Menu:

Your help is much needed

Feb, 2010:
Rev. Fred Osborn, president of JOI mission seeks those who have a vision of a great revival and a passion to reach tens of millions throughout India for Christ and His Kingdom. As the Spirit of God moves throughout Indias' diverse makeup of peoples groups and communities then JOI missions will be there to participate in a manner that brings the light of the glory of the good news of Jesus Christ our savior and Lord.

To volunteer time or to support the misson, contact Fred Osborn at

EMail

India - Religion:



Parent Ministry

Bibles For All Ministry


External Links:

- GospelCom

- Voice_Martyrs

- William Carey

- Classics

                                                                                                         January 2010

Dear All,  
 
       Well, I can't believe another year has gone by! So much has happened since my return to India in May that it is hard to keep up. And December was no exception for the many, many diverse opportunities for ministry here in India.
 
   
Image021.jpg image by frederickosbMinistry in village destroyed by floods.
 
   Shortly after my last report, I traveled to the Kurnool distict of this State that was hit hard by the devasting floods that swept through a major river valley a few hours to the south of  Hyderabad. Even after visiting the area and seeing with my own eyes the evidence of the flood, it was still hard for me to imagine what it must have been like before the flood waters receeded. We passed through a small town that was completely covered in water when the floods hit. My hosts described to me what it was like there: everything was under about 20 feet of water, and there were bodies of animals and people washed up in the city for days after the flood waters began to receed. People lost everything - rich and poor alike suffered the loss of all their life-long possessions in a matter of hours.
 
       I was deeply moved by the faith of the small community of Christians we visited there. All that remained of their village were the foundations of their houses. A few were living in tents supplied by the government, but most lived in makeshift huts with palm leaf walls and roofs made of plastic tarps. We asked the Pastor over that village what they needed most and he told us mosquito nets and Bibles. So we brought a small supply of both and handed them out after the service. What impressed me was how they could come and worship God with praise and thanksgiving while sitting on the ground in the midst of the ruins that were once their homes and businesses. It was a testament of their faith in God. We finished the evening with a small candle light Christmas service. These Christians were truly lights in a very dark place.
 
After returning to Hyderabad we continued with our New Testament Survey course with the pastors. The local businessman who is helping to sponsor this group provided a new shirt and pants for each of the pastors and I provided for a special Christmas cake which we all shared.
 
DSC00592.jpg image by frederickosb J.J. Institute of Information Technology
DSC00599-1.jpg image by frederickosb
 
        Following that, I was invited to address about 300 students at a technical college about one hour from Hyderabad. The school is owned and operated by Christians, so unlike American schools, they are able to invite speakers for special events who can present the Gospel to the students. Because it is an English curriculum school, this was one of the rare times I did not need an interpreter. I presented to the teachers, staff and students the Christian world view contrasted with the other world views.
 
       The following day, my hosts at the college event invited me to speak at a small village meeting. Again my audience was mostly Hindu. 
  

DSC00620.jpg image by frederickosbFrom L-R: Shashi (who runs the Technical College) and her sister-in-law wearing the garb of  Banjara tribal woman at our visit to her village
 
DSC00642.jpg image by frederickosbSharing the Gospel at a village meeting.
 
       I felt a very uncomfortable sharing a Christmas sermon at this villge meeting. I am used to speaking to mostly Christian gatherings, but here I felt in my spirit a very strong resistance to the Word. Like seeds sown on hard soil, I sensed little of what I said was penetrating the hearts and minds of the hearers. I was a bit dejected after the meeting and did not say much to anyone. But a young woman who came with a group from the college sat next to me and told me how much she was ministered to by the message. So in the end, I did not feel that the moment was completely lost.
 
        Christmas Eve I regained my "Christmas spirit" attending a candle light service at Pearl City, my Hyderabad home church. It was a beautiful time of worship and fellowship, and a time to wish warm greetings to folks I am gradually getting to know and who are getting to know me.
  
DSC00666.jpg image by frederickosbWishing a "Merry Christmas" to my Pearl City friends  Associate Pastors Prassana (L) and Anand (R). It is my delight to know these humble and faithful men of God.
 
        I was blessed to share Christmas Day with day with Pastor Yesu, his wife and children and another Christian family in my building. We also had a few children from the building join us. After a small worship service and a Christmas Day message, we shared food and a Christmas cake. Later they took pieces of cake around to all the neighbors and wished them all a Merry Christmas. We discovered neighbor's son visiting his Christian parents. He is a Christian in a personal and spiritual crisis; he asked me to come and talk and pray with him. So I finished my Christmas Day sharing the Word of God and the meaning of that day with this brother struggling with his faith.
 
       There was little time to savour the afterglow of Christmas celebrations before I was off once more, flying down to Chennai to share in New Year's worship and celebrations with Pastor Manickam & family. New Year's Day is a big event in India and most churches welcome in the New Year with prayer and worship. Most churches hold "Watch Night" services that begin around 9 or 10 in the evening and last until 3 or 4 o'clock in the morning. Pastor Manickam's church is no exception. So we worshiped, praised, and prayed in 2010 and around 1 AM I was called forward to preach the New Year's sermon. 
  
DSC00688.jpg image by frederickosbPastor Manickam's Ministry Team. I was honored by Pastor Manickam to be given a new Dhoti and white shirt to wear along with the rest of his ministers.
  
       New Year's Day I shared a message from 1 John "Perfect Love That Casts Out All Fear" at one of Pastor Manickam's small branch churches in a slum area not far from his main church. I was able to tie the message into his 2010 faith promise word for his people from Joel 2:21, "Be not afraid, O land; be glad and rejoice. Surely the Lord has done great things." At the close, we gave Tamil Bibles to all those who were too poor to afford one.  One man, a Hindu convert, received the very first Bible he ever own in his life.
 
DSC00706.jpg image by frederickosbGiving the precious Word of God to the poor. A great way to start a new year of Bibles for All ministry!
 
       April is racing ahead of me when I will be coming home to the US for a visit. Still there is much to be done here and many challenges for ministry are before me - plus some Visa problems to sort out so I will be able to continue my work here. Please remember the following in your prayers:
 
  • This month I will complete my notes for the New Testament Survey Course I am teaching. I have several more projects on the table waiting for me to start. Please pray the Lord will give me discernment for which project to start next and for wisdom to write the material.
  • February, I will return to Orissa for a long-awaited Pastors' Leadership Conference. I have had to seriously alter my plans and scale back the number of pastors invited because of lack of sponsors for the pastors. But, by God's grace, we will still have the conference with at least 50 pastors. The date and place have been set; the invitations will go out this month; and final arrangements will be complete in plenty of time. Please pray for more sponsors for this conference. The cost to sponsor a pastor is $20.
  • At the same time as the Orissa Pastors' Leadership Conference, I will be making my first visit to the very northeastern corner of this State. I will having another conference there with about 50 more pastors from the villages around Visak. Please pray for this conference to go well.
  • March will be a very, very busy month for me. The first week of March we will wrap up the New Testament Survey Course for Pastors. We plan a special graduation service and dinner for the pastors and their families. I will need extra funds for this, so please help if you can. Pray for these pastors and that all will complete this course.
  • Also in March, I will wrap up my stay here with a Pastors' Conference and Gospel meeting in the Kurnool District with Pastor Manickam's Bethel Vision and Mission workers in Giddalur. Please pray for these meetings to go well and for many pastors to attend. Also pray for this Gospel meeting, and that many souls will be touched.
  • After the meetings in Kurnool, I will have just enough time to prepare everything here for my return to the US for a short visit. If anyone would like for me to come to your church or home group to speak to you personally about the work here in India, please let me know so I can arrange my schedule to come and see you.

 

God bless you all and thank you so much for your prayers and financial support. I hope and pray each of you will be blessed in by the Lord in a special way in 2010.

 
Frederick Osborn
India Field Director
Bibles for All Ministries

Bibles For All
"Jesus Over India"
P.O. Box 1689Cartersville, Ga. 30120
(678) 986-8394 Bob Binkley, President (USA)
91-9505235008 Frederick Osborn, Field Director (India)
www.biblesforall.com

Donations       EMail




                                     
                                        October 2009
 
Dear Friends and Family,
 
It's hard to believe another month has passed since my last update. So much happens every month that it's hard for me to keep track of the time, and as each month passes the work only increases.
 
DSC00391.jpg Yapral Youth Meeting image by frederickosbYapral Youth Meeting - Shared on "Vision and Mission"
 
 
In the last month I had the opportunity to share the Word of God with seasoned village pastors, students, youth, and families. The Lord continues to deepen my relationships with my Pearl City Church family as well as His people all across the State.
 
PCFamilynight2.jpg Pearl City Family Night image by frederickosbPC Family Night - Shared on "Importance of Families"
 
 
This month will conclude with a visit from Bibles for All's President, Bob Binkley and then a trip up north to three States and my first venture into Nepal for preaching and teaching ministry.
 
Exciting opportunities are opening up to me almost daily, but it saddens me that I simply do not have the time or the financial resources to say "yes" to every door that opens before me. There is such a great hunger for God's word here in India, and at every turn I am receiving invitations to share the Word of the Kingdom. 
DSC00381.jpg Preparing NT Commentaries image by frederickosbPreparing NT materials for Pastors
 
 
 
Shortly after I arrived here, we started distributing a Bible commentary series to village pastors. I introduced the materials with a one-day leadership conference based upon three of the books included in the series. However, before long, I was receiving requests from these pastors to teach the whole series. Very quickly the project evolved into me preparing and teaching an entire New Testament Survey Course for Pastors. The purpose of the study is to teach the pastors how to teach through the entire New Testament.
 
DSC00386.jpg First Session - Pastor's NT Survey image by frederickosbFirst group of pastors for NT teaching. Typical of the responses from them is this one by Pastor S. Paul: "I am very glad about your teaching subjects about the Bible... Very good subjects which your giving books. It is very help for our future and for family members... I am very happy to attend this class regularly."
 
 
After much prayer and soul-searching to see if I wanted to commit myself to such a project, I decided to start a small experimental group of about 15 pastors from villages near Hyderabad. After the first session, the word got out that a Bible training program for village pastors was going on. Pastors in the immediate area of where we were meeting asked to join. I could not refuse them so the group grew to 25. One of the pastors travels by bus over 100 kilometers to come to the sessions.
 
NTSeminar4.jpg NT Survey for Pastors image by frederickosbVillage Pastors come for teaching.
 
 
By the end of the second session, I had requests from two more groups of pastors to start the training in their areas. All this is on top of the other requests I receive almost weekly asking me to come and preach and teach the word of God to them. Two weeks ago, a pastor and a brother in Christ came to me from a town 6 hours away by train just to ask me to go with them to Dubai in the UAE to teach and preach to Indian believers in that country!
 
November is already overflowing with opportunities for me to share the Word of God in the southern state of Tamil Nadu. It started with an invitation from one Pastor in Coimbatore where I visit as often as I am able. After that, another request came for me to teach pastors in Ambur where I did "The Keys to Effective Prayer" two years ago. They have been urging me to return and teach them ever since, so I could not refuse this opportunity to return and share the teachings of the kingdom with them.
 
As soon as word got out I would be in Tamil Nadu in November, another group of pastors who heard about my work here in India, sent a request for me to travel to south Tamil Nadu and share God's word with them near Madurai. So, in just a few days, November was given over to teaching across the State of Tamil Nadu.
 
My schedule is almost completely full until the time I must return to the US in April/May to touch bases with my home church, family, friends, and supporters. And yet there is still so much more to be done! So please pray with me for the following:
 
  • Please pray for Bob Binkley and his wife Nina as they travel in October. Pray that our time together will be blessed and fruitful.
  • Pray for traveling mercies for me and my traveling companion, Pastor Paulraj Manickam from Chennai. Pray for our health and safety
  • Pray all will go well for my visit to Nepal. That I will be able to cross the border safely to and from India.
  • Pray that God will give me the Word people need to hear and that my messages will be anointed by the Holy Spirit.
  • Pray for all those who are hungering and thirsting to hear the Word of God... that God will send workers into the harvest to share the Gospel of the Kingdom with those who need to hear it. And that God will send teachers to strengthen them in the Word and encourage them.
  • Pray for those who are poor and needy in India. Many, many thousands had their homes and crops completely destroyed by the recent floods in Southern India. At the same time there are many who live in terrible poverty every day of their lives.
  • Pray for God's leading for me as I sort through the many invitations that come my way to preach and teach the word all across India and now in other countries. I have standing invitations to go and preach to Indian congregations in Malaysia, Sri Lanka, Singapore, Cambodia, and Dubai. The only thing holding me back from going are financial considerations, but my heart is always to go anywhere possible to spread the Gospel and encourage the church.
  • Please continue to pray for the lost in India and around the world. I cannot help but believe the time is very short before the Lord's promised return. So let us pray as many as possible will be saved before it is too late and the doors of grace are closed forever. 
 
Thank you all for your continued prayers and support!
 
Fred Osborn
India Field Director
Bibles for All Ministries   


 
Bibles For All
"Jesus Over India"
P.O. Box 1689Cartersville, Ga. 30120
(678) 986-8394 Bob Binkley, President (USA)
91-9505235008 Frederick Osborn, Field Director (India)
www.biblesforall.com

Donations       EMail




Back, In India!

May, 09

Dear friends of India,

I am most happy to be writing to you from my office/flat in Hyderabad, "The Pearl City" of India!

As most of you know, after a long stay in the US, the Lord released me to return to my calling in the harvest fields of India. My stay in the US was a time of healing, growing and hearing from God.

I arrived in Hyderabad safe and sound May 6th and found Dany and his father waiting for me at the airport. They took me to the flat Dany found for me that overlooks Hyderabad from the area known as Jubilee Hills. My first few days were spent overcoming jet lag, unpacking, and assessing what needed to be obtained to turn this empty flat into a home and office. But before I could even unpack, I had my first visit from a village pastor from about three hours outside of Hyderabad. Pastor Yesu was anxious to meet me and talk to me about his ministry and how we might work together in the village areas north and east of the city. Pastor Yesu spent the night and acted as my interpreter and guide around the city as I went shopping for necessary items to set up my kitchen and bedroom.

My first Sunday in Hyderabad, I was invited to Dany's church: Pearl City Church. Since I do not know Telugu, it was a wonderful surprise to go to a church where all the worship and preaching was in English. It is an unusual experience for me to worship God with contemporary worship music and preaching in English in India because most of the time I am visiting small village churches where the worship is more ethnic and the preaching is in the mother tongue of the people.

My first full week in Hyderabad began quietly, but ended with a flurry of activity. Tuesday Pastor Yesu returned from his village and we started working on the details for starting a Healing/Training Center in Hyderabad. Before I left Atlanta, God gave me a vision for a building that would serve as a place of ministry and training; with God's help we will find the necessary support to open this place.

Then we were off across the city to the offices of Operation Mobilization Books (OM is printing the Telugu translation of "This Gospel of the Kingdom"). I met with Deena who is preparing the material for printing and then I met with the Director, K.C. Joseph about materials they have printed that can be used for village evangelism in the States of Orissa, Tamil Nadu, and Andhra Pradesh where we have established a presence. As it turned out, the materials are very inexpensive (about $4 per package) and are suitable to build a New Testament Survey course for pastors, evangelists and lay leaders that have had little or no formal Seminary training.

On my way back home, I met briefly with two pastors teaching materials from the Bible Training Center for Pastors and talked to them about their program here.

Then upon our return to my flat, Pastor Yesu and I sketched out a training program using these materials that will include a one-day Leadership Training Seminar and a New Testament Survey Course that will only cost a few dollars per student.


MINISTRY NEEDS & PRAYER REQUESTS

  • Please continue to pray for the lost in India... pray that more pastors, teachers, preachers and evangelists will go into all the areas of India to bring the Gospel of salvation to all who are waiting to hear
  • Pray that God's provision and protection will be with me
  • Pray that God will give me wisdom and discernment for direction in ministry
  • I am searching for a building that will be suitable for a Healing/Training Center for ministry and conferences here in the city. Please pray that the Lord will provide for this.

  • The Telugu translation is almost ready for press, but we need funds for the printing before we can proceed. Please pray for the funds to come in soon.
  • I am writing the material for the Leadership Conference and preparing the materials for the NT Survey course. We need $4 for each package of materials. I am hoping and praying for enough funds to have 100 students in each of three States where we are working.
  • I still need to finish furnishing my flat/office. I need a cot for the guest bedroom, living room furniture, a small table, etc. I can save money by buying everything used, but still need help.

Any way you can help, just send the funds to the Bibles For All address below, and enclose a note telling us what you want the funds to be used for.

Thanks all, for your continued prayers, encouragement and support. With God's help, we will see a great harvest of souls come into the kingdom in the days, weeks, and months ahead!

God bless you!

Fred


Bibles For All
"Jesus Over India"
P.O. Box 1689Cartersville, Ga. 30120
(678) 986-8394 Bob Binkley, President (USA)
91-9505235008 Frederick Osborn, Field Director (India)
www.biblesforall.com

Donations       EMail


Ministry Goals For My Return to India

"Write down the revelation and make it plain on tablets so that a herald may run with it. For the revelation waits an appointed time; it speaks of the end. Though it linger, wait for it; it will certainly come and will not delay." Habakkuk 2:2, 3

April, 09

Dear Partners in India Ministry,

As many of you know, I have been anxiously waiting to hear from the Lord about when I would return to India full-time since I returned to the US after completing a two-year commitment to India in October of 2007.

As part of a 21-day fast in January, I was seeking the Lord about my return to India ministry this year, and before the end of the fast, I sensed that the Lord had released me to go back. In February I made a short trip to Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu. And during that trip, I felt the Lord had definitely confirmed that the time was right for me to return to India. So I am pleased to announce that I will be returning to full-time ministry in India in May of this year! I am searching for a place to live in Hyderabad. And God willing, I will have a place secured by the time I depart for India. In the meantime the work continues and the goals for this mission are to continue with the work we have established so far and to expand our mission to more areas in the northern part of the country. Here are the goals for this year:

  • ORISSA

  • The need for opening the Bible Training Center in Orissa rapidly rose to the top of my list of priorities as the news from Orissa came pouring in all during 2008. Near the end of 2007 Hindu extremists began burning churches and terrorizing Christians in several districts in Orissa. It was weeks before order was restored, but tensions remained high. Then in September 2008 a new and greater wave of anti-Christian violence broke loose. Militant Hindu extremists vowed to wipe out Christianity from the State. Incited by their leaders, Hindu mobs went on a rampage all across the State, burning churches, pastors' homes, and attacking Christians, driving them out of their villages. By the time the government stepped in, the Christian community all across Orissa was in a shambles, and many Christians were told they could not return to their homes and villages unless they converted to Hinduism.

  • ANDHRA PRADESH

  • At the same time, funds are needed to expand the work we have started in Andhra Pradesh. Already, we need support for one more person to oversee the workers we are supporting in the southern part of the state; plus we need to secure more material support for those workers. We also have plans to plant more missions centers in Andhra, and at some time in the future to open another Bible Training Center in northern Andhra near the Orissa border.

  • TAMIL NADU

  • We have had great success with our Bible Training program in and around Chennai. Under the leadership of Pastor E. Charles, we now have three teachers presenting 'This Gospel of the Kingdom' study in the Tamil language in the city. Including the students I taught in 2007, almost 400 students have completed the material so far. And we are on target for another 500 students to complete the course in 2009. At the same time, I am preparing another course, 'The Ministry of Women in the Bible', to be translated and be presented in women's study groups by the end of this year. It is also my goal to establish another full time worker for Jesus Over India in the city of Coimbatore in 2009. They will be responsible to establish a teaching program like that in Chennai led by Pastor Charles, and lead village evangelism in that area.

Of course, our ability to meet these goals depends upon our ability to raise the necessary funds. While I am in India the work of ministry grows - as do our commitments - so our base of support here in the U.S. cannot remain the same if the work is to continue to grow. But whether I am in India or the U.S. the need for fundraising must continue. When I am home, I speak at churches and other organizations about the work in India, hoping to enlist new churches and gain dozens more supporters to help us in this tremendous task of winning the lost in India.

It takes no less a dedication and commitment to the work of the harvest in India whether I am in the U.S. or in India. But there is too much work to be done in India for me to remain in the U.S. for too long. And that is why I must return to full time ministry in India soon. And with the sacrificial giving of those whose hearts are broken for the hundreds of millions of lost souls in India, we will meet these goals for 2009 and beyond. Our hope and prayer is that this year all the funds we need to build upon the foundations we laid in India since this ministry was founded in 2001 will be provided even in this harsh economy we are facing.

I thank you all for your support and for your faithfulness. My hope and prayer is that those of you who have been faithful will continue to be faithful in 2009 and will help us to do our part. For it is only through our efforts and the efforts of hundreds of missionary organizations and tens of thousands of indigenous missionaries living and traveling throughout India that the Great Commission will be fulfilled in India.

God bless you!

Fred


Bibles For All
"Jesus Over India"
P.O. Box 1689Cartersville, Ga. 30120
(678) 986-8394 Bob Binkley, President (USA)
91-9505235008 Frederick Osborn, Field Director (India)
www.biblesforall.com

Donations       EMail

Prayer Needs: 2010


  • Pray for the Pastors and Teachers of India
  • Pray for funds to get a school for lay pastors started in India
  • Pray for more ministers of the Gospel inside of India

The Great Commission

And Jesus came and said to them, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age."
Matt 28:18-20