Dearly Beloved in Christ

“Greetings in Jesus Name”

I am thankful to you for standing with me during the hour of troubles through your prayers. As you are aware, we are facing problems and persecutions because God is saving people from the power of darkness. As the Lord commanded me, we had arranged Bible Classes for servants of God here in Jammu from March 3 to April 17th of 2009. Since we do not have our own place here, the classes were arranged in a temporary shed constructed with bamboos and canvas in a vacant plot of one of our believer in Christian colony of Jammu. Nearly 220 new ministers (Brothers and Sisters) from different states of North India and Nepal were attending the Bible classes. Police officials used to visit us during the Bible Classes.

On 17th March, Police officials took me in to their custody and kept me for about 6 hours. The highest police officials of Jammu City including the  CID and CBI Officials and other Security officials interrogated me. They used all kinds of abusive languages and treated me very badly. They charged me saying that I am converting Hindus, Muslims and Sikh people to Christianity. They said that the situation of Jammu has become worse than Khandamal of Orrissa where many Christians were burnt alive. They said that the people of Jammu are anxiously waiting to burn me alive. They ordered me to close down the Bible Classes and send the people to their places and dismantle the shed in which we were conducting the Bible Classes. They ordered me to go back to Kerala immediately. They released me from their custody in the middle of the night.

I waited on the Lord for His direction. The Holy Spirit reminded me the scripture Acts 5: 19, 20 in which the Angels instruct the servants of God who were delivered from the prison to stand and preach in the same place from where they took them into custody. Obeying the Holy Spirit, I continued the Bible Classes in the same shed. On April 7th the police officials  came and arrested me and put hand cuff in my hand and produced me before the Magistrate with the following charges as per police FIR:-

1.       Preaching and alluring people to embrace Christianity.

2.       Conducting a camp and teaching people to embrace Christianity.

3.       Baptizing Hindus to convert them to Christianity.

4.       Indulging in activities which evoke communal tension

The Magistrate sent me to the central Jail of Jammu.  The condition in the Jail was very bad. For the sake of gospel preaching I had to spend few days in the central Jail of Pathanamthitta, Kerala. There the condition was much better than in Jammu Jail. In the Jail also police official treated me very badly. Every time they speak to me, they used to use abusive language. They cut my hair (tonsured) my head completely to make me a fun for others.  I am now 70 years old. Due to continuous persecution I was very weak in body having pain in my chest, shoulders and back. Even then they compelled me to carry water and sweep floor and compound.  They took away my small coat and eye glasses. The most difficult thing was the lack of toilet.  Even if you cry, the police will not open the door to go to toilet.. I was having little stomach problem also. They provided for me a stinking old torn blanket used by several prisoners before. While lying down on the floor with pain in my body, I remembered Apostle Paul whose feet were in the stock. Then I realized my suffering is nothing when compared to Apostle Paul and other Saints.

On April 8th evening God opened the way for me to come out on bail. I had to appear before the court on 25th May. The next date of hearing is fixed on July 15^th. By the grace of God I continued the Bible Classes in the same place up to April 17th. My arrest and jail term  encouraged the new workers to face all kinds of troubles gladly and in the love of God. All the workers who came from other states and Nepal have gone back to their own places to serve the Lord.

On 18th April, Police Officials again took me to SP and kept me in their custody for four hours. Again they interrogated me. The troubles are continuing. Their only demand is that I should stop all kinds of ministry in North India and go back to Kerala. I am a bond slave of Jesus Christ. Bound by the Holy Spirit of God I am continuing the ministry here in Jammu itself with the team.  The love of God compels me to witness the people of India and Nepal, the way of Salvation through Jesus Christ. People are in the bondages of Sin, Hatred, Quarrel, Jealousy, Drugs, Adultery, Drunkenness, Stealing, Accepting Bribe, All kinds of Immorality etc and grouping in darkness. As Prophet Isaiah says “Ox knows it’s owner and Ass it’s masters crib but people do not know their Creator God” People of India and Nepal should know the true Creator God and escape hell fire.

On 29th April afternoon the Police Officials came to our rented house and took me in to their custody. They kept me in police custody for 13 days and interrogated me. Again they sent me to Jammu Central Jail and by the grace of God I came out on bail on 13th May.

Jail life and Police Custody was very hard but the Lord granted me grace to bear it gladly. While I was in Jammu Central Jail, the Lord granted me an opportunity to share the word of God to a Business man of Jammu from Hindu back ground about 52 years old. He killed his business associate with the help of three others. He was sentenced for Life Imprisonment. He already spent 14 years and 7 months in the Jail. The Jail authorities put me in his cell. When I shared about the love of God manifested through the cross of Jesus Christ, he repented of his sins and confessed before the Lord. When we prayed together, the Lord filled his heart with great joy. He expressed his desire to serve the Lord with me when he comes out from Jail. When I was coming out on bail he said that God sent me to jail so that I may share to him the way of salvation. His name is Ravinder Kumar. Please pray for him.

The situation here is very tense. Some people tried to take me in a procession on a camel blackening my face but God delivered me from their hands. In local news papers they publish all kinds of filthy news daily about me. We need more grace to face all these harassments. We are earnestly praying for the Police Officials, Religious leaders and Political leaders so that God may forgive them because they ignorantly persecuting us. The love of God compels us to forgive them and pray for them so that God may bless them. We pray that God may open their spiritual eyes so that they may know the truth and escape hell fire. Now our life is in great danger. They are conducting house to house searches for new believers. Kindly continue to pray for us so that God may grant us grace to face all kinds of harassments and persecutions gladly. We need more grace and boldness to face the present fiery trails. Your prayer encourages us to march forward in this spiritual battle against Satan and his wicked spirits.

I love the people of India. I was in the Indian Army, Corps of Engineers as a Captain and served my Motherland India as a true, honest and faithful soldier. I fought three wars bravely as a honest soldier, the war with China in 1962 and twice with Pakistan in 1965 and 1971.When God called me for serving the spiritual and moral needs of the people of India I resigned my position of permanent commissioned officer with the permission of then President of India in 1975. Since then I am serving the people of India and Nepal as a servant of Jesus Christ. I serve the people who are poor, uneducated, living in Slums , Lepers, Drug addicts, Forsaken people, Orphans, Street Children and people who are discouraged in life. I also serve educated people, rich people and people of high society and tell them the way of eternal life through Jesus Christ.

I was persecuted nearly fifteen times. Several times I was in police lock up in different places of India. Twice I was put in Jail. People do not know the truth. Unknowingly they persecute me and put me in Jail. When their spiritual eyes are open, they will realize. Through my own little life I desire to show the people of India that how much I love them. Father of the Nation India, Honorable Mahatma Gandhi, delivered the people of India from Foreign Rulers and laid down his life.  I am serving the people of India for their Spiritual Deliverance from sin and hell fire. If needed I am ready to lay down my life for the people of India so that they may know that I loved them sincerely through the love of God manifested on the cross of Calvary. I am a weak old man. I have no strength in myself. I need your prayer very badly so that God may grant me enough spiritual strength and boldness to stand firm in the time of troubles and persecutions.

With prayers.

Your servant in Christ

A.M.Samuel