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Report Date: October 22, 2019

Report from BHW Partnership Facilitator Following Visit 

Recent Events

The most significant event has been the marriage of Z to KC, an American missionary based in Thailand. He has shifted to live in Imphal and they work from there. 

Earlier this year Neighbours Gospel Ministries celebrated 10 years of operation. They had a gathering to thank God for his provision. 

good coffeeDelight Café has opened along with, and on the same premises as, the ActsCo book house. The book house is really to give away used and end of run books which are donated from the USA. There are a lot of books, they have had three containers delivered and another is about to arrive. The location is not what I would call ideal and for the two days we were there, there were not a lot of customers. Traditionally Indians are not coffee drinkers so it is going to take some time to get enough customers. The café is well set up, the coffee is good and they have some nice light meals. They are going to introduce bread too before long, people are training at the moment. 

Z’s brother A is the main barista at the café and is taking a good leadership role. He is much more confident now and Z is really encouraged. Since he came to the BHW conference in Bangalore during January 2018, he has got really fired up and has found a purpose. 

They have just completed the development of a seminar room which is already being rented and has the potential to become a good income generator. While we were there a Korean group took up a long term contract to use it and have taken Z on to manage catering for some large events which will again generate significant income. The purpose of the café is to generate income so the main work can carry on. 

The work continues to develop with many excursions into rural village areas and training leaders to become better able to witness to cousins. 

 

Personal Stories

There is a range of stories from different people they are working with.

loves jobElizabeth was born in 1991. Z’s mother and her mother are very good friends and they met after Z’s family were thrown out of their family village. This Christian family assisted Z’s family after that time. They helped them with medical needs for the family. They are from a Hindu background. Elizabeth’s parents met at school when they were teaching together. They were not allowed to get married and they eloped. She is thankful she is from a Christian family. 

She now lives in a government compound with her parents, it is for teachers and is a mixed religious community. One neighbour is a Hindu and hates their family, mainly because there are no sons in the family and this is a disgrace so they are despised as cursed. Visitors have been beaten by these neighbours for parking in the wrong place. 

She has been working at the café for a month and loves it, it’s like being in a large family. She desires to grow in her Christian faith and that this will be her life goal. She loves reading and praying and is able to do this sometimes at work when they are not busy. She really wants to have a great Christian husband one day. She would love to work with dogs, she has two of her own. 

has hope nowHK was introduced to Z’s mother in 2014, shortly after she lost her husband to a terrible accident. He was a construction worker who had a fall and sustained a traumatic brain injury which led to tuberculosis and eventual death. He likely refused medical treatment for the TB because he was hiding a secret from his wife, as he was HIV+. While alive, HK’s husband sold illegal alcohol for work and was a drug addict. 

Now a widow, HK lives with her husband’s family in Manipur, away from her family in Nagaland. After his death she was stuck in the village, and left to care for four children, with her husband’s family members who are radical Hindus. HK was abused and persecuted by the only family she had left. They called her unclean and refused to eat with her. HK’s brother-in-law is a drunkard who has locked her out of her home and even threatens to kill her. HK calls Z’s mum her refuge, big sister, and the biggest way God has provided for her needs during the difficult situation she is still living in. 

To provide for her family HK spent a period of time selling illegal alcohol but was able to give this up once she received a job at Delight Cafe as a housekeeper. She speaks of how this job has “totally changed my life” as tears fill her eyes. She speaks of the joy of learning new things, like mopping, cleaning, welcoming customers, and teaching others things she has learned. She says this job and cafe is a home to her. It is where she can laugh, rather than cry, and make jokes rather then live in fear. HK asks us to continue to pray for her and her children, who are struggling with deafness, job stability and addiction. She is still living in a community of abuse and persecution and she knows she cannot live like this forever. Thankfully, this job and her new family have offered hope for a future and change in the midst of grief and pain. 

 

Partnership's Influence within the Community

new equipmentThere are two aspects of this, the café/bookshop and the other ministry. 

The café is beginning to be noticed and is gaining a reputation as having the best coffee in town, somehow I don’t think it would be very hard! It is in an area where there are large numbers of government workers so there are a number of regular customers. However, they are traditional tea drinkers. They do serve tea but of course it’s more expensive than the roadside places most get their tea from. It is becoming a place for people to meet and has good parking.  

A new fellowship group has been started in the town of Chandel with many people from the neighbour community involved. This is in partnership with a Baptist church. In the last 6 months more than 100 people had serious conversations and about 3,000 pieces of literature were handed to people. 

nice cafeTwice per week Z’s mother visits hospitals and visits the central jail on the second Sunday of every month. This leads to many conversations. Z’s mum is very active in reaching out and leading seminars. 

They are encouraged by the growing number of partnerships that are forming with key church groups. This makes the work on the ground much more effective. A new training programme called “Islam and Christianity” is about to start at the training centre. 

 

Plans for the Future

I think we should stick with the current strategy here to support this work with annual reviews. They intend to continue training and going out into rural villages, this is the core function and continues to bear fruit. The support of people coming out of neighbour territory will continue to be an essential aspect of their work. 

The main thing I wanted to assess and understand on this visit is the timeframes they are thinking. In recent communication they had expressed constantly the desire for the work to become self-sustaining and I felt I needed to understand this so we can plan. Initially Z thought two years but frankly that did not seem realistic. After some discussion with her and K, we agreed that we would aim for a 4-year timeframe. 

new equipmentThe repayments of the loan for the café equipment need to be factored into the budget. Here are some photos of what they purchased including the cabinet, bread mixer (right), cooler unit, kitchen islands and tables and chairs (above). 

A new budget has been submitted. There is an increase for one year but from the following year it will reduce as the cost of house rent stabilises and the café begins to fund aspects of the budget. 

 

Current Issues and Challenges

That the café would generate enough funds to contribute significantly to the work of NGM.

 

Prayer and Praise Points

1) That the new group in Chandel will continue to grow in numbers and maturity. 
2) That the café has commenced well and that it will become a place of connection for many people.
3) For protection and powerful witness as the team members move about and meet many people. This is dangerous work.

 

Comments

This continues to be a good partnership and significant inroads are being made directly by the team as they get out and about talking to neighbours. Also indirectly too as they train people to be more effective in reaching neighbours.