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India: Nation of Destiny
Powerful World MAP Seminars in India
By Frank R. Parrish
As we consider where to host World MAP Spiritual Renewal and Equipping seminars for church leaders, there are countless options. Choose any point on the world map of developing nations, and you have found a place where there is a desperate need for biblical, Spirit-filled training for pastors.
We also receive invitations from around the world, and are fully aware of the ever-expanding global cry from front-line leaders who desire help and training.
World MAP already assists in meeting this demand by sending teaching materials into more than 140 nations. But beyond that, there exists the very real need for a face-to-face encounter between the church leaders and those who are bringing the teaching. The team’s presence – a living “touchable” representation of God’s love and concern for the pastors – provides a dynamic that printed materials alone cannot. There is a dimension of fellowship, example and impartation that takes place only when we are there in person with the church leaders. Thus, it is important that we also conduct on-site seminars.
But how do we decide where to bring the World MAP seminars? Our primary point of guidance is found in prayer and fasting – asking, “Lord, where would You have us sow in this season”?
Invariably, the Lord directs the World MAP teams to “work where He is working” – to go to places where He is beginning to do something fresh and sovereign in a people. We recognize that God has given us, in part, the role of “spiritual midwives” – coming alongside to coach and encourage those through whom God is about to birth a profound new work. God allows us to sow seeds of biblical training into the fertile ground which He is preparing, in order for a strong and effective harvest to take place. The nation of India is currently one of those spiritually fertile places.
A Challenged Destiny
I believe that God has a profound spiritual destiny and calling for the people of India. It is of such great significance that, at the very birth of the New Testament Church, God brought one of the first apostles all the way from Jerusalem to the Indian shores to sow the seeds of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Thomas was eventually martyred; but it was not before the message of the Kingdom had been preached throughout the south Indian continent.
Unfortunately, our adversary the devil also understands the important dynamic of spiritual destiny. It has been his strategy through the centuries to attempt to disrupt God’s purposes for the people of India. A primary method was the preemptive counterfeit of false religions.
Birthed in India were two of the world’s most prominent false religions – Hinduism and Buddhism. Other religious belief systems also founded in India include Sikhism and Jainism. There is even a very large Muslim population in India. The majority of the population of India is now bound in these false religions.
Some of the core beliefs of these false religions have spread far beyond India’s borders, even influencing the West. These include: transcendental meditation; the “many pathways to God”; God as an impersonal “force” rather than a Person; “karma” and reincarnation; and other erroneous and non-biblical concepts of eastern mysticism made especially popular in the 1970s. These forms of deception are experiencing a resurgence today – even among Christians in the Church!
These practices stem directly from religions which are dominant within Indian culture. You have likely heard them referred to in North America as “New Age” religion, even though there is nothing “new” about these age-old deceptions.
Sadly, instead of the people of India influencing the world for Jesus Christ, many have been used as pawns in the strategies of hell to propagate spiritual deception.
Faithful Remnant
But the nation and peoples of India do not belong to the kingdom of darkness, and they still have a high calling and destiny to fulfill in God! For truly, they belong to the One Who purchased them with His own blood (Ps 2; Acts 17:24-31; Rev 5:9).
Through the centuries, our faithful God has continued to plant the seeds of His salvation message, sending emissaries of His Gospel to bring fresh infusions of His life and truth to the people of India. These include such notables as: William Carey (“The Father of Modern Missions”), who spent more than 30 years doing missionary work in India; Mother Teresa, who gave a lifetime of renowned Christ-like service to the lowliest castes; and thousands of other people and ministries that have sacrificially poured their time, talents and resource into the people of India.
Throughout history, God has sustained a remnant in India who have kept and preserved the Gospel.
They have done their best to be faithful to God’s only plan of salvation through Jesus Christ, even in the face of hell’s massive onslaught of counterfeits. And the centuries of faithfulness of those Christian workers is about to reap its reward!
Just The Beginning
We fully believe this is India’s hour in the purposes of God. India has recently come to the global forefront in entertainment, technology, business, and even the economy. Yet as the doors of influence open, and the world watches India, an even greater phenomenon is occurring. Jesus is building His Church among the Indian people!
It is estimated that more than 5,000 people a day in India are now coming to know Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior – and as church leaders are equipped and taught to evangelize and plant churches, that number is growing exponentially.
As exciting as this is, however, it is just the beginning of those who need to be reached with the Gospel, since more than 50,000 people a day are born in India! This is indeed a vast harvest field, and we cannot allow ourselves to be intimidated by the challenge of reaching the 1.1 billion people who occupy that nation. We are kept ever mindful that with God, nothing is impossible! (Luke 1:37)
The Lord of the Church is already raising up multiplied churches, leaders and ministries within the nation of India, many of whom are diligently and effectively reaching out with the Gospel.
Fruitful Efforts
It is into this exciting and eternity-shaping moment in India’s history that World MAP has been given an assignment to fulfill. We have already sown training materials into the Church in India for many years. Our materials are produced in eight Indian languages (including English). With the help of IBL Ministries (India Bible Literature) and other partners, World MAP has distributed to church leaders in India more than 82,000 Shepherd’s Staffs (our hand-held Bible school in a book) and more than 3 million ACTS equipping magazines!
Our efforts to assist the church leaders in India have intensified in the last five years through hosting World MAP Spiritual Renewal and Equipping seminars. In these powerful events, we have witnessed thousands of leaders being filled with and freshly anointed by the Spirit of God; given encouragement through teaching, prayer and worship; and facilitated to evangelize their communities, their nation, and beyond!
Most-Recent Seminars
In February, World MAP again hosted seminars for church leaders. We intended to host three events on this trip, but felt it was prudent to cancel one seminar originally scheduled near Mumbai due to recent violent outbreaks there. However, we were still able to travel to two new locations, broadening World MAP’s reach to even more pastors in the country.
The first seminar was held in Adoor, Kerala State, in the southwest part of India. The second took place in Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh State, in central India.
I was blessed to have the support of a strong teaching team that included Pastor Don Richter of Harvest Preparation International Ministries and Dr. Vic Torres of Reach Out Church (Vic is also a member of the World MAP Board of Directors). Both of these gentlemen have a rich ministry background and a call from the Lord to teach church leaders. They exemplify integrity and reflect the Father’s heart in their lives and ministries, and we are grateful to serve with them.
The theme of the conferences was “Transformational Leadership” (Rom 8:28,29; 12:1,2), which emphasized the Christ-like character of the leader and the importance of having a biblical worldview (Phil 3:20,21).
Kerala
After more than 30 hours of travel from the U.S. – which included two airline flights, a commuter flight, and a drive of several hours in a small vehicle over rather rough terrain – we were at last in Adoor, Kerala. It was a joy to be so warmly greeted by more than 300 pastors who filled to capacity the small conference center we had secured.
Throughout the conference one could sense the tangible presence of the Holy Spirit moving in our midst. The pastors were very receptive to the teachings and hungry to receive from the Lord.
During one session, I taught on the anointing of the Holy Spirit, showing in Scripture the importance of disciples living and ministering by the Spirit’s power.
At the conclusion of the teaching, I had planned on leading a ministry time to allow the leaders to worship and wait upon the Lord to receive. I had just asked them to stand to their feet when immediately the presence of the Holy Spirit came strongly in our midst. There were emotional and physical responses to the power of God touching the pastors as they were being baptized in the Holy Spirit or given fresh impartation.
It is always our desire to move with what the Lord is doing at such times. It is so important that we not attempt to control or quench the Holy Spirit. His work in just minutes can have profound and lasting impact in a leader’s life, including healing and deliverance, prophetic direction, powerful impartation and much more. Praise the Lord for His faithfulness and for giving us the gift of His Holy Spirit!
A Fresh Touch
A common testimony from the pastors who attend World MAP conferences is that they so enjoy receiving solid Bible teaching that addresses their concerns and desires, and experiencing the Holy Spirit’s work and ministry in their midst. We are blessed by these comments, for this is what we pray will take place at each of our conferences. This is also a fulfillment of the vision God has given World MAP for our seminars: to bring biblically sound, top-quality pastoral training to church leaders, and to make place for a fresh work of the Holy Spirit that will encourage, strengthen, equip and empower each leader for effective, anointed ministry. This may seem like a big order; but we serve a BIG God who delights in doing above what we ask or think, amen?
One of the deeply-committed pastors I had the joy of meeting in Adoor was Pastor Philip. He had been a pastor for several decades, and now oversees 18 churches while actively pastoring his own work. Brother Philip was 86 years young, and was happily anticipating his 87th birthday in a few days! He was thankful for a fresh touch of encouragement and refreshing at the conference. What a rare honor and humbling privilege to serve such saints!
Hyderabad
World MAP’s second conference took place in central India, in the large and fairly developed city of Hyderabad. We arrived rather late the night before the conference was to begin and were taken to a Catholic retreat center where the team would be staying. It was a secure and peaceful setting where we were well cared for. We enjoyed the privilege of sharing a few meals with the head of the center, Brother Nolan. When we met him, it was clear he was in poor health. So after our first breakfast together, the team asked him if we could pray for him.
He readily agreed, but as we laid hands on him and began to pray he seemed somewhat awkward and unfamiliar with what we were doing. However, he was receptive and grateful for the prayer. Several days later, he approached us to warmly thank us and to let us know he felt a great deal better. He mentioned that he had never experienced or known about being simply prayed over for healing. What was to us a small and everyday occurrence turned out to be a life-changing event for Brother Nolan. Not only did God heal him, but I believe God was opening a revelation of truth to him that could have a profound impact on his life and service to God. What a blessed reminder for each of us to continually look for opportunity to make a place for God to reveal Himself to others through us.
A Glorious Time Together
We enjoyed the company of more than 600 church leaders in Hyderabad. As in the prior conference, these fellow-laborers were very receptive to the Bible teaching and ministry of the Holy Spirit, and felt free to give testimony of God’s work in their midst. At the beginning of each conference, I like to get a feel for the prior experience of those in attendance. So I usually ask a number of questions to get to know them better. Though our Hyderabad conference had been promoted as a Spirit-filled gathering, it was interesting to note the number of pastors who indicated that they had not been baptized in the Holy Spirit. It didn’t come as a complete surprise, because the further north one travels in India, the fewer Christians there are and the less exposure they’ve had to the work of the Holy Spirit. So one evening, we studied through the Bible about the baptism of the Holy Spirit. At the conclusion of the teaching, I asked for those who wanted this gift to come forward. It was a tremendous thrill to see more than 125 pastors stream forward – and then receive the Holy Spirit! We then began to worship and ask the Lord for a fresh filling of His Spirit for all who were present. How we enjoyed entering into a powerful and glorious time together of receiving and being touched by power of the Holy Spirit!
God was gracious to allow another fruitful time of ministry in Hyderabad. We have had many comments of pastors forwarded to us by our conference coordinators and ministry partners at IBL. The church leaders expressed their gratitude and sincerely asked World MAP to host more conferences soon. May the Lord grant release and provision in this regard!
Conclusion
At the end of both conferences, the teaching team had the privilege of giving every pastor in attendance their own copy of The Shepherd’s Staff, the most recent edition of ACTS Magazine, a conference certificate to acknowledge their participation, as well as additional books and materials that had been donated. We also shook their hands or embraced them, and spoke blessing over them. Each such encounter affirmed to us the desire of God to do great and mighty things in the Indian people, and beyond their borders to touch the world for Christ. God has His sovereign hand on the nation of India to accomplish His purpose and will in this hour!
Spiritual Lifeline
It is always a joy and privilege to serve the pastors of India and to play a role in standing with them as they fulfill their purpose in God. The Bible reveals that all ministry flows from relationship – first with God, and then with people. World MAP functions effectively and fruitfully in India because of our long-standing partnership with the brothers and sisters at IBL (India Bible Literature). They are key to our effectiveness in India and well beyond, as they assist in the printing and mailing of World MAP’s materials around the world. Equally, your relationship with World MAP in both prayer and support makes the ministry we fulfill possible. Your continued partnership with us provides a spiritual lifeline of Christ’s hand extended to so many around the world. What a blessing and joy to serve together, in these the greatest days of Harvest the world has ever known. May we continue to see the glory of the Lord revealed in all His majesty and power among the nations, until truly all flesh see it together! (Isa 40:5)
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