A group of people from a fanatical religious organization shut down a church construction project in Delhi, India, on May 20.
The building was near completion with only a few finishing touches
remaining when the leader of the anti-Christian group arrived on the
site and said: “You cannot build any church building in this village.
You are only allowed to construct a house to live in, not a church.”
Because of this instigation, construction has stopped. Gospel for
Asia-supported missionary Satyankar Gedam, pastor of the congregation
planning to meet in the building, faces discouragement.
“He has asked everyone to pray that God will remove all the obstacles
and help them complete the building without any further problems,”
reports a GFA field correspondent.
Satyankar’s ministry in the area has flourished under God’s care.
Many people are coming to know the Lord, and they know this new church
building would be a testament to God’s faithfulness.
In many parts of South Asia, having a permanent building to worship
in represents the permanency of the religion. It also establishes
credibility among the community. For Christian believers it means
having a safe place to freely worship the Lord.
The area where this construction project is taking place has a
complicated land ownership process. It is not uncommon for outside
groups to question the legality of any construction process. This causes
frequent delays in all kinds of building projects, including churches.
Satyankar asks for prayer that God will change the hearts of those who are opposing his ministry.
