Dear Friend,
How easy it is to lie with numbers!
The official census of India claims only 2.3% of India’s population is Christian, but Indian leaders and Operation World say in reality, the figure is closer to 9%. This reflects a dramatic growth of the gospel in India in recent years.
We are certainly seeing the results of this growth at IGO. Our training centers are filled to capacity with men and women preparing to preach the gospel. Increasing numbers of them come from non-Christian backgrounds, ready now to give their lives for Jesus. Our 14,000+ graduates have planted thousands of growing churches among India’s most unreached peoples. Most of the baptized members are first-generation believers.
Every day, people are coming to Christ in growing numbers. Every day, the Holy Spirit demonstrates his power in miraculous ways. Every day, our churches are living out the reality of Acts 2:42-47 in the 21st century.
At the same time persecution of Christians has increased. It has taken place among IGO’s own evangelists and training centers. Last year, a 24-hour hotline in India, set up to report persecutions, received 11,000 calls.
Persecutors not only attack churches and individuals, but they also try to weaken Christians by attrition so they can’t do their work. They know most Christian churches and groups aren’t “rolling in dough,” so they resort to distractions, forcing them to spend money they don’t have in order to avoid legal problems.
In 2016, this happened to our own ministry at India Bible College and Seminary, in the state of Kerala, when enemies of the gospel threatened to close down the school for alleged environmental “violations.”
IBC has more than 300 full-time on-campus students, plus faculty and administration. Several hundred people live on property surrounded by a larger neighborhood comprised primarily of non-Christians. Most of them are congenial, but a handful are trouble makers.
This little handful complained that IBC soapy waste water sinks into the ground and pollutes the water they use. These enemies of the gospel chose to use this as a pretext for threatening the existence of the school. They have a lot of political clout to make good on their threat. If IBC were not a Christian school, they would have likely taken no action.
The IBC administration found a solution to recover and manage waste water, provided by a local company that cost about $108,000 which includes maintenance costs.
So far, we have received $80,305 for this project—about 74% of the total—leaving $27,695 to go. As the Lord leads you, we would greatly appreciate your help with your gift of $25, $50, $100 or more, to complete payment on this project.
You will not only help to solve an environmental need, you will also help to protect IBC against hostile groups who are using this as a pretext to end the 86-year-old ministry of IBC. You will help to protect IGO’s work of training and sending thousands of evangelists and church planters into India’s harvest force.
Whatever the costs involved in this unplanned situation, we cannot afford to give victory to gospel enemies, especially now when the Holy Spirit is obviously at work in India like never before. Too many lives and eternal destinies are at stake. Thank you for understanding.
For His glory,
T. Valson Abraham
P.S. This waste water management problem is an unwanted and unplanned expense we can’t ignore, even if we want to. Please join with us in neutralizing this attempt by others to weaken the spread of the gospel.
