Preventing Blindness With Basic Medical Care

Gospel for Asia
For Immediate Release

With colorful posters and pamphlets, the Bridge of Hope team lovingly taught these children the importance of nutrition—and then provided them with vitamin tablets.

The children listened carefully during the presentation.

SOUTH ASIA (ANS) -- As part of Gospel for Asia’s Bridge of Hope program, children receive medical care that is widely unavailable in their areas. This is monumental in regions where many children die from preventable diseases.

One Bridge of Hope center, in partnership with a humanitarian organization, took on the task of fighting one of the common ailments: blindness.

In their region, green leafy vegetables and other sources of Vitamin A are almost completely absent in children’s diets. This isn’t because the children don’t want to eat their vegetables—it’s because they can’t. The food that poor families can afford is very limited and often doesn’t include vegetables.

This is tragic because cases of severe Vitamin A deficiencies can lead to weakened immune systems, blindness or even death.

Knowing that children younger than five are particularly vulnerable to this deficiency, the Bridge of Hope staff designed a seminar to teach about the importance of vitamins. They handed out pamphlets, spoke to the children and their parents and then distributed vitamins to each child.

The program started at this Bridge of Hope center has spread to other centers in South Asia over the last two years, providing vitamins to more than 5,000 children.

 

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Read about another outreach to impoverished children in the slums of Asia.

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Gospel for Asia is an evangelical mission organization based in Carrollton, Texas, involved in sharing the love of Jesus across South Asia.

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No Missionary Had Ever Been There

An Old Language Brings Good News for Today

Gospel for Asia
For Immediate Release

This Gospel for Asia-supported missionary, also one of the Gurung people, ministers in the same area as Pastor Sirjan.

NEPAL (ANS) -- Gospel for Asia-supported pastor Sirjan Bhattarai recently found out the Lord’s heart behind what seemed to be a purposeless ministry. This is his account of what the Lord showed him.

Sirjan’s Story

My name is Sirjan Bhattarai. I am the pastor of a Gospel for Asia-supported church in Nepal, and I am also ministering in the surrounding unreached villages.

In addition to my pastoral work, God has given me the great privilege of producing the Gurung language radio broadcast for GFA Radio. Before handling the responsibility as a producer and broadcaster for the Gurung language, I thought it was a meaningless effort to broadcast this language, considering the current state of Nepal.

I thought, “The Nepali language is the common language that everyone can communicate through in Nepal. Broadcasting in Gurung is a waste of time and money.” But honoring God and being obedient to my leaders who asked me to broadcast in this language, I began to work on the program.

Unexpected Findings

On August 1, I went to preach the Gospel in a remote village along with four other pastors. The village does not have any modern facilities—no electricity, hospitals or paved roads. No missionary had been there before.

I thought it was a meaningless effort to broadcast this language.

The population of the village is 289, and 90 percent of the people are Gurungs.

We reached the village in the evening. At dawn, we began our ministry work. We divided into two groups to reach the most people. In the afternoon, my two friends came and told me there were some Gurungs who wanted to meet someone who could speak their language because they can only communicate in their own tongue.

I was really perplexed to hear this and went to meet them. I met a woman who was about 56 years old. When she saw me, she gathered 12 people together in her courtyard to listen to me. I began to speak in Gurung and tell them about Jesus Christ, His life and teachings. I spoke to them for 25 minutes and stopped to hear their reactions.

Wonderful Fruit

The woman told us something so wonderful. She told us that she had heard a GFA Radio program in the Gurung language. Once she was suffering from a headache. Her son was listening to the Gospel message on the radio. At the end of the message, the speaker told the listeners he was going to pray to God for their healing. After the prayer she had no headache.

When the woman and the other Gurung people came to know that I was the person who had delivered God’s message, they were very happy. Immediately, two women received the Lord Jesus Christ as their Savior. There is now a small Christian fellowship in this village.

I thanked our gracious Lord Jesus Christ for His wonderful work, and I also asked His forgiveness for my lack of faith in Him. I realized why God wanted to use me to speak in my own mother tongue. I pray the Lord will use me as an instrument for sharing the Word of God through the GFA Radio program.

Please pray for my ministry to be effective and fruitful.

Please pray for the people of this village, that the Lord will bring them into His Kingdom.

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 Read some of the responses that come in from GFA Radio listeners.

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Gospel for Asia is an evangelical mission organization based in Carrollton, Texas, involved in sharing the love of Jesus across South Asia.

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** You may republish this story with proper attribution.

Death toll likely to rise from rural quake in Northern India

Mission Network News: "Death toll likely to rise from rural quake in Northern India"

India (MNN) ― Indian authorities have begun air-dropping relief supplies to survivors of a deadly earthquake in northeastern India and neighboring countries like Nepal, Tibet, Bangladesh and Bhutan. Read more...

How We Became Bible College Students

Gospel for Asia
For Immediate Release

Just like this young man, Suvan and Rizvan are following the Lord’s leading to become national missionaries.

SOUTH ASIA (ANS) -- Suvan and Rizvan were born a year and a half apart, in different states, yet after they surrendered their lives to Christ, they found each other studying at the same Bible college. They may have come from completely different backgrounds, but now they had the most important thing in common: They were giving their lives to proclaim the Good News of Christ to those who have never heard.

From Drop Out to Bible Student

Suvan grew up in a Christian home and had a desire to serve the Lord at a young age. But after completing the eighth grade, he had to quit school to help his father provide for the family. They had spent a lot of their money searching for healing for Suvan’s mother, who suffered from painful knee problems. After finally seeking prayer from a Christian, the pain subsided as God healed her.

Seeing this, Suvan’s faith in Christ increased, and he began spending a lot more time getting to know the Lord.

“One day while I was in the presence of God,” Suvan explains, “I realized I was a sinner and needed to be saved. In my prayer I asked pardon for all my sins, repented and committed my life to Christ, as my Savior.”

That was the beginning of Suvan’s personal relationship with Jesus. He sought the Lord often and meditated on His Word. Soon he sensed the Lord calling him into full-time ministry.

“I understood the need of doing God’s service,” he shared.

He dropped his plans and followed wholeheartedly after God’s will.

When he met a Gospel for Asia-supported pastor, Suvan expressed his desire to study God’s Word more in depth and follow through with God’s calling. The pastor led him to a nearby GFA-supported Bible college where Suvan is now being equipped to share God’s love more effectively. He desires to return to his hometown and tell his people about Christ.

Trading Medical School for Bible School

Rizvan had a slightly different upbringing than Suvan. His family followed the traditional religion of his home state. Demons kept them heavily bonded to their ways, until the Lord broke off the chains.

When Rizvan was 5 years old, his mother’s demon possession was beginning to take its toll on the family. They brought her to hospitals and witch doctors in search of a cure, but healing only came after believers in their village gathered to pray. After the Lord redeemed her from the clutches of Satan, Rizvan’s family radically changed.

“Because of this, I grew up in a Christian atmosphere and was fortunate enough to see my parent’s faith in Jesus Christ for 15 years,” Rizvan shared.

They started going to a local church, where Rizvan discovered Christ in a personal way.

“One day, while listening to God’s Word in one of the prayer meetings, I realized I was a sinner,” he recalls. “At that very moment, I repented of my sins and committed my life to Jesus Christ.”

And like Suvan, the Lord called Rizvan into full-time ministry. This happened while he was attending medical school. He dropped his plans and followed wholeheartedly after God’s will. Today, he studies alongside Suvan at the same GFA-supported Bible college, preparing to reach the lost.

Just like Rizvan and Suvan, each Bible college student journeyed along a different path until the Lord brought him or her to the place where their single desire was to live for Him and see the lost reached at any cost.

Pray for Suvan and Rizvan—along with the other students—that the Lord will fully equip them for the difficult path ahead.

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Learn more about Bible colleges and how you can help provide scholarships for students.
http://www.gfa.org/ministries/biblecolleges/

Catch a glimpse into a GFA-supported Bible college graduation.
http://www.gfa.org/photoshow060606/

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Gospel for Asia is an evangelical mission organization based in Carrollton, Texas, involved in sharing the love of Jesus across South Asia.

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** You may republish this story with proper attribution.

Authorities in South Asia release a missionary

South Asia (GFA/MNN) ― In some parts of South Asia, it's not unusual for believers to face false accusations.

That's been the case for Roshan Kuma, a missionary supported by Gospel for Asia,and his brother-in-law, M.T. Joshri. They were arrested March 10, 2010 and have been behind bars under charges of working with the Maoists, an anti-government terrorist group.

The good news is that Kuma is now free, released on August 10 after a trial earlier this month found him innocent of the charges brought against him.
  
While Kuma was in prison, he refused to give up his calling to share the Gospel. He told his fellow prisoners about the love of Jesus, and many chose to follow Christ. He also started a prayer meeting in the jail.

At the time of his arrest, Kuma pastored a church with about 100 members. Some in his village believe the accusations against the missionary pastor originated with anti-Christian extremists unhappy with the growth of the church.

"In spite of spending more than a year of suffering in prison, Pastor Roshan's vision for serving Jesus never dimmed. He still has an unquenchable thirst and passion for the ministry," said Dr. K.P. Yohannan, Gospel for Asia president and founder. "He continues to serve in the same area where there's a lot of Maoist activity, which causes many people to live in fear. Yet he has a successful and wonderful ministry in this small village."

The believers in Roshan's village continually prayed for their pastor while he was in prison. The amazing part was that while the pastor was behind bars, the church grew and now has about 125 people attending worship each week. The congregation is in the midst of constructing a new church building, which they plan to dedicate this fall.

"Please pray for Pastor Roshan, that God would continue to use him mightily for the Kingdom," K.P. asked. "Praise the Lord for using Pastor Roshan in prison and for the inmates who chose to follow Jesus. Pray that they will stand firm in their faith--even while they are in prison."

Also keep praying for Kuma's brother, M.T. Joshri. There has been no new word on his case.

Kids at Risk of Going Blind Rescued Through Education

Kids at the Bridge of Hope
 centers are taught about
 how to prevent blindness.

South Asia (MNN) ― Imagine waking up and finding that your whole world is dark. Not because the sun hasn't come up yet, but because you are suddenly blind. You will never watch the brilliant colors of a sunset. You will never see the faces of family members.

What if you knew there was a way it could have been prevented?

Bible college students withGospel for Asia (GFA) recently responded to the crisis of blindness in children of developing countries. Educational rallies were held at GFA's Bridge of Hopechildren centers across South Asia.

Blindness has claimed the eyesight of 12 million children worldwide, according to the World Health Organization. 19 million children are deemed visually impaired.

90 percent of these cases are in developing countries. Many cases of blindness could have been stopped by simple education on the needed vitamins and prevention techniques.

A key vitamin necessary for eyesight is vitamin A. Vitamin A is found in foods such as spinach, eggs, cantaloupes, milk and carrots (looks like the eye doctors were right.)

Unfortunately, the developing world is hit the hardest with blindness because kids in poverty often don't have access to these foods with vitamin A. Malnourishment increases the risk that a child will one day go blind.

Part of Gospel for Asia's crusade against blindness is to provide vitamin A drops to the children at Bridge of Hope centers. These drops are taken by mouth and substitute when the needed food with vitamin A is not available.

On top of giving these vitamin A drops to the kids at Bridge of Hope, Bible college students also went out into the village communities to administer vitamin A drops to the elderly. Conditions such as cataracts and myopia put the older generations of a community at high risk to blindness.

Free informative literature was also handed out to further teach people on the causes and prevention of blindness.

This outreach ministry of eyesight education is just one program brought to the children at Bridge of Hope and their community. Bridge of Hope centers exist to educate kids and share the love of Christ.

Children who are enrolled in a Bridge of Hope center learn Bible verses, hear Bible stories and are taught songs that share the Gospel message.

By bringing in a ministry that helps prevent blindness in kids, these Bible college students paved the way for kids at Bridge of Hope to grow seeing the world around them and hopefully come to see the saving grace of Jesus Christ.

See GFA's slide show here.

Landslide Damages Church

Gospel for Asia
For Immediate Release

A portion of this church building under construction was destroyed by a landslide.

SOUTH ASIA (ANS) -- A landslide damaged a church under construction in South Asia on July 9. The landslide, triggered by heavy monsoon rains, swept into the village and slammed into the church building, which is still under construction.

"A part of the mountain fell on the side wall of the church building and a room adjacent to the building and collapsed the structure," explained a Gospel for Asia correspondent in the area. "By God's grace, the contractor and the laborers are safe."

This church is located in the foothills of the Himalayans. When heavy monsoon rains loosen the soil on the mountains, landslides are often the result.

Gospel for Asia-supported missionary Kiran Dashi is pastor of this church. There are about 35 believers in this community, and they are all excited about their new church building. They ask for prayer for the speedy reconstruction of the wall and completion of the remaining construction on the building.

They also ask for prayer for God's protection. The area where this church is located is prone to a lot of political unrest. There are also many vocal anti-Christian groups that make it their work to shut down any type of Christian work. Government regulations against sharing the Gospel also make it more difficult to openly preach God's Word.

Pastor Kiran asks for prayer that God will strengthen the 35 believers in this village so they can trust Him continually. 

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• Church buildings are more than a place to worship.

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Gospel for Asia is an evangelical mission organization based in Carrollton, Texas, involved in sharing the love of Jesus across South Asia.

Healed Bodies, Hard Hearts

Gospel for Asia
For Immediate Release

This young girl, like Idhika, was once possessed by evil spirits, but she was delivered and now follows the Lord.

SOUTH ASIA (ANS) -- God has shown His power to numerous people in South Asia who are still refusing to follow Him, despite His miraculous power at work in their lives. Even after seeing God bring healing and deliverance to their family members, many have hardened hearts and continue to reject Jesus.

Blessed, but Not Yet Believing

Gajendra Verma, touched by the love of God, has still not chosen to give his life to the One who healed him.

This man's life was going well, until one day he began having severe pain in his eyes. Within a few days, he was totally blind. After visiting many hospitals and trying various treatments, he was still in the dark. Gajendra worships traditional gods and goddesses of his area and is strong in his religious practices. So he turned to these idols, offering many sacrifices in hopes of being healed, but nothing helped his condition.

One of Gajendra's friends led him to the home of a man known as "one who heals." This man is really a Gospel for Asia-supported missionary who is well known in his area for praying for the sick. After listening to Gajendra's situation, the missionary felt compassion and prayed for his healing. By the grace of God, Gajendra's eyes were healed and his pain left. He could finally see again! Gajendra was overjoyed and seemed interested in choosing to follow Christ.

Several days later, however, he started to stray. Instead of choosing to follow Jesus, the One who healed him, Gajendra turned back to his old religious traditions and customs.

Please pray Gajendra will come to know the love of Jesus and acknowledge Him as his Savior.

Child Delivered, but Family Clings to Old Religion

In a village where strongholds of demonic spirits thrive, most of the people worship the traditional gods and goddesses of their ancestors. Villagers are tortured by the evil spirits, yet are resistant to the Good News that local missionaries have shared with them.

While attending one of the village's religious festivals, a young girl, Idhika Rao, had a horrific experience: She returned from the festival possessed by an evil spirit that began to torment her day and night. When her parents noticed what was wrong, they called the local witchdoctor to drive out the demon, but his efforts failed. When their traditional methods didn't work, they asked a Gospel for Asia-supported missionary named Mehra to pray for Idhika. The witchdoctor didn't want him to touch the young girl, so Mehra and other believers simply surrounded her, praying and reading scripture. The evil spirit inside of Idhika responded with a harsh voice. Mehra then commanded the evil spirit to come out in the name of Jesus Christ as the other believers kept praying for a miracle. Finally, after hours of praying, Idhika was delivered.

God's powerful work in Idhika's life that day was a great testimony for all that were watching, including the witchdoctor. Mehra used it as an opportunity to share the word of God with everyone there, but unfortunately, they all hardened their hearts and refused to believe.

The next day, the local witchdoctor came again to perform more rituals in Idhika's home, and now she is feeling worse than she did before. Idhika, sadly, is not even able to talk anymore. Her family has also forbidden Mehra to return to their home.

Prayer would be appreciated for Idhika, that her family and the other local villagers will come to know the Lord. Also, pray healing for Mehra as he is currently not feeling well and is experiencing headaches. 

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• Read about Hasita, a young mother who was delivered from demonic attacks and now follows the Lord.
• Sursen was delivered from spiritual bondage when a Gospel for Asia-supported missionary prayed for him, and now his whole family has chosen to follow Christ! Read his story.

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Gospel for Asia is an evangelical mission organization based in Carrollton, Texas, involved in sharing the love of Jesus across South Asia.

Intense Tummyache Leads to Salvation

July 11, 2011

Hina, like this girl, experienced God's complete healing in answer to believers' prayers.

At only eight years old, Hina experienced searing pain from a stomach ache that had lasted several days. Her family already took her to many doctors and spent a large sum of money on medication, but the excruciating pain only intensified. This left them distressed and frustrated.

Gospel for Asia-supported pastor Mahim Singh Kolam was visiting houses to share the Good News with people and pray for the sick when he came to Hina's home.

After learning of their predicament, he told them about Jesus and the miracles He performed. He also shared about the Lord's great love for them.

He prayed for the family and invited them to come to Sunday worship services at his church. The next Sunday they accepted the invitation. After Pastor Mahim and all the believers there prayed for Hina, God completely freed her from the stomach pain! Witnessing this healing, Hina's whole family chose to accept Jesus as their Savior.

Pastor Mahim requests prayer for Hina and her parents to stand firm in their faith, no matter what opposition or challenges they face. Also pray for Pastor Mahim to receive strength from the Holy Spirit so he can continue to minister more effectively.

• Read how Pastor Mahim witnessed God deliver a girl from demonic oppression.
• You can support a national missionary like Pastor Mahim.

Orphaned Children in Need of a Heavenly Father

Gospel for Asia
For Immediate Release

Tragically, there are tens of thousands of orphans in South Asia. Each is desperately trying to find love and acceptance.

These two children were found on the streets of Nepal. Many children, like Sabal and his family, are orphans without a home.

SOUTH ASIA (ANS) -- Haamid, a father of six children, unfortunately struggles with an alcohol addiction. After fighting with his wife while intoxicated one day, he became physically violent and beat her to death.

Haamid's teenage son, Sabal, attempted to protect his mother from the attack but was no match for his father's strength. Instead, he could only watch as his mother fought for her life. Haamid grabbed a machete and violently went after Sabal as well, but thankfully, the boy escaped from his father's grasp.

After the villagers told the police what had happened, they arrested Hamid and he is now in jail. These six precious children are left without parents. Thankfully, a Gospel for Asia film team, along with a group of local believers, visited the family in order to counsel them and pray for them.

The believers visited many families in the area having problems and encountered numerous people that were receptive to their message about Jesus. Haamid's grieving children were especially eager to hear the Good News. By the grace of God, Sabal has received Jesus and is now boldly proclaiming his faith.

The children are now living with their grandmother. But because their family background is that of a traditional religion, there is no peace in their home. Sabal asked the believers visiting to pray that they will finally have peace and that his brothers and sisters will choose to follow Christ.

Sabal would appreciate prayer for his family to come to know Jesus and have a good future.

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• Read how Jadesh's family has grown from 7 to 27 as he travels from village to village looking for orphans who have no one to care for them.
• Learn about how many children in South Asia are separated from their parents; some are abducted by strangers and put into forced labor while others are trafficked in the sex trade.

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Gospel for Asia is an evangelical mission organization based in Carrollton, Texas, involved in sharing the love of Jesus across South Asia.