MARCH 2022 • VOL.

41

INTEЯ FACE
A UESI Delhi publication. For private circulation only.

President's Message
Greetings to all of my dear UESI Delhi family members in the
Precious Name of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, WHAT'S INSIDE:

I am reminded of the Word from the Book of Revelation and would

HOW TO SAVE A
like to affirm with all of you - “Hallelujah! Salvation and glory and LIFE
power belong to our God!
We are entering into new and newer normals, or are we? Even as we REPORT ON
are mid-way into the second month of the New Year 2022, the GRADUATE
announcement of the opening of colleges and schools is finally here. INVOLVEMENT
Two years have just passed by behind the screens and while it has WORKSHOP
taken a toll on all of us, our lives have also changed.
Maybe our thoughts but not our convictions, our approach and FINANCE UPDATE
attitude to life has changed and aligned with the reality of knowing
that our times are in God’s hands and nothing else will matter when
the final trumpet is blown, that an account of how we spend the
resources at our hand – the most important of which is time and
opportunities to serve the Lord - will be accounted for.
Sis. Rachel Christian and Sis. Amy Spencer have joined the staff team as coordinators, however, we
continue to pray for a staff family to join UESI Delhi. The times are changing, even as we all battle
unprecedented challenges. Especially we need to uphold our students in prayers battling difficult online
learning situations, career choice decisions, dwindling job opportunities, and health challenges including
depression.
The last year has been a difficult one for most of us and so also our nation, as most families have had
some loved ones passing on, into the presence of the Lord. The Lord calls on each one of us at such times
to be vigilant and be awake as in Rev. 16:15. May we all unite our hearts wherever we are in prayer, pray for
at least one campus and one student and graduate and staff family specifically by name every day. We
have colleges in 3 digits and universities in double digits and students in few lakhs to pray for. Let us be
available with our time and other resources and look for needs around us to partner with the Lord quietly –
we may have done it a 100 times, let’s do it again with the Lord, for the Lord, don’t get tired, don’t get upset
because of anything and anyone. Let’s open our hearts first, then our homes. Let me do it, not point fingers
at others.

We praise God for all, seniors and youngsters who are a source of inspiration for all of us, serving the Lord
day in and day out, sacrificially through all these months. Many graduates are also moving out of Delhi and
hopefully, the Lord is bringing back many to Delhi as well.

As the colleges open, students are flocking back, Make Yourself Available, Open your hearts and pray, Open
your homes and minister, Open your resources and share. As I close let me exhort all of us to come
together, to pray and unite with God’s vision for UESI Delhi and for the role of each one of us in this.
God Bless Us all with a wonderful and blessed 2022.

- Vinoy Thomas
Vinoy Thomas lives in Dwarka, Delhi with his wife Liby and two daughters, Shifa and Sneha. Vinoy co-founded Shikhar
Microfinance which works in the area of financial and livelihood services for the poor. While doing his graduate studies and
masters, the EU fellowship helped him to grow in his faith life and the Students ministry has been an integral part of their lives
all along.

How To Save A Life

-Simi Sara Thomas

I lost a friend in December. I had gotten to know her closely very recently, and I’m devastated that I won’t
know her more in the days to come.

When I had first met Pooja, she was a student at Delhi University. I had found her to be soft-spoken with a
gentle, quiet strength. She was fresh in her faith in Christ, and dedicated to His call in her life. However, the
next time I met her, which was many years later, in August 2021, she had lost her laugh, the fire inside her was
dying, and her confidence had been reduced to timidity. It was a grave transformation, and it scared us to see
it.
I’m ashamed to admit it now, but I was too caught up in my own life to be more present for Pooja. All the
should-haves keep coming back to me.

I should have called her more often.

I should have forced her to meet me.
I should have shown up at her home without invitation.
I should have been more available for messages.
I should have…

Her death has shattered me in so many ways. She was, at 21 years, too young to die, too precious to be lost.
James 4:17 says: Anyone, then, who knows the right thing to do and fails to do it, commits sin. I sinned in not
doing what I could to help Pooja, but the thought comes, what was the right thing to have done when I
realised that Pooja is battling demons beyond her calibre?
Joshua, and the people he led, circled around the Jericho wall, fully confident in Yahweh’s able power to
break the wall, and declare them victorious. I believe Jesus calls us to CIRCLE our friends, and allow God to
break those walls and enter.
Check-in with your friends, even those who are far from you, especially those who have a history of being easily
discouraged and despairing.

Intervene actively, and compassionately, in the lives of the ones around you who are losing hope, and joy. Make a
card for them, tell them you love them, stand up to family members who might be toxic for them. Call, text, meet,
let them weep their sorrow out, tell them they are not alone.

Remind them of hopeful dreams, and joyful memories that can pull them back from the edge. Make a photo
album, create a video, or simply enjoy your silence with them.

Cover them with prayer in the powerful and healing name of Jesus, daily. Keep an alarm alert on your phone that
will remind you of the prayer time. Let their name blink on your screen on an hourly basis and pray as you pause
to put the alarm on snooze.

Lower the expectations they always seem to think people have of them. Tell them, gently, that not everyone has
the time, or mind space, to think of how they are not well. Find ways in which they can still contribute to the
social circle they are in, in whatever capacity they can. Are you throwing a party? Tell them to get chips. Are you
having a study group? Tell them they can join, and nobody cares if they just stare off to space or start weeping
suddenly.

Engage their emotions, non-judgmentally. The best way to be emotionally supportive is to avoid judgement. A
tried-and-tested mode of feeling better about life, in general, is venting to a friend. However when wanting to
help a friend, it is important to wait till they are ready, be available when they are ready and listen without
judgement or offering immediate and quick-fix solutions when they vent.

“I’ll pray for you” is sometimes such a shallow comfort to someone who desperately needs a personal touch that
goes beyond the call of friendship, but making a circle of camaraderie, hope, and prayer around them might
definitely save them, and us, from any inevitable pain, or regret, of loss.

When I met Pooja for the first time, I

Since the time I knew her, I could
feel her positive attitude towards
life's complicated parts. She was a
courageous girl.
-Veronica
didn't realise how attached I would become
to that little girl. Her heart was full of love
and cheer. Her hugs were filled with
warmth. And whenever she called me
'Didi', I felt I had to protect her no matter
what. I still can't believe she's gone. And
she's taken away a part of my heart that
nobody can replace.
-Prashansa Jacob

I met Pooja as part of Hastal EU when I was in 10th grade. She was vibrant. She
surprised me with her energy and humor and how strong her faith was in the Lord. I
kept meeting her in camps and gathering through the years. She was adventurous,
bold, caring and loving and always made it a point to interact with as many people
around her. Her faith in God kept me motivated to stay active in my EU circle. I
pray that her family knows of her strong spirit and would come to know the Father
she dearly loved.
-Stuthi Lilian Joseph
 UESI-Delhi Graduate Involvement Workshop: Jan 26, 2022
UESI-Delhi EGF organised a Graduate
Involvement Workshop on Jan 26, 2022 (Republic
Day) from 10:30 AM to 1:00PM over Zoom, on the
theme: “Adapting our ministry to the changing
times”
The Workshop was led by a panel of senior
graduates/staff who are involved in ministry and
are at the thinking edge of social, political and
cultural facets of our currently changing times.
They covered two very important aspects of the
ministry that are: Ministry towards students and
ministry towards graduates. Resource persons
were: Stephen Victor, Ludhiana, James Sebastian,
Patna, Emmanuel Subhakar, Jaipur, Varun Tiwari,
Delhi. Rev. Michel Sundersingh, Delhi, opened
the workshop with an exhortation from 1Chr
12:23. He closed it with a challenge from Eph 5:15-
17.
Salient points that emerged from the workshop
are:
1. Pray, seek guidance and ministry of the Holy
Spirit in everything. Make yourself personally
accountable to someone.
2. Love, involve in-person to someone at a
steady personal level. Be people oriented not
program oriented. Move from formal to
informal. Be sensitive to the needs of people
and common points of interest. Engage as
family - engage with families. Pray with people,
rather than praying for them. Adapt to and
adopt from ‘New-Gen Culture’ as crossing the
cultural barrier required for taking forward the
Gospel to the Students and others. Ministry
needs varies for different generations.
3. Facilitate graduating students to young
graduate transition, and their follow-up.
Nurture younger graduates to do Student
ministry.
4. Leave behind programs, ways of doing
things etc. that have become less effective, and
move on and innovate new ones to replace
them. Look for opportunities.
5. Keep updated with the technological
changes, upgrade activities and how they are
being done, learn and pass on the learnings.

Finance Update
Thank God for all his faithfulness and for answering our prayer! Thank you all for your constant support towards
the needs of the ministry. Our need for this month was Rs. 4, 05, 831/-. By the grace of God, we received Rs. 2, 49,
831/- for this month till today. (as of 19 March 2022) only 12 days left to close this Financial Year 2021-22.
But we still need another Rs. 1, 56, 000/- to clear all dues for this month.
I sincerely request you of all my Dear Brothers and sisters to continue to pray for our financial needs so that our
Almighty God will surely meet our needs.

UESI-Delhi account details:

Name: UESI-DELHI
Account No: 05881450000178
IFSC: HDFC0000588

Blessings.
NK Greenson
Mob: 9990202818

APPEAL
Writeups, Quotes, Artwork, Cartoons, etc. are invited. Those interested may send in drafts to
Revanth (revantcherian@gmail.com) or Sheba (sheba.decastro@gmail.com) by the first week of next
month. Write-ups in hindi are welcome.