INTRODUCTION
For three years I worked alone and made a small beginning in an Indian town called Chilakaluripet, having a population of about 125,000 people. It is surrounded with many small farming villages who come in to the town for their purchasing or other business. Meanwhile I was praying earnestly and continuously for some Telugu pastor to join me. A man was needed who was fluent in both English and Telugu. It must be one who had a pure motive for coming, and a burden to get the gospel to these people. Above all else, the minister must have a call of God and a powerful Holy Spirit anointing.
"The Lord answered by sending just the appointed man. Rev. Pastor N.K. Rakshanawas miraculously sent to me, equipped for this ministry. That was January 1986.
MIRACLES—THE ATTRACTION
Almost all of the people in Chilakaluripet and the surrounding villages are Hindus. In the town there are many Muslims also. People from neither of these religions are allowed to go into a Christian church. Gradually word got around however that we would pray for the sick and that Jesus, the Christian God, would heal them. That fact has become generally known.
Pastor Rakshana or myself or another pastor would be there to anoint the sick with oil and pray in the name of Jesus. Immediately, or soon afterward the patient would be healed by the mighty power of God and restored to health.
Often the sicknesses are not caused by a medical condition, but rather by demonic powers. In such a case no doctor, treatment or medicine can have any effect on curing or relieving the condition. Taking the authority of the Word of God we would bind those evil spirits, and cast them out in the power and name of Jesus. “At the name of Jesus every knee must bow.” Then we would pray and the person would be healed immediately.
Often patients paralyzed by a stroke have been carried in, helpless. After the Pastor prays, usually giving the gospel at the same time, the patient can get up and walk out healed. Repeatedly this happens. Many come back to give testimony to this.
People with terminal cancer who have been pronounced untreatable have been healed. Recently a small boy with a large tumor on his right cheek and jaw had gone through chemotherapy treatment in the city of Chennai (Madras). Finally, the doctors told the parents that the child would die. The cancer was not cured.
The parents brought the little boy back home to Chilakaluripet. Daily they brought him to the church for prayer. Lastly, when they took him back to Chennai for re-evaluation, Doctors were astounded to find there was no trace of the cancer. The child was fully well.
Testimonies such as these could be repeated countless times. The last time I was in India, earlier this year, 2006, we saw a leper healed from a dreadful case of leprosy. He was a young man, helpless, brought to the church by friends in a rickshaw. He was full of oozing sores, unable to walk, hands and feet disfigured. Pastor Rakshana prayed for his healing. Improvement began immediately. After repeated prayer over a period of time, he was back to walking normally, no sores or ugly marks were left on his body, except for two middle fingers on his left hand a little bent. What Jesus did in His day upon earth He still can do today. He had come a Hindu, very depressed. Now he is rejoicing and glorifying God. Now he is a baptized believer in Christ Jesus and witnessing to everyone about what God has done for him. He brings many others to us for prayer for healing.
If only a body was healed but the soul lost, the effort would not be worth much. But when the body is touched, the mind and soul is opened up to hear the gospel of salvation through Jesus Christ. The healing or miracle alone will not save the soul. “Faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God.” (Romans 10:17)
The usual outcome is that by experiencing the miracle of healing or other miracles, creates faith in the heart. The person that received the miracle, or often the whole family, begins coming to the services and gives their hearts to the Lord. The message of Jesus Christ as Saviour is new to them, but as they come again and again the miracle of re-birth takes place. They have found reality! Pastor Rakshana preaches the full gospel of salvation in none other than Jesus Christ.
THE SPECTACULAR GROWTH
The knowledge of these healings and help received by going to the church and by prayer, whereas there was no church or very few believers in Jesus Christ to start with, now the church is over flowing with people. A great percentage of these have braved much persecution that came upon them by their leaving their Hindu or Muslim faith and family and being converted to Christ.
Conservatively, I can say that the congregation now exceeds 2500 people. It is not possible to take an exact head count because they sit crowded closely together on the stone floor of the church. There are no benches.
In 1987 we started on that plot in an empty field, building a small temporary shed to house the orphans. As a few souls began to turn to the Lord—usually as they experienced a healing in their bodies-- the early beginnings of church was formed. We began in a small shed, which during the week housed the few orphans. On Sunday the shed was rearranged into a meeting hall.
As the numbers increased we constructed a building sufficient to squeeze in about 500 people. In two years time that place was out crowded. We doubled that space by building on top of the flat roof of the Residential Building. Before long that building too,seating 1000, was insufficient.
In January of 2000 the Lord spoke to Pastor Rakshana in a night visitation: to: “Build a church for 2000 people in the year 2000!”
We had no money to start the work with. But in every case when it has come time to enlarge our facilities or to move forward in any way, Pastor Rakshana, without any hesitation, begins immediately. The very next morning he told me about this word the Lord had spoken to him. Again without question or delay, he called a couple of our staff and had a small hole dug. Together we laid a few bricks for a foundation stone, prayed over it and believed God would fulfill His word.
This act was a token that we believed the word of the Lord and trusted Him to make it a reality.
I am the Founder of India for Christ as well as the representative responsible to see that the funds come in (though personally I have no funds). This mammoth of a project was begun in Mid-February, and by June 30 the new building was opened—completed! Some debts for the materials still remained, but by one year later all these debts were paid in full.
Only God can do that! It is confirmation that it is God’s Work not ours!
Much progress has been made since that time. We have eighty six needy children in our full care to house, feed, clothe, and send to school. There are twelve staff members to care for the maintenance of the Children’s Home and compound. These must receive modest salaries.
Many other projects have also been undertaken. We have nine Branch Churches and pastors who are reaching many distant outposts. These receive basic salaries We also assist some Bible Women and Gospel workers who give their full time to the ministry in local regions.
As the Apostle Paul said in I Thessalonians 1:4, “our gospel came unto (them) not in word only, but also in power, and in the Holy Ghost.” Paul also said it was in demonstration of the Spirit and power.
© Evelyn Splane,
Missionary/Founder of INDIA FOR CHRIST, and more recently the Visionary founder of
GOSPEL OF CHRIST OUTREACH Website
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