What a beautiful time God had planned for me in India.

I was blessed and thankful the Lord gave me the opportunity to be in India for the conference and graduation.  I looked forward to meeting faces I had only see in pictures.  I was not disappointed. I was humbled and convicted to meet brothers and sisters eager to serve us with their whole hearts, never complaining about anything.

Meeting Suresh and Mercy and Ravi and Shanthi in the US was a blessing, but now I would see them minister, serve and worship the Lord in their environment. What a gift to watch them humbly serve their brethren they dearly love.

The darkness in Lucknow was overwhelming and heavy, but once I entered the gates and courtyard of Bethel Church where Suresh and Mercy faithfully serve, the atmosphere immediately changed.  I only spent three days in Lucknow but I will never forget our brothers and sisters in this city.  The eyes of these pastors wives sparkled with joy and it was sad to leave Suresh and Mercy and the beautiful sisters I only spent a few days with.  Suresh and Mercy always do an amazing job, at the graduation we were blessed as we praised God for what He had done the past five years and will do in the future.

What a delight to then arrive in Hyderabad and see Ravi and Shanthi waiting for us at the airport gates.  They greeted us with beautiful flowers and transportation helpers to help us after a long day of travel.   I could not wait for the conference to start and was very excited to meet many of the pastors and their wives.  The sister greeted us with grace and peace and their smiles were beautiful and contagious.  In the middle of her busy week, Shanthi managed to prepare a tasty home cooked meal for all of us on top of all the things she had to do for the conference and graduation.  I will never forget the supernatural work of the Holy Spirit that knit my heart together even more with these special brothers and sisters in Hyderabad.

To God be the glory, Great things He is doing in India!!

After 5 ½ years, 11 weeklong conferences, and nearly 500 hours of instruction in two different cities, STN celebrated its first two graduating classes on October 31st and November 7th. Words cannot express the joy we experienced watching 75 men finish the training program and graduate. Abraham Kumar & Diane Brown provided special music; Randy Leinen presented a history of STN and its ministry focus in India; graduating students gave testimony of how the training has impacted their lives and ministries; I delivered a commencement speech from 1 Timothy 6:11-16; David Nelson of Crossing Cultures International (the agency we partner with to teach the BTCP curriculum) encouraged and prayed for the men; and Diane Brown took photos as graduation certificates were given out.

Icing on the Cake!

The change in the men’s lives from the beginning of the training until now is almost unbelievable. They have grown as men of God and men of the Word. Their ability to handle Scripture accurately, defend sound doctrine, refute false doctrine, teach and preach, lead their congregations, train leaders, and make disciples has grown exponentially. And the final week of training was icing on the cake! The topics were: “Missions, Evangelism, and Discipleship.” The men got so fired up they couldn’t wait to get back to their villages to be faithful to what they learned.

These men are “doers” of the Word! One man told us that in the past 5 ½ years since the training began he has worked with a team of people to plant 12 new churches and has plans to train pastors to plant churches in hundreds of villages in India and beyond. One man has planted a number of churches in Northern India and has worked with others to plant 7 churches in Nepal.  Two brothers started teaching the BTCP materials to 35 people in their city and are now halfway through the 10 books. One man is ready to leave his current position as director of a school to devote himself fulltime to training pastors all over Northern India. One of the men who translated for me while preaching in a church worship service said he now feels called to leave his position teaching in a college to serve God in fulltime vocational ministry. Several of the men pleaded with us to come to their region and help them train hundreds of pastors who have never had this kind of teaching.

And the wives of the pastors have grown as well! Susan Leinen, Flory Kumar, Diane Brown, Tammy Werth and Mindy Nelson all shared in teaching the women at each conference. We have observed dramatic change in their personal lives, their marriages, and their ministries since the training began. These women have become true partners in ministry with their husbands and will be used of God to disciple other women on into the future.

Special THANK YOU to those who taught in one or more of the 11 conferences (Dr. Keith Essex of The Master’s Seminary, Mike Amoroso, Jeff Forbes, Dr. David Nelson, Pastor Casey Danley, Sean Ransom, Ryder Kumar, and Randy Leinen). Special THANK YOU to all who prayed and gave sacrificially. The investment was so worth it and the abundant fruit in the coming years will bring much glory to our great God and Savior.

Preparation for Future Ministry

Please be in prayer for Ryder & Flory Kumar as they prepare to move back to India to head up the ministry of STN India. They will work with the STN India Board to provide on-going training & accountability for the men who have graduated, equip those men to train others, offer training for new pastors and church planters, oversee church planting efforts, handle administrative responsibilities, identify men to be supported as new church planters, network with other likeminded Christian organizations, etc. They need to raise about $3,000 per month in additional support to cover their personal and ministry expenses in India. We are hoping that can be accomplished so they can move sometime in the spring or early summer of 2015. If you would like to be a part of their prayer and financial support team please let us know.

Pray for Pastor Eddie Bueno. Eddie is the Senior Pastor of the Hispanic Ministry at our church and went with us to observe the training. He is now seeking the Lord to see if he should do something similar in Central and South America.

Pray for God’s direction and provision in the coming days as we seek to fulfill the Great Commission (Mt. 28:18-20) for His glory. Many of these men need financial support so they can give their attention to fulltime ministry. For as little as $60 to $100 per month these men can be fully supported. Pray that many more churches and individuals will support these men to reach the unreached villages of India and Nepal. If you know of a church that might be interested in hearing more about what STN is doing and how they can partner with us please let us know.

To God be the glory great things He has done, is doing, and will do!

By Ryder Kumar, International Director STN International.

As the eleven member team from the US ventured to be in India on a short term mission trip, none of us imagined that it would be tougher than we ever thought, more challenging than we could understand, and more hazardous than we ever believed. But this trip was also most rewarding, greatly refreshing and definitely of God’s undertaking. We are thankful to all who prayed and gave sacrificially.

75 Pastors Graduate

When 75 pastors who have successfully completed ten courses in six years and each one of them came forward to receive certificate, it was a ‘rewarding’ experience. It was not just an achievement but a life-changing experience for these men.

One of them, J. S. from North India said,

“These are some words of gratitude for STN international for bringing BTCP course to India – Thank you very much for all your efforts, preparation, sacrifice and perseverance to bring the course to us all. As I was studying course #10 I was motivated to share the Gospel to people of different faiths in India. I was so stirred up that I am willing to give up my position as the principal of my school (letting someone else take this position) as I move out from church to church, teaching what I have been taught. In the midst of severe opposition I envision a breakthrough by the power of God’s Spirit through the teaching of the Truth. I hope other graduates are encouraged to serve the Lord meaningfully just as I am.”

J. works in a remote village in a very strategic area surrounded by  the Hindu and Muslim community.

Another graduate by the name of D. from a Hindu-dominated state of India says,

“After studying course #10 the Lord gave me a burden to serve in the church by ‘making disciples’. I am so excited to mention that a new church is planted on November 2nd in a village called ‘L.’ I have another challenge to see another church planted in a village called ‘R’”.

D. mentioned the number of people attending this church plant. Isn’t this refreshing in the spirit as we think of all those difficult days that the team had in India? D. graduated on October 31st and saw a new church plant on November 2nd.

The ministry of the Word by Paul Brown and Randy Leinen were a blessing in the local churches on Sundays. The ministry through singing by Diane Brown and Abraham Kumar was greatly appreciated in churches and graduation events as the hearts were lifted to praise and worship. About twenty five ladies in South and the same number in North gathered for five days. Flory, Susan, Tammy, and Diane ministered through teaching and counseling while Mindy Nelson and Tammy Werth also encouraged through their testimonies. Eddie Bueno, the pastor of Hispanic church at The Bridge Bible Fellowship, along with Tammy Werth, joined the team to India for the very first time.

We now encounter greater challenges than ever.

The work has grown so big that it needs structure, nurture and protection from the enemy. Launching out to India and neighboring countries can’t be kept in abeyance. It will be ‘too late’ to procrastinate combating the imported obnoxious theology. The time to launch out into SE Asia is NOW. Millions in India need to hear the Gospel and thousands are waiting to be trained in order to do church planting across the nation.

Update:

Thank you so much for your prayers for our Fall 2014 Bible Conferences in India. Our graduation services were such a blessing both for our team and the graduates, their families and guests. We will be adding photos and summaries about our trip soon – stay tuned!

Please join our prayer team!

We are excited to let you know about our upcoming Bible Conference in India. Very soon a team will be leaving for a three-week trip to facilitate Bible training conferences in two parts of India.

We are particularly excited about this trip because this is our first graduating class!

This trip is the culmination of five years of Bible training with a group of 80 pastors from various parts of South and North India. Our team will teach through the tenth and final book in a series of instructional materials written by BTCP (www.bibletraining.com). These pastors have studied hard and put into practice what they have learned through our twice-a-year conferences over the past five years and they will be our first graduating class! Our team will teach through this last crucial book on Missions, Evangelism and Discipleship. We will have one five-day conference in Lucknow culminating with a graduation ceremony. Then we will travel to Hyderabad and hold a conference there for pastors in that area. About 40 pastors will be traveling to each city from the rural villages where they live and lead their churches.

The pastors will be bringing their wives to this conference and we will have special seminars designed just for these ladies. We will have the privilege to teach the Bible to these women who rarely have the opportunity to leave their villages or to gather as women to learn from one another.

In case you were wondering…

Yes, we are still raising funds for this trip! Each team member needs to raise $3,500 to fund this trip. Not only do we need to cover our own travel expenses, but we also need to fund the conferences themselves. The pastors that we minister to could not afford to get this training in any other way. Your tax-deductible donation will be helping to cover the cost of travel, meals and books for our team and these 80 pastors and their wives. Just use the donate button on this page to donate by credit card or paypal or send your check to:

Shepherding the Nations
18644 Sherman Way
Reseda, CA 91335