Urgent request
Dear brothers and sisters,
I’m sending this letter as a special plea for the CGGC ministry in India and Bangladesh, our two oldest missions and our presence in the least-reached part of the world. As you might know, the work began over 100 years when Miss Clara Landes left her home in Iowa and went to India to become the first Churches of God missionary. This was the fulfillment of John Winebrenner’s dream that our family of churches would be engaged with the gospel ministry around the world.
The work expanded, and today the missions in India and Bangladesh are the fastest-growing areas of the global CGGC. We praise God for the faithful work of the many church planters, evangelists, pastors, and teachers (and medical personnel in Bangladesh) who are living out the gospel.
We are privileged to support these ministries on a regular basis: our budgeted monthly support for Bangladesh is $7000, and for India it’s $5500. These funds help support church planters, school teachers, children’s school tuition, medical outreach, maintenance costs, and administrative salaries. We’re so pleased with the leadership of our Field Directors Samir Singha (in India) and Uttam Dewan (in Bangladesh)!
However, we have a problem right now in continuing our full support for these ministries. There are several reasons for this. One is distance: India and Bangladesh are very far away, and they receive very few visitors from the CGGC. This leads to the second reason: lack of connection. Because there are few visitors and no active CGGC missionaries, India and Bangladesh simply don’t get as much attention. This is not to criticize anyone; it’s just a reality we have to deal with. The third reason for the shortfall is extreme poverty. Our ministries are primarily with tribal peoples, who are the poorest of the poor in a part of the world where the average income is roughly $1 per day. This means that the 230+ churches are unable to provide for their own mission support. Added to this are the periodic famines, threats of persecution and political unrest that destabilize communities. These factors create a growing need that is outstripping our current donation levels.
Thus we in the CCM are making a direct appeal to all the CGGC. First, PRAY for the ongoing mission work in Bangladesh and India. Learn about what is happening at the CGGC.org website and on Facebook (CGGC Cross-Cultural Ministries). And please GIVE: we are so thankful for the generosity of God’s people for these and all CCM ministries. I’m not asking that you redirect your current giving, because we certainly don’t want to see other ministries suffer the loss of support. I pray that you will consider giving extra, above-and-beyond, so that God’s people in India and Bangladesh will be refreshed and encouraged by your expressions of love (2 Cor. 9:12-14).
If you would like to donate by check, please make it out to CGGC and mail it to PO Box 926, Findlay, OH 45839. Write “India” or “Bangladesh” on the memo, and we will direct it to where it is most needed. Alternatively, you can give online with a credit card. Simply go to CGGC.org and click the “GIVE” button. From there you will be taken to a secure site where you can locate the India and Bangladesh giving pages. One hundred percent of cash and check gifts go entirely to the field, while credit card donations have roughly a 2 or 3% credit card fee deducted.
If you would like to share this need with your church, we've put together a brief video. You can see the video by clicking here.
Thank you so much for giving to the work of the Lord. To God be the glory!
Your friend and fellow servant of Christ,
Pastor Ben Tobias
CCM Director
419-424-1961
[email protected]secure.cggc.org/cross-cultural-ministries
I’m sending this letter as a special plea for the CGGC ministry in India and Bangladesh, our two oldest missions and our presence in the least-reached part of the world. As you might know, the work began over 100 years when Miss Clara Landes left her home in Iowa and went to India to become the first Churches of God missionary. This was the fulfillment of John Winebrenner’s dream that our family of churches would be engaged with the gospel ministry around the world.
The work expanded, and today the missions in India and Bangladesh are the fastest-growing areas of the global CGGC. We praise God for the faithful work of the many church planters, evangelists, pastors, and teachers (and medical personnel in Bangladesh) who are living out the gospel.
We are privileged to support these ministries on a regular basis: our budgeted monthly support for Bangladesh is $7000, and for India it’s $5500. These funds help support church planters, school teachers, children’s school tuition, medical outreach, maintenance costs, and administrative salaries. We’re so pleased with the leadership of our Field Directors Samir Singha (in India) and Uttam Dewan (in Bangladesh)!
However, we have a problem right now in continuing our full support for these ministries. There are several reasons for this. One is distance: India and Bangladesh are very far away, and they receive very few visitors from the CGGC. This leads to the second reason: lack of connection. Because there are few visitors and no active CGGC missionaries, India and Bangladesh simply don’t get as much attention. This is not to criticize anyone; it’s just a reality we have to deal with. The third reason for the shortfall is extreme poverty. Our ministries are primarily with tribal peoples, who are the poorest of the poor in a part of the world where the average income is roughly $1 per day. This means that the 230+ churches are unable to provide for their own mission support. Added to this are the periodic famines, threats of persecution and political unrest that destabilize communities. These factors create a growing need that is outstripping our current donation levels.
Thus we in the CCM are making a direct appeal to all the CGGC. First, PRAY for the ongoing mission work in Bangladesh and India. Learn about what is happening at the CGGC.org website and on Facebook (CGGC Cross-Cultural Ministries). And please GIVE: we are so thankful for the generosity of God’s people for these and all CCM ministries. I’m not asking that you redirect your current giving, because we certainly don’t want to see other ministries suffer the loss of support. I pray that you will consider giving extra, above-and-beyond, so that God’s people in India and Bangladesh will be refreshed and encouraged by your expressions of love (2 Cor. 9:12-14).
If you would like to donate by check, please make it out to CGGC and mail it to PO Box 926, Findlay, OH 45839. Write “India” or “Bangladesh” on the memo, and we will direct it to where it is most needed. Alternatively, you can give online with a credit card. Simply go to CGGC.org and click the “GIVE” button. From there you will be taken to a secure site where you can locate the India and Bangladesh giving pages. One hundred percent of cash and check gifts go entirely to the field, while credit card donations have roughly a 2 or 3% credit card fee deducted.
If you would like to share this need with your church, we've put together a brief video. You can see the video by clicking here.
Thank you so much for giving to the work of the Lord. To God be the glory!
Your friend and fellow servant of Christ,
Pastor Ben Tobias
CCM Director
419-424-1961
[email protected]secure.cggc.org/cross-cultural-ministries