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The trials and triumphs of ministering in the enchanting kingdom of Bhutan. For three days John Roughton taught pastors & church leaders on the subject of faith.
Quarterly Newsletter! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! Nov/Dec 2013

Bhutan

Bhutan is a small landlocked country wedged between India and China. Ofcially a Buddhist kingdom, Bhutan does not openly permit preaching of the gospel. There are many Christians, however, in Bhutan and a growing hunger for the Word of God. Weve had several Bhutanese graduate from our Bible School and many frequently attend our special meetings in Nagaland. So a three day conference was planned. The enemy fought hard to keep this meeting from happening. A team from our church was denied entry at the border and had to turn back. My interpreter was denied entry as well. We were also surprised when we received a call from a friend who informed us that the government in Bhutan had a secret le on me and knew all about our proposed meeting. Things were not looking good, there was a real concern that I could be arrested after I arrived. Bhutan isnt the easiest place to visit. All foreigners must work through a government registered travel agent and pay about $300 per day, wire transferred from America to the travel agents account.
(Above) mountain view (Right) delegates eating their lunch; John preaching

For nearly 20 years John & Zhepi Roughton have been living and ministering in Nagaland, northeast India. Spirit of Faith Church, which they founded and pastor, is the centerpiece of their ministry. They also have a short term Bible School, publish a teaching newsletter which is sent to all parts of India, and regularly conduct special meetings and outreaches. They have three children: Victoria, Little John, and Ryan.

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Bhutan continued...
Because of the ight schedule, I had leave our church service in Nagaland immediately after I nished preaching, race to the airport to catch a ight Kolkata, spend the night in a hotel, and y out the next morning to Bhutan. Same thing on the way back. A couple of days before I ew out, I had a severe attack of gout. My foot began to swell and the pain was almost unbearable. We prayed, claimed the promises, did what we knew to do in the natural, but I had to go. The meeting could not be cancelled. The entire time I was in Bhutan my feet were extremely sore. It actually got worse before it got better. At one point I had to crawl on my hands and knees to go to the bathroom. Further, I felt half-condemned or hypocritical; Here I am preaching faith but my faith doesnt seem to be working! I preached sitting on a stool the entire time. Most people didnt realize the aching pain I was in. Thank God for praying pastors and friends! I began to amend by the second day and was much better the third day. The good news is the meetings were very well attended. The rst day we had about 240, by the last day we had almost 300. That may not seem like a big deal, but for Bhutan, a closed country, it was major. One man said to me the rst day, Ive lived in Bhutan for many years. This is the largest Christian meeting Ive ever been to. We had two meetings a day. I taught in the morning on the prayer of faith. In the evenings on healing, confession, and lastly on thanksgiving. With an interpreter by my side (a local pastor agreed at the last minute to translate for me) I spoke for about 4 hours each day. The people

listened well, in fact, they absorbed it. It was obvious that for many of them this was all new. Many of those present were pastors, others were church workers and members. We fed them lunch and housed many of them at a nearby church and transported them by bus. I was very pleased with the attendance and the reception of the people. I had the sense that this was an important meeting, perhaps, not to exaggerate, but a historic meeting. The enemy tried to stop it, but the Word of God prevailed!

Please send all donations to: Spirit of Faith International ! PO Box 1798 ! Elizabeth City, NC 27906 You can also contribute online: www.spirit-faith.org Email: info@spirit-faith.org
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