It is spring time again and we pray for a spiritual awakening in our life as we serve God.

The Canadian winter, just as it had been predicted by the experts,  has been long and severe with very low temperatures.  We felt  very sorry for those who had to fare the reality of it while we were in the Dominican Republic where we had a fantastic January. Later, however, it did rain quite a bit.

The time in the Dominican was well used as we kept ourselves very busy serving the needs of the poor. We were blessed with the presence of many teams and volunteers from different parts of Canada, USA, Belgium and Italy. Everyone came with great passion and zeal to work and help the poor.  Because of their presence, their love and their financial contributions, many projects were accomplished; building houses, churches, feeding children in schools, distribution of many items to needy students and a massive distribution of food delivered directly to the shacks of the poor. A truckload of food was bought and delivered containing 1500 bags of rice, sugar, salt, beans, spaghetti, milk, cooking oil, bouillon cubes and salami. What a blessing for those who received this little help. We thank God for all who made it possible.

Now I am in Canada and leaving for India on the 25th of march for another challenging time ahead. I will need your prayers as I will visit different places and make important decisions for the coming month.

We thank God for those who have been praying for the persecuted Christians in India. Please continue to do so.  From Rev. P.C. Hota in Orissa, we receive encouraging news. All the believers that had lost their houses and that were sheltered in place of refuge, have now returned to their villages with the promises of the government to help them rebuild their destroyed homes. We do not know if this will really happen, but at least in Orissa the situation seems to have calmed down. However, in other parts of the country the situation remains tense. Please read the following:

1. On February 3rd, Hindu extremists burned a believer’s house and threatened to build a Hindu temple on his land in Karnataka’s state Tumpur, Tiptur area.
2. Another Christian has been killed in Orissa state Kandhamal district. A wave of fear and shock enveloped the district late last week with the discovery of the body of a 45-year- old Hrudyananda Nayak on February 19th.
3. Hindu extremists armed with rods and hockey sticks accused a pastor of forceful conversion, assaulted and robbed him on March 9th in Tilak Pull Indra Park, Uttam Nagar, New Delhi.
4. Hindu extremists from the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) assaulted a pastor and seriously injured him on March 11 in Pathur village, Medak, Andhra Pradesh.

These are just some details, full reports are available upon request. Please continue to pray for India and help us to respond to the various needs. More