January 28, 2007 – Assembly evangelists based in Delhi and neighboring areas such as NOIDA, Faridabad, Ghaziabad, and Sahibabad frequently conduct gospel outreach activities every Tuesday. On January 2, 2007 seven evangelists were involved in outreach ministry at Indirapuram in Ghaziabad District of Uttar Pradesh state. While they were preaching, these brethren suffered were persecuted by anti-gospel elements. Four of them were severely beaten. God intervened through a few brethren from nearby assemblies who were able to seek police assistance. The police came to the spot, rescued the evangelists and took them to custody for protection. The evangelists were released from custody later in the day. Praise God for the timely deliverance of his people from the hands of evil forces. The vehicle being used by the outreach team was heavily damaged, and will need expensive repairs. Please pray for these brethren, that their needs would be met, and that they remain bold in their efforts for the Lord.

January 23, 2007 – A report from an assembly missionary indicates that the Lord’s work continues in an around Patna, the capital of Bihar state. A Hindi speaking assembly was established in 2003 and now has around 40 people including children, most from non-Christian backgrounds. A free literacy center is being run in a slum area and the fifty children who attend classes are taught the Bible once a week. Seven children have been saved through this effort. Bible study groups have been formed in five villages around Patna. Regular Bible studies are being conducted in three leprosy colonies. More than 200 attend these sessions each week, and food is provided once a week. Free literacy centers are being run for the children of the leprous. Twenty people have come to the Lord through the leprosy ministry. Pray for God’s blessings and provision for this work.

January 22, 2007 – An assembly missionary family continues pioneer work among the Halbi tribal group in Chattisgarh state. As part of the work they have been involved in translating the scriptures into the Halbi language. Currently the New Testament is being revised in preparation for a final check and printing. The assembly premises are used to conduct a Child Development Center where more than 200 children, ages three to twelve, are provided physical, spiritual and educational care by thirteen staff. During special gospel meetings conducted in November 2006 twenty nine children committed their lives to the Lord Jesus Christ. An assembly was started in 1994 and now has thirteen families in regular fellowship. Adult literacy and tailoring classes are being conducted in five centers. Please pray for these pioneer missionaries and their work.

January 22, 2007 – Prayer and support are requested for planned outreach in the month of April 2007 in the North-Eastern Indian States of Tripura and Assam. God willing, a ten member team will travel by road from a Bible School in Jharkhand state to Agartala, the capital city of the State of Tripura with a large quantity of Bengali Scripture portions and literature. Currently there is only one assembly evangelist in the state of Tripura and the team will be working with him to reach the unreached places in the state. The team will also spend fifteen days in Chabua, Assam. Please pray for the long journey and for the outreach so that many perishing souls may be saved and new assembly testimonies may be established in these remote places.

November 29, 2006 - An assembly in Jharkhand state is planning an outreach aimed at the HO tribal group for 15 days beginning December 4. Programs such as open air preaching, door to door evangelism, video shows and gospel meetings will be held in the Ho village. It is estimated that only about 30% of the tribe have ever heard the Gospel of Jesus Christ. The Ho tribe of India, with a population over almost 1.7 million, is classified as Caucasian. Most live in the forest area of Chota Nagpur Plateau in the Jharkhand Region of India. Groups also inhabit northern Orissa as well as parts of West Bengal, Bangladesh, and Nepal, all areas clustered near the northeastern corner of India. The word “HO” means “man”. According to HO belief, all other groups of people are considered to be foreigners or outsiders, and not men. This may explain their independent and sometimes isolationist nature. A number of outsiders such the British and Muslims have ruled the HO tribe, but their fiercely independent nature has successfully kept them from the rule of the predominant Hindu. The HO consider themselves to be a separate tribe and not part of the Hindu caste system, even though thirty percent follow the Hindu system. The HO eats meat and drink rice beer.The tribe’s culture is intertwined with the natural world. They are most comfortable in the forest environment that supplies many necessities they need for living. Roots leaves and flowers of plants, grass, fruits nuts, barriers, mushrooms and silk moth cocoons are used for food trade or medicine, their major agriculture crop is rice, which they ferment to make beer. Mining for minerals found under the soil is the base for newly developing industries in nearby cities. Villages are led by headmen who settle disputes and control the rent toll. Houses are usually made of mud and leaves of the palms or the trees. Feast or festivals mark the end of one season or the beginning of another. The major feast, called “Magai” the “feast of contracts” is held after the annual harvest. The festival lasts for about two months and includes singing, dancing and drinking. Sixty-nine percent of the HO are animists (believe that non-human objects have spirits) who worship clan gods such as the snake and the monkey and spirits which are approached through witchcraft or trances. They believe the world is full of Bongas (spirits) that exist in object of nature. Meat and beer are offered as a sacrifice to the Bongas because they can cause disease and bad luck to those who do not appease them. Once a man worships a Bonga it becomes his teacher and the man becomes a shaman (medicine man or priest). The village “protector spirit” is asked by a priest to watch over the HO activities and to protect them from evil spirits. The Ho believes a man’s shadow is his individuality, his character, which grows and develops throughout his life. The shadow never dies, but when a man dies, his shadow returns to his house where it is joined by other “house dead” who dwell with his family. The “house dead” either help or trouble the family depending on the amount of respect given to them. Although efforts are being made to evangelize the Ho, their response has been very low. Only five percent are Christians, so there is a strong need for further prayer and evangelism. Please pray for this outreach effort. (Courtesy: Arabian Voice)

November 1, 2006 - The National Missionary Challenge Conference (NMCC) for assembly believers was held in New Delhi from October 21 – 25, 2006. Around 1,200 delegates attended the conference. On Saturday, October 21, the conference started with the choir singing praises to God followed by worship time. The keynote speaker gave an earnest, emotionally charged appeal for commitment to the work of the Lord. In the night meeting, more than 35 responded as a missionary worker from Singapore gave a challenge. Day 2 saw a wonderful, solemn worship meeting with some local assemblies joining the conference worship. Field surveys from various states, a report of the work by Indian missionaries in Uzbekistan, and sessions on the impact of Bible translation on Indian culture and Tentmaking were conducted. The evening message from the book of Amos was unusually powerful and about 24 responded and came forward saying YES to the Lord's call. Day 3 began with an excellent study on Jonah followed by presentations on on-going Bible translation work and a testimony by a pioneer evangelist from North India. There were field surveys from Karnataka, Punjab, Haryana and West Bengal. The evening message was challenging and powerful. All were exhorted to pray and strive in prayer for world evangelism. Day 4 was a day of encouragement. Participants were blessed with an excellent Bible study. Testimonies by veteran evangelists encouraged and moved the people. Surveys on Andhra, Bhutan, Bengal, Orissa, etc. were presented. The powerful mission challenge elicited a strong response and 18 came forward. Everyone was excited when evangelists from each state were called to the front. There were over 400 in all. The conference came to a close by 1.00 pm on Wednesday, October 25 in an atmosphere of excitement and blessing. Excellent ministry was followed by a challenging talk and several committed their lives to the work of the Lord. At the close of the meeting the crowd of more than 1,200 was singing aloud clapping and praising God loudly. Pray that the impact of this conference on missionary work in India may extend for many years to come.

October 21, 2006 - A Kid's Camp was held in Bihar targeting children in Bihar and Jharkhand states from October 5 -8,2006. This was the first such camp organized by assemblies in this part of the country. There were 320 participants from the states of Bengal and Jharkhand, a sizable number of them were of non-Christian background. During the Camp, around 45 children committed their lives to the Lord and many re-committed their lives for the Lord's work. The children enjoyed the classes and the electrifying singing sessions. Many did not seem to want to leave the camp even after being away from homes for four days. Please pray for follow-up work for these children through the assemblies in the area. (Courtesy: Missionary Voice)

October 20, 2006 - In 1995 when the assembly work began to prosper in the North Indian state of Bihar several believrs felt the need to start a short term Bible school. God has blessed this effort and the eleventh batch of trainees will complete their training by November 30, 2006. All believers are requested to pray for this ministry. All through these years the work has depended upon God's grace and provision and He has proved His faithfulness in every circumstance. More than 150 local believers have been trained through this Bible School and many assemblies in Bihar and Jarkhand states have benefited. More than 40 students are now serving the Lord in various locations in Bihar and Jarkhand. The ultimate goal is to train and send out enough workers so that an assembly testimony is planted in every district in Bihar and Jarkhand. Currently assemblies exist in 30 of 60 districts.

September 26, 2006 - God willing a youth camp will be conducted by the Brethren assemblies in the north Indian state of Rajasthan. The camp will be held at Jodhpur from September 29 through October 2, 2006. Around 300 youth from Rajasthan and neighboring locations such as Delhi, NOIDA, Gurgaon, and Faridabad are expected to attend. Please uphold this camp in prayer that there may be immense spiritual blessings and challenge for all the youth and children attending.

September 25, 2006 - Members of a Christian family in central India have refused to back down from their faith despite some big consequences. The man, known only as Immanuel, trusted in Christ for salvation when a pastor visited their home and shared the gospel with him, his wife and four children. After hearing of their conversion, villagers began verbal harassment and stirring up trouble. The opposition grew when Immanuel's daughter, Amija, enrolled in a Bible college. The village chief threatened, "Take her out of the Bible college and bring her home, or forget about her forever." Immanuel bravely answered that he would forsake neither his daughter nor his Jesus. The enraged chief excommunicated the family from the village and imposed a fine of 5,000 rupees (US$109) for anyone caught speaking to the family. The family expressed a willingness to face any consequence for the sake of Jesus and even began traveling to other villages to spread the gospel rather than bowing to their neighbors' urging to deny the name of Christ. (Assist News Service)

September 10, 2006 - A major child evangelism effort has been planned for the North Indian states of Bengal and Jharkhand from October 5 – 8, 2006. The Kids Camp is expected to draw around 400 children from almost 42 assemblies in Bengal and Jharkhand states. The theme for the Kid’s Camp is “Daniel, the Beloved”, based on the story of Daniel. Believers from different parts of India will function as leaders for this effort. Please pray for the blessings of the camp, the participating children both Christian and non-Christian, journey mercies for the leaders and children, and strengthening of the organizers in carrying out the various responsibilities.

September 4, 2006 - An assembly Bible training institute in North India in July 2006 launched a two year Bible training Course. This course is aimed at local Christians who have received a call for missionary work. The initial batch consists of fifteen students who have been selected on the basis of their faith, knowledge of the Scripture and earnest desire to serve the LORD among their own people. All students enrolled for the course come from the Jharkhand/Bihar/Bengal region of North India. Training will be conducted in the institute’s campus. Please remember this effort in your prayers. Specifically, pray for the students, the faculty, and the brethren who shoulder the responsibility of the training institute. Students in this program are from poor families who cannot afford to meet any expenses of the course. The costs of the course, boarding and lodging are borne by the Institute which is a faith ministry. Training local brethren in the Word is vital for effective evangelism in these areas. The institute has trained a number of such local missionaries during the past twenty years and many of them are serving the LORD among their own people in various places in North India. Those desiring to support this important effort may contact GMI for more information.

September 5, 2006 - The German Bible Society in Stuttgart, Germany, has published a report noting the rising demand for Bibles in China and India, the world's two most populous countries. The official Bible printing house in China has turned out more than 46 million copies of the Bible and New Testament since 1987. However, official figures from China indicate distributions reaching 2.5 million copies per year, not including Bibles smuggled into China. A newer and bigger printing press is being installed in Nanjing to boost Bible annual production to 10 million. China, a country with 1.3 billion inhabitants, is home to an estimated 80 million Christians. Three-quarters of these worship in unregistered church communities. Out of India's 1.1 billion people, only 2.4 percent are Christians. Large numbers of believers are indigenous Adivasi people and Dalits (untouchables) who are often too poor to afford a Bible or even a gospel tract. The Indian Bible Society is striving to provide more audio Bibles for these Christians. (Assist News Service)

July 17, 2006 - Gospel Missions of India (GMI) today launched a key enhancement to its website that provides users with key information about each state in India. This new feature can be accessed via the About India link on the GMI website home page at www.gospelmi.org. Those interested in learning more about India can do so by accessing this feature. This new feature includes a detailed general article about India which provides background information about India's history, peoples, society, and languages. The article also talks about the history of Christianity and New Testament pattern assemblies in India and discusses current evangelistic trends. A key element of the new feature is a map of India that shows each state. Users can click on any state to access information about that state. Currently only general information about each state is provided. GMI will be enhancing the content over the coming months to include more specific information regarding missionary activities within each state.

Emmaus Correspondence School (ECS) Ministries based in Dubuque, Iowa, has launched a major translation effort called the 12/24 India Project. The 12/24 India Project has as its goal the translation, printing, and distribution of 12 different Bible courses into the 24 major Indian languages, a total of 288 courses. This project has an ambitious vision of reaching spiritually needy people in their own language. The translation of the courses is being done by individuals in India. ECS Ministries is looking for believers who have a burden to reach Indians with the gospel to sponsor the printing of the translated courses. Just $300 is needed to print 1,000 copies of one course in one of the 24 Indian languages. By sponsoring the printing of a course, you will have a direct impact in helping Indians on the other side of the world read, study, and grow from God’s Word. For more details or to request a free informational DVD about the 12/24 India Project, visit the ECS Ministries website at www.ecsministries.org