Church Planters

On Wednesday we were priviledged to witness and be a part of the commissioning of twelve church planters.  This is another ministry that UEM sponsors that is systematic to raise-up, train and send out workers into the harvest field. 

http://www.indiatransformed.org/community_transformation_centers.html

The Heartbeat

Romans 10:15 – “How can people tell the Good News if no one sends them? As Scripture says, ‘How beautiful are the feet of the messengers who announce the Good News.’”
YET… “Faith, if it has no works, is dead, being by itself.” James 2:17  The spiritual AND the socio-economic are essential to community transformation.

The Program

A CTC is a two-year academic + field work program that trains 12 indigenous church planters to reach 2000 non-Christian families each. From these contacts, new believers are gathered into home-based prayer cells. By the end of the first year, these cells become congregations and new churches are born. Congregation members receive vocational training, literacy classes, and micro-loans, enabling them to start down the self-supporting path by the end of the second year. The purpose of a CTC is to train national lay leaders of the Church in evangelism and church planting and to empower them socially and economically, thereby bringing spiritual and socio-economic transformation.
Henry Ford once said, “Coming together is the beginning. Keeping together is progress. Working together is success.” The CTC is a joint effort between an established local pastor and indigenous church planters, all of whom have a passion for taking the message of transformation to a people abandoned and neglected by their communities.

 The twelve; 8 men and 4 women.

 Pastor Singh leading worship.

 Worship & Praise

One of the many testimonies of faith given that morning.  Everyone of these believers came from Hindu backgrounds with no knowledge of Jesus.  When asked how transformation occured in their lives, it was miracle after miracle of the Holy Spirit revealing himself through healings and demonic release. 

Friends, in America we are blinded to the need for Christ by our material possessions (which we see as blessings) and self-sufficiency.  Nothing should be called a blessing that keeps our focus apart from Christ! 

 Laying of hands for prayer.

The twelve receiving their "Gospel Wheels", their mode of

 transportation to travel around sharing God's word. 

Our family presenting the twelve with cross necklaces and keychains.

Pastor Singh's family 

Three months after marriage, Pastor Singh accepted the Lord Jesus Christ as his Savior.  His father in law was furious and refused to allow his daughter contact with her new husband.  For ten years they were kept apart.  Pastor Singh used this time to go to Bible school and begin his work for Christ's kingdom.  Through prayer and a transformed life both Pastor's father in law and wife came to faith and they were reunited as husband and wife.  This dedicated man for the ministry packs this tiny room with 200 people for worship on Sunday, runs a children's program for 48 hoping to expand that to 100, sent out twelve church planters a year ago and is now sending out another 12 church planters. 

Please take a moment to offer thanks to God for his service and ask that God would bless this ministry abundantly for His kingdom's purposes.