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April 22, 2009
by John M. Lindner, D.Miss.
I am continually amazed at the toughness of Indian missionaries, and what God does through them, despite their hardship and relative lack of funding, equipment and technology.
Most Christians in India believe the Apostle Thomas came and preached there in the first century. They even point to his grave near Chennai (Madras). Consequently, to honor the apostle of their faith, many baby boys are named Thomas, especially in Kerala. Here are some stories from another of the numerous Thomases of India.
A slave to Jesus
Dr. Mohan C. Thomas pastors a church and outreach headquartered in Madurai, a city of a million population in Tamil Nadu State in southern India. Some say it is the oldest inhabited city in southern India.
 Pastor Thomas tells of meeting a man one day in front of his church. Photo shows Pastor M.C. Thomas and his wife.
“I was a Hindu,” he told Pastor Thomas, “but now I am a slave to Jesus.”
The man went on to say that a few days earlier he was severely sick and about to die. He had eaten and drunk nothing for days. He was calling on all his gods, but none of them helped him. He was very depressed, and his family members were counting his days.
A woman in our church who is a new believer and his neighbor saw his pitiable condition and was moved in her spirit to pray for him. She entered his house and prayed for him loudly and sincerely. She took a glass of water, prayed, and gave him a drink. He stood up, drank the water, and God healed him.
He used to be abusive when he walked in front of our church. But from that day onwards he has been coming to our church. His wife was deaf when she came to our church, but now she can hear. His son was a drunkard who roamed with his friends and never stayed home. They asked us to pray for their son. Today the man told me that his son has stopped drinking and they see changes in his life. Praise be to God.
Rescued from suicide
Another Hindu man, named Murugan after a Hindu god, lives in a village called Silaiman, where we have a village church. Mr. Murugan and his family were very staunch orthodox Hindus, and he led many religious activities.
 They had four children. Within a few months’ time, three of his children died, one after another. That left only the 14-year-old daughter, but they were happy that at least she had gained entrance into a good high school at Madurai.
Photo shows a recent baptism.
Suddenly two months ago she, also, got sick and died. The parents were heartbroken and cried for many days. One day Murugan, his wife, and his mother all decided to commit suicide together, as they had no more reason to live.
Before they took that final act, they noticed a tract lying on the table. It had been given to them recently by our branch pastor, Pastor Darmaraj. Murugan took the tract in his hand and read it thoroughly. Then he prayed to Jesus, “Jesus, you are the true God; send the man who gave this tract to us before the day ends.”
That same day God spoke to Pastor Darmaraj, “Go and see Mr. Murugan.” He immediately went to Murugan’s house and met him. When Mr. Murugan saw our pastor, he was touched and filled with joy, and realized that Jesus is the true God. He, his wife, and his mother committed their lives to Jesus and accepted Him as their Savior.
Now they are coming to our church and testified before the congregation. Our God lives and saves the people from suicide. Glory be to God.
Miraculous provision
In addition to a church-planting ministry, Pastor Mohan Thomas cares for at least 35 orphan children. They wear their clothes until they become very old, faded and worn. So people of his ministry were praying for God’s provision.
 Now on November 8 every year Hindus all over India celebrate a festival called Deepavali. Like on our Easter, the people all wear new clothes, prepare a variety of food, and they enjoy the day.
One year Pastor Thomas was called the day before the festival by the principal of a large English medium school. In his city there are hundreds of schools, but that school is the biggest and most expensive one, run by wealthy Hindu management. Map shows approximate location of Thomas's central church.
The principal told him they were going to celebrate Deepavali and asked him to be their chief guest. He was afraid to accept his invitation, but at the same time he dared not refuse. When he got there, thousands of students had gathered. They honored him by placing a special shawl around his neck, according to Indian culture.
Some students were sharing about Deepavali. They made a promise not to pollute the environment. They asked him to plant a tree in their campus, and then the leaders asked him to bless the children.
Pastor Thomas used this opportunity to share some verses from the Bible, and said, “Through the fear of the Lord you can get wisdom.” Then he prayed for all the children, who were very quietly listening to the Word of the Lord and the prayer.
At the conclusion of the meeting the school gave him new clothes for all the children and the staff of his orphanage worth many thousands rupees. “First they allowed me to preach and pray,” he said, “and then they gave us new clothes, very much needed for our children. It was a miracle from God, since they are strong Hindus.”
Again, all the glory, honor and praise be to God.
Persecuted
But not all Hindus appreciate his efforts. Extremists attacked a peaceful Christian conference Dr. Thomas was conducting in Bhothli village in Chhattisgarh State in January, 2008.
 Agitators beat Pastor Thomas and 20 believers, burned the convention stage and tent, damaged 114 chairs, and damaged Pastor Thomas’s car and four motorbikes. A YouTube video on Dr. Thomas’s website shows the goons destroying the stage, setting it on fire, beating Pastor Thomas, and overturning his car. Pastor Thomas estimates the damages amounted to Rs. 8,00,000 ($20,000). Photo shows burned conference site.
In typical Indian fashion, none of the hooligans perpetrating the violence were detained, but the local Hindu-oriented government did arrest Pastor Thomas and three others for conducting the meeting!
India votes
India is going through general elections now through May 15 to elect representatives to their House of Representatives or Lok Sabah. Reports filtering in say that 54% of the residents in strife-stricken Kandhamal District of Orissa State voted, and that at least 90% of those still in displaced persons camps also voted. Some thank the government's efforts to ensure safety for Christian minorities to vote.
 But all was not as non-threatening as superficial quiet signified. Dr. Sajan George of the Global Council of Indian Christians said Christians were closely monitored by Hindutva personnel and told to “mark the lotus,” the symbol of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party. A report from AsiaNews said a Roman Catholic priest found at least 40 Christians who did not vote out of fear of being beaten.
Observers expect there will be an overwhelming resurgence of Hindu power, since the Hindus fear reprisals from the Marxists. Please pray for the India elections, and especially for the Christians as they go to the polls. Map showing Kandhamal District courtesy of UCANEWS.
Kandhamal District was the scene of two weeks of violence against Christians during Christmas 2007 and three more months of violence beginning late August 2008 that left hundreds of homes and businesses of Christians destroyed and at least 60 people killed. Many Christians, dislocated by the violence, fear to go home lest they be attacked or forced to become Hindus. Many have fled to other districts and other states.
To read last year's stories of the Kandhamal/Orissa violence, see the List of 2008 Stories and look for Orissa or Kandhamal in the title. Or, go to the News Story Archive and sort stories by country for the year 2008.
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