Karen and I arrived into Hyderbad airport late Wednesday night - our flight was 90 minutes late and it was pushing midnight. We were blessed to have our good friends from Star Ministries waiting for us. Dr. Sam & Esther and Jeffery & Hepzibah greeted us with flowers, smiles and hugs. It was such a warm welcome.
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Esther, Karen, Dr. Don, Dr. Sam
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| Hepzibah and Jeffery Gujarlamudi |
The next day Dr. Sam had Karen and me participate in Star Ministries 15th Annual Convocation services. All week long Christians from Star Ministries five church plants met at the main church campus for morning and afternoon Bible teaching/preaching.
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| Don & Karen in traditional Indian dress. |
Karen spoke to the ladies and Esther translated. Esther has been a truly gracious hostess and we love her dearly. She cared especially well for Karen, dressing her in the traditional saree.
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| Dr. Don teaching and Dr. Sam interpreting into Telugu. |
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| The church is packed - children in the front and adults behind. |
I had the privilege of teaching a number of times Thursday through Saturday. Dr. Sam translated my messages into Telugu for the people. What a precious congregation of Christian believers located in the middle of the Muslim section of Hyderbad - located in a Hindu country. It is hard soil for the seed of God's Word but there is godly fruit and it is truly beautiful.
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| Dr. Sam questions a candidate for baptism while Dr. Don waits to help baptize. |
On Saturday Dr. Sam and I baptized 7 new believers in Jesus Christ. This was no small decision as some come from Hindu families who are against their conversion to Christ. None-the-less they took their faith and commitment to Jesus Christ seriously and with great joy. What a privilege for me not only to preach at this service but then to assist with the baptism.
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| Karen gave a baptismal certificate to each person baptized. |
Star Ministries is an amazing work of the Lord. I would encourage you to visit their web site at
www.staropenbiblechurches.org.
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| Dr. Sam, on his knees, leads the church in prayers before the Lord God. |
Tomorrow (Sunday, 19 Jan) we will finish our work with Star Ministry. Karen and I will visit one of the church plants with Dr. Sam and I will preach the Word. We have appreciated the past few days with Star Ministries. Our time in prayer with the church was extra special - to hear the people pour out their hearts and weep before the Lord Jesus was truly a blessing.
Late tomorrow Karen and I will travel to another part of Hyderbad where we will conduct our 2nd week of conferences with Pastor Moses and the Berea Baptist Church. We are anticipating between 50 to 80 church leaders at the Leadership Training Conference. Once we make our move, we may not have access to the internet. Therefore, my next post might not appear until next week when we return to Delhi from Hyderbad.
