January 2023
“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.”
II Corinthians 5:17
Beloved Ones,
In II Corinthians 5:17 we are reminded that we are new creations in Christ, and we can move forward and face life’s challenges with confidence. What a wonderful thought as we begin a new year!
At the end of December and beginning of January, I am so grateful I had the opportunity to return to India with my son Dayan, my daughter Mishal, her husband Len, and my grandsons Schuyler, Ethan and Luke. I was so glad to see my grandsons participating in the ministry and sharing their love for Christ with the people of India.
The first four days in India we spent in Mumbai. Over the last ten years, we have been supporting ten pastors and their congregations in the slum areas of Mumbai and New Mumbai. Mishal and family, along with Dayan, were able to visit several of these slum areas, distribute food packets, and pray for many needy people. Also in Mumbai we were able to conduct a large meeting where all the pastors and their families gathered together for a time of encouragement and fellowship. In the coming months we hope to expand the food distribution program into these slum areas.
At the start of the New Year, we traveled to our campus in Kerala, where we were able to meet and encourage those conducting our Helping Hands ministry, our Children’s Home ministry, and our Bible College. We had some fruitful meetings with our Bible College faculty as we are in the process of making major changes to our program and curriculum. This month the campus is undergoing major repairs and painting, which have not been done for several years due to the pandemic. We also distributed 60 food kits in a very poor village. The people were so happy to receive some assistance for their daily needs.
Dayan and our national administrator, Reji, traveled up to Uttar Pradesh for three days of ministry to get firsthand reports from our evangelists there. They conducted a meeting of local village pastors. They were very encouraged to hear what the Lord is doing in this state, which is the most populous state in India. They conducted food kit distribution in several remote villages where people struggle with lack of education, food, and resources. Please pray for the few believers in these villages and their pastors. God willing, in the coming months and years IEM will expand the ministry into more of these rural villages. Since it is very cold in this mountainous state during the winter months, we hope to help provide much-needed blankets for these villages as well.
Thank you for your continued prayers and support for IEM. I thank God for answering our prayers and giving me strength to continue in His work. I love you all and remember you in my daily prayers.
God Bless You All,
G.V. Mathai