessing. They told many that they had been healed of their illness and inspired many others to come for healing. We will return to Prasad Rao's fellowship next month to avail deliverance to those who desire.
At night we went to Chinny's, a believer in the village of Vadalamuru, to attend his home fellowship. His house proved too small since so many people showed up to hear the Word of God and receive healing, so we moved the fellowship to the local Baptist meeting hall which they kindly provided. There were around 40 people present; I taught the Word of God, and Victor translated into Telegu. After the meeting many came to be healed. They all had faith to be healed; thus, they all were healed instantaneously. Some of them were suffering from sickness, and some had physical problems for many years; young and old, all were healed in the name of Jesus Christ.
Even after leaving the church hall and returning to Chinny's home, many who heard of the healings sought us at Chinny's house. All those who sought deliverance were healed by the power of God. We finally departed the village at 11:00pm and returned to Peddapuram.
Victor's son, David, brought to me a colleague who worked at his school. His name was Chitti Babu, and he wanted to manifest holy spirit by speaking in tongues. We spent an hour of instruction on this topic, and then Chitti Babu spoke in tongues for the first time in his life. He was 35 years old. He will be taking the Telegu Foundational Bible Class from Victor, which will begin soon.
Thyroid and sinus problems healed
Today, we were invited to attend Mr. David Livingstone's (Victor's cousin) retirement function. David respects God greatly and will evangelize the Word of God in this city in the future. David lives in Rajahmundry about 24 miles from Peddapuram. We met David and his family. The function ended around 3:00pm. Prasad Rao, who also accompanied us, took us to his sister's home in that city. When we reached her home, her husband, Kass, told us that she has been suffering from a thyroid problem, high blood pressure and high blood sugar level. He told us that she had been depressed and had thought many times of taking her own life. They had two daughters, one 18 and one 14. As we spoke the Word of God to the family, I saw that she and her husband had the faith to be healed. I ministered to her. After ministering healing, she told us that she felt within her self that she had been healed. I told her to give thanks to God.
Kass wanted his son also to be healed since his son's sinus had been blocked for over a year. I ministered to the sinus, and it immediately opened up and he was able to breathe smoothly. A few others, who were their neighbors, also came to be healed. After this, we encouraged Kass to keep in touch with his brother-in-law, Prasad Rao, and Victor to learn more about the Word of God.
We reached Peddapuram at Victor's home around 5:30pm. When we were sitting at his home, Victor's son, David, told us about his colleague, Chitti Babu, the teacher from his school who visited us in the morning and spoke in tongues.
Truth made plain, all healed
David said that since Chitti Babu heard the Word of God and spoke in tongues he had became very quiet. Chitti Babu was about to take school students to Bangalore, about 360 miles from Peddapuram, for a field trip and was to leave with the students by a train in the afternoon. David was surprised to see him so quiet; he asked him what had happened to him. Chitti Babu said that he had been thinking about the truth he heard that morning and had read from his Bible. He was deeply moved by the fact that for all these years, his pastors and ministers had not taught him these truths. He said the truth was so plain, yet he had to wait so long to come to know it. David said that he was in a way sad about it and seemed in shock. Chitti Babu is now determined to take the Telegu Foundational Bible class.
That evening, we had a home fellowship at Raja Rao's home; he had been reaching out to villagers where he was a health officer. I taught them about the hope of Jesus Christ's return, the type of body we shall have, and about future rewards. After this meeting, his wife and others who came to the fellowship desired to be healed, and they were all healed.
Lutheran church and rooftop fellowships
Jagga Rao and Paul came to Victor's house at 8:30am; I led them into speaking in tongues. At 9:30am, we left for the Lutheran church in Samalkot which was a few miles away in Peddapuram. We were invited to the Lutheran church where Victor's daughter's mother-in-law was the elder of the church. I taught on the broken body and shed blood since they were to have Holy Communion. The pastor and the other clergy of the church were surprised at the plainness of the scriptures on this subject. They said they had read these verses many times but had never seen this depth of understanding opened to them.
I am very thankful to God that we have been given an abundance of accuracy of God's Word that I learned when I was attending Bible school in the United States. Those who know the accuracy of God's Word have a responsibility to teach all who desire to know the Truth. I also am happy to see the meekness of these pastors who had great joy in beholding the truth. They wanted me to teach at the English service later in the day; however, we had other commitments and regrettably declined.
After we returned from the church service, I encouraged Victor to teach believers regarding the manifestations of holy spirit and to lead them into speaking in tongues, interpretation of tongues and prophecy as soon as possible. I told him not to wait for a Foundational Bible Class to lead new saints into speaking in tongues. They could manifest first and then learn the in-depth knowledge regarding it later in a class. I told him also to immediately teach new believers how to minister healing and cast out devil spirits.
At 6:00pm, Jagga Rao, Paul and Ravi came to Victor's home to learn more and to practice speaking in tongues. Ravi had not yet spoken in tongues, so I helped him to speak in tongues. By this time, Jagga Rao and Paul were much better at speaking in tongues as they had already spoken in tongues in the morning; thus, I proceeded to instruct on interpretation of tongues. They immediately were able to interpret. Then I proceeded to instruct them on prophecy, which they did immediately. I planned to help Ravi on interpretation of tongues and prophecy the next day.
We then went to Prakash Rao's home, to the rooftop, for the evening fellowship. I taught them from Psalm 103. After the fellowship, many came forward to be delivered of various health problems, while others came forward to tell us about the deliverance they received as a result of the previous day's ministering session.
Impact of wrong believing on finances and economy
Mr. David Livingstone, who just had retired from the Lutheran school of Rajahmundry, visited us here at Victor's home this morning. I was very blessed to hear how he has been holding forth the Word of God faithfully for many years. He invited us to Rajahmundry, about one hour away, the next day for a morning home fellowship. I now see a great door opening in this area of the country. I am beginning to see the importance of additional visits to assist the local elders and to train others so the Body of Christ can effectively function in this part of India.
I noticed that the people in this area, including the believers, were not as prosperous as the saints in Delhi. Many people do not have jobs or are working for extremely low pay. Last night at the fellowship of Prakash Rao, there was a Hindu man, Uppar Rao, who had turned to Christianity. He had seen no benefit in worshipping his goddess whom he and his family had worshipped for many years. He had retired from the army several years earlier. Upon discharge, he had received a substantial amount of money and purchased six motor scooters. In this part of India, he was considered quite wealthy; however, he lost all his investment. He realized that his goddess did not do anything for him; instead, she took what he earned. Thus he turned to the True God and is now learning the way of God. We encouraged him to continue to come to fellowship, and learn the Word of God and receive the financial deliverance he needed.
Instructions on speaking in tongues, interpretation of tongues, prophecy and gifts of healing
As I ministered during this trip, I saw great numbers of people oppressed by the devil for many years, and I had great compassion for what they had been suffering. Many of them received deliverance and when I leave here, Victor and others will preach, teach and deliver people from the authority of the devil, and instruct them on their position in Christ. This is necessary for them to live the more abundant life our heavenly Father promises in His Word.
We invited Jagga Rao, Paul, and Deva Saheyam this evening for more practice on the manifestations of holy spirit. I showed them that manifesting holy spirit by speaking in tongues is very simple. What I do in order to speak in tongues is:
I move my lips, my tongue, my vocal cords and I form words. As I do, God supplies the words I speak in a foreign language; that language is unknown to me. The holy spirit in me supplies the words, but it is my responsibility to move my vocal cords, lips and tongue and form words.
Interpretation of tongues functions in the same manner. I first speak in tongues, and then immediately I speak in the language of the people present what God inspires me to speak. The interpretation is always in the language of the people present.
To prophecy, I speak immediately what I am inspired to say in the language of the people present. I speak until the spirit in me inspires me to stop.
Operation of the gift of healing works on the same principle: When people desire healing, begin to minister healing. If you wish to talk with the person to find out what is needed, then ask questions, or if you want to determine the level of the individual's believing, then do so. If you want to speak God's Word to build up confidence, then do that. Do what you feel inspired to do or are comfortable to do. When you begin to minister, speak to the problem or speak what you are inspired to speak.
The operation of gifts of healing functions in the same manner as speaking in tongues. What a person speaks is not premeditated; it is inspired by God at the moment the speaker opens his mouth to speak. God is never late. Upon ministering healing, it is quite normal for the inexperienced believer to wonder what to say to the person desiring healing. However, when we begin to minister healing, all necessary things needed to be said or done will be known at that specific time. God is never late. The believer ministering healing speaks healing into being or tells the problem to leave. As the one ministering healing begins, God will inspire appropriate words and actions. Just like speaking in tongues, the words in an unknown tongue are not premeditated but are present at the moment the speaker opens his mouth to speak. After I explained this to them, some people came to Victor's home to be healed, and I was able to demonstrate this principle in front of them.
We then went to Prakash Rao's home, and went up to the rooftop and led Prakash Rao into speaking in tongues. That night, I taught the believers about speaking in tongues, and I spoke in tongues in front of them to demonstrate. I asked them to go to Victor if they wished to speak in tongues. There were some who needed healing who came to this fellowship, and I ministered healing to them.
Healing ministered over the telephone
I planned to depart for Delhi by train today at 4:00pm. Prior to that we will be going to Rajahmundry to have a home fellowship with Mr. David Livingstone, his family and others. We left Peddapuram at 8:30am and reached Rajahmundry at 9:45am. There were about 10 people since it was a working day, so some of the saints took half-day leave to be with us. David has been running his fellowship at his home for many years. He and his wife took the Foundational and Intermediate Bible class in 1982. He also goes to people in need of healing and speaks to them of God's promise on this subject, and if they have believing to be healed, brings Victor's wife who is confident in ministering healing.
Sometimes he tells those with sickness, if they want to be healed, to call Victor's wife. Many times, those who called Victor's wife were healed while being ministered healing over the telephone.
There were some who attended the morning fellowship who needed healing and after the fellowship, I ministered healing to them. After the fellowship, we, including David, departed Rajahmundry for Peddapuram a few miles away. At Victor's home, some elders were waiting for us, and I encouraged them to run a fellowship at their homes as well (those who haven't yet), and to manifest holy spirit through the operation of tongues, interpretation of tongues, and prophecy in the fellowships. I also encouraged them to deliver those in need of healing by speaking the Word of God to them and healing them.
After we prayed and said farewell to them, I spent some time with Victor's family and thanked them for the wonderful stay and time they made available for me. I also thanked them for standing faithfully for many years reaching out to many and raising up elders in this part of the country. There is a great door of utterance opened in this part of the country. I certainly need to visit regularly to instruct the saints how to reach out to others for salvation and make known an accurate knowledge of the truth.
We reached the railway station at 3:30pm and I left for Delhi at 4:15pm for another long journey back home. I reached Delhi station on Feb 6 (Thursday) at 6:00am and reached home at 6:45am. Well, this is a report of some of the things which took place while I was in Peddapuram and its nearby villages and towns in Andhera Pradesh, South India during the period, Jan 29 to Feb 4, 2003.
Acts of the Holy Spirit in Delhi
I visited one of our fellowships on Tuesday evening and I wanted to share with you some of the testimonies of believers; we have this time of sharing of testimonies in every home fellowship. Hearing testimonies of believers indeed inspires all of us of what God is able to do for us and help us go to God, our Father, with confidence as we become more sure of His Word, that it is the Truth.
Power of God over the common cold
Vijay has a four-year old daughter and a younger son. Recently both his son and daughter caught colds, and his daughter was running a fever. He said previously when they caught colds it stayed with them for a long time. After several days, he began to wonder why as a son of God he had to put up with these problems. He then prayed over a glass of water and said, "This is the body of Christ that was broken for us." He had his son and daughter drink the water. The children then slept for awhile. Upon waking, they had neither cold nor fever. Even though Delhi has had one of its coldest winters in history, the children have been healthy and strong since that day.
Vijay is a scooter and motorcycle mechanic; however, he did not have any conveyances. Since he wanted to attend many of the fellowships, he wanted to have a scooter for himself; however, he did not have enough money to purchase one. He made a decision to pray to God, and he asked Him to give him a scooter. The next day, one of his customers who had his scooter serviced by Vijay came and told him that he had a used scooter that he did not ride. He said to Vijay that he could have it if he desired. Since he was a scooter mechanic, he got this secondhand scooter repaired it, and it now runs like a new one.
One of the new believers (whose name I forgot) shared with us that while at work a few days ago, he received a phone call from his wife. She was suffering from a severe stomach pain and wanted her husband return home immediately. However, he was in the midst an important project and could not do so. He told her to pray to God and to tell her stomach to be healed. When he returned home, his wife was fine. Her pain disappeared immediately after doing what he had told her.