HOPE SINGAPORE INDIA MISSION TRIP
God has been planting seeds of burden for India in some of us in Hope Singapore. He also spoke to Pastor Jeff about this land some time back which led to the Pastor Jeff’s decision to make this inaugural trip and brought some of us along.
Having heard a lot about India, we decided to go and see the land for ourselves and to understand what God is doing in India and how He wants us to play a part in His work there. We landed first in Chennai (South India), where God's work was first started by Apostle Thomas, who was eventually martyred there. Today, about 30% of Chennai's population is Christian, and there are many churches in this city. Pastor Jeff preached in a prayer meeting challenging the believers to follow God wholeheartedly and serve Him fully, and we saw how hungry the believers are for God and His Word. We also met some pastors and ministry leaders, and gleaned precious insights of God's work here and in the whole of India. South India is considered relatively reached, and many pastors are now challenging, preparing and equipping their flock to go up north where there are many unreached people groups.
Thereafter, we flew up north to New Delhi, and we were hosted by CFI, a church-planting ministry in North India. Their mission is to transform lives with the gospel, whether the young or old, poor or rich, sick or well. We visited their children's home and saw the impact they are making in the lives of the little ones. The little ones also celebrated Pastor Jeff's birthday! We also attended their celebration service where we were welcomed with amazing Indian hospitality. We shared our testimonies, Pastor Jeff preached on the great commission, and we prayed for all who came forward with prayer needs. As we ministered to them, our hearts began to grow with God's compassion for the people of India.
We then flew to Uttar Pradesh to visit CFI's ministry there. Here, we taught in one of their transformation centers (TC) where many young men and women have given their life to be trained and equipped for ministry. Most of them are young Hindu converts who do not know a lot about the Bible, but their experiences with God was enough to convict them for a life of following Christ fully - just like the first disciples who responded to Jesus' call in the Bible. After one year of equipping in the TC, these young men and women would lay down their lives and go to unreached places to preach the gospel and start house churches. We also visited a Mercy Home, run by a couple from South India. This ministry rescues and restores mentally challenged people who are abandoned by their family, and we hear powerful testimonies of complete healing by prayer and fasting, restoration to their families, and even going on to start their own Mercy Home!
In a span of five days, we covered 3 cities in India! Though we were physically tired, our hearts were very refreshed with what we saw. God has raised up so many mighty men and women to do His work in India and many have left their homes in the South to go to the unreached in the North. Even though so much has been done throughout history, there is still so much more to be done. Pastors have told us that about 10% of the Indian population has come to Christ, and with a population of over 1.2 billion, that translates into some 1.1 billion who have yet to come to Christ, and many of them do not even have a chance to hear the gospel. Many of our myths were busted as well, as we saw how livable these cities are, and we thoroughly enjoyed Indian food and chai!
As we prepare ourselves to land in India and to pioneer Indian fellowships here in Singapore to reach and disciple Indians who would in future return to their land to plant churches, we are thankful for the bigger picture that God has shown us in this trip. The harvest is truly plentiful, and as we avail ourselves and encourage others to do likewise, may the Lord of the harvest send forth more harvesters into this land.
Written by Delia Ng, Hope Singapore
