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Manipur Investment Project
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Overseas Ministry Projects Manipur Investment Project
Since January 2010 Suresh & Kim Kumam have been working amongst the Meitei people in the Churachandpur district of Manipur in a church-planting ministry. In January 2011 a team from LMI visited Manipur to see first hand the work that Suresh & Kim are involved in, and this led to the launch of LMI’s Manipur Investment Project.
In 1996, just twenty-three days after becoming a Christian, Suresh began his theological training resulting in him attaining his Bachelor of Theology and Bachelor of Divinity degrees. After graduating with a Master of Theology from the Evangelical Theological Seminary of Asia Christian Academy in 2003, Suresh studied for a Specialist in Bible Translation degree through the Bob Jones University, USA. In 2004 Suresh became a Bible translation consultant with Bibles International.
When Suresh first contacted LMI he wrote; “After years of praying, my wife and I were convinced that the Lord was leading us to serve Him in reaching the lost and enhancing church growth among the Meiteis (Manipuris) of India. Therefore, I resigned from being a full time consultant in Bible translation on the 24th of December 2009. We are certain that God has called us to reach our own people who are still without Christ in India, Bangladesh and Myanmar.
A friend of mine (Rev. Basanta Gideon) and I started a church planting ministry in January of this year [2010], and it has been a joy for us to have a small part in the great work of God in reaching the lost for Christ. We are also comforted by the Lord ‘who is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us’ (Eph. 3:20). Reaching the Meiteis is an urgent call because the Lord is opening a wide and effective door to us right now after it was closed for decades (Christianity came to this state over a hundred years ago).
It’s our prayer that the Lord will lay a burden in your hearts to come and see what God is doing here.”
A team from LMI did go to see first hand what the Lord is doing in Manipur. They worked closely with Suresh, who coordinated the programme, conducting leadership seminars and engaging in church ministry. As a result of this visit the team were able to gain an appreciation of the importance of Suresh’s work. LMI wants to be involved in helping to assist Suresh by partnering with his ministry.
There are approximately 1.6 million Meitei people in the world (1996 UBS). They live in three countries: India, Bangladesh and Myanmar, however the majority of Meiteis live in Manipur, North India. The primary religion amongst the Meitei people is Hinduism while Christianity accounts for less than 2% of the people-group population in each of the three countries (Joshua Project). This means that the Meiteis have unreached status in terms of the progress of the Gospel (Joshua Project).
The aim of the project is to help reach the Meitei people with the Gospel through the equipping of the church in Manipur. There are three ways in which we seek to do this:
(£3,000) so that many Manipur people can have a copy of the latest translation of the Scriptures, which has taken thirty years to complete. In 1984 the first translation of the Manipur Bible was produced, however, while it was easy to read it wasn’t a great translation. The second translation, which was published by Bibles International, was released in February 2011. Suresh worked on this translation for ten years. He says, “This Holy Bible isn’t a study Bible but it has a lot of helpful information for serious students of God’s word. Our goal was to provide helpful tools while providing an excellent translation of the word of God… Every word is checked against Greek, Hebrew, and Aramaic by experts in biblical languages. This is one of the most literal and yet natural translations of the Bible in India. It’s natural, smooth, and beautiful to read.”
Some of the Bible’s features include: maps, footnotes, cross references, a glossary and a concordance. To sponsor the purchasing of a Bible costs £3.00.
To read more about the need for the Manipur Bible read Suresh’s article here
£3,000) as there is a need for study materials that will help the Meitei believers develop in their Christian walk. There is also a need for study materials for church leaders so that they can be more equipped as they minister to their congregations. LMI would like to help meet these needs by financially supporting Suresh to produce Bible teaching materials for the Meitei believers and church leaders. The materials would then be printed and distributed amongst the Meitei people in Manipur.
(£8,000) for Suresh to enable him to travel further and reach more people with the Gospel. Suresh and his family live in a mountainous area where there is no public transport and so he has to conduct a lot of his work either by walking or with his bicycle. We would like to assist Suresh in this practical way and so impact the extent of his church-planting ministry by providing him with a 4x4 vehicle so that he can negotiate the terrain, especially during the rainy season.
