Our July trip to India proved to be an amazing experience. The first night as we drove from a rural village close to the city of Ongole, Andhra Pradesh, over dirt roads in a very dry and deserted area to the campaign grounds, we only saw a few people present upon arrival. During the next hour people started streaming in by the hundreds and eventually more than a thousand gathered to hear the glorious and liberating Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Pastor Samuel and Hepsiba Savarapu
Our hosts and good friends, Pastors Samuel and Hepsiba Savarapu had done a terrific job in visiting some 15 surrounding villages during the month before offering them free transportation and meals after the meetings. We were the first white people to come to this village. We preached every night for over a thousand people and the last night for more than fifteen hundred. During the course of four nights 500 people received salvation and countless were healed of their diseases and infirmities. Deaf ears were opened. Bad eyesight and even blindness cured. Countless knees (most people work in the fields in very hard and hot circumstances), backs, headaches, infections, kidneys, HIV, tumors, etc. were touched by God’s power.
The region has been very dry because of the lack of monsoon rains for many years. The third night we proclaimed climate change, fruitfulness for the area and prosperity. The next day it started raining, the rain stopped before and during the last meeting only to continue for days afterwards.
Two weeks after the meetings, we received the following report:
“Many Hindu people – those who never attended church – are now coming to church every Sunday. This is a great miracle. The whole village is filled with peace. All the villagers are receiving blessings: in the fields, in their businesses and in their homes. It seems as if there is something new in the village.
Even people’s behavior is changing.”
All glory to Jesus!