B.A.S.I.C. NEWSLETTER #165

In the year 2008-2009, the total number of seminary working days is 204.
The CLCI Seminary has a three year course.

CLCI ANNUAL REPORT – 2009

Outreach:
The Lord has been good to us in this year 2008-2009.  This year the Lord has opened amazingly many doors to start new CLCI congregations had has been the beginning of our CLCI ministry in many new rural and tribal villages of Andhra Pradesh State.  During a tour of outreach in January, nearly a thousand members heard the good news of the Gospel and a total of 13 new churches received ministry.

CLCI Public Gospel Meetings: –  We organize CLCI Public gospel meetings several times a year in various villages.  Usually these public Gospel meetings last 3 days and services are held in the morning and in the evening.  Anywhere from 500-1000 people attend these meetings.  The focus of the meetings is gospel music and sermons intended to attract people of other faiths and to introduce them to Jesus Christ.  Meetings are held in open air under temporary tents and sermons are given in loud speakers.  Many people have accepted Jesus through these meetings, got baptized and have started to attend church.

This year we have conducted ten ‘action’ packer summer Public Gospel night meetings at Mutluru, Kondabalivaripalm, Machavaram, Yajali (Guntur Dt), Iabrahimpatnam, Sitanagaram (Krishna Dr), China ganjam, Uppugundura (Prakasam Dt), and Sarpavaram, Venkatapurm, three villages at East Godavari District.  As you know India lives in the villages.  So mainly we concentrated in villages.  The total participants were nearly 9,8000.  Evey public meeting started with sincere salutations and supplications to our God Almighty.  Every night meeting started with joyful singing led by our CLCI choir team.  People gathered spontaneously and with expectation participated in these meetings without much publicity.  The CLCI word of God ignited the young minds on the purpose of their existence on earth.  The inspiring messages from our CLCI leaders and pastors refreshed many newcomers, and promised the way to salvation and eternal life.  The word of the Lord penetrated the hearts of many newcomers for life changing and dynamic Christian life.  The word through the guidance of the Holy Spirit channeled each individual to take the right decision in life.  In total during these public gospel meetings we have performed 146 baptisms. Jesus Christ was the ultimate winner in the hearts of many people including youngsters.

Annual Report on CLCI Bible Correspondence Course – 2009

2 Tim. 3:14-15 “But you must continue in the things, which you have learned and been assured of, knowing from whom you have learned them, and that from childhood you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.”

At the October Joint Leaders’ Conference in Nellore, India Pastor Jyothi Benjamin began with this passage. Not all have learned the Scriptures from infancy, and so the correspondence course can fill that void. Advertisements continue to be put in newspapers, telephone directories, etc. The course is free to applicants. Up to this year since 1993 426 students have completed it. At the CLCI Seminary Graduation again last June 15th Correspondence Course students ten in number also received certificates of completion. Pastor informs us, “We are glad to inform you that we have been receiving inquiries from Hindu and Muslim people and also from other churches to take this course…Many Hindus and Muslims are silently accepting Christ as their Savior. We are praying that through them, someday their entire families could come to Christ. There won’t be any outside pressure for them to take this course. If one person from a family is converted, he could guide the entire family in his own manner. In this way this Bible correspondence course is making up the souls to hold Christ. The Holy Spirit has been working in them through this ‘invisible way.'” May God be praised! And may this course continue its work on hearts and minds, taking every thought captive to obey Christ.

Tracts  Distribution-CLCI
Generally we use weekends for evangelism, house to house tract distribution.Many young men who were drenched in the CLCI youth camps at Nidubrolu became evangelists for these outreach programs.  The evangelists formed themselves in Nehemiah teams and women in Deborah teams and have been going out on outreach  to villages and visitation evangelism to slums and hospitals in the neighborhood.  New souls for Jesus! Villages for Jesus!!  India for Christ!!!  These are our CLCI’s slogans and heart beat during the outreach.  Gospel processions were held.  Souls were saved.  It was a dawn of realization of what God could do through “Just ordinary people” (I Sam. 17:33)

New methods of evangelism were introduced where normal methods failed.  We have been doing good in Silent Street Witnessing aiming to reach the so call “unreachable”.   Young men would stand in busy street corners, road junctions, market places and bus stations holding gospel placards like —You need Jesus, Only Way Jesus, Join Jesus-Joy in Jesus, Jesus Satisfies and so on.  Reaching the sinners out-where-they-are!   The witnesses would hand out the tract, Good News of Deliverance, to the inquirers.

CLCI Film Ministry: – As you know Film ministry is more effective especially among the illiterate Indian tribal and village people.  During night times we have been presenting Christian films like Jesus film and some Christian Plays, dramas and devotional singing programs in various villages.  With this strategy, we have been achieving very good success in doing mission work in many rural areas of Andhra Pradesh State.e  It has been giving our church an opportunity to further God’s Kingdom with our many other brothers and sisters in the rural communities.

The CLCI film ministry team was provided with an LCD projector, amplifiers,  loud speakers and portable generator with gas lights.  Using LCD projector in the outreach have been giving tremendous response from the people.  Indian villagers are always fascinated by movies.  Often we show the films multiple times in the same village, sometimes as many as 10 times.  And even though nowadays many villagers have CD players and TV’s, they still come out.  Part of the draw might simply be that Indians love movies.  As you know Telugu film Industry based in Hyderabad, produces more feature films than Hollywood.  Actors are revered in India.  We preach the gospel during the day and in the evening show the Jesus Film or other Christian films.  Most of the Indian villages were filled with hold back Hindus.  Hindus have a very strong belief in their gods.  To say Jesus Christ is the only Savior is not easy for them to accept.  Why is not my god also the way?  Many times they ask like this.  The JESUS film changed that.  Suddenly, here was Jesus, walking, talking and performing miracles right before their eyes.  Seeing Jesus on the big screen was a great feeling for many.

This film ministry draws people’s attention towards CLCI and it becomes the rough beginning of churches.  Starting churches is just what we had in mind.  It’s not just show and go.  We are building new churches with the help of this CLCI film ministry.  We are hoping that with this film ministry more people will be added to the CLCI.  We firmly know that “Seeing is Believing”.