E-mail from Minthang Suantak - August 2013
Hi Dr, Garry & Belinda Tate.
Greetings from your family and church members here in Imphal, Manipur. Hope you are all doing great under God’s grace and safe protection.
Here at our end, there are many sad events that happened to us, my brother in-law died last Monday, till today people from different areas keep coming to comfort the bereaved family. Now my sister became widow in a very young age and her children became fatherless. It is very sad and hard to face it. Although many good friends, close relatives and churches member came all over the state of Manipur to comfort and consoling my sister and her children who are now under great grief and pain, it is really hard to get comfort from people unless it is from God. Only God can comfort and consoles the heartbroken people. I too felt very sorry and sad for my sister. But what can I do, when God did what he wants to do in the lives of people. He alone knows what he did and He did everything for the good of His people. All I can do is pray to the God of Comfort for peace and comfortable future for my sister and her children.
Garry, we were always surrounded by all types of sadness, difficulties and hardship as long as we are living in this world. Therefore from here, we were looking for a city where there is no more weeping in grief, pain, sadness and shame. My whole families were still under grief, pain and sadness because of the sudden lost of my brother in-law.
Kindly keep praying for my family and particularly my sister who is now widow and her children.
It automatically remained us (My Family) of the endless past great grief and sad pressured, we had been going through for the past few years, due to the dead of my own family members for these past years, my mother died in 2007, and both my brother and his son died in 2008, and the break-up of my personal family in 2009, which led us sadly setback even in our ministry and the sudden dead of my youngest brother in 2010. Having gone through all these un-forgettable great trauma, which is still one of the greatest problem in my own family, now another sadness has added in our wound it is really hard. But let God be highly exalted in and through us, for whatever circumstances that happened to us. It is all with His great purposes.
Garry, bearing all these great sadness and grief upon me, last Sunday the 18th,August, we went to different parts of our state Manipur as a part of Reaching the Unreached ministry. We also visited three of our own church, which is S. Kotlian church, B.Khonom Church and Lajangphai where our Pastor Hegin is working. We also preached at Hegin’s church and had a very good discussion after the service. Again yesterday we had a ministry tour in different parts of Manipur and visited 5 different villages preaching and teaching the gospel of our Lord to the lost people praying for their healing, we arrived back home very late at 10,30 P.M. at night. I was with pastor Kamthang, Khaiboi, Mr,Boipu, Mr,Lulun and our Moderator. Though physically we were tired and exhausted but when we personally see the powerful hands of God in healing the sicknesses of the people instantly, and the people that gave their lives to Christ, through our humble ministry, that revived our inner strength and relief us from all our physical pain and tiredness.
Garry, yesterday we were glad that we could preached the gospel to 700 people in 5 different places. Out of these 700 people, 112 people boldly took a strong step and came forward and received Jesus Christ as their Lord during the altar call in all these 5 different location. We were so glad and surprised to see these 112 people came to the Lord very boldly as they were from different background. Some of them were sure to be thrown out from their own family, because of their faith in Christ. Therefore let us continue to pray for all these new believers in Christ, that their faith in Christ is strong and concrete.
Our pastor, Holsei is now having a great harvesting of souls in different villages in a very far flung areas. According to the latest report I had three days ago he is now in a Myanmar border working amongst the hidden people, who never heard the gospel of our Lord. We expect him to return back home by this last week of August. Let us continue to pray for hundreds of souls to be saved through his ministry.
Yesterday, our evangelist Mr, Meghajit had an open air preaching at Pangei town, according to the report we got, about 178 people heard Megahjit’s preaching and 31 people from a hindu background newly received Jesus Christ as their Lord.
One of our worker, Mr. Lalcha led three muslim into the saving grace of our Lord last week. God willing our plan is to have a mass water Baptism service after a thorough investigation of their faith and giving them a good counseling in the month of September for all these new born in Christ. Because without a genuine faith in God, many people can easily said they believed in Christ and the next day they can be any type of person. Therefore we need to be very careful even if some one said he or she believed in Christ’s salvation. We must watch them wait them and lead them into maturity of faith in Christ.
Our Evangelist Mr, Raghumani and Sianminthang is now working hard at Patsoi area in preaching and teaching the gospel to the unreached people since for the last two days. We got a news, that they encountered many difficulties and dangerous opposition from the public, but these two faithful servants of God never give up, they informed us that the more persecution they got, the stronger faith they have in Christ and encouraging them to work harder for God in bringing people into the saving grace of Christ. We therefore, with great hope and confident, waiting for the result of their great harvesting of souls. We were confident that by the last part of the week, we will see many souls saved.
God willing we plan to visit them( Raghumani and Sianminthang) this evening at Patsoi and see if we can help them in their rural evangelistic ministry. With great persecution and difficulties, we are going to build the church.
Our evangelist Mr, Kiran always is on the move in preaching the gospel to the hidden people, to every nook and corners of Manipur. Even today just before 3 minutes he came to my office, after his morning evangelistic campaign, he got three souls this morning, after his brief sharing in my office, we prayed together and left for every home campaign for Christ mostly to the Nepalese. Pray for souls to be saved through Kiran’s ministry.
Many of our workers who scattered far and near in Manipur, got opposition, persecution and great difficulties and hindrances from the public, where they were working for God. But we never gave up, as I said the more persecution we got, the stronger faith we have in Christ alone. AS WE ALL KNEW THAT THE BLOOD OF THE MARTYR IS THE SEED OF THE CHURCH. Therefore please keep praying for more workers into the fields of God, which is ready for Harvesting.
Garry, you are very much the Integral part of our ministry, it is only because of your kind and generous financial support we could do so much. Please rest assured that you are the backbone of our ministry, and a torch bearer of our work. Without your kind prayers and generous financial support we will never let the work done by our own capacity. Every single cents of money you send us for the ministry is counted. Therefore, it is only because of your financial helps, preaching the gospel is going on every where in Manipur and as such, souls are saved in a regular basis. Please keep praying for us.
May the good Lord continue to bless you and your family is our earnest prayers for you. Let the Peace of God be always upon you and your lovely family.
Looking forward to hearing from you, and God willing to see you again soon.
Your missionary brother
Minthang Suantak.
N.B. Garry, if you can, please kindly try to send some funds as we were greatly in need, the sooner you can send the better for us since we were greatly in need.