Early missionaries to the Nagaland region of India faced great difficulties as they worked door-to-door. One day three literature evangelists visited a home, and the owner got so upset that she called the police. They were told that the activity they conducted was unauthorized and they were cuffed together and taken to the local prison. At that time, there was a lot of animosity against Adventist believers in this region.

As the missionaries waited outside the police station, the lock on their chain simply fell open. Surprised, the missionaries asked the guard to close the lock again. But the guard became fearful and he let them go free.

Later the government policies loosened, and a piece of land was deeded to the Seventh-day Adventist Church. Unfortunately, this land was situated in the worst location, so early pioneer Adventists in Nagaland had to work hard and pray a lot. Despite the challenges, today, there is a beautiful congregation and a school on this very property.

There are many children in the largest city of Nagaland, Dimapur (DEE-mapoor). Among other challenges, they often lack the opportunity for a formal education. Some children are privileged to study, while others will never have a chance to go to school.

One teacher at the Nagaland Adventist School decided to invite an underprivileged girl to live with his family, so that one more person could go to school. Although he lives in humble conditions, he and his daughters gladly share their small space.

Each morning, Hanika starts the day with prayer and a devotional. Like Hanika, many students don’t come from a Christian background, yet day by day, the school faculty demonstrates high moral standards and character development. They try to show how Christ can change their students’ lives too.

“Ok, this is Nagaland Adventist School, you can also see from the board. This is situated in Dimapur which is 1 and a half kilometers from the railway station and 2 and a half kilometers from the airport. This is one of the business hubs of the Nagaland state…. it started off with just 30 students and 5 teachers in just 4 rooms in 2007. Gradually we started building and we have 200 students now…. Out of 200 students only 29 are Seventh-day Adventist students, which means the rest of the student body is from other faiths and non-Christians too. ...We have a plan to start a hostel… with the hostel we will be able to generate revenue and save money for the school and become self-reliant. ...if we have this hostel, we will be able to accommodate more.”

A hostel, or dormitory, will also provide more Adventist children the opportunity to study and live on this campus. There are many Adventist families scattered far enough away that it is difficult for their children to enroll here. Lastly, the income from this building will sponsor salaries for the teachers who work so hard here for minimal pay.

This quarter, your 13th Sabbath Offering will build a dormitory in the Nagaland school as well as a training center in Ibrahimpatnam (ee-braHEEM-paht-nahm), another girl’s hostel in Chennai, 14 classrooms in Kerala, and 14 classrooms in Maharashtra (mah-ha-rahsh-trah). Please pray and support this important 13th Sabbath Offering that will benefit the people in India.