Mark Moore's Blog

Update on Pastor Sudhakar

Thanks to all of you who have been praying for Pastor Sudhakar in India. I really appreciate those of you who made mention of him on your blogs. Last night, Mike Gunn finally received some news out of India. Please continue to pray.

Dear Pastor Mike Gunn,

Thank you so much for mobilizing so many people to pray for me which is a great encouragement to me in times of trouble. There is a momentum in our city as more pastors are united in fighting for the rights of christian relegion freedom...

This makes me work more vigorously for the Lord ,what may happen to me I don't care, one thing I know for sure until I finish His work on the earth nothing is going to happen to me. I am overwhelmed with joy because so many brothers and sisters in ACTS 29 are covering me with their prayers.

Sudhakar

Technorati Tags: a29i, acts 29, persecuted church

Persecution in India

Please pray for my friend Pastor Sudhakar.

Pastor Sudhakar is a church planter/pastor in India who is planting churches in the "slums" of India amongst the poorest and most outcast. God has been very gracious and has blessed the ministry of Pastor Sudhakar so that many have come to Christ. I had the privilege of spending some time with him a couple of years ago. Over the course of our meal together I sensed that I was sitting with a man who has an unwavering commitment to the gospel and an unquestionable love for the people that he serves in his church. This, I thought, is a real man of God.

Pastor Sudhakar's work in India is now a part of the Acts 29 Network and we are working to help him with training his pastors, funding, etc. It is a privilege to be in gospel partnership with him.

This week, very concerning news came from India to us from Pastor Sudhakar. I am going to let you read it in his own words:

"On 9th( Sunday) of this month a group of 20 young people came while we were worshipping and beaten me and some women of our church and in return they have lodged a counter complaint on me putting allegation on me by saying i am converting lot of Hindus into Christianity. Kindly pray for me as the case is in the court."

Then, yesterday, we received this update via a letter from him to Mike Gunn:

Dear pastor Mike Gunn, 

I am very much comforted by seeing your letter. I know there are some people who love me and pray for me which is my strength to push forward in times of trouble and persecutions.

Today the Judge will decide wether i will get anticipatry bail or not. Please pray.

Four anti- communial groups called RSS, VHP, Bajarangdal and Hindu Vahini together attacked me and our church people.

Hindu Vahini is the worst among these groups who killed two pastors brutually three years back in our city. They poured acid, cut the pastors into peaces and put them in a gunny bag and thrown thier bodies in the outskirts of the city.

These days the persecutions are increasing and as many non christians in my area are turning into christianity now they have targetted me.

I know without Gods will nothing will happen to me and at the same time i am trying to be careful and vigilant.

I really appriciate your prayers and concern for me. I will let you know the court proceedings as time goes on.

- Pastor Sudhakar

I'm posting this for three reasons. First, awareness. The idea of persecution is often times out of sight and out of mind for Christians living in the west. We must be aware of the fact that our brothers and sisters in Christ are being persecuted for their faith everyday while we sit around and gripe and complain over the "time commitment" of being involved in a small group. Second, I post this in order to implore you to pray. Please pray for Pastor Sudhakar and his church. Pray for God's grace and mercy to him during this trial and with the continual persecution of his church. Pray that in his suffering Christ would be glorified and made to look beautiful to the people of India. Finally, pray for the four groups listed -- RSS, VHP, Bajarandgal, and Hindu Vahini. Pray that the gospel would convict them of their sin and the supremacy of Jesus and that they would turn to Jesus and repentance and faith. Pray especially for the Hindu Vahini group who is responsible for the brutal execution of at least two pastors. Pray the leader of the Hindu Vahini group would be converted to the gospel like Saul of Tarsus. Pray that he would be used to reach India with the gospel.

As I receive any updates on Pastor Sudhakar I will be sure to let you know. For those of you who are pastors, would you please have your churches join our church tomorrow in praying for Pastor Sudhakar.

Technorati Tags: a29i, acts 29, persecuted church

Luther on Prayer

In a class on Reformation & Modern Church History at Covenant Theological Seminary, David Calhoun tells an excellent story about Martin Luther:

A story has been told about Luther sitting at his table at mealtime, and Luther's dog was also there. Luther's dog was almost always there. The dog's name was Topol. The kindest translation of that name would be "rascal." As the dog was there, Dr. Luther was eating and Topol was very carefully watching him eat his meat, and the dog was hoping for a morsel from Luther's hand. Luther said, "Ah, if I could only pray the way that dog looks at meat. All his thoughts are on that morsel. He thinks, wishes, and hopes about nothing else. But my heart fails because it cannot hold to prayer without wandering."

How many times have I gone to pray and found my heart wandering? Too many to count. One thing that has been of assistance to me is a book that Martin Luther wrote for his barber, instructing him how to pray. It is a very small book. Perhaps "tiny" would be a good word to describe how small it is. The size of this book is in no way related to the size of the impact that it can make on your prayer life. If you haven't read Martin Luther's "A Simple Way to Pray", I highly recommend it.

Technorati Tags: martin luther, prayer

Update on Linda

Thank you so much to all of you who have been praying for my mother-in-law, Linda. This weekend we received excellent news as the results from her various blood tests, bone scans, kidney biopsy, and stomach biopsy all came back without any evidence of myeloma or any other forms of cancer. After being sick since July 16th, she has made a dramatic turnaround in the past few days and will most likely be released from the hospital tomorrow. It looks like she will have to make some lifestyle adjustments due to weak kidneys, but we are rejoicing that she does not have myeloma, which had become our biggest fear.

It is amazing how much we live with ignorance to certain diseases and forms of cancer until they hit close to home. Although my mother-in-law appears to have received a clean bill of health, there are still countless others who do not receive the same good news that we have. Please take some time this evening to thank God for the blessing of health in your life and the lives of the ones you love.

Some of you may be on the other end of the spectrum, praying and agonizing over the suffering of a loved one, or fighting your own battle with a terminal illness; my heart breaks for you in a new way. I pray that you will be overwhelmed by the incomprehensible grace of Jesus and find in Him a promise of restoration that is never broken.

Please Pray for Linda

My mother-in-law, Linda, has been sick for several weeks now. She went into the hospital last Friday night, severely dehydrated and having lost fifteen pounds in two weeks. The doctors immediately discovered that her kidneys were not functioning properly. The initial hope was that being on IV's would reverse whatever acute symptoms she was experiencing. A week later, there has been virtually no change in her kidneys and the doctors are now concerned over other things such as high protein levels in her blood. Yesterday, she had a kidney biopsy done and we are awaiting the results (hopefully tomorrow). Today, she had a full skeletal bone scan.

At this point, the doctors are trying to determine whether or not she has myeloma, a cancer of the plasma cells. We are praying that this will be ruled out and that they will identify some other cause that is short term and curable. This past Sunday I preached in my church on praying boldly. I am convinced that the God who created heavens and the earth and who orders history is the God who hears our prayers and is gracious to us on account of Jesus. Please pray boldly with me and ask God to heal my mother-in-law.

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A Prayer

Father,

When you look at Providence Community Church you are pleased.  Pleased because you see only Christ.

If Christ were removed you would see who we really are.  A community of worthless people.  You would see liars.  You would see theifs.  You would see gossips.  You would see adulterers.  You would see men who like to look at porn.  You would see covetous women who wished their husband made more money and had a stomach like Brad Pitt.  You would see people who "amen" sermons on loving the poor and yet give very little of their income to help the poor.  You would see people hurting on Sunday mornings because they have no one who loves them, surrounded by a church full of people who don't really love them either.  You would see people singing songs with words they don't really mean.  You would see people telling each other they will call them and that they care when really they won't because they don't.  You would see a church meeting in the middle of a neighborhood full of people who haven't been impacted by the church.  You would see self-righteousness, as members of the church read this prayer and excused themselves from being found anywhere in it.

If you saw us as we are, you would be so stirred to anger that nothing would prevent you from pouring out your wrath on us in order to uphold your glory, which had been cast aside in favor of idolatry.  But, you saw Jesus as you should have seen us.  You saw him hanging on the cross covered in the filth of a self-righteous church led by a self-righteous pastor.  You treated him the way we deserved to be treated.  Now, when you see us, we are not clothed in our sin, but are clothed in the righteousness of Christ.  You treat us the way he deserved to be treated.

We are a worthless people Lord.  May we boast only in the cross.

Amen.