Empathy for the Dalai Lama’s role in leading the Tibetan Government in Exile does not demand an uncritical endorsement of his every political move, past or present. Melvyn Goldstein, one of the leading scholars of Sino-Tibetan relations, makes this point in The Snow Lion and the Dragon. Goldstein writes, “The Dalai Lama knows intellectually that he needs more friends and supporters in Beijing, not Washington or New York City, but he finds it emotionally difficult to take appropriate actions to achieve that end.”

Given the brutalization of Tibet since the Communist invasion in 1950, both Christian and Buddhist belief systems are now under threat. Christian presence in Tibet has been minimal through the centuries. This was due largely to Tibet’s geographical isolation but also to hostility to a missionary presence, especially when Tibetans became followers of Christ. There have been occasional acts of violence against the small Christian communities.

Of all the Buddhist traditions (and there are many), it is the Tibetans who have most actively reached out to Christians. The Dalai Lama told us that while he is in dialogue with all the great world religions, he cherishes a special relationship with Christians. In some important spiritual dimensions, we Christians have more in common with the Tibetans than with Zen or Vipasyana practitioners. Though Tibetan Buddhists do not believe in our God, they seem more friendly to the devotional sensibility of Christians, and in their Tibetan tantric practices more inclined to see the fundamental importance of the I-Thou encounter. Like us Christians, the Tibetans sense a deep relationality in their “emptiness”.

The message of Christianity isn’t one of God wanting to better this life for humanity. It is one of warning of a terrible fate in store for those who continue on the road of sin. We are told by God’s Word that there are two deaths on the highway to Hell. The first death is when we leave the storms of this life and pass into timeless eternity. The second death is the chasm of eternal damnation. It is the terrifying justice of a holy God.

A brief Background of Tibet

The Chinese Communist occupation of Tibet began in 1950, and the Dalai Lama fled to India in 1959, along with more than 100,000 Tibetans. A half century later, many Tibetans still live as exiles in India, Nepal, Bhutan and elsewhere. More than 7 million Tibetans remain inside Tibet also, where they have endured persecution and hardship. Ethnic Chinese outnumber Tibetans three to one within Tibet itself. Recent protests in Lhasa reflect years of pent-up frustration and hopelessness under Chinese rule.

All the immolators, indeed all Tibetans everywhere, absolutely want His Holiness to return to Tibet. But right now? With unprecedented security and military clampdowns throughout Tibet – and with troop strength, organizational capability, resources and technology many hundreds even thousands of time more than the PLA ever had in 1959, what would happen if the Dalai Lama returned to Lhasa and something went wrong. His chances of escaping would be absolutely nil. Furthermore there would be no armed resistance force like the 4 Rivers 6 Ranges that we had in ’59, nor the remnant of the old Tibetan army that spearheaded the Lhasa uprising and kept the Chinese forces in Lhasa pinned down for the few crucial days that allowed the Dalai Lama to escape. World opinion? What about international support for the Dalai Lama? Don’t count on it. Remember the obscene haste with which everyone rushed back to do business with China after the Tiananmen massacre.

It is vital for all Tibetans, supporters and the exile administration to appreciate the slogan “the Dalai Lama must return to Tibet” in this larger visionary spirit, and let the world know that Tibetans in Tibet are calling for a nothing less than the return of their sovereign ruler to his independent homeland. And that call is clearly not just a rhetorical one. The unbelievable courage, resolve and selfless sacrifice of the seventy self-immolators have so fundamentally changed the political dynamics in Tibet and so exponentially altered the revolutionary climate, that although His Holiness is now quite old at seventy-seven and has retired from office, it might be a good idea for his official biographer to hold off writing the final chapter on the Dalai Lama’s political legacy, at least for the next few years.

The Cross

Someone may ask, “How can it be loving for God to be so self-exalting in the work of the cross? If He is really exalting His own glory and vindicating His own righteousness, then how is the cross really an act of love to us?”

I fear the question betrays a common secular mindset with man at the center. It assumes that, for us to be loved, God must make us the center. He must highlight our value. If our worth is not accented, then we are not loved. If our value is not the ground of the cross, then we are not esteemed. The assumption of such questioning is that the exaltation of the worth and glory of God over man is not the very essence of what God’s love for man is.

The biblical mindset, however, affirms the very opposite. The cross is the pinnacle of God’s love for sinners, not because it demonstrates the value of sinners, but because it vindicates the value of God for sinners to enjoy. God’s love for man does not consist in making man central, but in making Himself central for man. The cross does not direct man’s attention to his own vindicated worth, but to God’s vindicated righteousness.

This is love, because the only eternal happiness for man is happiness focused on the riches of God’s glory. “In your presence there is fullness of joy; in your right hand are pleasures forever more” (Psalm 16:11). God’s self exaltation is loving, because it preserves for us and offers to us the only all-satisfying Object of desire in the universe – the all-glorious, all-righteous God.

We are commanded to believe in a God who hears our prayers and cares deeply for us. We are instructed to believe in a God who can and will help us out of our own personal bondage, our own trials and difficulties. So, can God command us to be optimistic about life? Yes, because to believe in the God who took the Israelites out of Egypt is to believe that God can perform miracles for us, too! He expects that level of faith and commitment from us.

Jesus loved lost people. He loved spending time with them. He went to their parties. From the Gospels, it is obvious that Jesus enjoyed being with seekers far more than being with religious leaders. He was called the “friend of sinners” (see Luke 7:34). How many people would call your church that?

Jesus loved being with people and they felt it. Even little children wanted to be around Jesus, which speaks volumes about what kind of person he was and what kind of pastor he’d be. Children instinctively seem to gravitate toward loving, accepting people.

The Lord Jesus lived an amazing life. Do you realize that Jesus never corrected, withdrew, or amended any statement He ever made? I wish I could say that! Jesus Christ never apologized for anything He ever did or said. He never sought advice from anyone, nor ever needed to ask for forgiveness.

Jesus Christ doesn’t have any strong points. For Him to have strong points, He would have to have weak points. Robert Clark has rightly given this assessment of the character of Jesus: “There was meekness without weakness, tenderness without feebleness, firmness without coarseness, love without sentimentality, holiness without sanctimoniousness, lowliness without lowness, truth without error, enthusiasm without fanaticism, passion without prejudice, heavenly mindedness without forgetfulness, carefreeness without carelessness, service without servility, self exaltation without egotism, judgment without harshness, seriousness without sombreness, mercy without softness.”

The honest reason many churches do not have a crowd is they don’t want one! They don’t like having to relate to unbelievers. Attracting a crowd of unbelievers would disturb their comfortable routine. Selfishness keeps a lot of churches from growing.

The command to love is the most repeated command in the New Testament, appearing at least fifty-five times. If we don’t love people, nothing else matters. “Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love.” (1 John 4:8)

The door of opportunity is wide open for us.

The apostle Paul had passion and vision to reach the world with the good news about salvation. As he followed the Spirit’s leading, his determination proved effective. There’s no telling how many lives the Lord transformed through this man. And his influence is still impacting people today.

Paul knew that Jesus had instructed His followers to “make disciples of all the nations,” teaching them to observe everything He had commanded (Matt. 28:19). God led and enabled the apostle to do his part in carrying out this divine mission.

But think about life back then—that was a big task for a time when there was no mass communication. Paul could only teach, write, or train others to share the truth. In spite of limited means, however, he obeyed fervently and effectively.

God’s command is still relevant for us today. He has given us the work of telling all nations about redemption through Christ’s blood and resurrection. Compared to Paul, we have an abundance of communication capabilities—including radio, television, Internet, and cell phones—which provide easy access into countries all over the world. We could make more disciples by better utilizing these technologies. But how tragic if we get busy and fail to obey God’s command.

We stand at a critical moment in history for the church. The door of opportunity is wide open for us to share the gospel through a variety of methods. As believers, we are obligated to carry out Christ’s Great Commission. Be careful that neither busyness nor apathy keeps you from obedience.

Love of one’s neighbour, kindness, and compassion–these are, I believe, the essential and universal elements preached by all religions. In spite of divergent philosophical views, we can establish harmony among all spiritual traditions on the basis of these common traits of love, kindness, and forgiveness. I always insist on this point and devote a great deal of energy to it. Most difficulties between religions come about because of people who, having failed to transform and bring peace to their own minds, not only apply their own beliefs yet are all while to impose them on others. This unfortunate behaviour can provoke serious conflicts, although I have noticed a considerable re-conciliation between the different religions, more particularly between Tibetan Buddhism and Christianity. We have actually set up a very constructive programme of exchanges between monks and believers of our two traditions.

Christianity is growing slowly in Tibet

Reports from Tibet suggest that Evangelist missionaries have increased and diversified their long-term activities in Lhasa and other parts of Tibet because of the closer interaction between Tibetans and foreigners operating in Tibet. Seemingly undeterred by the authorities, European, US and increasingly Asian missionary organisations are involved in official and semi-official educational institutes, in business activities and increasingly in the recruitment of young, bright people for training and employment purposes. The two main centres of missionary activities appear to be Lhasa and Xining, the capital of Qinghai province at the outer north-east fringe of Tibet. Young people arriving from poor rural backgrounds seem to be specifically targeted by missionary activities. In the absence of secular youth schemes, they receive much sought after assistance in their schooling from the missionary agencies.

Typically, recruitment happens first as a personal connection, growing into a proposal to become a Tibetan teacher or a translator, sometimes with the prospect of studies abroad. As they start to work closer with missionary agencies and their staff, however, the recruits are gradually encouraged to embrace Christianity and abandon their Buddhist beliefs.

Although many Tibetans acknowledge the positive impact of foreign charitable projects, the current situation has raised suspicions of such projects in general, regardless of whether they intend to evangelise or not. It has also raised concern among Westerners operating in Tibet who find their work itself disturbed by Evangelist activities and themselves falling under suspicion.

The Churches are naturally uneasy about their relationship with a non-Christian, communist government. But, they’re nevertheless thankful for the opening that communism has created, and for the communist “meddling in Tibetan Buddhist affairs” and the “signs of Tibetan Buddhism’s serious erosion”. “Monks would tear up such books, and our teacher had earlier warned me against the missionaries who had been visiting our school.”

Traditionally, missionaries have been distributing written and recorded materials, particularly in important centres such as Lhasa, including the large monasteries. Recently though, involvement in the establishment and funding of schools is reported both from the TAR as well as from Amdo (Qinghai and northern Tibetan areas of Sichuan). Missionary activities in Tibet seem to remain at a relatively rudimentary stage, and organisations active in evangelical missions themselves admit that they have to tread ‘carefully’, though the future aims are often clear.

Remember…

It is only when I share life’s experiences with others that I can enjoy them or endure them to the greatest advantage.

This is what the early Christians did. They learned quickly that survival would go hand-in-hand with “fellowship.”

You see, having a relationship calls for being in fellowship with others, and that cannot be done very easily at arm’s length. It implies getting in touch, feeling the hurts, being an instrument of encouragement and healing.

Fences must come down.
Masks need to come off.
Welcome signs need to be hung outside the door.
Keys to the locks in our lives must be duplicated and distributed.
Bridges need to be lowered that allow others to cross the moat and then share our joys and our sorrows.

We stand united with Tibetans. Today, Tomorrow, Forever.

Blessings,

For the Gospel,

Servant of the Lord

Dr.Raj Kosaraju

They are simple-minded, warm-hearted, generous, very spiritual and nomadic people. Tibetan nomads roam the grasslands while the settled population live in fertile valleys, growing barley and raising sheep, yaks, goats and horses. In the villages, Tibetans live in flat-roofed mud houses. When rural Tibetans greet each other, they stick out their tongues and hiss loudly. This shows the other person that you are human and not a demon, who are believed to have black tongues.

In 1959 China annexed Tibet. It is now known as Tibetan Autonomous Region. About 2.5 million Tibetans live in Tibet and the Chinese provinces of Qinghai, Gansu, Sichuan and Yunnan. They are strongly nationalistic, venerating and worshipping the exiled Dalai Lama regarded as ‘god-king’, spiritual and political leader. Tibetans have long resisted any attempt to bring the Gospel.

What Do Tibetans Believe in

Behind their smiles lie a religion full of idol and demon worship -Tibetan Buddhism. Orthodox Buddhist teachings are mixed with the native aninistic Bon religion (Bon is an occult religion which practices human sacrifice and the worship of spirits, gods and demons). Buddhism adopted many of the Bon rituals like the flying of prayer flags and the turning of prayer wheels. These rituals combined with the esoteric practices of Tantric Buddhism evolved into Tibetan Buddhism called Lamaism. A typical Tibetan’s life consists of flying prayer wheels, offering of incenses, and the recitation of mystical phrases. The goal is to accumulate as much merit as possible for a better life in the next reincarnation.

Are There Christians in Tibet

There are a few Tibetans who are Christians in Tibet and about a few hundreds in India and Nepal. There are one or two house churches in Tibet pastored by Chinese Christians and a few churches in India and Nepal pastored by Tibetans and Ladakhis. It has proved to be a tough spiritual battle to share the gospel to the Tibetans.The Tibetans are Lamaist Buddhists. Buddhism began to be firmly established in Tibet around 620 AD, with the main Buddhist missionaries coming from India.

The king at that time believed in Buddhism and had monasteries built and Buddhist scriptures translated. Sharp and intense conflict arose between Buddhism and the aboriginal Bon religion. In its several-hundred-year struggle with the Bon religion, Buddhism finally prevailed.
However, it absorbed numerous doctrines, rites and divinities of the Bon, thus forming Tibetan Buddhism with evident local characteristics. Before the Cultural Revolution, Tibet had 2700 temples and monasteries and about 110,000 monks and nuns. Prior to that, Tibet was a theocracy where the officials and priests were treated as nobles.

From the age of five, boys in their thousands enter lamaseries to become monks and learn the Buddhist scriptures. The dalai lama, meaning Ocean of Wisdom, is the highest priest and god-king of Lamaistic Buddhism. Tibetans believe that when a dalai lama dies his soul is reborn in a newborn baby. Soon after the death of each dalai lama, the search begins to find his successor.

Since 1980, China’s government has supported the repairing of temples and monasteries in Tibetan areas and has recently been promoting Tibetan language education along with Mandarin from primary school onward.

Christianity

Christianity and Lamaism are diametrically opposed, so Tibet has strongly resisted Christianity for centuries. TEAM, the Christian Missionary Alliance (CMA), the China Inland Mission (now OMF International) and other organisations worked diligently in this difficult land prior to its closing in 1949.

Although relatively few Tibetans responded in that period, some house churches have recently developed in several key Tibetan areas with the total number of Tibetan Christians in all three major dialect groups now numbering in the hundreds.

The Bible was translated into Tibetan script in 1948, but this specific dialect is now understood by very few Tibetans, so new works are in progress. Scripture portions and evangelistic materials ranging from written tracts to the Jesus film and other video and audio CDs are now being distributed.

Central Tibet has long been one of the greatest challenges for Christianity. . . . Today there are just one or two small Tibetan fellowships in Central Tibet. Would-be missionaries face opposition from Buddhist monks, the Chinese authorities, and pro-Tibet foreigners living in Tibet.

The Tibetans have had a New Testament since 1885, portions of Scripture since 1862, and a Tibetan Bible since 1948. The Jesus film and Christian Broadcasting is available (FEBC) to Central Tibetans.

Tibet has long been one of the greatest challenges for Christianity. In 1892 Hudson Taylor said, “To make converts in Tibet is similar to going into a cave and trying to rob a lioness of her cubs.” Timothy, the Nestorian patriarch in Baghdad (778-820), referred to Christians in Tibet and indicated he was willing to assign a missionary to them. Today there are just one or two small Tibetan fellowships in Lhasa. Would-be missionaries face opposition from Buddhist monks, the Chinese authorities, and pro-Tibet foreigners living in Tibet.

While there is a seven hundred year history of missions in Tibet and still only a handful of believers, the harvest is ripe. The Tibetan church is growing and so is the missions force to reach them. Pray for the workers who face some of the harshest living conditions on the planet. Pray that the Lord would place a hedge around them. Pray the ‘Light of the nations’ would shine into the spiritual darkness of Tibetan Buddhism.

For the Gospel,

Raj Kosaraju

You can’t be a representative or ambassador of a nation without sharing the values and ideals of that nation. Nor can you be an ambassador of Christ without embracing His Word! If you and I are going to be successful as Christian men, it means we have to put Christ first and live fully committed to him. And once you know the God-given purpose for your life and are fired with a holy passion to accomplish it, there isn’t anything the devil can throw your way that will stop you!

Christians have been called to represent Jesus Christ and his kingdom as his ambassadors. We have been authorized by him. And he will back us up as we go out and represent him.

Generally speaking, an ambassador is a respected official acting as a representative of a nation. Sent to a foreign land, the ambassador’s role is to reflect the official position of the sovereign body that gave him authority. Writing to the Corinthians, Paul likens his own calling to that of an ambassador, and he urges all Christians to consider themselves ambassadors for Christ. The gospel of reconciliation was always at the heart of Paul’s preaching: “For Christ did not send me to baptize but to preach the gospel” (1 Corinthians 1:17).

A Landlocked Country: Bhutan

For the first time in Bhutan’s history, the long-isolated Buddhist nation’s government seems ready to grant official recognition and accompanying rights to a miniscule Christian population that has remained largely underground.

Though never colonized, landlocked Bhutan has historically seen its sovereignty as fragile due to its small size and location between India and China. It has sought to protect its sovereignty by preserving its distinct cultural identity based on Buddhism and by discouraging social tensions and unrest.

The government’s willingness to recognize Christians is partly aimed at bringing the community under religious regulation, said the anonymous source. Thus, its policy shift is evoking a mixed response among the country’s estimated 15,000 Christians.

If God assigns you a vision, you are more than equipped to handle it:

I remember having met Dr John Edmund Haggai and his precious wife in India during 2007. We had an interesting conversation. The fact that gave me encouragement the most is my vision towards the Gospel and the mission. The first and most important step is seeing what God has made you. If God assigns you a vision, you are more than equipped to handle it. Haggai mentions very likely, the beginnings of a vision lie within you long before you recognize it. You have to have a sure foundation that your vision can and will happen through you. You also have to write out your vision. We spent quality time in learning from the man of God.

Vision and Mission were two important topics which impressed me the most. John Haggai outlines five visionary decisions to help you define your vision. What am I doing, Where should I go, What is the purpose, are some of the questions that often plague your mind. Start praying and seek the knowledge of the Holy Spirit. Are you doing what you are supposed to do, what you are doing right now is it falling in place, where do you see contentment. These are prayer points to God and start praying to Him through the Holy Spirit. He will answer.

Habakkuk 2:2 says and the LORD answered me, and said, write the vision, and make it plain upon tables, that he may run that readeth it. The next step is to define your vision by the discipline of writing. Haggai says jotting things down on a notepad serves far more than an aid to memory. It helps me tease out the details of my vision. As you can see, success is not an accident. There are disciplinary steps to take in order to become the influential leader you desire to be. Influential leaders follow the path that has already been laid in front of them.

I saw a Vision

I was admitted in the Hospital after a Christian meeting in the eastern region of India. How the Great God Jesus Christ had enabled me even though I was unwell to speak to you and pray about Bhutan. The vision I saw for Bhutan was I was travelling by a Plane to Bhutan and went to a book store immediately from the Bhutanese airport and bought Bibles in heaps and heaps and were distributing Bibles in Bhutan. The Vision was very clear. God is making a way for his word to reach Bhutan. In fact it is making Himself known. Psalms 46:10 He says, “Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.” The Vision is going to pass and the Bhutanese government is going to accept Christianity as a Religion very soon.

A note from one of the great leaders from Bhutan (name withheld)

It was in the month of June 2007, I met pastor Rev. Dr. M.A. Paul, Rev. Dr. David Rayi and Rev. Dr. Raj Kosaraju from India who have visited Bhutan and Sikkim as speakers in our leaders seminar and I invited them in my house to pray for the manuscripts of whole holy bible translated by me into “Dzongkha” (The national language of Bhutan) which took 17 and half years of labour and pain to produce it. I took the opportunity to share them the need of funds to print our first holy bibles ever had in Bhutan and after that I could not contact the above three servants of God due to my sickness for almost two years and ultimately I was hospitalised in Guwahati India for lung cancer and thereby I had a major surgery. It was God’s will that, Rev Dr Raj Kosaraju wrote me an email about printing of our holy bibles and I wrote him back that I could not print our bibles due to lack of financial constraints. Though Dr Raj was sick himself even then the vision and love he have for the people of Bhutan started burning inside his heart.

The passion he have to reach God’s word for the Bhutanese people and he helped Bhutan by raising some funds to print 3000 copies of Dzongkha holy bibles. We have printed and released 3000 copies of bibles in September 2012 and distributed to the Buddhist people of Bhutan on free of cost. After release of these first bibles, many Buddhist monks and Buddhist people came to Lord by reading this Dzongkha Bibles. Due to limited funds, we could not print more bibles and there are rapid demands for the bibles. Praise God for His wonderful works in Bhutan and we thank to Rev. Dr.Raj Kosaraju for his generous support in printing this holy bibles for Bhutan. Nearly 1.7 million people will read these holy bibles if we can print more bibles and supply them.

The strong religion background of Bhutan does not encourage our people to come to Christ. This Holy Bible is the only way to reach every corner of Bhutan and we still hope that God will use Dr Raj Kosaraju to fulfil his vision to print more bibles for us since he had laid the pioneer foundation of reaching “His Word” for Bhutan. We pray God to bless him and his precious ministry for helping Bhutan.

Finally, we represent another Kingdom….

Christians are God’s ambassadors in that they have been “approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel” (1 Thessalonians 2:4). As we go through this world, we represent another Kingdom (John 18:36), and it is our responsibility to reflect the “official position” of heaven. We are in this world, but not of it (John 17:16). God’s ambassadors are to be “as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves” (Matthew 10:16). Empowered by the Holy Spirit, we must take the message of our King to the “ends of the earth” (Acts 1:8), imploring men and women everywhere to be reconciled to God.

When we have a dream, God can use our commitment and perseverance to move toward that goal. God can achieve His purposes as we pursue the vision He has given us. And He keeps His promises when we trust and obey Him.

I would like to mention Brothers Brian Dayhuff, Spiro Kavadas, and Bill Carnagey who have been instrumental to the work in Bhutan. They have been very faithful in promoting the Bibles. May God Bless them and their Ministries abundantly. I also remember Dr. Mitch King and Dr Michel Fascia for their support in the BU programs. They have been thoroughly impressive, committed, and Kingdom oriented . God Bless you. I would also like to place on record my friends Dr. R.S. John and Rev. Prakash who were instrumental in raising funds from their churches for the Bibles.

Blessings,

For The Gospel,

Raj Kosaraju

Raj Kosaraju is an Alumnus of Haggai Institute, Hawaii. He was a 2005 batch mate. Raj has an immense interest in Missions and Evangelism. He is grateful to all the faculty who shaped him in his Global Evangelism and Great Commission outlook. Special mention is to Dr. Aldo Fantao From Argentina, Senior Pastor Frank Farag from Sydney, Donn Anderson’s “Creative Use of Audio Visuals.”Dr. Arthur Dhanraj, Vice President at Maui mid Pacific Center in the US, Apostle Wahl F. Abrahams from Namibia, Sunil Robert from New Jersey, and Mr.Sundar Sangma, Vice-president International Advancement.

*Festival commemorating the unification of Tibetan tribes. Photograph: Michael Yamashita

You can’t be a representative or ambassador of a nation without sharing the values and ideals of that nation. Nor can you be an ambassador of Christ without embracing His Word! If you and I are going to be successful as Christian men, it means we have to put Christ first and live fully committed to him. And once you know the God-given purpose for your life and are fired with a holy passion to accomplish it, there isn’t anything the devil can throw your way that will stop you!

Christians have been called to represent Jesus Christ and his kingdom as his ambassadors. We have been authorized by him. And he will back us up as we go out and represent him.

Generally speaking, an ambassador is a respected official acting as a representative of a nation. Sent to a foreign land, the ambassador’s role is to reflect the official position of the sovereign body that gave him authority. Writing to the Corinthians, Paul likens his own calling to that of an ambassador, and he urges all Christians to consider themselves ambassadors for Christ. The gospel of reconciliation was always at the heart of Paul’s preaching: “For Christ did not send me to baptize but to preach the gospel” (1 Corinthians 1:17).

A Landlocked Country: Bhutan

For the first time in Bhutan’s history, the long-isolated Buddhist nation’s government seems ready to grant official recognition and accompanying rights to a miniscule Christian population that has remained largely underground.

Though never colonized, landlocked Bhutan has historically seen its sovereignty as fragile due to its small size and location between India and China. It has sought to protect its sovereignty by preserving its distinct cultural identity based on Buddhism and by discouraging social tensions and unrest.

The government’s willingness to recognize Christians is partly aimed at bringing the community under religious regulation, said the anonymous source. Thus, its policy shift is evoking a mixed response among the country’s estimated 15,000 Christians.

If God assigns you a vision, you are more than equipped to handle it:

I remember having met Dr John Edmund Haggai and his precious wife in India during 2007. We had an interesting conversation. The fact that gave me encouragement the most is my vision towards the Gospel and the mission. The first and most important step is seeing what God has made you. If God assigns you a vision, you are more than equipped to handle it. Haggai mentions very likely, the beginnings of a vision lie within you long before you recognize it. You have to have a sure foundation that your vision can and will happen through you. You also have to write out your vision. We spent quality time in learning from the man of God.

Vision and Mission were two important topics which impressed me the most. John Haggai outlines five visionary decisions to help you define your vision. What am I doing, Where should I go, What is the purpose, are some of the questions that often plague your mind. Start praying and seek the knowledge of the Holy Spirit. Are you doing what you are supposed to do, what you are doing right now is it falling in place, where do you see contentment. These are prayer points to God and start praying to Him through the Holy Spirit. He will answer.

Habakkuk 2:2 says and the LORD answered me, and said, write the vision, and make it plain upon tables, that he may run that readeth it. The next step is to define your vision by the discipline of writing. Haggai says jotting things down on a notepad serves far more than an aid to memory. It helps me tease out the details of my vision. As you can see, success is not an accident. There are disciplinary steps to take in order to become the influential leader you desire to be. Influential leaders follow the path that has already been laid in front of them.

I saw a Vision

I was admitted in the Hospital after a Christian meeting in the eastern region of India. How the Great God Jesus Christ had enabled me even though I was unwell to speak to you and pray about Bhutan. The vision I saw for Bhutan was I was travelling by a Plane to Bhutan and went to a book store immediately from the Bhutanese airport and bought Bibles in heaps and heaps and were distributing Bibles in Bhutan. The Vision was very clear. God is making a way for his word to reach Bhutan. In fact it is making Himself known. Psalms 46:10 He says, “Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.” The Vision is going to pass and the Bhutanese government is going to accept Christianity as a Religion very soon.

A note from one of the great leaders from Bhutan (name withheld)

It was in the month of June 2007, I met pastor Rev. Dr. M.A. Paul, Rev. Dr. David Rayi and Rev. Dr. Raj Kosaraju from India who have visited Bhutan and Sikkim as speakers in our leaders seminar and I invited them in my house to pray for the manuscripts of whole holy bible translated by me into “Dzongkha” (The national language of Bhutan) which took 17 and half years of labour and pain to produce it. I took the opportunity to share them the need of funds to print our first holy bibles ever had in Bhutan and after that I could not contact the above three servants of God due to my sickness for almost two years and ultimately I was hospitalised in Guwahati India for lung cancer and thereby I had a major surgery. It was God’s will that, Rev Dr Raj Kosaraju wrote me an email about printing of our holy bibles and I wrote him back that I could not print our bibles due to lack of financial constraints. Though Dr Raj was sick himself even then the vision and love he have for the people of Bhutan started burning inside his heart.

The passion he have to reach God’s word for the Bhutanese people and he helped Bhutan by raising some funds to print 3000 copies of Dzongkha holy bibles. We have printed and released 3000 copies of bibles in September 2012 and distributed to the Buddhist people of Bhutan on free of cost. After release of these first bibles, many Buddhist monks and Buddhist people came to Lord by reading this Dzongkha Bibles. Due to limited funds, we could not print more bibles and there are rapid demands for the bibles. Praise God for His wonderful works in Bhutan and we thank to Rev. Dr.Raj Kosaraju for his generous support in printing this holy bibles for Bhutan. Nearly 1.7 million people will read these holy bibles if we can print more bibles and supply them.

The strong religion background of Bhutan does not encourage our people to come to Christ. This Holy Bible is the only way to reach every corner of Bhutan and we still hope that God will use Dr Raj Kosaraju to fulfil his vision to print more bibles for us since he had laid the pioneer foundation of reaching “His Word” for Bhutan. We pray God to bless him and his precious ministry for helping Bhutan.

Finally, we represent another Kingdom….

Christians are God’s ambassadors in that they have been “approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel” (1 Thessalonians 2:4). As we go through this world, we represent another Kingdom (John 18:36), and it is our responsibility to reflect the “official position” of heaven. We are in this world, but not of it (John 17:16). God’s ambassadors are to be “as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves” (Matthew 10:16). Empowered by the Holy Spirit, we must take the message of our King to the “ends of the earth” (Acts 1:8), imploring men and women everywhere to be reconciled to God.

When we have a dream, God can use our commitment and perseverance to move toward that goal. God can achieve His purposes as we pursue the vision He has given us. And He keeps His promises when we trust and obey Him.

I would like to mention Brothers Brian Dayhuff, Spiro Kavadas, and Bill Carnagey who have been instrumental to the work in Bhutan. They have been very faithful in promoting the Bibles. May God Bless them and their Ministries abundantly. I also remember Dr. Mitch King and Dr Michel Fascia for their support in the BU programs. They have been thoroughly impressive, committed, and Kingdom oriented . God Bless you. I would also like to place on record my friends Dr. R.S. John and Rev. Prakash who were instrumental in raising funds from their churches for the Bibles.

Blessings,

For The Gospel,

Raj Kosaraju

Raj Kosaraju is an Alumnus of Haggai Institute, Hawaii. He was a 2005 batch mate. Raj has an immense interest in Missions and Evangelism. He is grateful to all the faculty who shaped him in his Global Evangelism and Great Commission outlook. Special mention is to Dr. Aldo Fantao From Argentina, Senior Pastor Frank Farag from Sydney, Donn Anderson’s “Creative Use of Audio Visuals.”Dr. Arthur Dhanraj, Vice President at Maui mid Pacific Center in the US, Apostle Wahl F. Abrahams from Namibia, Sunil Robert from New Jersey, and Mr.Sundar Sangma, Vice-president International Advancement.

*Festival commemorating the unification of Tibetan tribes. Photograph: Michael Yamashita

You can’t be a representative or ambassador of a nation without sharing the values and ideals of that nation. Nor can you be an ambassador of Christ without embracing His Word! If you and I are going to be successful as Christian men, it means we have to put Christ first and live fully committed to him. And once you know the God-given purpose for your life and are fired with a holy passion to accomplish it, there isn’t anything the devil can throw your way that will stop you!

Christians have been called to represent Jesus Christ and his kingdom as his ambassadors. We have been authorized by him. And he will back us up as we go out and represent him.

Generally speaking, an ambassador is a respected official acting as a representative of a nation. Sent to a foreign land, the ambassador’s role is to reflect the official position of the sovereign body that gave him authority. Writing to the Corinthians, Paul likens his own calling to that of an ambassador, and he urges all Christians to consider themselves ambassadors for Christ. The gospel of reconciliation was always at the heart of Paul’s preaching: “For Christ did not send me to baptize but to preach the gospel” (1 Corinthians 1:17).

A Landlocked Country: Bhutan

For the first time in Bhutan’s history, the long-isolated Buddhist nation’s government seems ready to grant official recognition and accompanying rights to a miniscule Christian population that has remained largely underground.

Though never colonized, landlocked Bhutan has historically seen its sovereignty as fragile due to its small size and location between India and China. It has sought to protect its sovereignty by preserving its distinct cultural identity based on Buddhism and by discouraging social tensions and unrest.

The government’s willingness to recognize Christians is partly aimed at bringing the community under religious regulation, said the anonymous source. Thus, its policy shift is evoking a mixed response among the country’s estimated 15,000 Christians.

If God assigns you a vision, you are more than equipped to handle it:

I remember having met Dr John Edmund Haggai and his precious wife in India during 2007. We had an interesting conversation. The fact that gave me encouragement the most is my vision towards the Gospel and the mission. The first and most important step is seeing what God has made you. If God assigns you a vision, you are more than equipped to handle it. Haggai mentions very likely, the beginnings of a vision lie within you long before you recognize it. You have to have a sure foundation that your vision can and will happen through you. You also have to write out your vision. We spent quality time in learning from the man of God.

Vision and Mission were two important topics which impressed me the most. John Haggai outlines five visionary decisions to help you define your vision. What am I doing, Where should I go, What is the purpose, are some of the questions that often plague your mind. Start praying and seek the knowledge of the Holy Spirit. Are you doing what you are supposed to do, what you are doing right now is it falling in place, where do you see contentment. These are prayer points to God and start praying to Him through the Holy Spirit. He will answer.

Habakkuk 2:2 says and the LORD answered me, and said, write the vision, and make it plain upon tables, that he may run that readeth it. The next step is to define your vision by the discipline of writing. Haggai says jotting things down on a notepad serves far more than an aid to memory. It helps me tease out the details of my vision. As you can see, success is not an accident. There are disciplinary steps to take in order to become the influential leader you desire to be. Influential leaders follow the path that has already been laid in front of them.

I saw a Vision

I was admitted in the Hospital after a Christian meeting in the eastern region of India. How the Great God Jesus Christ had enabled me even though I was unwell to speak to you and pray about Bhutan. The vision I saw for Bhutan was I was travelling by a Plane to Bhutan and went to a book store immediately from the Bhutanese airport and bought Bibles in heaps and heaps and were distributing Bibles in Bhutan. The Vision was very clear. God is making a way for his word to reach Bhutan. In fact it is making Himself known. Psalms 46:10 He says, “Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.” The Vision is going to pass and the Bhutanese government is going to accept Christianity as a Religion very soon.

A note from one of the great leaders from Bhutan (name withheld)

It was in the month of June 2007, I met pastor Rev. Dr. M.A. Paul, Rev. Dr. David Rayi and Rev. Dr. Raj Kosaraju from India who have visited Bhutan and Sikkim as speakers in our leaders seminar and I invited them in my house to pray for the manuscripts of whole holy bible translated by me into “Dzongkha” (The national language of Bhutan) which took 17 and half years of labour and pain to produce it. I took the opportunity to share them the need of funds to print our first holy bibles ever had in Bhutan and after that I could not contact the above three servants of God due to my sickness for almost two years and ultimately I was hospitalised in Guwahati India for lung cancer and thereby I had a major surgery. It was God’s will that, Rev Dr Raj Kosaraju wrote me an email about printing of our holy bibles and I wrote him back that I could not print our bibles due to lack of financial constraints. Though Dr Raj was sick himself even then the vision and love he have for the people of Bhutan started burning inside his heart.

The passion he have to reach God’s word for the Bhutanese people and he helped Bhutan by raising some funds to print 3000 copies of Dzongkha holy bibles. We have printed and released 3000 copies of bibles in September 2012 and distributed to the Buddhist people of Bhutan on free of cost. After release of these first bibles, many Buddhist monks and Buddhist people came to Lord by reading this Dzongkha Bibles. Due to limited funds, we could not print more bibles and there are rapid demands for the bibles. Praise God for His wonderful works in Bhutan and we thank to Rev. Dr.Raj Kosaraju for his generous support in printing this holy bibles for Bhutan. Nearly 1.7 million people will read these holy bibles if we can print more bibles and supply them.

The strong religion background of Bhutan does not encourage our people to come to Christ. This Holy Bible is the only way to reach every corner of Bhutan and we still hope that God will use Dr Raj Kosaraju to fulfil his vision to print more bibles for us since he had laid the pioneer foundation of reaching “His Word” for Bhutan. We pray God to bless him and his precious ministry for helping Bhutan.

Finally, we represent another Kingdom….

Christians are God’s ambassadors in that they have been “approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel” (1 Thessalonians 2:4). As we go through this world, we represent another Kingdom (John 18:36), and it is our responsibility to reflect the “official position” of heaven. We are in this world, but not of it (John 17:16). God’s ambassadors are to be “as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves” (Matthew 10:16). Empowered by the Holy Spirit, we must take the message of our King to the “ends of the earth” (Acts 1:8), imploring men and women everywhere to be reconciled to God.

When we have a dream, God can use our commitment and perseverance to move toward that goal. God can achieve His purposes as we pursue the vision He has given us. And He keeps His promises when we trust and obey Him.

I would like to mention Brothers Brian Dayhuff, Spiro Kavadas, and Bill Carnagey who have been instrumental to the work in Bhutan. They have been very faithful in promoting the Bibles. May God Bless them and their Ministries abundantly. I also remember Dr. Mitch King and Dr Michel Fascia for their support in the BU programs. They have been thoroughly impressive, committed, and Kingdom oriented . God Bless you. I would also like to place on record my friends Dr. R.S. John and Rev. Prakash who were instrumental in raising funds from their churches for the Bibles.

Blessings,

For The Gospel,

Raj Kosaraju

Raj Kosaraju is an Alumnus of Haggai Institute, Hawaii. He was a 2005 batch mate. Raj has an immense interest in Missions and Evangelism. He is grateful to all the faculty who shaped him in his Global Evangelism and Great Commission outlook. Special mention is to Dr. Aldo Fantao From Argentina, Senior Pastor Frank Farag from Sydney, Donn Anderson’s “Creative Use of Audio Visuals.”Dr. Arthur Dhanraj, Vice President at Maui mid Pacific Center in the US, Apostle Wahl F. Abrahams from Namibia, Sunil Robert from New Jersey, and Mr.Sundar Sangma, Vice-president International Advancement.

*Festival commemorating the unification of Tibetan tribes. Photograph: Michael Yamashita

You can’t be a representative or ambassador of a nation without sharing the values and ideals of that nation. Nor can you be an ambassador of Christ without embracing His Word! If you and I are going to be successful as Christian men, it means we have to put Christ first and live fully committed to him. And once you know the God-given purpose for your life and are fired with a holy passion to accomplish it, there isn’t anything the devil can throw your way that will stop you!

Christians have been called to represent Jesus Christ and his kingdom as his ambassadors. We have been authorized by him. And he will back us up as we go out and represent him.

Generally speaking, an ambassador is a respected official acting as a representative of a nation. Sent to a foreign land, the ambassador’s role is to reflect the official position of the sovereign body that gave him authority. Writing to the Corinthians, Paul likens his own calling to that of an ambassador, and he urges all Christians to consider themselves ambassadors for Christ. The gospel of reconciliation was always at the heart of Paul’s preaching: “For Christ did not send me to baptize but to preach the gospel” (1 Corinthians 1:17).

A Landlocked Country: Bhutan

For the first time in Bhutan’s history, the long-isolated Buddhist nation’s government seems ready to grant official recognition and accompanying rights to a miniscule Christian population that has remained largely underground.

Though never colonized, landlocked Bhutan has historically seen its sovereignty as fragile due to its small size and location between India and China. It has sought to protect its sovereignty by preserving its distinct cultural identity based on Buddhism and by discouraging social tensions and unrest.

The government’s willingness to recognize Christians is partly aimed at bringing the community under religious regulation, said the anonymous source. Thus, its policy shift is evoking a mixed response among the country’s estimated 15,000 Christians.

If God assigns you a vision, you are more than equipped to handle it:

I remember having met Dr John Edmund Haggai and his precious wife in India during 2007. We had an interesting conversation. The fact that gave me encouragement the most is my vision towards the Gospel and the mission. The first and most important step is seeing what God has made you. If God assigns you a vision, you are more than equipped to handle it. Haggai mentions very likely, the beginnings of a vision lie within you long before you recognize it. You have to have a sure foundation that your vision can and will happen through you. You also have to write out your vision. We spent quality time in learning from the man of God.

Vision and Mission were two important topics which impressed me the most. John Haggai outlines five visionary decisions to help you define your vision. What am I doing, Where should I go, What is the purpose, are some of the questions that often plague your mind. Start praying and seek the knowledge of the Holy Spirit. Are you doing what you are supposed to do, what you are doing right now is it falling in place, where do you see contentment. These are prayer points to God and start praying to Him through the Holy Spirit. He will answer.

Habakkuk 2:2 says and the LORD answered me, and said, write the vision, and make it plain upon tables, that he may run that readeth it. The next step is to define your vision by the discipline of writing. Haggai says jotting things down on a notepad serves far more than an aid to memory. It helps me tease out the details of my vision. As you can see, success is not an accident. There are disciplinary steps to take in order to become the influential leader you desire to be. Influential leaders follow the path that has already been laid in front of them.

I saw a Vision

I was admitted in the Hospital after a Christian meeting in the eastern region of India. How the Great God Jesus Christ had enabled me even though I was unwell to speak to you and pray about Bhutan. The vision I saw for Bhutan was I was travelling by a Plane to Bhutan and went to a book store immediately from the Bhutanese airport and bought Bibles in heaps and heaps and were distributing Bibles in Bhutan. The Vision was very clear. God is making a way for his word to reach Bhutan. In fact it is making Himself known. Psalms 46:10 He says, “Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.” The Vision is going to pass and the Bhutanese government is going to accept Christianity as a Religion very soon.

A note from one of the great leaders from Bhutan (name withheld)

It was in the month of June 2007, I met pastor Rev. Dr. M.A. Paul, Rev. Dr. David Rayi and Rev. Dr. Raj Kosaraju from India who have visited Bhutan and Sikkim as speakers in our leaders seminar and I invited them in my house to pray for the manuscripts of whole holy bible translated by me into “Dzongkha” (The national language of Bhutan) which took 17 and half years of labour and pain to produce it. I took the opportunity to share them the need of funds to print our first holy bibles ever had in Bhutan and after that I could not contact the above three servants of God due to my sickness for almost two years and ultimately I was hospitalised in Guwahati India for lung cancer and thereby I had a major surgery. It was God’s will that, Rev Dr Raj Kosaraju wrote me an email about printing of our holy bibles and I wrote him back that I could not print our bibles due to lack of financial constraints. Though Dr Raj was sick himself even then the vision and love he have for the people of Bhutan started burning inside his heart.

The passion he have to reach God’s word for the Bhutanese people and he helped Bhutan by raising some funds to print 3000 copies of Dzongkha holy bibles. We have printed and released 3000 copies of bibles in September 2012 and distributed to the Buddhist people of Bhutan on free of cost. After release of these first bibles, many Buddhist monks and Buddhist people came to Lord by reading this Dzongkha Bibles. Due to limited funds, we could not print more bibles and there are rapid demands for the bibles. Praise God for His wonderful works in Bhutan and we thank to Rev. Dr.Raj Kosaraju for his generous support in printing this holy bibles for Bhutan. Nearly 1.7 million people will read these holy bibles if we can print more bibles and supply them.

The strong religion background of Bhutan does not encourage our people to come to Christ. This Holy Bible is the only way to reach every corner of Bhutan and we still hope that God will use Dr Raj Kosaraju to fulfil his vision to print more bibles for us since he had laid the pioneer foundation of reaching “His Word” for Bhutan. We pray God to bless him and his precious ministry for helping Bhutan.

Finally, we represent another Kingdom….

Christians are God’s ambassadors in that they have been “approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel” (1 Thessalonians 2:4). As we go through this world, we represent another Kingdom (John 18:36), and it is our responsibility to reflect the “official position” of heaven. We are in this world, but not of it (John 17:16). God’s ambassadors are to be “as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves” (Matthew 10:16). Empowered by the Holy Spirit, we must take the message of our King to the “ends of the earth” (Acts 1:8), imploring men and women everywhere to be reconciled to God.

When we have a dream, God can use our commitment and perseverance to move toward that goal. God can achieve His purposes as we pursue the vision He has given us. And He keeps His promises when we trust and obey Him.

I would like to mention Brothers Brian Dayhuff, Spiro Kavadas, and Bill Carnagey who have been instrumental to the work in Bhutan. They have been very faithful in promoting the Bibles. May God Bless them and their Ministries abundantly. I also remember Dr. Mitch King and Dr Michel Fascia for their support in the BU programs. They have been thoroughly impressive, committed, and Kingdom oriented . God Bless you. I would also like to place on record my friends Dr. R.S. John and Rev. Prakash who were instrumental in raising funds from their churches for the Bibles.

Blessings,

For The Gospel,

Raj Kosaraju

Raj Kosaraju is an Alumnus of Haggai Institute, Hawaii. He was a 2005 batch mate. Raj has an immense interest in Missions and Evangelism. He is grateful to all the faculty who shaped him in his Global Evangelism and Great Commission outlook. Special mention is to Dr. Aldo Fantao From Argentina, Senior Pastor Frank Farag from Sydney, Donn Anderson’s “Creative Use of Audio Visuals.”Dr. Arthur Dhanraj, Vice President at Maui mid Pacific Center in the US, Apostle Wahl F. Abrahams from Namibia, Sunil Robert from New Jersey, and Mr.Sundar Sangma, Vice-president International Advancement.

*Festival commemorating the unification of Tibetan tribes. Photograph: Michael Yamashita

You can’t be a representative or ambassador of a nation without sharing the values and ideals of that nation. Nor can you be an ambassador of Christ without embracing His Word! If you and I are going to be successful as Christian men, it means we have to put Christ first and live fully committed to him. And once you know the God-given purpose for your life and are fired with a holy passion to accomplish it, there isn’t anything the devil can throw your way that will stop you!

Christians have been called to represent Jesus Christ and his kingdom as his ambassadors. We have been authorized by him. And he will back us up as we go out and represent him.

Generally speaking, an ambassador is a respected official acting as a representative of a nation. Sent to a foreign land, the ambassador’s role is to reflect the official position of the sovereign body that gave him authority. Writing to the Corinthians, Paul likens his own calling to that of an ambassador, and he urges all Christians to consider themselves ambassadors for Christ. The gospel of reconciliation was always at the heart of Paul’s preaching: “For Christ did not send me to baptize but to preach the gospel” (1 Corinthians 1:17).

A Landlocked Country: Bhutan

For the first time in Bhutan’s history, the long-isolated Buddhist nation’s government seems ready to grant official recognition and accompanying rights to a miniscule Christian population that has remained largely underground.

Though never colonized, landlocked Bhutan has historically seen its sovereignty as fragile due to its small size and location between India and China. It has sought to protect its sovereignty by preserving its distinct cultural identity based on Buddhism and by discouraging social tensions and unrest.

The government’s willingness to recognize Christians is partly aimed at bringing the community under religious regulation, said the anonymous source. Thus, its policy shift is evoking a mixed response among the country’s estimated 15,000 Christians.

If God assigns you a vision, you are more than equipped to handle it:

I remember having met Dr John Edmund Haggai and his precious wife in India during 2007. We had an interesting conversation. The fact that gave me encouragement the most is my vision towards the Gospel and the mission. The first and most important step is seeing what God has made you. If God assigns you a vision, you are more than equipped to handle it. Haggai mentions very likely, the beginnings of a vision lie within you long before you recognize it. You have to have a sure foundation that your vision can and will happen through you. You also have to write out your vision. We spent quality time in learning from the man of God.

Vision and Mission were two important topics which impressed me the most. John Haggai outlines five visionary decisions to help you define your vision. What am I doing, Where should I go, What is the purpose, are some of the questions that often plague your mind. Start praying and seek the knowledge of the Holy Spirit. Are you doing what you are supposed to do, what you are doing right now is it falling in place, where do you see contentment. These are prayer points to God and start praying to Him through the Holy Spirit. He will answer.

Habakkuk 2:2 says and the LORD answered me, and said, write the vision, and make it plain upon tables, that he may run that readeth it. The next step is to define your vision by the discipline of writing. Haggai says jotting things down on a notepad serves far more than an aid to memory. It helps me tease out the details of my vision. As you can see, success is not an accident. There are disciplinary steps to take in order to become the influential leader you desire to be. Influential leaders follow the path that has already been laid in front of them.

I saw a Vision

I was admitted in the Hospital after a Christian meeting in the eastern region of India. How the Great God Jesus Christ had enabled me even though I was unwell to speak to you and pray about Bhutan. The vision I saw for Bhutan was I was travelling by a Plane to Bhutan and went to a book store immediately from the Bhutanese airport and bought Bibles in heaps and heaps and were distributing Bibles in Bhutan. The Vision was very clear. God is making a way for his word to reach Bhutan. In fact it is making Himself known. Psalms 46:10 He says, “Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.” The Vision is going to pass and the Bhutanese government is going to accept Christianity as a Religion very soon.

A note from one of the great leaders from Bhutan (name withheld)

It was in the month of June 2007, I met pastor Rev. Dr. M.A. Paul, Rev. Dr. David Rayi and Rev. Dr. Raj Kosaraju from India who have visited Bhutan and Sikkim as speakers in our leaders seminar and I invited them in my house to pray for the manuscripts of whole holy bible translated by me into “Dzongkha” (The national language of Bhutan) which took 17 and half years of labour and pain to produce it. I took the opportunity to share them the need of funds to print our first holy bibles ever had in Bhutan and after that I could not contact the above three servants of God due to my sickness for almost two years and ultimately I was hospitalised in Guwahati India for lung cancer and thereby I had a major surgery. It was God’s will that, Rev Dr Raj Kosaraju wrote me an email about printing of our holy bibles and I wrote him back that I could not print our bibles due to lack of financial constraints. Though Dr Raj was sick himself even then the vision and love he have for the people of Bhutan started burning inside his heart.

The passion he have to reach God’s word for the Bhutanese people and he helped Bhutan by raising some funds to print 3000 copies of Dzongkha holy bibles. We have printed and released 3000 copies of bibles in September 2012 and distributed to the Buddhist people of Bhutan on free of cost. After release of these first bibles, many Buddhist monks and Buddhist people came to Lord by reading this Dzongkha Bibles. Due to limited funds, we could not print more bibles and there are rapid demands for the bibles. Praise God for His wonderful works in Bhutan and we thank to Rev. Dr.Raj Kosaraju for his generous support in printing this holy bibles for Bhutan. Nearly 1.7 million people will read these holy bibles if we can print more bibles and supply them.

The strong religion background of Bhutan does not encourage our people to come to Christ. This Holy Bible is the only way to reach every corner of Bhutan and we still hope that God will use Dr Raj Kosaraju to fulfil his vision to print more bibles for us since he had laid the pioneer foundation of reaching “His Word” for Bhutan. We pray God to bless him and his precious ministry for helping Bhutan.

Finally, we represent another Kingdom….

Christians are God’s ambassadors in that they have been “approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel” (1 Thessalonians 2:4). As we go through this world, we represent another Kingdom (John 18:36), and it is our responsibility to reflect the “official position” of heaven. We are in this world, but not of it (John 17:16). God’s ambassadors are to be “as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves” (Matthew 10:16). Empowered by the Holy Spirit, we must take the message of our King to the “ends of the earth” (Acts 1:8), imploring men and women everywhere to be reconciled to God.

When we have a dream, God can use our commitment and perseverance to move toward that goal. God can achieve His purposes as we pursue the vision He has given us. And He keeps His promises when we trust and obey Him.

I would like to mention Brothers Brian Dayhuff, Spiro Kavadas, and Bill Carnagey who have been instrumental to the work in Bhutan. They have been very faithful in promoting the Bibles. May God Bless them and their Ministries abundantly. I also remember Dr. Mitch King and Dr Michel Fascia for their support in the BU programs. They have been thoroughly impressive, committed, and Kingdom oriented . God Bless you. I would also like to place on record my friends Dr. R.S. John and Rev. Prakash who were instrumental in raising funds from their churches for the Bibles.

Blessings,

For The Gospel,

Raj Kosaraju

Raj Kosaraju is an Alumnus of Haggai Institute, Hawaii. He was a 2005 batch mate. Raj has an immense interest in Missions and Evangelism. He is grateful to all the faculty who shaped him in his Global Evangelism and Great Commission outlook. Special mention is to Dr. Aldo Fantao From Argentina, Senior Pastor Frank Farag from Sydney, Donn Anderson’s “Creative Use of Audio Visuals.”Dr. Arthur Dhanraj, Vice President at Maui mid Pacific Center in the US, Apostle Wahl F. Abrahams from Namibia, Sunil Robert from New Jersey, and Mr.Sundar Sangma, Vice-president International Advancement.

*Festival commemorating the unification of Tibetan tribes. Photograph: Michael Yamashita

Distracted by the letter and her persistence to send the letter to God, she misses her school bus. She is disappointed and now has whole day to think about what to do with the letter. She meets a Muslim Priest, a Monk and a Church Pastor. They all fail to give her God’s address. Her patience gives away. She breaks into crying. And then, story reaches the climax. Could she ever deliver her letter to God? To find out this you need to watch the film.

Dolma is a wonderful movie to watch. It is short and beautiful. It will touch your heart. So don’t miss it. I also remember my friend Spiro Kavadas from Springfield in Illinois who has been a strong supporter, and a well wisher for this movie.

Cast and Crew:

Dolma: Deden

Mother: Kalsang

Father: Rinchen Tashi

Grandfather: Samdup

Sister: Choesang

Church Pastor: Phuntsok

Muslim Priest: Sonam Wangdu

Buddhist Monk: Rinchen Tashi

Post Master: Ngawang Samdup

Language Coordinator: Rinchen Tashi

Cinematographer: Bernard S Davis

First Director: Rosario

Producers: Sara Jim Sanjay / Raj Kosaraju / Monty Montgomery

Story/Screenplay/Direction: Jim Sanjay

Studio: SIMPL (Shepherd India Media Private Limited)

A note from the Director:

My name is Jim Sanjay and I am the Director of the movie. When I was 21 years old, I used to get fascinated by Tibetans who own shops in Shimla (Himachal Pradesh). They were different people. They talk differently, they dress differently. Something was was very intriguing about them. I tried to make friends with them but, they were too shy to open up with me. In pretext of starting conversation with them I use to buy stuff that I never need. For example, once I purchased many pair of shoes from them with my college fees and had to re sell them to recover my money. That was the only encounter I had with Tibetans Fast forward 22 years, I stumbled upon Tibetan one more time on my way to Coorg in Karanataka. I could not stop myself to talk to them one more time. Results were same as it were 22 years before. They refused to open up. I gave them my phone no but, nobody returned my calls.

By now It was quite clear to me that Tibetans are very shy in nature and they do not mix around too much with outside people. They are strong believers of family values and community. I started doing research on them and I was shocked to discover that their belief are total mix of Hinduism and Buddhist teaching. They believe in KARMA theory. They also believe in Evolution Theory. Their pillar of religion is “Reincarnation” and “Enlightenment”. The biggest shock came when I found out that Tibetan do not have concept of “God”. They do not understand God as I do. For them God makes no or very little sense. So, I wrote “letter to God” which one year later became a Tibetan short film Dolma.

Because of the short film Dolma, I have a great friend Rinchen Tashi who is an owner of a Tibetan Restaurant in Chennai. Rinchen Tashi himself is a writer, Actor and a poet. He became interested in the film and worked with me as a language Coordinator. He travelled with me to the Tibetan Settlement Camps in Bylakuppe, Karnataka. He is the one who took me straight in the hearts of Tibetans. This is tour first film together. I am so looking forward to work with him again.

After, organizing a premier show of Dolma for Tibetan students in Chennai in the coming months. I would be looking forward to take this short film to all the Tibetans settled all over India.

I would be looking forward to take this short film to all the Tibetans settled all over India and overseas. The International release will be during December 2012.

I also briefed my friend Raj Kosaraju who is a technocrat from Chicago and also a producer of this Tibetan film “Dolma” and who has immediately responded to the story and decided we will go for it. Raj had visited Bhutan a couple of times and is also planning to make a Bhutanese movie by the end of this year. Another good movie in Afghanistan is also being planned during early next year. It has a great story. It will be a great movie says Raj. Monty Montgomery who is the CEO of a company is from Chennai and is overseeing Indian as well as the Middle east Operations based at Doha Qatar. Monty is also funding this movie.

A note about Tibet and the Movie which inspired me- Raj Kosaraju

By far, the best place to see an English language movie in San Jose is at Multiplaza Escazu.The establishment resembles a typical mall in the United States. I watched this movie in San Jose, Costa Rica in November of 1997.“Seven Years in Tibet” allows viewers to observe the Buddhist faith, but it is not “preached” or glorified as the “true” religion. Harrier doesn’t portray a religious man, and he is often found relying on his own skill and knowledge in life. While the language was not really offensive, you will be shocked to see what two hungry men will eat! Historically, the writers took a bit of poetic license in portraying the Chinese invasion as happening while Heinrich Harrier was in Tibet. (In actuality, it took place a few years after he left.) The Dalai Lama was also shown to be an outsider of Tibet, observing the Tibetan’s culture and lifestyle as a visitor would see them. Obviously, he was a Tibetan and was not an outsider as was shown. Brad Pitt was excellent in the entire movie. I liked watching him.

Incredibly, the filming took place in South America but looked so authentic as to astound even the most observant critics! The supporting cast is commendable and many of the Tibetans are very lovable from young to old. For a glimpse into Eastern Life, a historically motivated script, and breathtaking God-given scenery, spend 2+ hours observing “Seven Years in Tibet”.

I really enjoyed the movie. The people were very kind and compassionate. It was the first time that I felt I should do something for Tibet. I remember having read about Sadhu Sunder Singh who was a missionary from India and did extensive work in Tibet. I just wondered if I could go to Tibet. One day I will…when they have Tibet back. My prayers are with all Tibetans all over the world for a free Tibet.

About Tibet: A country which I love to go…..

What comes to mind when you think of Tibet? Plateaus and shepherds? Or an isolated and unchanging lifestyle?

I had the chance of interacting with a few of them. Intellectual, motivated, passionate. Introspective, earnest, thoughtful. These are descriptors of the students of Dharamsala, young people who have left their beloved Tibet to find freedom in India. Along with their keen intellect, they exhibit an amazing capacity for kindness, caring, and compassionate thinking. Their incredible generosity of spirit is a gift to all who come in contact with them, and their wholehearted faith in the future is inspirational.

Your stories of your lives and your thoughts on the future of your country are expressive and beautiful sketches of the Motherland, a frank recounting of tragedies for those left behind; they are brutal narrations of terrifying escape over dark snow mountains, and yet they are also forgiving and lovingly bright visions of the future. You, even in exile, are holding fast to a dream. You will see freedom. It will come. Free Tibet.

Blessings,

Raj Kosaraju

You can’t be a representative or ambassador of a nation without sharing the values and ideals of that nation. Nor can you be an ambassador of Christ without embracing His Word! If you and I are going to be successful as Christian men, it means we have to put Christ first and live fully committed to him. And once you know the God-given purpose for your life and are fired with a holy passion to accomplish it, there isn’t anything the devil can throw your way that will stop you!

Christians have been called to represent Jesus Christ and his kingdom as his ambassadors. We have been authorized by him. And he will back us up as we go out and represent him.

Generally speaking, an ambassador is a respected official acting as a representative of a nation. Sent to a foreign land, the ambassador’s role is to reflect the official position of the sovereign body that gave him authority. Writing to the Corinthians, Paul likens his own calling to that of an ambassador, and he urges all Christians to consider themselves ambassadors for Christ. The gospel of reconciliation was always at the heart of Paul’s preaching: “For Christ did not send me to baptize but to preach the gospel” (1 Corinthians 1:17).

A Landlocked Country: Bhutan

For the first time in Bhutan’s history, the long-isolated Buddhist nation’s government seems ready to grant official recognition and accompanying rights to a miniscule Christian population that has remained largely underground.

Though never colonized, landlocked Bhutan has historically seen its sovereignty as fragile due to its small size and location between India and China. It has sought to protect its sovereignty by preserving its distinct cultural identity based on Buddhism and by discouraging social tensions and unrest.

The government’s willingness to recognize Christians is partly aimed at bringing the community under religious regulation, said the anonymous source. Thus, its policy shift is evoking a mixed response among the country’s estimated 15,000 Christians.

If God assigns you a vision, you are more than equipped to handle it:

I remember having met Dr John Edmund Haggai and his precious wife in India during 2007. We had an interesting conversation. The fact that gave me encouragement the most is my vision towards the Gospel and the mission. The first and most important step is seeing what God has made you. If God assigns you a vision, you are more than equipped to handle it. Haggai mentions very likely, the beginnings of a vision lie within you long before you recognize it. You have to have a sure foundation that your vision can and will happen through you. You also have to write out your vision. We spent quality time in learning from the man of God.

Vision and Mission were two important topics which impressed me the most. John Haggai outlines five visionary decisions to help you define your vision. What am I doing, Where should I go, What is the purpose, are some of the questions that often plague your mind. Start praying and seek the knowledge of the Holy Spirit. Are you doing what you are supposed to do, what you are doing right now is it falling in place, where do you see contentment. These are prayer points to God and start praying to Him through the Holy Spirit. He will answer.

Habakkuk 2:2 says and the LORD answered me, and said, write the vision, and make it plain upon tables, that he may run that readeth it. The next step is to define your vision by the discipline of writing. Haggai says jotting things down on a notepad serves far more than an aid to memory. It helps me tease out the details of my vision. As you can see, success is not an accident. There are disciplinary steps to take in order to become the influential leader you desire to be. Influential leaders follow the path that has already been laid in front of them.

I saw a Vision

I was admitted in the Hospital after a Christian meeting in the eastern region of India. How the Great God Jesus Christ had enabled me even though I was unwell to speak to you and pray about Bhutan. The vision I saw for Bhutan was I was travelling by a Plane to Bhutan and went to a book store immediately from the Bhutanese airport and bought Bibles in heaps and heaps and were distributing Bibles in Bhutan. The Vision was very clear. God is making a way for his word to reach Bhutan. In fact it is making Himself known. Psalms 46:10 He says, “Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.” The Vision is going to pass and the Bhutanese government is going to accept Christianity as a Religion very soon.

A note from one of the great leaders from Bhutan (name withheld)

It was in the month of June 2007, I met pastor Rev. Dr. M.A. Paul, Rev. Dr. David Rayi and Rev. Dr. Raj Kosaraju from India who have visited Bhutan and Sikkim as speakers in our leaders seminar and I invited them in my house to pray for the manuscripts of whole holy bible translated by me into “Dzongkha” (The national language of Bhutan) which took 17 and half years of labour and pain to produce it. I took the opportunity to share them the need of funds to print our first holy bibles ever had in Bhutan and after that I could not contact the above three servants of God due to my sickness for almost two years and ultimately I was hospitalised in Guwahati India for lung cancer and thereby I had a major surgery. It was God’s will that, Rev Dr Raj Kosaraju wrote me an email about printing of our holy bibles and I wrote him back that I could not print our bibles due to lack of financial constraints. Though Dr Raj was sick himself even then the vision and love he have for the people of Bhutan started burning inside his heart.

The passion he have to reach God’s word for the Bhutanese people and he helped Bhutan by raising some funds to print 3000 copies of Dzongkha holy bibles. We have printed and released 3000 copies of bibles in September 2012 and distributed to the Buddhist people of Bhutan on free of cost. After release of these first bibles, many Buddhist monks and Buddhist people came to Lord by reading this Dzongkha Bibles. Due to limited funds, we could not print more bibles and there are rapid demands for the bibles. Praise God for His wonderful works in Bhutan and we thank to Rev. Dr.Raj Kosaraju for his generous support in printing this holy bibles for Bhutan. Nearly 1.7 million people will read these holy bibles if we can print more bibles and supply them.

The strong religion background of Bhutan does not encourage our people to come to Christ. This Holy Bible is the only way to reach every corner of Bhutan and we still hope that God will use Dr Raj Kosaraju to fulfil his vision to print more bibles for us since he had laid the pioneer foundation of reaching “His Word” for Bhutan. We pray God to bless him and his precious ministry for helping Bhutan.

Finally, we represent another Kingdom….

Christians are God’s ambassadors in that they have been “approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel” (1 Thessalonians 2:4). As we go through this world, we represent another Kingdom (John 18:36), and it is our responsibility to reflect the “official position” of heaven. We are in this world, but not of it (John 17:16). God’s ambassadors are to be “as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves” (Matthew 10:16). Empowered by the Holy Spirit, we must take the message of our King to the “ends of the earth” (Acts 1:8), imploring men and women everywhere to be reconciled to God.

When we have a dream, God can use our commitment and perseverance to move toward that goal. God can achieve His purposes as we pursue the vision He has given us. And He keeps His promises when we trust and obey Him.

Blessings,

For The Gospel

Raj Kosaraju is an Alumnus of Haggai Institute, Hawaii. He was a 2005 batch mate. Raj has an immense interest in Missions and Evangelism. He is grateful to all the faculty who shaped him in his Global Evangelism and Great Commission outlook. Special mention is to Dr. Aldo Fantao From Argentina, Senior Pastor Frank Farag from Sydney, Donn Anderson’s “Creative Use of Audio Visuals.”Dr. Arthur Dhanraj, Vice President at Maui mid Pacific Center in the US, Apostle Wahl F. Abrahams from Namibia, Sunil Robert from New Jersey, and Mr.Sundar Sangma, Vice-president International Advancement.