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alpha india news
VOLUME 4, ISSUE 2 | APRIL - JUNE 2013
NEWS IN BRIEF
Worship Central: The FCC feels their foundations have been laid by going through the Worship Central course. Pg. 4 Prison Alpha: Prisoners in Odisha are really interested in listening to the Alpha talks. Pg. 5
THE QUARTERLY NEWSPAPER OF ALPHA INDIA
ALPHA BLESSING MALAYSIA
Master Training: 444 Master Trainers from across India were equipped in the Alpha course. Pg. 6-7 GAT in Mangalore: Organised for the largest Catholic diocese of India. Pg. 8 Stories from South: Read about trainings, courses and testimonies from various places in South India. Pg. 8-9 A time to ride: Know more about Joshua John a Delhi biker and pastor. Pg. 11
Financial Partnership We appreciate your financial partnership. If you are inspired to support Alpha India please use the details below, or contact Josy Joseph at the Alpha India Office.
The Alpha course has been running in Malaysia for many years. At the Grace Assembly, Petaling Jaya, it has been a blessing to many. Members of the Church write the names of people whom they desire to come to the course on a star fish cutout and put it up on a board, so the whole church prays for these people to come on the course and come to faith. Read more about this wonderful Assembly on Pg 10
ADVENTURE PAINTINGS BY JOSHUA JOHN
Alpha India Account: Account Number: 911020054880929 NAME: ALPHA INDIA BANK NAME : AXIS BANK LTD IFSC CODE : UTIB0000734 BRANCH : KALYAN NAGAR BANGALORE.
Acc Type: Current Account
An inspiring interview of the Biker-artist-photographerpastor with his innovative way of sharing the Gospel on Pg 11
2 National Alpha Office contact details: Alpha India:
219, 5th A Main Road, HRBR 2nd Block, Kalyan Nagar, Bangalore - 560 043 Tel: 080 2542 0902 IDD: +91 80 2542 0902 Email: contact@alphaindia.org, Web: www.alphaindia.org
National Director: Mr J. Varadaraj Board Members:
Chris Sadler, Chairman of Alpha Asia-Pacific Scott Norling, Chairman of Alpha India J Varadaraj, National Director of Alpha India Don Anderson, Advisor to Petroleum Ministry of Qatar Clarissa Anderson, Entreprenuer and Invester Mathew Anthony, Secretary for Evangelisation, Archdiocese of Delhi
Church Advisory Board:
Archbishop Vincent Concessao Bishop Rt. Rev. V. M. Malaviya Rev. Dr. D. Mohan, Superintendant of AOG India
Alpha India Regional Offices:
North West Region, Chandigarh: Rupak Nayak Email : rupak.alphaindia@gmail.com Mob : 090233-91414 West Region, Ahmedabad: Jimmy Harshkant Email : damorejimmy@gmail.com Ph : 09825-444197 East Region, Kolkata: Prabir Mandal Email : prabir.alphaindia@gmail.com Ph : 096744-61951 North East Region, Shillong : P.O Ryn Jah, Shillong - 793006 Ph : 090851-57153
National Coordinator’s Contact details:
Alpha in the Workplace: Santosh Chetri Mob: 090070-22889 Alpha for Prisons: Peace Khapai Mob: 09597-421832 Student & Youth Alpha : James Michael David Mob : 097429-98618 North-East Diaspora: Rampan Muivah Mob : 099029-90313
Coordinators’ Contact details:
Andhra Pradesh: Susheel K Chattar Mob: 098660-99184 Andhra Pradesh - Hindupur: Paul J L Mob: 094408-61979 Bihar: George Muller Mob: 094310-16124 South Karnataka: Sam Victor Mob: 099646-98118 North Karnataka (Hubli): Abraham Vinay Mob: 095914-22225 Kerala : Mon C George Mob: 094464 83577 Odisha: Tushar K Behera Mob: 093371-41600 Odisha: Jayadeep Samantroy Mob: 098535-03813 Rajasthan: Kamlesh Parmar Mob: 099830-03637 Rajasthan: Johnson James Mob:098290-77374 Uttarakhand: Janus Peter Mob: 094581-90983 Uttar Pradesh: Vinay P Dayal Mob: 093594-86843 West Bengal: Dilip Debnath Mob: 098742-07760 Tamil Nadu : John Rajan Mob : 098434-95572 Northeast : Ninghor K Shimray Mob: 090851-57153 Northeast : Subhas Lyngdoh Mob: 097740-59873 Kathmandu : Rupa Chetri Mob: 00977 98132-81683 Kathmandu: Reuben Pradhan Mob: 00977- 98020-25522 Assoc. Coordinator, Chandigarh : Vikram Sathyarahi, Mob: 096467-76120 © Alpha India 2013, edited and published by J.V. Raj for Alpha India
alpha notes
ALPHA INDIA NEWS APRIL - JUNE 2013
READERS STORIES & PHOTOS Thank you for the testimonies, stories and photos that were sent to us. Once again in this issue your stories have been printed throughout the newspaper, along with other encouraging stories that we have received from across the nation. Please send your stories to: Email: stories.alphaindia@gmail.com Postal address: Alpha India National Office 219, 5th A Main Road, HRBR 2nd Block, Kalyan Nagar, Bangalore - 560 043
LETTER FROM BISHOP PHILLIP S. MASIH Dear Mr Vardaraj I am really thankful to Alpha India for their participation in the Lucknow Episcopal area. Alpha has the ability to bring about a revolution and awareness amongst the church members for evangelization in their local areas. The Alpha course acts as a catalyst in the divine process of church growth. Hence, I highly recommend the Alpha course to all my collogues and pastors to make effective use of it in the process of evangelism and in bringing a transformational change in the society. I really appreciate the partnership of Alpha India with Lucknow and Bengal Regional conference of MCI. We look forward to working together for the extension of His kingdom. Thanking you, Yours sincerely, BISHOP PHILLIP S. MASIH
RESPONSE CARDS These are a few responses from people who have attended Alpha •
“I enjoyed the group sharing and interactions amongst us… Also the fellowship meal at the end… So ultimately, I would say, I liked the bonding that took place!
•
“My faith in Christ has become stronger, thanks to the Alpha course”
•
“I did not know what exactly to expect on the Holy Spirit Day but I wanted to receive Him and I believe I have. I have never felt anything like this before!”
•
“Looks like God planned it!”
•
“I enjoyed everything from the singing, the talks, the videos, the warm hospitality of our hosts, and of course the dinner at the end!”
•
“I got a chance to voice so many questions. I also make it a point to read my Bible everyday now.”
•
“I have become a tad more patient than before, learning to accept differences… I believe that God is faithful and will fulfill his plan for us.”
alpha notes
ALPHA INDIA NEWS APRIL - JUNE 2013
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FROM THE NATIONAL DIRECTOR
“Someone died
for you” After so many years of having known this truth, I continue to be amazed that “someone died for me”. It is always difficult to bring myself to face the reality of this fact. It is actually unbelievable. This needs faith which comes by hearing the word of God. Living in an utterly selfish world where man justifies his action and moves from one crises of faith to yet another, eventually devoid of the unspeakable gift of God. In mathematics, when infinity is added to a finite number, the total becomes infinite. No matter what the value of the finite number, it still will be known as an infinite number. This is what happened when someone died for me on that cross. Worthless in myself, the worthiness of Jesus is imputed to me. This great value imputed on me creates unlimited possibilities and continues to enhance the capacity to live the abundant life. At Alpha India, we are a group of very ordinary and simple people and looking at all that has happened, we are more than sure that this is a work of God. We are also sure, if God was not with us, we could not have done anything that has happened. This issue has focused on Master Trainers, Ps. Joshua John and Alpha’s work in Tamil Nadu & Malaysia. The network of Master Trainers has multiplied the number of leaders trained each month. I was thrilled to see how God has honoured simple steps of a couple—Dr. Hendricks Chia and Kim, and how their work has multiplied in many ways in Grace Assemblies in Petaling Jaya. A number of leaders have come up through the Alpha courses and many have come to faith. The response from the Tamil churches recently is overwhelming. We can expect a rich harvest in the months to come. My hearty congratulations to my dear friends Foo Lai Wei, Isiang and the team of Alpha Malaysia. Thomas and Dr. Felsie Earnest are doing a very good job among the Tamil Churches. Thank you for your example friends. Please continue to pray for us and support us in whichever way you can. A note from you will certainly encourage us even as we desire that the country will know that “someone died for them”. Ever grateful,
Raj National Director Alpha India
And He died for all, that those who live should live no longer for themselves, but for Him who died for them and rose again. 2 Corinthians 5:15
from the field
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On 12th January 2013, the Faith Community Centre Church (FCC) in Chandigarh, North India, embarked on an excellent training program for their Worship Team which was regularly attended by 13 people. The Worship Central Course is designed by Tim Hughes and Al Gordon. Doing this 7 weeks course with the FCC Worship team has been a riveting yet challenging experience. The FCC team said, “As individuals we have been adequately equipped with some basic tools that have greatly enhanced our private worship experience. As a team we have been greatly challenged to go the extra mile in our service to God. We believe the underlying theme for this course: “Encounter God, Equip the Worshiper and Empower the Local Church” is foundational for any Worship Team.” They went on to say, “The course material has been well planned and written. The examples are thought provoking and greatly inspiring. The topics are varied yet connected like - “Why Worship Central”, “Encounter God”, “Leading Worship”, “Releasing Creativity”, “How to Play Together”, “The Effective Team”, and “The Authentic Leader”.
ALPHA INDIA NEWS APRIL - JUNE 2013
The prayers, effort and planning that has gone into this course make it a first choice resource for any worship team. The right balance between an individual’s skills/talent and character has been repeatedly endorsed throughout the course. The emphasis on preparation, prayer and spiritual growth is evident in every session of the course.” The team at FCC is very grateful to the team at Worship Central for designing this course. They said, “Our prayer as a team is that we will continue to build on the foundation that has been laid through this course. As a Worship Team we are committed to making worship our highest priority and to be committed to the Lord and to His bride – The Church, in raising a group of true worshippers, equipped and ready for the return of The King.”
practical AND powerful tool for STRONG marriages - Rupak K Nayak Loma & Jyoti
to understand what my husband’s desire from our life is. We learnt about the importance of spending time together and the need for “I have attended so many meetings and sharing and listening to each other. This seminars but I have never attended anything like this, where I was able to explore and training workshop has brought us closer. reflect on the joy of being married and share my fears and joys with my wife”. We enjoyed it so much and it has been an investment into We learnt about how we can strengthen our marriage and we will share this wonderful our relationship and keep it going during tool with others. the tough times. This training has helped us to understand each other’s needs and differences better. We were able to evaluate our Sexual Life within marriage; Session on Good Sex was an eye opener. We recognized the weak areas in our marriage and understood how to build them up.
Balbir & Pinki
Lawrence & Jennifer
When the Alpha India’s Marriage book was published in Hindi it paved the way to reach out to the people there and make this powerful resource alive to them. People are very excited about this practical and powerful tool of strengthening marriage. This year the states of HP, Punjab, Haryana, Jammu & Kashmir, Uttaranchal and Delhi will be strategically ministered with Marriage Course Trainings. 10 couples from Solan, Himachal Pradesh were ministered and equipped with Marriage course Trainings this February. Here are few of their testimonies
Ravi & Punam We are married for 5 years, my husband speaks so less, but for the first time I am able
John Samuel & Mariya
Vikram & Mitika
Hitesh & Santoshi We were about to quit working in the ministry due to our ongoing marital issues. But now we are able to see the plan of God for our life and marriage. The session on importance and practicality of a physical relationship answered many doubts and cleared religious myths. I had no respect and could not find forgiveness for my husband but now I have learnt about the importance of valuing each other and practicing forgiveness within a marriage.
For my wife and me it was a privilege to minister to people who are ministering and labouring in God’s Kingdom. We realised that there is such an urgency to invest in the marital relationships of believers and ministers equally. The harvest is truly plenty and the labourers are few.
Most couples come into marriage with big expectations. As they leave their wedding through a shower of confetti and meander off into the sunset, they cannot imagine ever not wanting to be together. The long-term reality is different and potentially, far better. Nicky & Sila Lee- Authors of the Marriage course book
from the field
ALPHA INDIA NEWS APRIL - JUNE 2013
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stories from north Prisoners listen to the Gospel
Alpha at Woman’s Prayer Fellowship
Manipur Baptist Church partnership
- Tushar K Behera
- Jayadeep Samantaroy
- Ninghor K Shimray
Rev. U.K. Pani is an Alpha for Prisons advisor in our Odisha ministry. He works in areas in and around Bhubaneswar where he and his team have been involved in the Alpha prison ministry. They have been visiting the Jharpada jail, Bhubaneswar, Puri jail, Open jail, BBSR and Khurda jail.
Alpha India conducted a one day training for the Women’s Fellowship of the Mercy Smile Ministry. This church is located at Pograposh in the Sundargarh district of Odisha.
The Alpha course in MBC Imphal, with its Youth Secretaries who were represented by 16 Associations, was concluded in January. The Youth Secretaries made an action plan where they said that they all wanted to go back to their respective associations and begin the Alpha course. Rev. Mathotmi the MBC Youth Secretary said, “I will begin the Alpha course from next week in the MBC hostel and surrounding areas”.
He believes that these prisoners are really interested in listening to the Alpha talks which they have come to understand is about the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. The prisoners are especially interested in listening to talks about Jesus, like “Who is Jesus?”, “Why did Jesus die?” etc. Through these detailed talks about Jesus many of them are now convinced that they are sinners and that they need the Saviour in their life. In one of the meetings at the Jharpara jail in Bhubaneswar, during the message many people came forward and accepted Christ as their personal Lord and Saviour. Rev. U.K. Pani is very happy that the Lord Almighty is using Alpha in a mighty way to bring souls for the Lord, even from jails. He also shared that there are prisoners who are now reading the Word of God and growing in the Lord.
Ps. Thomas Peter, who is the pastor of this congregation, was trained in Alpha at one of the Alpha Master Trainers Training at Kolkata. As a result of this training, he was inspired to run the Alpha Training in his area. Ps. Thomas Peter and his team conducted the training in this church for 33 women. The women who had come for this training were taught how to run the Alpha course. There are many delegates from his church who are willing to start the Alpha course in the days to come.
One of the Youth Secretaries who represents more than 20 churches said, “I will first run the Alpha course with my local pastors and then train our Sunday school teachers on the Alpha course so that it will become a part of our Sunday school curriculum”. (Read below)
ALPHA RESOURCES Alpha course resources are available in English, Hindi, Marathi, Punjabi, Gujarati, Kannada,Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, Oriya, Assamese and Urdu.
resources@alphaindia.org
ALPHA IN Manipur Baptist Convention Youth Department (MBCYD) - Ninghor K Shimray The Maram Naga Baptist Association (MRNBA) conducted an Alpha course Training for the Sunday school teachers from 26th to 28th February 2013 at the Taphou Baptist Church, Senapati Manipur. 21 people from 8 different churches attended the training. MRNBA is the first to conduct such a training in Manipur under the Manipur Baptist Convention Youth Department (MBCYD) since Alpha trained them in January. Mr. Chris Maraiba, Youth Secretary of the MRNBA and Mr. R.K. Cheijinba (Pujan), Youth Secretary of the Thangal Naga Baptist Assn., who is also the Youth President of MBC were the first to be trained in the Alpha course training at MBC, Imphal and the two of them were the resource persons at this training. They are glad to partner with Alpha India and explore the rich and useful resources that Alpha offers to people in all walks of life. They feel especially blessed that they would be able to use the Alpha resources as material for their Sunday School.
master t
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From January 2013 to March 2013 we who have already been exposed to expressed their interest in sharing th etc. For these trainings we created a fl
A Master Trainer is a person who is t any denomination, organizations etc. denominations are getting together f provided a platform for this, which is
Bangalore On 25th – 26th February 2013 we organized a two day Master Trainer’s program in Bangalore where 33 leaders participated from states like Delhi, Greater Noida, Mumbai, Hyderabad, Chennai and Bangalore. Most of them have gone back with more clarity and with the decision to run an Alpha training in their region. On the first day the Master Trainers were grouped into 3 and each team was coached by our NAO team. The first day was led by us and for the second day it was our master trainer’s turn to replicate the first day’s activities. Out of 33 leaders 21 of them have signed up to conduct 40 Alpha trainings in different parts of the country which will result in 865 leaders trained in March.
MADURAI The Master Trainer’s training was held on the 29th and 30th of January in Tamil Nadu. All the Master Trainers are very passionate and enthusiastic about introducing the Alpha tool in their respective regions. In the month of February all our master trainers approached different churches and planned to start trainings in the month of March. God really blessed this team in Tamil Nadu with 48 trainings and around 975 people were trained.
Dharwad Alpha Master Trainer’s Training was held at Dharwad city in Karnataka. About 30 trainers were trained and equipped to raise and train as many leaders as they can reach out to from different churches of Karnataka to run the Alpha course. They were encouraged to reach out to their local community with the Gospel. It was really an enriching time; many of them took on the challenge to train at least 30 leaders every month.
GuWAHATI The North East Region of India is forming a team to bring about a great move in the region with tools that have moved and transformed many nations. About 74 leaders representing the five states of the North East region Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Nagaland and Sikkim, were trained to run Alpha for two days at the Don Bosco Institute. These Master Trainers committed to conduct 134 trainings for about 1,635 leaders and they expect to see more than 242 Alpha courses running by the end of July 2013.
training
MASTER
RAINING
quipping Leaders
e have trained 444 Master Trainers across India, these are people running the Alpha courses in their local churches and have he blessings and benefits to other churches and organizations flip chart to help the master trainers in their small group trainings.
trained by the Alpha team to train the lay leaders of any church, . Without any partiality, church leaders and people from various for one purpose - to extending the Kingdom of God. Alpha has a unique depiction of the core values of Alpha.
CHANDIGARH As we have a vision to reach our country with the good news, we planned and decided to have a Master Trainers training for the North West Region of India at Chandigarh on 17th and 18th January. 50 of our trainers from 7 states (Jammu & Kashmir, Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Haryana, Uttarakhand, Delhi and Chandigarh) reached the venue in spite of the bad weather. On the 1st day 14 of our senior Master Trainers trained our new trainers in 4 groups. On the 2nd day also we had very bad weather, while it was freezing cold outside, inside the Holy Spirit warmed us and started working among us right from the time of worship. We finished the training with an action plan for the year- to reach as many churches as possible in North India. In the month of February we saw the results of this training in the form of 700 plus leaders being trained to run the Alpha course.
BANGALORE - ALPHA in WORKPLACE In the dimension of wealth and status, many are getting paid far above what had been the case a decade ago. However in another dimension, a wide gap is created as the endowment of status and wealth creates an impression that it will bring satisfaction in life but is just pseudo. Alpha at Workplace in India is hoping that the vision of Alpha India which is “Evangelization of our nation and Transformation of the society� will be accomplished as we reach out to the corporate world. As we have been praying for more workers, the Lord through divine connections gave us a team of six young professionals who want to work with us as volunteers while they continue to influence the various spheres of the corporate world that they are presently involved in. These brothers came from the city of Delhi, Kolkata, Hyderabad and Bangalore and they will be covering at least four cities in their vicinities in addition to the city where they are presently located. Hence Workplace Alpha brought them together at Bangalore for two days and equipped these leaders by sharing our vision with them and commissioned them with the tools of Workplace Alpha so that they too can train more brothers and sisters working in the corporate world.
ajmer 17 people from various parts of Rajasthan attended the Alpha Master Training held at Ajmer. They all said that they liked the course and it is very useful for the current situation in Rajasthan where there are still 6 odd districts that have no churches at all.
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from the field
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ALPHA INDIA NEWS APRIL - JUNE 2013
GAT in Mangalore Diocese
- Matthew Antony & Bernadette Morris
From the 6th to 8th March, 2013 a GAT event was organized for the Catholic Diocese of Mangalore which embraces the entire districts of Dakshina Kannada, Udupi and Kasargod Taluk. It is one of the largest Catholic dioceses of India. It was primarily meant for the Small Christian Community (SCC) leaders from the Karnataka region. Along with a good number of priests, nuns and lay people present among the delegates, was His Lordship, Bishop Aloysius Paul D’Souza who graced the gathering with his presence by attending all 3 days of the GAT. The resource team included Damian Prakash, Aloysius Netto (from Malaysia) along with Matthew Antony and Bernadette Morris (from New Delhi). The delegates showed a lot of enthusiasm in wanting to run the Alpha course in their respective parishes. As part of the planning and commitment, a local diocesan team was formed headed by Rev. Fr. Francis Crasta (Parish Priest, Perpetual Succour Parish) and assisted by Fr Walter D’Souza (Director, SCC) The team from Malaysia also got a chance to address a gathering of 150 seminarians along with their professors and introduced the Alpha course to them. The seminarians were eager to run the course not only in their seminary but also for the youth they pastor. One of the priests Fr Nelson Olivera, parish priest of Assumption of Our Lady church, Mariashram said, “Alpha is a wonderful tool to run in parishes for our people to have an experience of Jesus. We plan to run it in our deanery in the near future.”
STORIES of TRANINGS & COURSES FROM THE FIELD Youth Alpha develops leaders
For the Glory of God
60 courses at Praise Fort Church
- Sam Victor
- John Rajan & Hannah
- John Rajan & Hannah
The training was conducted in Mysore for 20 youths who felt the training was very effective and motivational. The youth Alpha course is good as it is done by the youth themselves and the youth are given the opportunity to lead in the course. It’s also helpful for developing young Christian leaders. I believe these young people can use Alpha to share the Gospel with their friends.
Rajeshwari accepted Jesus a few years ago and she has been eager to share the love of Jesus with her family, friends and neighbors as she is the only believer in her family. She decided to start the Alpha course in her house as she feels that it is the best tool for sharing the Gospel.
Pr. Rev. Dr. I. Ratnam Paul who is a senior pastor at the Praise Fort Church in Tirunelveli heard about the Alpha course when he went to Singapore. So, when our coordinators in Tamil Nadu approached him to run Alpha in his church he gladly agreed to start an Alpha training.
Alpha work in Sri Lanka Two Sri Lankan pastors attended the Global Alpha training in Tamil Nadu. As a result of this when they went back to Sri Lanka they started running the course there. One of them, Pr. Devananthan, said that 8 people are attending the course now. Both the Pastors who ran the course in Sri Lanka said, “The time given for group discussion really helps the people to share their views. They can understand the meaning of their life and it is a good tool to be used for church growth.”
Despite the fact that her relatives shouted at her for doing this she continued to run the course as she believed in her heart, that she was doing this for the Glory of God. Being a housewife she was not financially well off, but she spent her savings on providing tea and snacks for everyone who attended. Her husband who is a manager was awarded the best performer and was suitably compensated for this. Rajeswari said, “God has blessed my family because I started sharing the gospel with my relatives and friends by conducting the Alpha course at home.”
This training resulted in the church starting 60 Alpha courses at various locations. During the ‘weekend away’ session everybody was filled with the Holy Spirit and they all believed that Jesus is their Lord. Today, 90 of the people who attended the various courses are attending church and have accepted Christ as their personal Saviour. Pr. Ratnam Paul and Pr. Nixon the Associate Pastor of Praise Fort Church are very happy with the outcome of the Alpha course and want to run many more courses.
follow us on @AlphaInIndia
from the field
ALPHA INDIA NEWS APRIL - JUNE 2013
Sacred Heart Cathedral, Delhi
seemingly inconsequential is at the very heart of the Alpha course and the most enduring characteristic of it was the bond that it created among the guests. However, personally for me the highlight of the course was the Holy Spirit Day which formed the watershed of the whole course.
TESTIMONIES FROM TAMIL NADU The Sacred Heart Cathedral in New Delhi saw its first Alpha course from January to March, 2013. Among the 40 guests who experienced Jesus in a new way at the course were religious and lay people from all walks of life. The course was conducted primarily for the parishioners of the Cathedral, but it was also attended by people of other faiths.
PR. PRAVEEN KUMAR
I have always been interested in the teachings of Alpha which is why we are using it in our Church. We have successfully finished running 2 Alpha courses and the best part of conducting these 2 Alpha courses is that 11 of the people accepted Parish Priest, Sacred Christ as their Personal Saviour. Heart Cathedral said,“I think the Alpha course is a beautiful tool for I am running 3 Alpha evangelization and recourses in my Church. evangelization. It is a In one of the courses 4 refreshing course and an people have accepted eye opener for all of us. Christ. The method used It has helped the people in Alpha is excellent as it experience Christ in a is easy for us to gather more profound way. I am so excited to see everyone for the Alpha what the course has done to the people of my course and to share parish.” about Jesus Christ. It was very useful for my Church growth.
Rev Fr Maria Susai
9 The Alpha course FAQs 1. How do I get started running Alpha? Prayer is vital to the planning, preparation and effectiveness of your Alpha course. Find a group of people who will pray for every aspect of your Alpha course. Step 1 - Pray Step 2 - Participate Step 3 - Plan your course Step 4 - Prepare your team Step 5 - Procure your resources Step 6 - Persevere Step 7 - Pass on the vision 2. How do I run the Alpha course outside of my church?
PR.YESURAJ
Br Dermot Barrett
Congregation of Christian Brothers said, “The Alpha course is a vehicle for engaging the laity not only in returning to the Faith, but in intensifying their commitment to the person of Christ. After the course, the Bible which was for many of us a closed book, has now become our ‘daily bread’. The meal time, though
PR. KUMAR I am very glad that we are able to use the Alpha tool in our church which I feel is one of the greatest and most helpful tools for evangelization. I hope that in the future many people will accept Christ and I am sure that they will all start coming to church.
Using the same Alpha course content and structure, you can run an Alpha course at school, colleges, workplace, prisons, hospitals, homeless shelters, army bases, slums, among eunuchs and in red light districts.
3. What resources and training opportunities are available to me? • Access to Alpha’s national training conferences and local training events. • Access to a full array of products through the Alpha India website to promote, run and augment your Alpha course. • Access to a network of Alpha coordinators and Alpha advisors 4. How do I contact Alpha India?
Your first point of contact is
• Your local state coordinator then • The Regional Office and finally • The Alpha India National Office They can all help you locate a training event happening near you. Please find the contact details on Pg. 2
BENEFITED BY THE ALPHA COURSE
- Kamlesh Parmar
I am Preeti Damore. I live at Ravandi, Kherwara. About 2 years ago I came to know about the Alpha course and I liked it very much because I am a working woman and through this course I can work and serve the Lord at the same time. I took part in this course when it started. Through it I got to know more about the Word of God (Bible) and during this course I found answers to all my questions from the Bible. I even got to know how to share the Word of God with others. During one of the weekends of the course while I fasted and prayed I was touched by the Holy Spirit and gradually my life started changing like the Word says, “The truth will set you free’’. Even though many hardships came to my life through this course I got the opportunity to get to know more about the Word and came closer to God. Through this course I learned how to receive the blessings from God for all my life situations.
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ALPHA INDIA NEWS APRIL - JUNE 2013
alpha in malaysia
ALPHA BLESSING MALAYSIA History of Alpha in Grace Assembly, Petaling Jaya By Dr. Hendrick Chia, a leading intervention cardiologist It started 5 years ago, when my wife and I, as leaders of our local church (Grace Assembly, Petaling Jaya, Malaysia) cell group, were praying and discussing about ways to encourage our cell to grow. We decided to suggest to our cell members to start a programme to reach out to our friends who were not Christians. By God’s grace, I met brother Foo Lai Wei (National Director of Alpha Malaysia), who guided us and trained us to run our first Alpha course from our home within the cell. Bro Lai Wei was excellent and enthusiastic, and took us through the Alpha programme over 2 days of training.
food, audiovisuals, books and crèche – is a wonderful testimony of how the Lord used different people to serve unselfishly and sacrificially. What is more amazing is the wonderful testimonies of Christians – backslided and young Christians who have been impacted through the course, and the 14 prebelievers who gave their lives to Christ.
Subsequent Alpha courses
Following the 1st church wide Alpha course, the Alpha team dedicated themselves to continue running the Alpha course in Grace Assembly twice per year. In the 2nd Alpha course, we had a group of brothers and sisters With Bro Lai Wei’s encouragement, much from the Sign of Grace (deaf and mute) – who prayer, and a certain amount of courage by used sign language for the Alpha course for my brothers and sisters in Christ in the cell the first time. (about 15 of us), we embarked on the 1st Alpha course on 8th August 2008. It was an amazing 3 months of adventure, as we struggled with the logistics, getting the food catered, arranging the chairs and tables in the garden (and bringing them in again when it rains!), setting up the audio visuals and keeping our guests comfortable and learning to befriend them. It was worth every minute of it as through this first Alpha course, we saw 4 pre-believers accepted Christ, 5 young /backslided Christians make a fresh commitment to the Lord; and of these, 7 came to our cell regularly after the Alpha course. These new additions enabled our cell to multiply to 2 different cells in the following months. In September 2012, I saw an interview Bro. Raj had with Nicky Gumbel. I was immediately encouraged and touched by Bro. Raj’s After the success of our first experience of the testimony. I wondered and prayed whether Alpha course, I wrote a report to our Senior we could invite him to our church, primarily Pastor Henry Pillai, sharing how the Lord has to encourage our team to pray and continue used the Alpha course to multiply our cell. serving the Lord in the Alpha ministry. The In my report, I recommended that the Alpha Lord was gracious and we managed to make course could be used church wide in all the contact with brother Raj and invite him to cells for growth and multiplication. Following Malaysia. this report and with the help of a wonderful It was a joy and privilege when we were finally and hardworking team of brothers and sisters able to welcome brother Raj to our church on the in Christ, we embarked on the first Alpha 15th of February 2013. Our dear brother spent Church Wide Course in March 2010. 10 very fruitful days with us, and ministered to us at 10 different meetings. Through brother Raj’s encouragement and the hard work of the 7th Alpha team, the 7th Alpha course kicked off on the 10th of March. For the first time, we had the Alpha course in 3 languages – English, Chinese and Tamil; and live Youth Alpha. The Tamil Alpha course was led by Dr. Felsie and brother Thomas, who were completely overwhelmed by the fantastic response – over 180 people came, many from churches far away, who wanted to learn more about the Alpha course so that The logistics and planning for this 1st they could run it in their churches. We were so Church wide Alpha course was amazing – encouraged by brother Raj, as he ministered to we converted the church into a “ballroom” us, the pastors and leaders of our church as he with about 30 tables, each seating 10-12 exhorted us to seek, pray and love the Lord. people. Together with the administration,
The 7th Alpha course and Bro. Raj…
The next chapter...
Other Alpha ministries …
Through the encouragement of my wife, we started the Marriage course in early 2012, for a group of 4 couples in our home. With them we started the first church wide Marriage course on 17th June 2012. Our first intake was 11 couples, and we have recently completed the 2nd Marriage course with 13 couples. We firmly believe that as the Lord touches and transform lives through the Alpha course, our marriages should be transformed as well.
On a personal note … As I look back, it is amazing how the Lord has worked through Alpha and the related ministries (the Marriage Course and Parenting Course), in touching and transforming lives, and bringing closer fellowship and growth to our church. Our hearts are so full with praise and gratitude to the Lord, as we think of so many friends, who came to Christ through the last 3 years, and whose lives have been touched and transformed. They now in turn, encourage us, with their testimonies and love for the Lord.
Alpha run in Tamil - Thomas & Felsie I run a travel business and my wife Felsie is a medical practitioner. We were tasked with getting Tamil Alpha off the ground in our 20 outreach churches spread over a radius of 150 kms around Kuala Lumpur. Though we were involved in 6 rounds of Church Alpha (English), running it in Tamil was a unique challenge as the majority of Malaysian Indians can speak the language but cannot read or write. So we had to have the talks in Tamil and course manuals in Tamil/ English and Bahasa Malaysia(Malay). We had our first Alpha training in Tamil in March, and there was a tremendous response from our outreach churches. We expected 30 and God brought 151! One of the pastors testified that he had been looking for a way to get the whole church involved in missions and this was a great way to invite friends and family.
ALPHA INDIA NEWS APRIL - JUNE 2013
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a time to ride
A TIME TO RIDE Interview: Joshua John “The Alpha course is a strategic resource for all churches to equip and release their members as mature and confident disciples of Christ” Biker-artist-photographer-pastor is how one would describe Joshua Koodathinal John. Life is full of creativity and unexplored avenues for this talented young man. Alpha India interviewed Joshua John and collaborate together as one team. Not seeking we asked him to tell us a few words on: our own glory but doing things (whatever they may be) ultimately for the glory of Jesus.
The Man - your profile, your formation, ideology, calling etc..
People call me Josh, short for Joshua John. I grew up in rural UP and spent my teenage years in Woodstock School, Mussoorie where my creativity was nurtured and my love for the Himalayas began. In St. Stephen’s College I received Christ as my Lord and Saviour because I realized that productivity and profile could never remove the burden of shame and guilt in my heart. That peace with God is only possible when I receive the work of Christ on the cross on my behalf. It wasn’t a dramatic conversion but I knew I was no longer sitting on a fence. Countless leaders and friends helped me along the way, especially the local church community that I am currently leading. At the outset when I made the decision to be a pastor things were not very promising. It was not as glamorous as the advertising world that I was headed towards. I worked in a leaky basement where our church met. But what kept me going was an inner conviction that this is what my Creator designed me for. To serve the people of New Delhi in whatever way I knew how. So I wrote poems, gave talks about creation after motorcycle trips to Ladakh, painted and held exhibitions, preached on Sundays and did anything and everything with the message of the Gospel as the foundation and centre.
The message?
Not fans of Jesus but friends and followers who embrace the shame of the cross. Not a church directed by human wisdom but a church dedicated to God.
Are you an expressionist in your art? Yes much of my art would be viewed as expressionist but I experiment with various mediums and styles keeping the message in mind and am not too mindful of which textbook art term it comes under. Currently I am working on a 2 year mixed-media project for an art exhibition called ‘The Scandal’ that will use popular roadside elements to describe grace, the last supper, and the goodness and absurdity of the Gospel. I have been motorcycling for over a decade and it has fueled much of my creativity on canvas, film and talks. My adventures actually revive me to serve better as a pastor because it brings me in contact with all sorts of people and takes me right into God’s creation. By starting a city-centered group like Delhi Bikers Breakfast Run, I want to express my love in the best way I know how. Freely sharing what I love doing with others. Currently we are 2300 bikers strong.
What is your message to the youth of this Nation- 550 million under 25?
My message to our youth would be-seek and The Message would be that God is not only you will find. Do not settle for mediocrity in your life. God has created you for an authentic loving He is also just. relationship with Him. That relationship is what The Good News is that we have free access enables you to make sense of life and beyond. to this grace encounter. This needs to be presented and made known in all humility and creativity to all the people of India.
Who’s your audience? My target audience are the 15-35 age groups. I do not address the church as much as the city I live in. This equips those in the church to address people in their own sphere of influence. The point is to help everyone understand their own unique gifting and how to
What has been your biggest achievement?
Achievement hints of having ‘arrived’ and I personally have not arrived in any area. I am a pilgrim who is still learning. I am being led by my loving Lord Jesus and also inspired by my gracious wife Asha. There is no achievement higher than the pursuit of loving God and loving people.
Pray for Alpha India Praise Points: - Praise God for our Master Trainers who play a key role in the expansion of Alpha India’s work in their regions - Praise God for His grace and mercy upon the work of Alpha all through the last quarter - Praise God for all the upcoming events and partnerships that Alpha India is venturing into - Praise God for Alpha India’s staff and the Board members - Praise God for all the courses happening in India and around the world
Prayer Points: - Pray for the expansion of the work of Alpha in India - Pray for all the Alpha trainings and courses happening in India and around the globe - Pray for the Alpha Regional Christian Women Leaders Conferences that are scheduled to happen during April and May - Pray for Alpha India’s upcoming Youth Festival and the Relationship Central Conferences - Pray for expansion of the Alpha India team - Pray for Alpha India’s Partners, Advisors, Volunteers, Master Trainers and well wishers - Pray for the Central and State Governments
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