Sunday I had my first exposure to believers in India at Bethel Church. It reminded me of Filipino churches with its modest facilities and humble members. While the young people sat on the floor, (I think I can say this here – Indian style), us older folks sat on chairs in the back. I enjoyed how they worshipped in song and it caused me to reflect on how some of the “experts” in the U.S. would be frowning on it. Making the case for excellence, these “experts” teach that when worship God we have to have the best. Yet this humble church doesn’t have world-class musicians or the best and costliest instruments as some pastors insist is the correct way to worship in song. They simply had dear, godly people singing from the heart to the best of their ability with what they had. An accordion like squeeze box, an old acoustic guitar, some congas and a few tambourines were accompanied by enthusiastic clapping and their loudest instruments of all…their voices. The music simply accompanied the singing as they worshipped God.
They were receptive and appreciative of my preaching from 2 Cor. 5:15-17, which pastor Suresh Mathews passionately translated. I could tell that he had done this before as we developed a rhythm and moved through the text together. My favorite lessons that I have learned from traveling, teaching and meeting many people in various countries and cultures are that at our core, we are basically the same. We all were made to worship and relate with others, which is hindered by sin. And second, it is not just America and Americans that are God’s country and people, but the whole world is His and He has children in every nation that are His or will be His.
Ryder Kumar is serving as our International Director. As one of the founding members of Shepherding the Nations, it was Ryder's vision to see pastors trained and equipped for ministry that became the foundation of Shepherding the Nations.
Shepherding the Nations has identified qualified and called men who are already working in unreached areas of India and Nepal. We are providing the training to better equip them and the financial resources to support them in their ministries.
Our directors have been equipped to teach our ten-volume training curriculum. These key men are training indigenous pastors and church planters while also providing accountability, resources materials, and support. 
During our training program, we provide our ten volume set of curriculum from the Biblical Training Centre for Pastors (BTCP) in their local language. We also provide essentials resources such as Bible Concordance and Study Bible. We have been able to provide these books to all of our pastors through the generous donations of our donors. These books can be purchased for about $10 each or an entire set for $100.