By Mark Ellis, Special to ASSIST News Service
SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA (ANS - July 22, 2015)
-- In 2008 and 2009 Hindu extremists went from village to village
destroying churches, burning houses, and killing Christians. Their
agenda was to wipe out Christians and Christianity from India starting
in Orissa.
Some pastors were beaten,
doused with petrol, and burned to death. One pastor was beaten to the
point of death by a mob of 100. He vomited blood and later regained
consciousness and managed to flee. Another pastor and his pregnant wife
ran away in the darkness and hid themselves to save their lives.
Some took shelter in the forest
without food and clothes for days. When they returned to their village,
they found their homes and property burned and looted by angry mobs.
Pastor Mahara Degal was forced
out of his village during the persecution of 2008 and 2009 because he
accepted Jesus Christ as his Lord and Savior. He barely escaped with a
broken leg after being beaten.
He relocated to a village
called Gatingia, which has only one narrow dirt road leading into it,
and isolated himself for a time. But answering the Lord’s call, he
re-dedicated himself to the Lord’s service and God began to empower his
witness.
In 2012 Pastor Degal was given
an audio playback device known as a “Proclaimer,” developed by Faith
Comes by Hearing. The solar-powered device, preloaded with an audio New
Testament in the Kui language, provided him and his listeners thousands
of hours of recorded verses and discipleship.
Using a bicycle, he travels to
other villages to share the gospel. Last year, he went to a district
called Kalahandi where he shared the Gospel with two Hindu extremists,
who were involved in the violence.
“They came to know the Lord
through the Proclaimer,” Pastor Degal says. “I’m so happy that those who
were involved in this persecution are also coming to know the Lord.”
About the writer: Mark Ellis is a senior correspondent for the ASSIST News Service and also the founder of www.Godreports.com,
a website that shares stories, testimonies and videos from the church
around the world to build interest and involvement in world missions.
** You may republish this and any of our ANS stories wtih attribution to the ASSIST News Service (www.assistnews.net)
Tidak ada komentar:
Posting Komentar