Hunger Offering ministry provides jobs, clinics and hope to communities in India

Sam Bandela is a Hindu convert who now oversees the Asian Indian Ministries, Inc. (AIM). He and AIM are committed to evangelism and church planting in India. On “every street on every corner, there is a Hindu temple and a Mosque. I want to see in every village, a church,” Bandela says. His heart is for the Gospel to bring hope to the people of India.

AIM, a Texas Baptist Hunger Offering ministry, has trained approximately 200 people in the last 20-25 years to start churches and meet the villages' needs by allowing women to work as seamstresses. These sewing centers provide the opportunity to build relationships within the village and get to know the community's needs. But AIM does not just help the village’s economy. They also build medical clinics that meet health needs of individuals in the community, which have become all the more necessary during the pandemic. Bandela shared that 700-800 people from every caste use the medical clinics for their health needs. What an incredible opportunity to share the Gospel across socio-economic divides. The ultimate goal of the sewing centers and medical clinics is to plant churches and see people commit their lives to Jesus.

There are currently over a dozen church plants, and even during the pandemic, one church has baptized a third member of the 40 person church. Churches are doing their best to maintain social distancing and following cleaning guidelines. There are challenges too, and two of the sewing centers are on full hold and cannot operate sopaying staff members has become difficult. Yet, against all odds, God is still working.

Will you join us in praying for Bandela and AIM? Here are a few things he has asked us to pray for specifically:

• To reach people through practical means and methods

• The local orphanage and the children

• Funding for medical clinics and sewing centers

• An end to COVID-19

The Texas Baptist Hunger Offering unites the body of Christ to end hunger and poverty and promote holistic transformation in the name of Jesus. When you give to the Hunger Offering, the funds are dispersed through partners to over 100 hunger relief and development ministries across Texas and around the world.

For more information about the Hunger Offering, go to hungeroffering.org.