India 2009: A Mission of Miracles

In July 2009, a team of volunteers from Operation Care International (OCI) flew to New Delhi, India to minister to children living in the Nav Jeevan Slum in New Delhi, India. These children live in horrific conditions, surrounded by hundreds of factories that constantly spew pollutants into the environment. Their lives consist of hard and relentless deprivations with only minimal hope of a life worth living. In reality, twenty percent (20%) never live beyond their fifth birthday!

Of the 1.2 billion people in India, less than three percent (3%) are Christian. Over eighty percent (80%) is Hindu, a religion that places a myriad of demands on those that choose to worship an enormously vast gallery of false gods and goddesses. Hence, the general populace ensures that any known believer in Christ Jesus will be faced with many tests and persecutions perhaps on daily basis. Despite what they must undergo, they continue to prevail and keep working for the glory of Jesus Christ.

OCI was led to partner with Pastor Koshy Baby and his wife Joicy; founding members of Carmel Community Church of Mumbai (New Delhi), India.

The key event of the mission trip was to bring the Gospel of Jesus Christ to the children of the slum by conducting a two-day event. In the early Friday morning hour, five hundred children lined the streets, waiting for the event to start. They received socks, shoes, backpacks, T-shirts, salvation bracelets, personal care products, food and had a wonderful time laughing, singing and clapping along to praise songs. The foot washing was a very moving part of the program. We were washing the dirty feet of these slum children but it was also a sweet moment when we demonstrated God’s love in action! Judging from the expressions of joy, seldom seen on young faces of the slums, the event was a huge success in changing their lives for the moment.

The next day, Saturday we went to another slum and had a total 1,500 kids lined up so long I did not see the end of the line. You could see the faces of the kids full of anticipation. They were well behaved; some were giggling, laughing and excitement filled the air. All the children came with no shoes! However, they knew once they get inside the building, they will have their feet washed and will be given a pair of new socks and shoes!

The gospel was presented using the five color salvation bracelets donated by GAiN USA.org (Campus Crusade for Christ) and the kids responded!

However, OCI staff and 200 volunteers were humbled at the response when 1,997 of these children (Hindus and Muslims), proclaimed Jesus as their savior! As tears of joy flowed down the faces of the event sponsors, realizing that lives would be changed for eternity, thus escaping the darkness that the environment of the slum casts on these young ones.

Our trip was beset by many challenges from severe migraine headaches to bouts of stomach distress, muscle pains but through every obstacle, God always provided relief, often in miraculous ways!

I will never forget on that Friday night when we came back from our first event. One of our team members stayed behind because he got very ill with some stomach discomfort. He needed a doctor. I asked for a medical doctor but none was available. We were thinking of taking him to the hospital.

At that moment, I did not have any place to go but to the Lord. I prayed and asked God to help us in that foreign land. I told God, “Lord, you did not bring us this far to leave us. We need your help!” In a matter of five to ten minutes, I got a call from a doctor. I was shocked because I did not know how this doctor knew the telephone number of this home where we were staying.

I got hold of the phone and I asked him, “What kind of a doctor are you?” He stated, “I am a medical doctor and my friend from Dallas, Dr. Janet Merrill gave me your phone number and she told me that I needed to see you because you have a big event tomorrow and I need to meet you. Actually, I just read her email this afternoon and I am on my way now!” I looked at my watch and it was already 10:30 p.m! That was the most wonderful phone call I have ever received. God answered my prayers, immediately. The doctor came, examined our teammate, left on his motorbike and came back at 1:00 a.m. with some medicines. The next morning at 5:30 a.m., our teammate who was ill was the first one to arrive in our room for our 5:30 morning devotional. It was indeed a great time of worship! God is Jehovah Rapha, the one who heals!

“Faith furnishes prayer with wings, without which it cannot soar to Heaven.”