You up for the Challenge?

The following is a blog post from Brother Dave Black, my Greek professor and dear brother. Such concerns the immediate financial need of the Peniel Gospel Team in India for the building of a Christian School. The Peniel Gospel Team serves King Jesus through planting churches, training pastors and missionaries, operating free schools, operating a Missionary school, and an orphanage near the border of Bhutan, a "closed" country. Will you pray about supporting their endeavor to build a Christian school in NE India that is in desperate need of an ongoing gospel witness? Will you "Step Up to the Challenge to give?" You can access Dave's blog here.

9:10 AM Today's quote? "The work goes on."

As you know, God has appointed Becky and me to help the Peniel Gospel Team in the far northeast "neck" of India. This location is strategic. It is not in the southern region, where most believers reside, where most ministry investment is done, and where outreach has been done since (literally) the days of the Apostle Thomas.

No, the Peniel Gospel Team is working in a region that is untouched with the Gospel, and it is right next to the "closed" countries of Nepal, Bhutan, and Bangladesh. This ministry was started by a pioneer, obedient man who left his comfortable home in south India. As the only believer in this region, he preached and preached and preached. Alone in the work for many years, God saw his faithfulness and has multiplied his work. Today the work of Peniel Gospel Team has 400 evangelists, 2 children's homes, a seminary, a low-income private school, and outreach to dozens of unreached mountain villages.

However, a big problem exists in the work: It is almost totally dependent upon gifts from USA. Why is this situation a problem?

• The government (Hindu-based) is suspicious of money coming from abroad
• The local community is suspicious of the work as being a "foreign" work
• The ministry budget is dependent upon the faithfulness and goodwill of Americans
• Fluctuating exchange rates, changing bank rules, and money transfer issues create challenges to financial stability.

God has appointed Becky and me to help the Peniel Gospel Team establish a large private (meaning, tuition-based) school that will generate the income needed to sustain this ministry for many decades to come.  There are many benefits to this plan:

• The community gains a benefit through education; this endears the work to them and opens their hearts to the Gospel
• The 2500 students coming daily to learn their A-B-Cs also have exposure to the Lord who loves them
• The ministry gains a stable income source for its outreaches; in fact, we expect that the vast majority of the needs for the evangelists, orphans, and seminary will be met through the school tuition income.

As we have been praying about this project (and it is a BIG project), God has brought a donor who is placing before our DBO readers and ministry partners a challenge to give to this need. Here are the facts about this challenge:

• For the first $10,000 given, there will be a 50% match. This means that if you give $500, the school will receive $750.
• For the next $10,000 given, there will be a 100% match. This means that if you give $1000, the school will receive $2,000.
• For the following $10,000 given, there will be a 150% match. This means that if you give $2,000, the school will receive $3,500.

The deadline for giving is Dec 31, 2013.

When you give, make your check payable to Bethel Hill Baptist Church, and write in the memo "India School Matching." Mail the check to Becky Black, 2691 White House Rd., Nelson, VA 24580. You will receive a tax-deductible receipt from Bethel Hill in Jan, 2014.

Caution: do not delay until we reach the 150% matching level; the need for funds is NOW.  If God is appointing you to help in this work, be among the first to "launch" the matching. The construction has already begun!