Team Seneca – We Pray, We Go, God Moves!
This past August, I received a phone call from my good friend Krista. Krista and I have been on many prayer journeys together in Egypt, Cambodia, Thailand and India. She is a wonderful woman of God, who married a man from Egypt named Ayman. They recently moved, with their three-year-old daughter, to Seneca, Missouri, where Krista grew up (never imagining she’d return!).
“Dan, something crazy has happened!” she exclaimed. “Ayman and I have been praying for our neighborhood. We felt drawn to pray for an old Methodist church across the street from our house. We approached the church leaders as we were curious to know more about it. They told us the church was dying with some older folks keeping it going. They said they did not want their church to die and asked us if we would be willing to take the building and use it for ministry. They want to give us the building to use! We don’t know what to do with it, so is it possible you could bring a prayer team and help discern what God wants us to do? God wants to establish something here. Please come help us pray!”
Immediately, I knew this was an assignment from God, and within a short time we had a team of seven people eager to go to the small town of Seneca, located in the SW corner of Missouri and is very near the borders of Kansas, Oklahoma and Arkansas. Its location is very strategic, as any ministry there can affect all four states.
In God’s amazing timing, just prior to the trip, Karl and Kenda (team members and 5 Rivers board members), were at a meeting on an Indian reservation here in Arizona. They were told that there was a prayer gathering of pastors who met every month near Seneca, across the border in Oklahoma. Believing this was a divine appointment, Karl and Kenda left a day early to attend this meeting, inviting Krista to meet them there.
India Update
Because of your prayers and generosity this past year, 5 Rivers was able to continue to support our partners in India in a variety of ways as they reach their nation for Christ.
We helped purchase a new seven passenger vehicle for Pastor Vijay in Punjab, who is using it non-stop to help advance the Kingdom of God in his region.
5 Rivers also made a commitment to help build a guest house in our village in Kashmir. The first two payments toward this 20,000.00 project have been made and construction is well underway. The foundation is laid, the walls are coming up and they hope to have the roof on before the heavy snow comes. God willing, this cabin will be ready for our teams to use starting this summer.
Another project we were able to help with in our Kashmiri village is a chicken farm. A strong cinder-block building has been built and two-hundred chicks have been purchased. In a short time, our friends will have a small business providing chicken and eggs to not only our village but to other villages in the surrounding area.
Our north India ISOM directors, Ashish and Kalpana, continue to be used greatly of God establishing teaching points for ISOM. Young men and women continue to be trained as church planters and are ministering in villages all over North India, thanks to those who pray for and support 5 Rivers.
Crazy Favor
Our dear friend, Ashish, lives in an area of North India where Christians are highly persecuted. But in the middle of these difficult circumstances, God has given him crazy favor with the local government of that state. Recently, he was invited to the governor’s birthday party. They all know he is a Christian leader but rather than shun or even attack him, he was invited as a VIP to be with the governor.
While the governor was preparing to cut the birthday cake, Ashish’s 6-year-old daughter was in the crowd. Seeing her, the governor called her over to help cut the cake. She even fed a piece of the cake to the governor! Later, Ashish was invited to go to the governor’s house for a personal meeting.
I know that may not sound like much for us, but for a Christian leader in North India it is unprecedented. It is just one sign of how God has raised this man up and given him governmental authority to advance His Kingdom in that region. Ashish boldly preaches Christ everywhere he goes and is fearless in his faith.
Ashish has been busy helping church leaders in several different states and establishing more ISOM training points. Right now, he has about 500 students enrolled in ISOM receiving training to be church planters. May God continue to bless this man and multiply the work of his hands all over North India!
There Are Still No Closed Doors
It has always been in the DNA of 5 Rivers that there are no closed doors. Over and over again, it has been a signet of our ministry that God would take us into places that had been closed for generations.
Last June we were on our way to one of those closed regions when I had the accident and broke my leg. As the saying goes, delayed does not mean denied. I rejoice that Ashish was able to take a team and go into this region last month and do a prayer drive. He even stopped at the exact location of the accident to give praise to God that we lived and they were able to go into a new territory where the Gospel has never been preached.
It is a great joy to see people that I have mentored for years go where I was not able to. This is the fruit of all the years of going and praying. Thanks to your faithful prayers and giving that made it all possible, India is in good hands of those who have been trained to GO.
The Kingdom is Advancing
“We are compelled to print thousands more copies of the ISOM training manuals in Hindi and Oria. The needs are increasing as many more are being enrolled. We are also purchasing 100 cell phones and many more memory cards for ISOM to continue to expand. We are purchasing 1,000 carpets (the Indians mostly sit on carpets for their teaching), 250 bicycles, 1,000 black boards and 10,000 Bibles. Please pray.” This was the text I received from my friend, Josh, recently. I had to stop and just laugh at how huge the needs are. My spirit leaps for joy because this list of needs tells us how much the Kingdom of God is advancing in India.
WOW!!! This is crazy! In the midst of intense persecution (reports of beatings, villages being burned, and pastors imprisoned in the middle of the night continue to come in), the Gospel is being preached. People, entire families, are being saved. People are being healed and set free from demons. Thousands of leaders are being trained to be church planters and the Kingdom of God is being manifested in India.
Jesus said, “Upon this rock I will build my church and the gates of hell will not prevail against it.” This is absolutely what is happening in India and we rejoice! We praise God for our ministry partners that have remained faithful, courageous, and are always advancing rather than drawing back.