Panjwani - August 2008

“Madhipura Goes 6 ft Under Water”

Dear Family and Friends,

This is the headline to which we awoke this morning. Fourteen days ago the embankment which held the Kosi River on its normal course flowing east of Madhipura broke, and the river continues to charter its new course right through Madhipura and the surrounding districts. The paper says two million people are trying to evacuate, most on foot since there are no trains running and few vehicles in these village areas. Food is not easy to come by, and the reports we are reading are grim. People who are unable to evacuate due to the waters are seeking shelter on the railroad tracks, atop trees or the highest ground they can reach.

Our thoughts and prayers have constantly been with friends in Madhipura over the last few days, and we have tried to stay in regular contact. Madhipura town is shut down and no stores are open to buy food. With flooding of the hospital and staff homes, the hospital has been closed and most staff have evacuated. There are a few who have stayed behind to help with relief efforts.  We have been unable to contact Mahender but heard today he remains in his home despite the situation. Speaking with Nayna in our village today, she said all homes were flooded. Her own family was trying to find a boat or vehicle to take them to safety but were having trouble locating anything. Pummi left with her family three days ago. Sunita and her family remain in their flooded home.

Please continue to remember these dear friends. We were told the water is expected to rise another 1 ∏ feet by tomorrow.

Dinesh and Shannon

Panjwani - August 2008

Dear Family and Friends,

Greetings from Pune, our new home for the next three years. We are just getting settled in, and Dinesh has started seminary. We hope to send a short update soon but wanted to let you know of the flood situation in Madhipura which is affecting our friends and the hospital. Communication is somewhat hampered, but we understand one or more dams broke in Nepal last week, resulting in flooding of parts of northern Bihar. Please remember them in your prayers as many homes are flooded, and spread of disease is always a problem in these situations.

Blessings,
Dinesh and Shannon

Panjwani - May 2, 2008

From Shannon:

Thank you, thank you, thank all of you (!) for your prayers. We have entered into a very difficult time on many fronts.

I will say I have been tempted to be very discouraged by the teen-age girls. Even Pummi (who is very strong) seems to be too busy these days and is not putting the Lord first in coming to house church or discipleship or even Bible club very regularly. This is very unusual for her. She did come this morning and said her mother has been quite sick and she also has been sick for over a week. I encouraged her again in putting the things of God’s Kingdom first and then He will multiply her time for other things. She needs to make better choices with the limited time she does have.  She does work hard in her home and in the fields daily. Nayna has just returned from her in-law’s yesterday I heard yesterday. I have yet to see her.

Bible club is running well, but numbers of children are down somewhat. Again maybe harvest season, but it seems the ground is very hard right now. Please remember Soni in your prayers. She is the girl who professed faith during VBS. She came to meet me once and wanted to say she has not gone back on her profession, but I realized she somehow misunderstood that she could not continue idol worship while at the same time proclaiming Christ as Lord. I again explained to her the way of salvation by faith through Christ alone. I have not met with her since and need to find time to go to her home. Guddi is also remaining very busy and has charge over her entire house. She finds it hard to get away to come for teaching.

On an encouraging front, there are several ladies from a far away village who have come to the Lord and many have taken baptism (They came to Christ through a woman named Sunita, I think). They come about 2 hours travel by foot and by train to the big church on Sunday but have never had anyone to disciple them and admit that they don’t understand anything that goes on in the church.

I have wanted to teach the first of these ladies who became a Christian (Sunita) for the last 3 years, but she (and now these other ladies who have also become Believers) can only come in time for church on Sundays and then must catch their train immediately afterwards, so there was no time for me to teach. But just 2 weeks ago we revisited this issue. The women asked if I could call them for teaching on another morning of the week. We decided on Saturday mornings. They will come to our home, and Gloria (the nurse from Minnesota) has agreed to help with childcare so I can teach the ladies from 9-10am. I have also told Pummi and Sunita (the lady who works with us) about this meeting, because these village women are just like them—illiterate, from rather backward villages, and many are the only Believers in their families. I think it might be very encouraging for all of them to meet together since the Christians in the church here don’t really accept these village Believers from Hindu backgrounds. This coming Saturday is supposed to be our first meeting. Please pray that all may come and also for the teaching, as I speak in Hindi, and their mother tongue is a dialect, though they understand Hindi to a good degree. It’s just hard for me to understand them sometimes!

Again, we stand in such need of your prayers. Dinesh has been able to share with many people in the hospital since we returned, and one or two men have really become interested. One man whose name is Anil almost died from a snakebite but was treated here, and God raised him up. Dinesh shared with him, and he apparently became a Believer. He has been coming regularly for teaching, but again, he comes from quite far away. Pray for Dinesh. His heart is so much in ministry that it’s hard for him to have his heart in medical work these days.

Panjwani

There is another development that has taken place in Madhipura in the past month or so which is matter for much prayer. The hospital conducted a free eye camp in the month of January. An eye surgeon was called from another EHA hospital for the cataract operations. They operated 165 cataracts over 3 days. A few days later 8 of them became infected. The patients then went to the government authorities to complain against the hospital.

The whole report has been published against the hospital in the newspapers with exaggerated numbers. The State assembly has ordered an enquiry into the matter. Everyday one government official or the other comes asking for a report of the situation. Today the commissioner is visiting the hospital to look into the matter.

Dr Jachin is the only doctor right now and is trying to field all the questions and reports alone. I request prayer for her, and me as I return to this tense situation.

Dinesh & Shannon Panjwani

A doctor to join us.

Gloria Carlson. The nurse from Minnesota who just underwent a surgery on her foot.

Anna Grace’s growth physically

Pray for travels and settling in as we go back to Madhipura

Salvation of Dinesh’s parents. For our time with them in Mumbai

That we would learn to love and sacrifice for the believers in Madhipura by giving of

ourselves, time and resources

A like minded pastor and wife to join our ministry team

Sarah Ray who will be travelling with us to Madhipura for four weeks

Panjwani - India

• Pray for God to use them as they make presentations about India during the month of February
• Pray for their return to India on March 10
• Pray for God to do a mighty work in the Madhipura area.
• Pray that the Lord Jesus Christ will become known, loved, and worshipped among the people there.