In India, a group of Christians has been spreading the Word of God “one bike at a time.”
In the midst of the pandemic, a non-profit organization launched what it described as a “Bibles and Bikes program” to bring the Gospel to India’s “unreached.”
The group International Christian Concern (ICC) launched the program in November 2018 by “empowering” 1,000 rural evangelists with bicycles and 100 Bibles.
Each bike doubles or triples the effectiveness of a “church planter,” said the ICC report.
“As you can imagine, this was a massive program spread out across India, but our staff on the ground came to the rescue,” it added.
ICC’s “church planters” in 17 of India’s 29 states were able to distribute 100,000 Bibles in 13 languages using the bicycles.
The Bibles have found their way into previously unreached villages and formed hundreds of new churches that birthed thousands of new believers, said the ICC report.
The group, however, said that although the project was a success, “it has also faced its fair share of challenges.”
Aside from health restrictions and food insecurity, increasing persecution of Christians have also become a challenge that the Christian missionaries encountered.
“Persecution is increasing,” said Pastor Roshini, adding that people who embraced Christianity “are being targeted for their new faith.”
“Some people are scared to associate or listen to us because of this,” said the pastor.
Another pastor said he faced attacks by Hindu radicals twice in the past year.
“In one incident, I was called before the village council along with my church members,” he said.
The church members, however, “bravely testified that they were voluntarily practicing Christianity and that no one forced them to convert.”
There were many stories of persecution since the Bibles and Bikes program was launched, but it did not dampen the spirit of the Christian missionaries.
“Evangelism is key for the growth of the Church in India,” said Pastor Roshini. “The farther we are able to reach, the more people will be added to the Church,” he said.
“These bicycles allow us to be forerunners for the Gospel,” he added, saying that the bicycle “has been a great blessing.”
“I have started prayer meetings in 13 villages that would not have been reached without the bicycle,” said Pastor Roshini.
“It is the most cost-effective transportation, and I would recommend this for any church planter or evangelist,” he said.
ICC said it will continue to provide more bicycles and Bibles to Indian missionaries.
“With these simple tools, we can bring the Gospel’s transformative message to every corner of India,” read the ICC report. – From a report by the International Christian Concern
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