The Love of Christ

Many ministries have been appealing to donors for "end of the year" donations. Some of you probably feel that we are like religious beggars or "always asking for money". To be sure, some organizations may be like that, and might not always have the right motivation for what they are doing. But we hope you can understand: many ministries, including Right Hand Ministries, are not asking for their own benefit. We have many goals and desires which we believe GOD has placed upon our hearts to fulfill. Not everything requires money, but much of it does. So in RHM's case, because of the love of Christ which reaches out through us to the poor, we make appeals to you the donor to help us fulfill what are ultimately His desires to bring blessing, healing and salvation to people's lives in India. 

We don't beg, but simply ask you to pray about participating in this ministry with us. The "end of the year" efforts are more aimed toward those who, for whatever reason, tend to give some of their financial blessings at that time. But in reality, the invitation to give is always there, throughout the year. Below is the love of Christ in action, Brother Raju and his wife Pavani inviting Sister Bharathi (one of our widows, her husband dying with AIDS) and her son Arun into their home for a meal and fellowship. Bharathi and Arun live in a hut in a poor tribal village. Raju & Pavani don't do this for the photo, but have a real love for the people, now heading up our children's ministry.

Chintaya palem girls doing dance

Chintaya palem girls doing dance: 

Click onto the above link to see the Christmas program was conducted in the village of Kondubotlavaripalem. Chintayapalem girls doing Telugu song and dance.

Happy Birthday Gani!

Happy 12th Birthday to Gani! Surrounded by cute little ones from the same hostel where he and his brother Simha live, Gani is being honored on his birthday. His real name is Ganesh (a Hindu god, human body with an elephant's head), but was given the nickname Gani. Simha is short for Narasimha, which is a form of Vishnu, another Hindu god, half man ("nara") and half lion ("simha"). Very nice boys, assisted by RHM when having any need, but now staying in a hostel because of their mother's poor economic situation. For those who don't know, a "hostel" is a place where generally the poor might send their children to live and receive a free education, food, etc. Simha and Gani stay in a Christian hostel, and seem to be very happy there.

Brother Bhaskar sharing word

Brother Bhaskar sharing word: 

Click onto the above link to see the children meeting and brother Bhaskar sharing word to them.

Christmas in the Colony of Parrots

Although parrots are rarely seen around this village today, it seems that years ago (when the village was named), there must have been many. The name of the village where this Christmas program was held is called Chilakala Colony, "Chilakala" meaning parrots. Brothers Bhaskara Rao (right) and Peter (left) are with happy children from this colony who had just received their Scripture gifts. Pray for lasting fruit from the 11 Christmas programs which RHM has sponsored thus far. There's one other program which we still hope to conduct, but some of the families and children in that village have not yet returned to the village. Tribal people often migrate from place to place looking for work, or leave the village for weeks or months when they find a job in another location.

Remembering the Poor

Paul wrote in Galatians 2:10, "They desired only that we should remember the poor, the very thing which I also was eager to do." We encourage you to do a study in the Bible concerning His Heart for the poor, needy and afflicted. Volumes could be written (and have been) concerning the Lord's mercy, defense, judgments, instructions, etc. concerning the poor and broken. We don't lift up the ministry of RHM above other ministries, because all that is truly of GOD is important. But the "Father of the fatherless and Defender of the widow" (Psalms 68:5) has put the needy of India within the hearts of us at RHM, and we also are "eager to do" all that we can to help make a difference in their lives and lead them to JESUS.

Please consider RHM if you have a desire to bless some ministry before the end of 2021. Our main burden, besides His love for any who are poor and broken, is for the fatherless and the widows. "Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, to visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world." James 1:27

Chandramma (one of our widows) giving cake to her granddaughter
Deborah on her 5th birthday in late October. Deborah is one of the 
"fatherless" of Psalms 68:5 and James 1:27, her Daddy abandoning
the mother and 2 children for another woman in early 2020.

 

New Blankets for Our Elderly

Sisters Jayamma, Vistranthamma, Subbulamma, Nagendramma when receiving new blankets in November. We currently have 167 elderly, 126 of them widows or widowers. The elderly who are widowed are almost all financially sponsored by World Challenge in Colorado Springs. The remainder are still married, were abandoned, or are handicapped or never married, all sponsored financially by RHM's elderly ministry. Regardless of the source of funds, we now have 5 faithful brothers in India who are implementing the ministry with the elderly. There's about 15 additional pastors and ministers who are also helping with this ministry, many of the elderly attending their churches. Please keep the widows & elderly ministry in your prayers. The more funds we have, the more elderly we are able to assist (monetary help, medical help or reimbursement, house repairs, etc.).

Thankful the Rains Stopped!

In late November and early December it seemed that the monsoon season on the east coast of India would never end. But thankfully the rains stopped, that being the Lord's mercy since crops had already been damaged, homes/huts flooded, and thousands of Christmas programs throughout that region of India in jeopardy. These little girls are doing a Christian dance or action song (only Christian songs will be played in any of our meetings) in a village that was largely flooded in the first week of December. But by the time this meeting took place on the 21st, it had not rained for about 2 weeks and the situation was looking much better. Praise the Lord! 

Girls doing dance

Girls doing dance: 

Click onto the above link to see the Christmas program that was conducted in the village of Devunimanyam. Chintaya palem girls doing Christmas song & dance.

CHRISTmas, RHM Update

CHRISTmas, RHM Update

Please open the update to see what's happening in the India ministry these days. There are 18 beautiful photos, most of them from Christmas programs which have been taking place this month. So many beautiful little faces, and beautiful wrinkled faces to see as well. There's also some very important prayer requests. Bless you, and have a blessed Christmas, always remembering the REAL REASON for this season. 

Precious little ones watching a puppet show during the Christmas program in KB Palem.

Christmas message

Christmas message: 

Click onto the above link to see the video of a Christmas program that was conducted earlier in December in the village of  Devunimanyam. Brother Prashanth is sharing the Word about Christmas. 

Christmas Play in India

Shepherds, a king, wise men, angels, Joseph, Mary...all the usual characters found in the Christmas plays. According to Matthew chapter 2, we know the "wise men" didn't show up until later, but perhaps for convenience they are usually included at the manger scene. This was the precious cast of actors in today's Christmas program in Karlapalem. Your donations to RHM provided for a total of 12 Christmas programs this year, still 4 or 5 remaining. Thank you so much! So many children and adults have been blessed, both physically and spiritually through these meetings. Please continue to pray.

Christmas Singing

Below are some boys singing in the village of Golapalem. Bro. Prasanth's little boy, Benny, has one of the microphones; it probably wasn't easy to get it away from him. Continue to pray for these programs, 5 more after today.

Keep us in your prayers and thoughts also concerning the end of the year giving to RHM. We have some projects we hope to begin implementing for the widows and for some poor families after the first of next year, but it will largely depend upon available funds. 

Widows and elderly meeting

Widows and elderly meeting: 

Click onto to the above link to see the valuable prayer time with widows and elderly. Brother Anesh is sharing word.

The TRUE Meaning of Christmas

A pastor sharing the true meaning of Christmas during our 4th Christmas program in a tribal village called Nandayapalem. Going into the retail stores during this season can make us wonder, "What are all these people in here for?" Great sales for the stores (many of them not even wanting to use the word "Christmas" because of the CHRIST), lots of activity and anticipation about the "holidays", but how many ever think about the CHRIST of Christmas?

In India, much less than 5% of the population profess to know JESUS, and only the Lord knows how many of those truly love Him. Most of India knows little or nothing about Him, so these programs are a great opportunity to share about WHY He came to this earth. Some unbelievers (including children from unbelieving families who have never been inside a church) will attend these meetings to see what's going on, or because they've been invited, or in the children's case, to be part of the excitement. Pray for real and lasting fruit.

"Semi-Christmas" in Devuni Manyam

Not sure why, but a common term for the Christmas programs in this part of India is "Semi-Christmas". This program actually took place today in the small village of Devuni Manyam. Our time zone in the central part of the US is 11 and a half hours behind the India time zone (India only having one time zone). So night time here on the 17th is morning time on the 18th in India. 

In the below photo, happy children are holding up their gifts which all have Scriptures on them, which hopefully they will place on the walls of their little homes, perhaps most of them huts. Bro. Bhaskara Rao (left) is the children's minister who is leading most of our 9 or 10 Christmas programs this year. Bro. Prasanth (right) is a pastor who is making all the arrangements for the programs, and sometimes sharing the Word in the meetings also. Pray for the remaining 6 or 7 programs (one is still undecided), for His favor and anointing upon them.

Christmas Joy

Brother Prasanth (right) with brothers & sisters from the villages. Most of them are part of our widows & elderly ministry. The had just received new Christmas dresses after a special meeting on Dec. 11th for our elderly and children whom we assist.

Some of them have suffered much in 2021. The sister on the right, Ratna Kumari, lost her daughter-in-law this year (don't remember how she died), and then Ratna Kumari's son abandoned the 2 boys. One boy is now in a hostel, and Ratna Kumari is caring for the younger 11 year old who is mentally impaired. The sister on the left, Sugunamma, lost her husband this year to "black fungus", a strange disease that attacks some of the people while they are trying to recover from Covid. Both she and her husband had Covid, but she recovered. So nice to see them smile!!!

Precious Sisters Taking Baptism

These 2 sisters are Amrutha and Rani, taking baptism in the Bay of Bengal. In the first photo, the girl who has come out of the water is Rani, whom RHM assists in her children's ministry (Sunday School classes and daily tutoring of children in her village). The 2nd photo is of the pastor sharing a few words with Amrutha before being baptized. Amrutha also helps with the SS classes and tutoring sometimes, but works fulltime in the medical field. Pray for the spiritual growth of these 2 precious sisters, both in their 20's.  

Special Christmas Meeting for Elders & Children

Our very first Christmas meeting in 2021. In some parts of India, the 2nd Saturday of each month is usually a school holiday. So we have chosen the 2nd Saturday to have a monthly gathering of many of the widows, elderly, children and other family members which we are involved with in ministry (it's difficult to schedule any other day in which we are confident the children would be available). This month we decided to make this meeting also about the birth of Christ. It's amazing how many people can fit inside a small church building!

Village Christmas Programs Begin

Below is our first Christmas program in the villages in 2021, this one in a village we call KB Palem. These are great opportunities to share the Gospel, sing, pray, distribute snacks & gifts. Many people will come to some of these type of meetings who will not normally come, so trusting the Lord to touch and save many lives during these meetings.

Look at those beautiful, smiling faces as Bro. Bhaskara Rao does a puppet show conversation with one of the village boys. Usually, the village children who participate with him have not practiced, but this brother does a very nice job in getting them to interact with him, and it brings much joy to the children. Please pray for the next 7 programs, scheduled to conclude on the 22nd of this month.

Hepsiba saying Scriptures

Hepsiba saying Scriptures: 

Click onto the above link to see Hespiba (to whom RHM will assist if she or her family is in need) saying Bible Scriptures in Telugu.

Mailing List

If you want your address to be added to our postal or email mailing lists, please let us know. We try to send out a newsletter once a month (by email or postal mail), although that doesn't always happen because of a heavy work load. For sure we try to send out a ministry update once a month by email, and special updates when there's any urgent needs or requests. You can submit your email and/or postal address to us through our RHM website, but it's more likely to reach us at: rhmforhim@gmail.com

Below is Shainy (left, 10 years old) and her brother Srujan (12) after receiving new Bibles. They lost their Daddy to Covid in April of this year, and live with their mother and grandmother. Precious children.

Daniel sharing word

Daniel sharing word: 

Click onto the above link to see the special meeting for Children and widows. Brother Daniel is sharing word.

New Blankets for Children

Below is Bro. Hanock after giving new blankets to Sister Bharathi and her son Arun. Bharathi is in our widows program (mostly sponsored via World Challenge). RHM mostly provides the funds for the elderly couples, handicapped women and those who never married. Very thankful for our partnership with WC. Bharathi's husband died of AIDS when Arun was a baby, then discovered that she also has HIV. But since the Lord brought her into our lives, her countenance has changed so much. Very thankful to our GOD! 
"...He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted...to comfort all who mourn...to give them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness..." Isaiah 61:1-3

Extra Tutoring, Opportunity to Share Christ

Below is Rani's "tuition class" (tutoring) she is conducting 5 or 6 days a week. Most of these children are from Hindu families, their parents sending them to Rani's house ("Rani" means "queen") for extra tutoring, usually after school hours. Rani and her sister Amrutha also try to share Christ with the little ones, telling stories or teaching songs. Some children are also learning skits and songs these days for an upcoming Christmas program. We help Rani so that she can conduct the tutoring classes for free, another incentive for their parents to send them.

Visiting Blessy's home

Visiting Blessy's home: 

Click onto the above link to see video of visiting Blessy's home. Brother Raju is explaining. Blessy seems shy in the video, but she is generally a happy girl, and she is very thankful that the Lord brought us into her life (including you the donor, and those who are praying for them). After her 10th grade she, her grandmother and aunty were crying to the Lord, not knowing how she would be able to continue her studies. Now 2 years later, she has started her first year of college. Praise the Lord. Pray for Blessy. 

Sharing the Word at Birthday Gathering

For many believers in India, pretty much any and every gathering will involve singing praise to the Lord, prayer and sharing the Word of GOD. No different with the birthday celebrations. The little girl in the red and white dress, Prasanna, turned 6 in October, and before they cut the cake and sang "Happy Birthday" to Prasanna they had a time of singing and a message. Here they are listening to a Brother share from the Bible. On the left is Bro. Raju's wife Pavani, she and Raju leading our children's ministry. Next to her is Prasanna's aunty Teja, and several other relatives also attended. Some were not believers, so it was a nice opportunity for them also to hear from GOD's Word. Pray for little Prasanna, not being supported by RHM, but dear to our hearts.

Widows and elderly ministry

Widows and elderly ministry: 

Click onto the above link to see the widows and elderly ministry in Thunuguta, gathered together to have a time of prayer. Here they are singing a song, their pastor on the left.