Good News in South India: 25 Baptized and Counting!

 God's Grace at Work in India 

 25 new believers were baptized in South India last week — and the miracle didn’t stop there. Among them, one young woman was healed from lifelong asthma, and now another dozen villagers are preparing for baptism this Friday. God is clearly moving through the Grace Network team. We hope you enjoy the story! Video of this day below.  

Persecution and cultural resistance to Christianity run deep in South India. Idols rise from every corner, spirit houses line the streets, and incense drifts toward golden statues that keep people bound in fear. 

Yet in one small village, the love of Jesus shines bright beneath the late morning sun. Even as temple bells ring, soft whispers spread about this man named Jesus and the good news He brings. In a region where nearly 98% of people are Hindu — where few have ever held a Bible — the Grace Network team walks the dusty paths with quiet purpose. 

“When we enter a new place,” Cornelius says, “we start with house visits — sitting with people, meeting needs, and building trust." He shared, "often, the most powerful moments come when we share our own stories of meeting Jesus.” And when hearts begin to open, we gather them and say, ‘we have good news — come and hear about it!” 

For months, Cornelius and his small team from The Glory Project have been visiting this village. They have shared food with children, brought clothing and care to widows, and spent long afternoons visiting the communities of those considered “untouchable” — lepers, the poor, and the disabled. Their love has been tangible: rice cooked and shared, water lines installed for clean drinking, prayers whispered on living room floors. 

After months of faithful sowing, this week they watched their prayers bear fruit. 

The villagers gathered beneath the shade of trees — many of them university age students searching for meaning and truth. For weeks, they had been reading salvation booklets filled with stories about Jesus and verses explaining why He is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. 

 That morning, Cornelius taught simply about forgiveness and new life. 

When he invited anyone ready to surrender to Jesus, the air grew still. Four stepped forward first — then more followed, until twenty-five stood together, ready to give their lives to Him. With tears, songs, and joy filling the air, they prayed together and decided that very day to be baptized. 

Later that afternoon, the new believers gathered again — this time walking together toward the nearby river. (The clips of this in the video are so sweet.) 

 Cornelius asked gently, “Are you ready to surrender to Jesus — to have your sins washed away by His grace?” 

As they walked down the hill and waded into the water, they began to sing a song in Telugu, their voices carrying over the river: 

"హల్లెలూయ స్తుతి మహిమ! ఎల్లప్పుడు దేవునికిచ్చెదము Hallelūya stuti mahima! Ellappuḍu dēvunikiccedamu Hallelujah, praise and glory! Let us always give to God what is his."

↓ ↓  It’s one thing to read about it — but another to see their faces and hear their voices lifting praise ↓ ↓   

➜ Click Here to Watch Video 

A small structure where believers have been gathering for church. 

One by one, they went down into the water, declaring publicly that Jesus is worth it. In a place where following Christ can mean rejection by family or community, this moment was nothing short of miraculous. What a joy to see Jesus at work! 

And as if that day weren’t already incredible, one of the women baptized that day had been healed of asthma weeks earlier. A miracle that led her to faith in Jesus and, ultimately, to this moment of baptism. 

“I couldn’t focus on the messages when they ,” she shared. “I was struggling to breathe and needed my inhaler.” 

Cornelius and his team prayed for her in her home — and her airway opened. Her breathing became clear and steady, and she hasn’t needed her inhaler since. Standing by the river weeks later, preparing for baptism, she testified with joy that Jesus is the ultimate healer. What a sweet beginning to her journey with Him. 

These new believers are now being discipled by five local missionaries who serve under Cornelius’ growing network of forty workers across India. They meet regularly for prayer, teaching, and fellowship — a small house church born from faith and friendship in this village. 

Cornelius’ heart beats with both compassion and conviction. “Our work is not just preaching the good news, but living it,” he says. “Building toilets, digging wells, feeding the hungry — these are all part of the gospel. We believe what Jesus said: Ask, and you shall receive. We ask, and we expect God to show Himself.” 

When I asked why they chose the name Grace Network, Cornelius smiled. “Because it is by grace we are all here,” he said. “Everything is by the grace of God.” 

And by that same grace, on a quiet riverbank in South India, twenty-five new believers lifted their voices and sang: 

Hallelujah, praise and glory! Let us always give to God what is His. 

A Church in Every Village, Carissa + the Glory Project Team