Praise!

This week in Delhi there was a Church Planter Training. During the training, the people in the training went out for 30 minutes and shared the Gospel with people nearby. During those 30 minutes 39 people heard the Gospel for the first time! Out of those 39 people, 20 people heard the name of Jesus for the FIRST TIME! Those people had no idea who Jesus was! They had never heard of him before!

Praise the Lord that those people were able to hear about Jesus and his amazing grace! Pray for the millions of other people in Delhi that have never heard the Gospel or heard about Jesus. Thank you for praying! Your prayers are powerful!

Demon Possession

Sadly, demon possession is very common in Delhi (and in all of India). Almost every Hindu you talk to has a story of either them or a friend or relative being possessed. Some people are possessed for a long time period - like the Demon Possessed Man in Mark 5. Some are possessed for only a short time - like at a Hindu worship event. Either way, demon possession is very real here. It is glorified by some people but feared by most.

This week, Maruti, a college aged Hindu boy, became possessed during a Hindu worship celebration. He became very violent and doesn't remember anything that happened during that time. Since then, Maruti has been more open to hearing about Jesus. Please pray for Maruti - that he will see Jesus' power and know that He has power over these evil spirits! Pray that he will come to know Jesus and have a relationship with him.

Many Hindus have come to Christ after having a demon cast out of them. Pray for Christians to be bold and not afraid to pray over their possessed friends. Pray for people like Maruti who have experienced possession first-hand. Pray that someone will tell them of the amazing power of Jesus and about his power over all evil spirits.

Ram's Birthday

Today is celebrated as the birthday of the god Ram (or Rama). This birthday is celebrated in Delhi by reading the Ramayan and fasting (usually only having fruits and milk). Many people will be worshiping the god Ram today. Some will be doing the worship to Ram so that nothing bad will happen to them and their families. Some will be praying to images of Ram and asking for many things - healings, objects and things they need, etc.

Please pray for the Christians in Delhi during this time. Pray that they will be bold and share their faith with their friends. Pray that they will pray to Jesus for and with their friends! Pray that Jesus' power is shown to many people on this day!

Ramayana Week

From March 16-24th this year is a holiday called Ramayana Week. The holiday ends on March 24th - the birthday of the god Ram. In Delhi (and much of North India) it coincides with another holiday called Vasant (or Chitra) Navratri. It celebrates the Goddess Durga, Lakshmi & Saraswati. They are worshiped during this time and it is celebrated like a small Durga Puja (it was the original timing of Durga Puja that was later changed to Oct-Nov time).

The Ramayan is considered one of the two great epic stories of India (the other is the Mahabharata), so during Ramayana Week, many people celebrate by reading the entire Ramayan. In many temples there is someone reading or reciting it non-stop for the entire 9 days. Many Hindus fast during this time (either the entire week or just on the 24th) and will eat only fruits and milk.

Please pray for the people of Delhi during this time! Whenever it is holiday time in Delhi, people are more likely to want to talk about spiritual things.

Please also pray for the Christians during this time. Pray that they will not be afraid and hide during this time, but that they will be bold and share their faith with their Hindu friends and neighbors.

Sanjay & Trainings

Sanjay is doing a training this week with a local church. He is teaching them how to start churches! Please pray for him during this training. Please also pray for those involved with the training! Pray that they catch the vision and get excited about planting churches! Pray that they don't just get excited - but that they start planting churches!

Praise Update!

PRAISE! There was a big meeting of Christian leaders who were interested in helping with the Commonwealth Games. Only a few leaders were expected but over 100 leaders came! That was WAY more than planned or even imagined!

Thanks so much for praying! Your prayers really do make a difference! Thank you for praying and please continue to pray for the Christians involved with outreach & other opportunities during the Commonwealth Games!

Bhatiara People Group

The Bhatiara are a Muslim people group that can be found in Delhi. There are many different people groups in India that are UUPGs. That means that they are an unreached & unengaged people group! The Bhatiara people group are one of those UUPGs. That means that 2% percent or less of the Bhatiara are Christians. There are 259,188 Bhatiara people.

Please pray for the Bhatiara people of Delhi.

Pray that this group can be identified and located. Pray that the Christians of Delhi will get opportunities to tell Bhatiara people about Jesus! Pray that Bhatiara people will follow Jesus and impact Delhi for Christ!