INDIA: “ONLY JESUS GIVES ME THE COMFORT I REALLY NEED”

It’s been over a year since violence broke out in Manipur, India, displacing thousands of people. Even today, the violence continues and many people, including Christians, are afraid to return home. But they are not without hope, as Pastor Lian, EXPLAINS…

“Just because the attacks have stopped doesn’t mean there is peace. Peace in the land is still a far cry,” says Pastor Lian Haokip*. He’s a church leader from Manipur and is helping care for and coordinate relief efforts for those who have been displaced.  

“Since 3 May [2023], I have encountered victims and their families holding on and struggling. We have been sheltering a pastor and his relatives in our church. They all have lost their properties and the only thing that they could bring is their own life,” he told Open Doors partners. “Thousands of people were evacuated here and brought no extra clothes. They lack food and shelter, searching for places to stay, but it’s always overcrowded. They sleep on the ground, even on pebbles.”  

Image: Pastor Lian

“EVERYTHING THAT I HAVE HAS BEEN TURNED TO PIECES”… 

As a church leader, Pastor Lian knows that prayers and spiritual support go hand-in-hand with physical relief aid. “For pastors, this was the most critical and difficult phase to spiritually counsel and minister to the victims,” he says. “It was very hard to ask them to forgive the people who were afflicting them with such pain.”  

But he also encountered those who could only go on because of their hope in Jesus. “On the night of the attacks, a woman came to my home and told me, ‘If I had not met Jesus, if I had not received Jesus Christ as my personal Lord and Saviour, I would either go mad or go nowhere at this time. Everything that I have has been turned into pieces, burned and looted. Only Jesus gives me the consolation and the comfort that I really need.’” 

In the midst of the violence, Pastor Lian has witnessed how the crisis has brought groups together. “Our community was divided in many ways, with disunity among us. However, this crisis provides a great opportunity for us to unite. Our unity was admired by the other ethnic tribes. We are now coming together, praying together; of course, we have been doing this prior to the conflict, but then the bond was not as strong as now.” 

HOW OPEN DOORS ARE HELPING 

Pastor Lian continues, “We keep praying for both Kukis and Meiteis and for peace in Manipur. We pray that God in his mercy will give us the heart to forgive our assaulters. And we are praying as God helped Job to regain all that he lost, double fold, He would lift us up too when we approach Him in all humility.” 

One of the ways that God is answering these prayers is through Open Doors local partners. Thanks to your prayers and gifts, Pastor Lian is being supported by Open Doors partners to help survivors of the conflict find refuge and provide supplies for them, including vital food aid. “This is like serving God for me, as I serve my fellow brothers and sisters in the camps,” he says. “The goods your organisation provided are the best in terms of quality and quantity.” 

He also leads a congregation of 200-300 displaced believers, with four to five services a week. “Please pray that I would be able to keep the church moving forward with the help of God so that my seeds will not go astray, and that they will fall into God’s kingdom.” 

*Names changed for security reasons…