Participants:
Series Code: DTF
Program Code: DTF000105S
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00:10 Hello and
00:11 welcome to another episode of Destination 10/40. 00:14 In the last episode 00:15 we were in the country of Nepal, but today 00:18 we are hopping on a plane and we're headed to a new country. 00:25 May I have your attention please. 00:28 Welcome to Kolkata, thank you. 00:36 In the country of India, 01:04 no modes of transportation are off the table. 01:07 From three wheeled autos to rickshaws, planes, trains, 01:10 motorcycles, automobiles, and even the occasional oxcart. 01:13 I can honestly say travel is a very unique experience 01:17 in this country. 01:28 we've made it to India. 01:29 Welcome to India. 01:39 Everything within this country runs 01:40 at a completely different speed 01:42 than we're used to in the Western world, 01:43 which oftentimes can be very frustrating for us. 01:46 But the kind and generous people that you meet here completely 01:50 makes up for any of those cultural differences. 01:53 We're going to be here in India for three weeks 01:55 and we are going to be meeting up 01:57 with some of our Bible workers who are using very unique 02:00 methods of ministry to reach people. 02:09 So the first time I visited 02:10 India was back in 2017, and since then I've been here 02:13 five times. 02:14 This is actually my sixth time visiting this country. 02:27 What's up buddy? 02:28 This is Joy. Joy. Hello. 02:30 What do you do? 02:32 Oh, I am a missionary. 02:34 I do internet ministry. Wonderful. Wonderful. 02:37 We're going to be working with Joy over the next 02:40 three weeks here in India. 02:48 This is Nirobindu Das, and for the last five years, 02:51 he has been the Gospel Outreach coordinator for West Bengal 02:54 here in India. One of 02:55 the villages that we're going to go is my birthplace. 02:59 Oh, it's your birthplace? Yeah. 03:07 All right, so for those of you 03:08 who don't really know much about India, 03:10 I just want to talk to you briefly 03:11 about the state of West Bengal. 03:14 So this state is in the eastern portion of India, 03:17 situated along the Bay of Bengal, 03:18 which is the largest bay in the world, covering around 03:22 839,000 square miles. Despite being one of the smallest states 03:27 in India, it is one of the largest 03:29 in population, 03:30 with over 91 million people living in this state. 03:33 Let me just tell you, 03:35 when I learned about this, I was absolutely blown away. 03:37 And here's why. 03:40 The state of West Bengal is about the same 03:42 geographical size as Louisiana in the United States, 03:47 but Louisiana's population is only 4.6 million. 03:50 However, if you were to take the population of New York 03:54 State, California and Florida, put them all together 03:58 in West Bengal, they would still be 7 million 04:01 short of the number of people living in this state. 04:05 Now, let's bring this into perspective here. 04:07 Can you guess how many of those 91 million 04:11 people are Christians? 04:13 If you don't pull out your phone and start researching this 04:15 I'm going to give the answer in just a minute. 04:17 But I want to first mention that this number and numbers 04:20 like it throughout different states 04:22 in India is why Gospel Outreach has over 1200 04:26 Bible workers being supported in this country. 04:29 Again, listen to this. 04:30 Out of the roughly 2300 Bible workers being supported 04:34 throughout 39 countries by Gospel Outreach, 04:37 1200 of those workers are in India. 04:40 And it's because there's a great need. 04:43 So the number of 04:44 Christians. Out of 91 million people, 04:47 only roughly 660,000 are Christians. 04:52 Let that sink in. 04:54 Both Nirobindu and his wife Rita are passionate 04:57 about spreading the Gospel to the people of India 04:59 and have devoted their lives to missionary work. 05:02 Their humble spirit for the work 05:03 they are doing and their true love for people 05:05 was a beautiful thing to witness. 05:08 How long does something like this last? 05:09 It can't last too long. It lasts long. 05:12 Oh, does it? 05:13 Yes, It's more than 40 years. 05:16 Really? 05:17 For 40 years? Yes. 05:42 This one looks dangerous. 05:43 It is very yummy. 05:45 That's a very yummy chili. 05:47 Joy, you are a part time Gospel Outreach worker yourself. Yes. 05:51 I wanted to talk to you a little bit 05:53 about your ministry, what you do. 05:55 Actually, I'm serving God through internet ministry. 05:58 I make videos, sermons, testimonies, some songs, 06:03 and we upload in YouTube, Facebook for around two years. 06:07 I'm doing it. 06:08 And the Lord's continued to grow your ministry up, hasn't he? 06:10 Yes. At first, when I started around four 06:13 or five people, ten people, used to watch, 06:15 but I was happy for that 06:17 because I can share the good news to 5 to 10 people, 06:19 but now around 100, 200, sometimes thousand people 06:23 watch our videos. 06:24 So you're not the only one that does this. 06:26 Your wife does this as well. Yes. 06:27 So you do the videos in one language 06:30 and she does the videos in another? 06:31 Yeah, she does it in her mother tongue. 06:33 I do it in my mother tongue. 06:35 And they're both two YouTube channels. Separate channels. 06:37 People see your videos and then you have your contact 06:40 information in the video, right? 06:42 Yeah. 06:43 My target is like the person who doesn't know. 06:45 And what I think is it's my duty to share the good news, 06:49 share the everlasting 06:50 Gospel. And Holy Spirit will work in their heart 06:54 and they will give their life to Christ. 06:55 I'm sure it would be very easy to become discouraged, 06:58 but in my mind it's more important 07:00 to have maybe 20 or 100 people watching your video 07:04 who really need to see it 07:05 then to have millions and millions of views 07:07 because we are out there just looking for that one person. 07:28 It's nice to be in India. 07:29 I love this country. I love the people. 07:31 And yeah, the sights, the smells, the sounds 07:36 all too familiar. 07:38 Also, people like to use their horns here 07:40 a lot more than Nepal. And we're about ready to leave. 07:54 And we're out of here. 07:56 Today. 07:57 We will be visiting a Bible worker 07:59 who has successfully started three home churches 08:01 throughout her area within the last few years. 08:04 But first, breakfast. 08:06 Hello, Joy. Hello, sir. 08:07 How are you? 08:09 I'm good. 08:10 Boiled green beans. 08:11 And is this potato? Yes potato 08:14 and I don't know 08:15 what they call in English, but this is a vegetable like. 08:18 Yeah. 08:22 And, of course, chapati. 08:29 My name is Manju Santra, 08:30 and I'm a dedicated, full time sponsored Bible worker 08:35 with a deep passion for spreading the teachings 08:38 of the Bible and the love of Jesus to others. 08:42 So I think it's really important for people to understand that 08:45 Gospel Outreach doesn't only stipend men, 08:47 they also stipend women as well. 08:49 And there's a really important reason why that is. 08:55 Men have a very important role 08:57 to play when it comes to leadership, 08:59 when it comes to reaching out to men. 09:01 But when it comes to reaching women, 09:03 a man cannot just go into a woman's house and 09:07 and speak to her about the Gospel. 09:17 Your lunch! 09:19 That is cow dung cake. 09:21 Yeah. 09:31 in a country like India 09:33 friendship evangelism is really going to be 09:35 one of the most effective ways that you can reach out 09:38 to your neighbors. 09:40 And the Bible worker that we're talking to today 09:43 that's what she does. 09:44 She helps people in their fields when they need an extra hand. 09:47 She takes people to the hospital 09:48 when they need to go to the hospital. And she does this all 09:52 just to be a friend to 09:54 to her neighbors, which is really, really cool. 10:04 Women in these countries 10:05 are oftentimes abused, both physically and mentally. 10:09 Many times 10:09 they have no idea what it means 10:11 to have any self-worth or confidence. 10:14 But when Gospel Outreach stipends 10:16 a woman, trains her and equips her to work for the Lord, 10:19 it gives her so much confidence and self-worth 10:21 and in turn, 10:22 she is able to help other women 10:24 who have been neglected and mistreated. 10:27 There's not really a lot of churches in this area, 10:29 are there? Around 70 kilometers 10:31 there is not even single church, only house 10:33 churches. Wow! 10:34 So we encourage our workers in this area to just start home 10:38 churches. Yes. 10:39 And that's what they've done. And it's been very effective. 10:41 We are following the New Testament style. 10:44 this little boy was born with a disability 10:47 and oftentimes when someone in India is born 10:49 this way, 10:50 it is believed that they were cursed by the gods 10:52 and their family is very ashamed. 10:54 Our Bible worker has taken a special interest 10:57 in this little boy and his family 10:59 and has been able to help them realize 11:01 that he is accepted and loved by Jesus. 11:06 poor people will come and collect 11:08 this. They will clean and they'll make rice 11:11 this will be their food. In India. 11:14 The poor people that can't own fields and don't have money to 11:17 buy food, they'll come and pick up 11:20 the rice that has been left 11:21 over after harvest, which if you remember, is 11:25 just like the story of Ruth, where she went 11:27 into the fields and harvested and gleaned the barley. 11:32 It's just a tad warm. 11:34 And this is the cooler time of year here. 11:36 Yes, this is winter. 11:37 Apparently, 11:40 agriculture dominates 11:41 both the landscape and the economy of West Bengal. 11:44 Its proportion of agriculture 11:46 land is among the highest of all the Indian states. 11:49 Rice, which requires extensive irrigation, is the leading 11:53 crop in nearly every area, despite its relative small size. 11:57 West Bengal produces 11:58 a significant percentage of India's rice harvest. 12:02 Working as a rice paddy farmer is very hard work, 12:05 even more so in a country like India, where 12:08 a large majority of the process is all done by hand. 12:11 So everywhere you go 12:12 in this area, you see this on all of the walls. 12:17 And I want to ask our friend Joy, what is this 12:20 and what do they use it for? 12:22 This is cow dung biscuits. 12:24 It is made out of cow dung and they use it for cooking. 12:29 Yeah, they burn it and they cook. 12:32 Not for eating. 12:33 Yeah, yeah, yeah. 12:37 Being used in the Lord's 12:38 service has been an honor and a blessing in my life. 12:42 The opportunity of being sponsored in my work 12:45 has been far 12:46 beyond what I could have ever seen myself doing in this life. 12:50 I'm truly blessed. 13:02 Is it a good day? 13:03 That sun looks good. 13:05 The sun does look good. 13:06 So does the joy. 13:08 Yes, it looks pretty good too. 13:30 The influence 13:31 that I've been able to have on so many young mothers 13:34 and elderly women in my community 13:37 has been far greater than I will ever realize. 13:41 I've seen so many lives dramatically changed through 13:44 Jesus, making my faith even stronger as a result. I 14:21 Please continue to pray for my work here in India 14:24 and for all those souls who have yet to be introduced 14:27 to the hope of Jesus. 16:14 Good morning. 16:15 So back in 2013, one of the Gospel 16:18 Outreach Bible workers started a small home church. 16:20 And as it continued to grow, there just wasn't enough room 16:23 for the people to meet in the home. 16:25 And they wanted a church, 16:26 but they didn't have the money for it. 16:28 So what did they do? 16:29 They built a church out of bamboo and plastic. 16:32 Well in 2020 that church was completely 16:34 taken out by a typhoon. 16:45 So this is where the church was? 16:47 Yes, it is. 16:49 You can see some of the pillars are still there. 16:52 There was a plastic church and now it's no more. 16:56 So I've seen photos of the plastic church in the past, 16:59 but I did not realize just how small this area is, 17:03 where the plastic church used to be. 17:05 Now, the new plastic church is built on our Bible worker's 17:09 property, and I believe this plastic church is even bigger 17:13 than than the one that was here. 17:19 So this location was never an ideal place for a church. 17:22 As you can see, there's a road 17:24 right next to where the church used to be, 17:26 and there's tons of traffic that comes through here 17:28 all the time. 17:30 So not the most ideal place, but they did what they needed to 17:33 and they did what they could. 17:34 And the people loved this church 17:36 until it was taken away by that typhoon. 17:38 You can see now somebody has built 17:40 a little storefront 17:42 right there where they sell different food items. 17:48 This is one of our local Bible workers 17:49 Uttam Routh. Both he and his wife Uma 17:52 are Gospel Outreach sponsored Bible workers. 17:54 Through working together as a husband and wife 17:56 team, helping people 17:57 with both their spiritual and physical needs. 18:00 They've been able to build quite a strong connection 18:03 and reputation 18:04 in many different communities in the area. 18:06 because of their local influence, 18:08 many people will travel over 30 minutes 18:10 to come to the plastic church every Sabbath. 18:13 He is paralyzed. 18:16 She's a believer, our Adventist church member. 18:20 So he could not even drink water by himself. 18:23 She needs to be here. So she goes to church, 18:25 she comes back and takes care of everyone. 18:27 And in that way they are going. Our health worker 18:29 they come and give massages also. 18:32 So one of the ministries that our Gospel Outreach 18:33 Bible worker here has started is a goat ministry. 18:36 Well, what is a goat ministry? 18:38 Well, someone donated a couple of goats to the Bible worker 18:41 and he gave those goats to someone in need. 18:44 And this woman is taking care of these goats. 18:47 And as these goats continue to multiply, 18:50 they're giving the goats away to other people 18:52 so that they can make money off of those goats. Along with that 18:56 they also are utilizing this as a way 18:58 to be able to give tithes and offerings to the church. 19:01 So this is a really 19:02 effective ministry in a country like India. 19:05 Hello. 19:07 What are we saying? 19:09 I don't know what we're going to say. 19:10 We're going to say something. 19:11 Okay. Uh, 19:15 you know, 19:16 ??? 19:20 I'm really excited when we travel 19:22 to these different countries and we find Bible workers 19:25 with unique stories 19:26 like this one, unique ministries and ways to reach people. 19:29 A goat ministry may not work in a different part of India, 19:31 but here it's really working out. 19:33 And the Lord is blessing. 19:34 And I, you know, I would just say that I don't know 19:38 what I'm trying to say. 19:39 Hi, you're very cute. 19:47 So in front of me 19:48 here, we have a stove. 19:51 I know this doesn't 19:52 look like an ordinary stove that you would see back home. 19:56 They make this hole in the ground and they take clay 19:59 and let it dry. 20:01 They feed the fire through this hole and 20:03 put the pots on top here and cook it up here. 20:07 Both sides at once. Yeah, both sides at once. 20:09 And they also use the cow dung patties here to, to cook with. 20:14 They have an abundance of this so that's a great 20:16 fuel source for them. 20:26 Today, our Gospel Outreach Bible worker 20:28 has coordinated a free clinic inside of the plastic church. 20:32 Free checkups, glasses and reduced prices on surgeries 20:36 for anybody who comes to the clinic today. 20:39 Okay, this is Mrs. 20:41 Pampa Burman, 20:43 and she is a member of this plastic church. 20:50 she spoke to her supervisor. 20:52 She said it will be very nice a lot of people come here 20:55 and if he can bring his team and have eye camp here. 21:02 Then he spoke to the local Gospel Outreach volunteer 21:06 Uttam Routh. After contacting them 21:09 this was brought here. 21:10 Through loudspeaker, they went around the villages 21:14 and announced about this particular camp. 21:18 As a medical professional, watching these tools 21:20 get reused again and again without cleaning them shows 21:23 once again the great need in this country, 21:26 even within a medical setting. With her own interest 21:29 she spoke to the supervisor and brought the team here 21:33 and then 21:34 many people are blessed here. 21:53 Your people are so kind, so generous. 21:56 The food is really, really good. 21:58 But most importantly, the chilies are excellent. 22:29 So it's Sabbath morning here at the plastic church. 22:31 I woke up at 630 this morning to the sound of Christian Music 22:35 playing on a loudspeaker outside 22:38 and the Muslim call to worship in the background 22:41 as well. Two contrasting things 22:43 that I thought was very interesting. 22:45 They're not playing Christian music anymore 22:47 because they're doing their 22:48 daily zoom call. Every single morning Here in West Bengal, 22:52 there are at least two Zoom meetings 22:55 going on where people, anybody is invited to join, 22:59 and they're just like a morning worship 23:01 for the Bible workers and for other people 23:04 to be able to come on and be a part of. 23:07 Yeah, I know I'm not mom am I. 23:10 Did she cry when you held her? No! 23:14 Ohhh, 23:18 She's angry. 24:06 Now they are quite literally 24:07 running out of room in this church behind me. 24:09 And that's a good problem to have. 24:11 But the exciting thing about this story is 24:14 the Lord has blessed someone donated. 24:16 And so right behind the plastic church is a new church 24:20 that's being built for the believers. 24:44 God has put a deep burden 24:45 in the hearts of our workers around the world for people. 24:49 And as we worship with these like minded 24:50 Christians, I can't help but wonder 24:52 if I have that same burden within me. 24:55 As someone who has lived in our western culture my whole life 24:59 I know all too well of the distractions 25:01 that plague our society on a daily basis. 25:04 It seems as if we have designed 25:05 a culture around distraction, entertainment and comfort. 25:09 It's easy to say that 25:10 we all have a love for others, but do we really? 25:13 What would we be willing to sacrifice 25:15 in our personal lives to work in the service of Jesus? 25:19 You know, I have met many of our Gospel Outreach 25:21 sponsored Bible workers who are well-educated. 25:24 They could 25:25 choose to do many other things in life, to make way more money. 25:28 They could be living in a mansion instead of a mud hut. 25:32 But through their conversion experience 25:34 and through seeing what Jesus has done in their life, 25:37 they have made the decision to serve the master. 25:40 So I ask again, 25:41 Are we ready to lay it all on the line for Jesus? 25:45 Are we prepared to lay down our lives for a friend? 26:01 Coming up next time 26:02 on Destination 10/40. 26:13 Lord we want to thank you that you have given us this privilege 26:16 here now through the Gospel Outreach ministry. 26:20 They will have a stronger building and the light from 26:25 this place will shine throughout this place. 26:29 Are you washing the clothes from the water in this pond? 26:31 I am. 26:35 So this is the ferry that's going to be taking us 26:37 about an hour ride to an island where we're going to spend two 26:41 or three days. 26:48 Another challenge that we're running into here 26:50 and I'm just going to be 26:51 brutally honest with you, the devil is working 26:53 really, really hard right now in my life, in Lexi's life. 26:58 You know, we're 26:59 running into a lot of challenges for both spiritually 27:02 and even maybe somewhat physically. 27:05 And so we definitely need prayers. 27:15 You know, as Christians, we 27:17 are supposed to be a different kind of people 27:19 when we go out into the communities 27:21 here in India and we mingle with Hindus 27:23 and with the Muslims, 27:25 they recognize that our Christian brothers 27:27 and sisters are different. 27:29 They can see that. 27:40 This is the most effective discipleship 27:43 method of all, is living a life that reflects 27:46 Christ. 27:51 Well, 27:51 you made it to the end of episode 27:52 five of Destination 10/40 and for that I do 27:56 thank you. 27:57 Now, if you are interested in Gospel Outreach 27:58 and you want to learn more about this 27:59 organization, go to the website goaim.org 28:02 and if you are wanting to donate 28:05 to the organization from watching Destination 10/40 28:08 like we've asked you in the past, 28:10 if you're donating online, use the dropdown menu. 28:13 Select Destination 10/40. 28:14 If you're sending in a check, just write Destination 28:17 10/40 in the memo line 28:18 so that we can keep track of the money 28:19 that we're raising from this show. 28:21 It's very important for us and we thank you 28:23 for taking that extra step. 28:24 So until next time, thank you 28:26 once again, and I'll see you in the next episode. |
Revised 2023-11-08