Truth Evangelistic Ministry, Inc.

Unless otherwise specified, all reports are from Brother Chuck

“And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not. As we have therefore opportunity, let us do good unto all men, especially unto them who are of the household of faith.”  -  Galations 6:9-10

Praise be to our Lord for giving us the opportunities to change these children’s lives. Because of your prayers and your giving, the children pictured below can now live normal lives. Thank you for allowing TEM to show the love of Christ around the world.

Herby fell off a cliff several years ago in Haiti, and his left shoulder sustained a puncture wound. The wound was infected, and the infection destroyed part of the bone of his upper left arm. He needed surgery to remove the old destroyed bone and to clear up the infection. His arm is completely healed now, but if he had not had this surgery he would have lost his arm. Herby is a Christian; we are praying that, having seen the love of Christ, his father will join him soon.

Dielipole, another young boy in Haiti, broke his left femur (upper leg bone). He needed surgery to repair the bone, which had not mended properly. He had a severe limp, and he was in pain most of the time. Now after his surgery he is running around with the other boys!

Divya’s mom had taken her to Muslim mosques and Hindu temples trying to get the demons cast out of her daughter, and she had received no help. She brought her to a Christian church where I was preaching while I was in India, and asked me to try to cast out the demons. After prayer I asked Divya’s mother if she had been having headaches; she said that she had. I asked if she had taken her to a doctor, and she said that she had not. I assumed that it was because of the cost. I didn’t even have to think about the decision to send her to a doctor. She was found to have a neurological problem that could be treated with six treatments. She has now started on medication, and is already improving. Praise God! Vigi, my good friend in India, wrote that now they have begun to believe that Jesus alone is God, and He alone can give her good health. I’m sure we can gain this family for Christ through our good deeds and love.

Lachami and her family were in a car accident in Pakistan last year, and her parents were killed. Pastor Suhail and his wife took Lachami in. Her jaw was injured in the accident, and for almost a year she was not able to open her mouth; the only nourishment she received was through a straw. Now that she has recovered from her surgery she can open her mouth, eat solid food, and talk normally for the first time since the accident.

Unless otherwise specified, all reports are from Brother Chuck

Unless otherwise specified, all reports are from Brother Chuck

This morning Viji’s wife Gigi came by in an auto (as they call it – auto rickshaw) on her way to the college where she teaches, and picked me up so I could go to the Meenakshi Amman Temple. As I mentioned, this temple was built in 1560 AD. The temple attracts 15,000 visitors a day, around 25,000 on Fridays, and has an annual revenue of 60 million. There are an estimated 33,000 sculptures in the temple, and it is on the list of top 30 nominees of the “New Seven Wonders of the World.” The annual 10-day Meenakshi Tirukalyanam festival, celebrated during April-May, attracts 1 million visitors each year. After the driver dropped Gigi off, he took me to the temple so I could take some photos. When I was finished the driver took me back to the hotel, where I had a great afternoon rest. Yet another 105-degree day – the heat really takes it out of you.

Viji came by around 6 p.m. and picked me up to go to my last speaking engagement at a church in Madurai. It is a small church, still under construction, with a roof, but there are no funds yet for the walls and floor. Again we had a great time sharing the Gospel. Most of the congregation was Hindu, and hopefully we planted a seed that the Lord will increase. We prayed over many of the people, and afterward we all enjoyed dinner. There were many kids there, and they all wanted to shake my hand or touch me since most of them had never seen a foreigner. When you see these happy little kids, you see why Jesus wanted us to come to Him as little children.

Tomorrow I will be headed home. If it is God’s will, I should arrive Friday afternoon. I’m going to miss preaching every day – it has been a real joy.

Unless otherwise specified, all reports are from Brother Chuck

Today is a day that I have been looking forward to – going to The Light of Hope Center Retreat and Learning Center. It is such a blessing for the young people who get to come here and learn about the Lord. Each year Viji selectes young men from the surrounding villages who show a desire to know about the Lord, and puts them in the program; it is free to these students. They complete the school in 1 year. I believe the school is sponsored by mostly Americans, and TEM is blessed to be a part of this work. When the students graduate they will go back to their villages; Viji has said that 70% of them continue in the ministry – what an awesome achievement!

We started session with the young men about 9:30 a.m. I talked with them about my life and ministry, and about how ministry isn’t easy but the rewards are great. I have always said that my walk with the Lord is an adventure – He has taken me to places that I never dreamed of, including India. I showed them where Haiti is on the map, and then I showed them a DVD of the Rocky Bayou Christian School youth mission trip from last year, students from Niceville FL. They loved it. Afterward they asked many questions about ministry and how you start one, and both Viji and I told them that neither of us ever wanted to or thought of starting a ministry. That was God’s idea.

When we finished I walked around the campus while Viji attended to some business. Several new buildings have been built since I was here 3 years ago. Someone donated money for a dormitory, which you will see in the photos, for a youth camp they have each year in January. Girls and boys will come from all the churches here for several days to have fun and learn about the Lord. There is also a questhouse that has been built for people to stay in when they come to work on the campus. God is so good to His servants who endure the trials of the world. Viji talked about when they didn’t even have land for this project, and then when he bought it there was nothing but a big hole in the ground where someone had dug a well, and it was full of snakes and all the land was full of bush. Now look at the photos and see how God has made this a little paradise.

After my tour was over and Viji was finished, we headed back to Madurai . We didn’t get here until after 2 p.m., and we both were exhausted. It was another 105-degree day – the breeze was even hot. I came in and went to the restaurant and ate some ice cream to cool me off, and then took a little nap.

Viji and his family came by to take me to dinner. I had no idea where we would go, but it was a nice surprise – we went to Domino’s Pizza. Yes, they have one here in Madurai! I’m sure my body was saying, ‘finally, something familiar.’ I think Nesha, Viji’s daughter, had been craving pizza. She is pregnant and expecting next month, so I was happy she was craving some American food.

Tomorrow I will take one of the little rickshaws to Meenakshi Amman Temple. This very large temple was built in 1560 AD. I have been there before, but I want to take some photos to put on the website to show how many gods the people here worship.

To learn more about Light of Hope, please go to their website, www.lightofhopemission.org, and see if the Lord leads you to support this ministry.

Unless otherwise specified, all reports are from Brother Chuck

The first part of this day was a day of rest. We had nothing planned this morning, so I had time to write the entry for the website for April 28. (It is now midnight here, April 30, and 1:30 p.m. April 29 Central time as I write this update. Sometimes it’s a little hard to remember.) After I wrote the entry this morning, I took another walk around the area. I made a mistake and waited until noon; it was 107 degrees. My camera was so hot it was hard to hold. I could only walk around for about an hour, it was just hot! When I returned I had lunch and did some studying before Viji picked me up around 5 p.m. to go to a church in Watrap.

When Viji picked me up we were supposed to be at the church at 6:30. I had asked him if we could stop somewhere so I could buy some sandals. Whenever we enter a church or someone’s house, we take our shoes off. My shoes and socks are not only very hot, but also inconvenient to take off each time when I could just slip sandals off. We found some at the first stop, and afterward we had some tea on the corner. It should have only taken us 45 minutes to get to the Watrap Church, but there was a Hindu festival in progress that blocked the street. It took us over 2 hours but, after going down some very rough, dark roads, we finally made it after 7:30. This church was, as usual, not what we would call a church. It was a room down a very dark alley, as you will see in the photos. There were about 40 people there, and they had waited patiently for us. Most, if not all, of them have never seen a foreigner, so I think they were excited to have one come to preach! After we prayed with many of the congregation, Pastor Shiyam Kumar and his wife served us food. I thought Baptists ate a lot, but it is their custom to feed you, so everywhere we go we eat afterward, and sometimes before.

When we had finished eating, it was time to head back to Madurai. We tried to go back by the main road, but the Hindu festival was still going on. This time we had to take a small detour, so it didn’t take quite as long, but we didn’t get back until about 11:30 p.m. Early in the morning we are going to the Bible College that Viji has, and I look forward to talking to his students.

Thank you again for all your prayers. God bless.