Mission India’s Regan Miller says, “Several of our students had their homes flooded or damaged, and they had to go seek relief. Pray that they will be able to find shelter, food, and any other essentials that they may need.”

Cyclone Michaung swept through two states last week, affecting more than four million people. Landslides and flooding destroyed communities. Many homes remain under stagnant water today.

(Photo courtesy of Mission India)

“For those of us who live in the United States, maybe having our basement flooded means something a lot different than if you live in a small village and your home is completely damaged,” Miller says.

“Pray for families that lost loved ones to the flooding. Pray for God’s comfort and peace and that they can find hope in Him.”

For millions of India’s poorest families, poverty is rooted in a lack of education. Mission India offers basic instruction in reading, writing, and math, as well as life skills training through its Adult Literacy Classes.

Each lesson demonstrates the hope of Christ, but it’s times like these when the Gospel becomes real. Pray that people become open to the message of salvation in Cyclone Michaung’s aftermath.

“When tragedy takes place, it can open doors for the Gospel,” Miller says.

“We saw this in the pandemic; people were turning to their gods, and nothing was happening. They were really looking for an alternative source of hope. It opened the door for us to share the Gospel with them, and they turned to Jesus.”

Header and story images courtesy of Mission India.

This quote by one of Mission India’s Adult Literacy Class students poignantly describes life when you can’t read, write, or even spell your own name.

(Photo courtesy of Mission India)

Jan with Mission India says through Adult Literacy Classes, this student “saw the transformation [and] she was able to embrace and be fully part of society. But not only that, of course – her eyes were opened spiritually to who Jesus Christ is.”

Approximately 300 million people in India are illiterate, and the majority are women.

Jan says, “You’re vulnerable to being cheated in the marketplace. You could be cheated out of your wages. And then you are at increased risk as well to bonded labor or a scheme of human trafficking. And you’re just unable to participate in society.”

Through biblically-based Adult Literacy Classes, Mission India is empowering Indian women to be “Difference Makers” – in their homes, their workspaces, and ministry!

Difference Maker: A Women’s Night Out

As Mission India seeks to encourage women in India and worldwide to be “Difference Makers,” they are hosting an in-person event called Difference Maker: A Women’s Night Out in Grand Rapids, Michigan.

(Image courtesy of Mission India)

Jan says the Difference Maker event is “kind of like a women-to-women thing. Women lifting up women!”

This event will be hosted at Calvary Church on Thursday, October 7th at 6:30 pm. There will be praise and worship, dessert, and a speaker from Proverbs 31 Ministries, Amy Carroll.

“She is a dynamic speaker with a wonderful humor and a wonderful, sensitive heart,” Jan says. “She’ll be sharing specifically about how God has given each of us a place of influence where our voice is crucial. And she’s going to be talking about ‘How do godly women speak up in godly ways?’ and challenging each one of us.”

Attendees will also learn about a special opportunity to support fellow women in India through Mission India’s Adult Literacy Classes. And go on a virtual reality tour of India!

It costs just $8 to attend Difference Maker. You can register online for your ticket here. And bring along another woman in your life – whether it’s your mother, a friend, neighbor, or even your small group!

How to Pray

(Photo courtesy of Mission India)

Can’t attend the event? You can still pray!

Please pray for the Holy Spirit to move among Indian women in Mission India’s Adult Literacy Classes. Ask the Lord to bless their families and work, encourage the class teachers, and to lead many Indian women into relationship with Jesus.

And pray for the women at the Difference Maker event to be inspired to speak up in godly ways and have a Christ-like impact in their circles of influence.

Jan says through the event, “My hope is that women are inspired to grow tender hearts, to grow strong voices that will make a difference in changing lives through literacy, and ultimately, really through the love of Jesus Christ!”

Header photo courtesy of Mission India.

For Christian males, the level of unemployment was worst in urban areas, dropping to 8.9 percent. Among other urban religious minorities, Muslims have a 7.5 percent unemployment rate and Sikhs 7.2 percent. Jobless Christians in rural areas also topped the list — 6.9 percent for men and 8.8 percent for women.

It can be a struggle for minority believers in India to find jobs, often because their neighbors refuse to employ them or because they aren’t given the same opportunities to gain marketable skills.

Unemployment is another way Indian Christians are targeted and pushed out of the country.

(Photo courtesy of Mission India)

Bartholomew with Mission India says, “Since 2014, persecution towards Christians in India has increased by 400 percent. Persecution can look physical, it can look verbal, it can look many different ways. Our partners have experienced the full breadth of those different types of persecution.”

While we’ve seen this growing trend of Christian persecution in India over the past several years, Bartholomew says it doesn’t make it any easier to process. And there are some believers around the world who still don’t know about the struggles our Indian brothers and sisters face.

“I believe awareness is increasing thanks to different resources that have been created to kind of showcase what’s taking place and what the reality is. But at times, I think we’re all surprised by just the ways and the levels of which Christians in India are persecuted.”

(Photo courtesy of Mission India)

However, Mission India is also encouraged by the stories they hear from national partners and how they respond to persecution. “They use it as a way of knowing that God is moving, and because God is moving, things are changing. That’s why persecution is increasing. So our partners celebrate the fact that God is moving and they’re seeing Him just move in powerful ways and lives are being transformed.”

To support national believers and give them marketable skills, Mission India hosts Adult Literacy Classes and Church Planter Trainings. The classes and trainings are led by local Christians employed by Mission India.

“All the money that we raise, it enables and trains Christians who live in India to go do the work,” Bartholomew explains. “A byproduct of that is we’re assisting them. But then they’re also being enabled to take the skills that they’ve learned to go better themselves, to go into the workforce and find different jobs.”

An Adult Literacy Class with Mission India. (Photo courtesy of Mission India via Facebook)

In Adult Literacy Classes, students achieve a 5th-grade level in reading, writing, and math. Empowered with literacy and math skills, these men and women are able to apply for better jobs, assure they aren’t cheated in their wages, and save money. They also learn about personal health and hygiene.

But the Adult Literacy Classes aren’t reserved for Christians. Non-Christians are welcome to join the classes as well. The teachers share the Gospel along with lessons, and many students have started a relationship with Jesus!

For a one-time gift of $40, you can sponsor an Adult Literacy Class student for a full year! Or you can give $200 a month and support one year’s worth of training for a Church Planter.

“By investing in Mission India, you’re helping to enable ministry to take place,” Bartholomew says. “As ministry takes place, more lives can be transformed. Our hope, obviously, is to see India transformed by the love of Christ.”

You can support Adult Literacy Classes here and Church Planter Trainings here!

Bartholomew also asks the Church to be “praying for our brothers and sisters in Christ in India, that they would be confident in Him. And pray for the people that persecute them, that their hearts would be opened to love and grace of Jesus Christ.”

Header photo courtesy of Mission India.

*Name changed for security purposes.

However, observes Adah* of Mission India, illiteracy makes daily life a struggle for nearly 300 million people in India.

“It’s almost the entire population of the United States! Can you imagine that? Everyone in the United States not being able to read or write – that’s what it looks like in India.”

Illiteracy in India

According to the latest data from UNESCO, approximately 35 percent of the world’s 750 million illiterate people live in India.

On a day-to-day level, that means 265,543,922 people can’t read official letters or notifications. They are vulnerable to exploitation because they can’t read their paycheck to see if the boss is cheating them. Illiterate parents can’t help their children with homework.

(Photo Courtesy Mission India)

“It’s one thing to see a need, and it’s another to do something about it,” notes Adah.

“My hope is that people all over, when they hear about the incredible need for people to know Christ in India, paired with the incredible need for literacy, [they will be] motivated to…give to change people’s lives.”

It only costs $40 to change a life through Mission India’s Adult Literacy Classes. Learn more here.

Over the span of one year, Adah explains, people advance from “zero” to a fifth-grade level of reading, writing, and basic math. They also learn core life skills like how to save money and increase income, along with good nutrition and hygiene practices.

“It’s really exciting because all of this is done through Bible-based material. So, every single day when they’re learning new vocabulary, a part of that is the Gospel and hearing about the love of Jesus Christ.”

How to make a difference

(Graphic courtesy Mission India)

If you’ll be in Michigan on March 7, make sure to add this to your calendar: Mission India is teaming up with Proverbs 31 Ministries to host “Difference Maker: A Women’s Night Out.”

Learn more about the event here. It’s the brainchild of Christian author and speaker Lynn Cowell, who traveled to India a few years ago with Mission India.

“She was just taken [aback] by the power of God and the transformation that is happening in India right now, specifically in women’s lives through our Adult Literacy Classes,” says Adah.

“Out of that was birthed the idea to share with women here how they can be ‘difference makers’ in their own lives and in their own families, but also ‘difference makers’…for the women of India.”

Header image and story photos are courtesy of Mission India.

*Name changed for security.

Giving Tuesday serves to bookend the Thanksgiving season. After we’ve taken time to thank the Lord for the ways He has blessed us, we can then turn around and bless others as well.

Mission India is of the ministries you can give to and support this Giving Tuesday! Through Mission India, you can sponsor any of their three Gospel ministries in India – Children’s Bible Clubs, Adult Literacy Classes, or Church Planter Trainings.

(Photo courtesy of Mission India)

Mission India’s Bartholomew says they recently launched a new program called The Momentum.

“It’s a monthly giving program and the idea is that each month, you would get uniquely tailored content that would be sent to your inbox each month. If you chose to sponsor your own Children’s Bible Club or Adult Literacy Class or Church Planter Training, you would get a story each month from one of those programs.

“Then, every six months, we would give you kind of like a report card of how many people you have reached because of your monthly giving. So it’s something that we are really excited about because it gives you this tangible feeling of, not only are you giving this money to this organization like Mission India, but now we’re reporting back to you saying, ‘Because of you’re giving, these three or four or ten or one hundred kids each year are being reached by the power of the Gospel.’”

Even though India has seen a recent uptick in Christian persecution, Mission India is determined to stand with our Christian brothers and sisters in India and empower them to spread the Gospel. And they need your help!

“We’ve really seen just some fantastic stories coming back from our year-long Children’s Bible Clubs. Kids [are] for the first time getting to hear the Gospel and then they’re taking that Gospel message and they’re bringing it home to their families and they’re reaching their parents and their parents are coming to know Jesus,” encourages Bartholomew .

(Photo courtesy of Mission India)

“The same with Adult Literacy Classes. We see time after time these adults who begin to understand what it means to read and how to read, how to do math, and have a fifth-grade education — and all while they’re learning how to do that, [they are] engaging the Bible.”

If you give just $24 a month to Mission India’s Children’s Bible Club, you provide for 12 kids to be in the year-long Bible club. Giving $40 a month to the Adult Literacy Classes covers the cost of the class for 12 adults over the course of a year.

“With Church Planter Training, it’s the same idea,” Bartholomew explains. “But instead of reaching multiple people…a year, you are reaching one church planter a year at $200 a month and that church planter is reaching 600 families a year.”

Click here to donate to Mission India and join The Momentum!

Even if you are not able to give right now, something everybody can do is pray. Please ask God to bless Mission India’s ministry and the indigenous Christian workers who carry out these programs. Pray for the Holy Spirit to draw the nation of India to God and that those who oppose the Gospel would have their hearts opened to biblical truth.

Header photo courtesy of Mission India.

*Name changed for security purposes.

Sumani participates in a Children’s Bible Club through Grand Rapids, Michigan-based Mission India, and the ministry is asking believers to pray for her.

Unfortunately, Sumani’s situation isn’t uncommon for young girls in more rural or impoverished areas in India. Bartholomew* with Mission India says, “There’s an estimated 50,000 [devadasis] in South India alone.”

(Photo courtesy of Mission India)

While the practice is outlawed in the country, becoming a devadasi is often passed down through generations and the cycle is hard to break.

“These girls often come from the lower castes and their parents have given them to the temples as offerings in order to appease the gods that their family follows. It’s just a really tragic lifestyle that these little girls are put into and grow up in.”

Although dedicating daughters as devadasis may be deeply embedded in a particular family’s history and lifestyle, Mission India has also seen God break those patterns of sexual enslavement through their Gospel ministry.

(Photo courtesy of Mission India)

Bartholomew shares the story of one woman, Sarita, who grew up as a devadasi.

“Through an Adult Literacy Class, [Sarita] came to know Jesus Christ, and through Jesus’ love and grace, she left that life and she left being a devadasi, which is a big deal. Because of her doing that, Sarita’s two little girls will not be entered into being devadasis. So Sarita broke that tie, that history as a devadasi in her family. Now her two young children are going to school and growing up in a Christ-loving home.”

Mission India’s Children’s Bible Clubs are another way to intervene in the lives of at-risk kids and families, and share God’s love. The Children’s Bible Clubs offer a safe environment where kids can get tutoring help, and participate in biblical lessons and worship.

A Children’s Bible Club with Mission India waves hello! (Photo courtesy of Mission India)

“Our Children’s Bible Clubs do a great job of letting children be children,” says Bartholomew. “These Children’s Bible Clubs offer these kids an alternative to not experience the life of a devadasi, but to experience the forgiveness and the grace and freedom that Christ brings.”

Please pray for Sumani to be protected from the devadasi lifestyle, and to be able to stay in the Children’s Bible Club where she can continue to learn about her Heavenly Father.

If you’d like to support Sumani and other kids like her, Mission India always has a waiting list of kids who would like to join their Children’s Bible Clubs. A gift of $30 will allow 30 more kids to join a Bible club, interact with their peers in a loving, Christian environment, and learn more about the true God of the Bible. Click here to give!

*Name changed for security purposes.

Grand Rapids, Michigan-based Mission India carries out ministry in the country, and Bartholomew* with Mission India says rising summer temperatures exacerbate the situation. “It is bad. It can get upwards of 100-plus degrees each day.”

(Photo courtesy of Mission India)

In India, summer or pre-monsoon season lasts from April to June. So a drought in the heart of the summertime makes farmers and villagers that much more anxious for, hopefully, a refreshing monsoon season starting in July.

While everyone may be affected by the drought conditions at some level, some feel it more harshly than others. “The people who are impacted the most are those who are already downtrodden…in the economic side of things. Those in the top and the middle [classes], though, they do start to experience it over time as the drought and, in some cases, monsoons kind of wear on. They’ll start to experience it because food production and things like that get impacted.”

Thankfully, Mission India’s programs and outreaches are able to roll with the punches, because they work with local ministry leaders on the ground who aren’t strangers to India’s extreme conditions.

“We train people who live in these communities and understand these communities, and that also means they also understand the weather. As such, our partners, they adjust. They adjust when they run the different programs we have, they adjust how frequently they’re going to meet, they really work well within the communities [and] within the context they live.”

Additionally, Mission India’s programs such as their Adult Literacy Classes actually improve livelihoods — something that is critical during a drought season.

Adult Literacy Classes meet immediate needs, bring joy in Jesus and provide hope for a brighter future! (Caption, photo courtesy of Mission India via Facebook)

Bartholomew explains, “They do a lot in Adult Literacy on microeconomics and education. So with those two things, coupled with the Gospel that we share,…and you have the context of where you live and you experience a drought, in some cases, these individuals can circumvent that drought and produce products that fill a need within the market.

“So it’s just a great thing that God has created with these Adult Literacy Classes, that these people, these adults who are attending these classes, they can experience life to a larger extent because they’re better-off economically. We’re just proud to see God use these programs to impact not only the spiritual side of these individuals, but also the social and economic side of things.”

Men and women attending Mission India’s Adult Literacy Classes are given personally invaluable tools. And there are two things you can do to encourage them as they seek to grow their quality of life through education in a Gospel context.

First, you can give! Click here to donate to Mission India as they provide these Adult Literacy Classes.

“When you make a gift of $30, even if you just did that once, a gift of $30 will sponsor an Adult Literacy student in an Adult Literacy Class for a full year. So, kind of to put that in context, $30 is not that much money to give an adult a chance to better themselves economically, emotionally, and spiritually. It’s a very holistic approach.”

An Adult Literacy Class with Mission India. (Photo courtesy of Mission India via Facebook)

And second, please take the time today to pray for this outreach. Bartholomew asks specifically, “Be praying for our partners who are in the midst of all this. They are making changes to the programs, assisting families that may need some extra help, so just be praying that they would have the energy and the courage to continue to work despite the conditions in which they work. And also, just be praying for the nation of India, and the drought that they’re in. Pray that those that are struggling in this drought, that they would find water, and they would find food, and the Church would come alongside them and be that support group.”

Pray also that India’s approaching monsoon season in July would see the needed rains to refresh agricultural livelihoods.

*Name changed for security purposes.

(Photo courtesy Mission India)

India (Mission India) — Illiteracy trapped Tolsing in poverty.

Without an education, he wasn’t qualified for any jobs with good pay. He’s not alone. 86% of Indians earn less than $2.50 a day. The 35-year-old did odd jobs for small wages. He struggled to provide for his wife and three children, but sometimes they had nothing to eat.

Tolsing wanted to get better employment. He tried to start business ventures, but none of them worked. Not being able to count money, read, or write traps generations of families into a cycle of poverty.

Then, Tolsing heard about Grand Rapids, Michigan-based Mission India’s Adult Literacy Classes. He enrolled and never missed a class. During the year-long classes, graduates like Tolsing achieve a 5th-grade level of reading and writing, and the Bible-based lessons introduce them to Christ. As he completed his studies, Tolsing also learned how to make candles, liquid cleaner, and other items.

Soon, he started a business selling liquid cleaner and candles, and his income improved dramatically. A local man noticed Tolsing’s business savvy and helped him get a steady labor job with the city.

Tolsing’s family always has enough to eat now. And through the Bible-based lessons at his classes, Tolsing learned about Jesus. He and his wife both received Christ and are raising their kids to know the Lord.

It’s amazing to see the holistic transformation these classes bring; students learn so much more than just reading and writing! $30 enrolls a student in Mission India’s 52-week Adult Literacy Class.

(Photo courtesy Wikipedia)

India (MNN) — India just celebrated its 69^th Independence Day, celebrating freedom from British rule and the bond of togetherness and brotherhood.

It reminds people of the unity and diversity of their nation. India is the only nation that has more than 1.2 billion people of different religions, languages, and cultures living together and marking milestones with zeal. Lindsay Ackerman, a spokesperson for Grand Rapids, Michigan-based Mission India, says the Constitution is the rallying point. Indians are saying, “‘We have the ability to direct our future. All of our citizens are able to vote and to take part in leading the country.’ It’s a huge point of pride for India.”

Even while the debris from the parades is being swept up, the reality is that for some people, the freedom promised is a point of confusion. Ackerman explains, “For those who are in the minority–who are not Hindu in India–on a practical level, religious freedom is not always as ‘free’ as we might expect.”

On one hand, there have been confirmed reports of crackdowns on Christians. On the other, ministries are also saying that there is religious freedom guaranteed by the government. Which is it? It’s both. “One of the biggest challenges to religious freedom is knowledge about what your rights are as a citizen. Most people live in rural villages. Many of them are isolated, perhaps in the mountains or out in the middle of nowhere.”

Photo Courtesy Mission India

Ackerman adds, “People are isolated from other communities, or isolated from cities. They may not be as aware of all of the things going on in their nation. They’re not as aware of the laws.”

Not being able to read presents another facet of challenge to the poorest of the poor in India. ”They have no way to gain knowledge about their rights as citizens, and that includes their rights to practice the religion that they choose, openly and freely.”

Mission India offers Adult Literacy Classes to help. During the yearlong classes, graduates achieve a 5th grade level of reading and writing, and the Bible-based lessons introduce them to Christ. To that end, says Ackerman, “We’re seeing such a multiplying effect of transformation of people being empowered and being able to do so much more than they ever even dreamed. We see a day that India will be transformed for Christ.” But community transformation can also be read as a shift in power.

For those in the upper castes, how do they react to literacy efforts for the poor and untouchables? Sometimes, Mission India teams are welcomed. At other times, there’s push-back. Occasionally, that takes the form of attacks, beatings, and riots. More often, says Ackerman, it’s being ostracized. ”Those are the stories of people whose families reject them and turn them out when they start to follow Christ. Those are stories of people who lose their jobs. They’re the stories of people who are not allowed to take water from the village well.”

(Photo courtesy Mission India)

Still, with the promise of freedom, through literacy or spiritual freedom in Christ, it means that people flock to hear the message for themselves. Hope comes through the realization of freedom. What that means, Ackerman says, is that a groundswell of prayer for the teachers comes into focus. “They’re the people on the ground who are from the community, volunteering their time and investing into these students. They’re also the ones that are taking a lot of risk. They’re the ones that are introducing literacy into communities that have never had that opportunity before.   They may be perceived as a possible threat.”

(Photo Courtesy Mission India)

India (MNI) — Nearly half of all women in India cannot read or write.

But Grand Rapids, Michigan- based Mission India is providing free Adult Literacy Classes.

Like many women, Gujari hasn’t known anything but poverty. She was born to poor parents who had a hard time just making enough money to feed their children. Gujari’s parents saw her as a burden.

Like her siblings, Gujari never stepped foot in a school as a child.

Her parents arranged her marriage to a poor laborer. Gujari dreamed of being freed from poverty someday, but her hopes faded as she gave birth to three children. (The oldest two are 6 and 3 years old, and the youngest is still a baby.)

Her husband worked extra hours doing whatever odd jobs he could find to support their family. They managed to survive, but sometimes the whole family had to go hungry. This deeply concerned Gujari.

One day, she heard about free literacy classes starting in her village. When she heard that these classes would help her gain skills to start her own business, she enrolled.

Gujari grew in reading, writing, and basic math skills. Her teachers also shared the Word of God with her.

During a special training at her classes, Gujari learned how to make various products, such as cleaning chemicals.

She is eagerly putting her new skills to the test by planning out her own business selling products at the market for a small profit.

For $30 you can give the gift of literacy to someone in India. Click here.

Pray for Gujari and other Indian women who take the classes to learn of God’s grace and gain new skills to help them survive.