A Church Is Born

Pastor Hardik and his wife, Aahna, dove into the Lord’s work after briefly settling into their new area of ministry. They prayed for the sick and suffering, shared Christian literature and spread the hope found in Jesus’ name, just as they had done in their previous village. Once again, a church was born. The new believers squeezed into Hardik and Aahna’s home every Sunday to worship, but once Hardik’s neighbours realized what was going on, they threatened him and pressured him to stop.

Desperate for a church building so they could worship in peace and safety, Hardik and his congregation prayed.

No Obstacle to God

Soon the Lord blessed them with land, and construction for the building started. That’s when the opposition intensified.

A local group learned about the project and schemed how to halt it. They pressured local authorities and threatened the young missionary. Construction slowed as uncertainty swirled around the project.

The missionary couple, trained by difficulties, knew what to do: they cried out to the Lord. The congregation joined in prayer, and one by one, God removed every obstacle—even giving the young fellowship favor with the local government.

At last the church was complete: a gleaming white building painted with bright red details that was large enough to hold the entire congregation, with room to grow. Hardik’s leaders conducted an inauguration to pray over and bless the people and their building. While the congregation listened attentively, the leaders encouraged them to make the Holy Spirit their guide and expounded upon the sacrifice of Jesus.

“This church belongs to the Lord,” said one leader. “Everything in the world belongs to Him, so enter the house of the Lord with reverence.”

The leaders prayed for God’s anointing on Hardik and his ministry and concluded the special service with Holy Communion.

“I am thankful to God for blessing us with our own church building,” said Hardik. “We were finding difficulties to conduct the Sunday service because of lack of space and opposition from villagers, but the Lord answered our prayers. Praise the Lord!”

Hardik and Aahna stood in front of the new church building alongside their congregation and praised God for their journey and the years of ministry to come.