My name is Premakanthan. I was born in Ragala in the Central Highlands. My wife's name is Rojini. Together we have two children. I am a pastor and work to spread the good news of Jesus Christ. We serve in a small village with incredibly poor infrastructure and getting around can be a challenge. There are about 65 members in our church, from 15 families. They are mainly agricultural laborers, tea plantation workers and day laborers.
The goal of our ministry is not only to build up believers to grow spiritually, but also to help them develop and improve their standard of living. We hope to do this by helping their children with better education, as well as improving the families' finances.
Premakanthan says he was under a curse
Before this, my parents and I were practicing Hindus. Before we were saved, we lived under a curse of sin, constant problems and even debt. Although we owned a piece of land that could have been used for farming, we were unable to cultivate it ourselves and had to rent it out to others. That was our curse. It was turned into a blessing when we came to know Jesus Christ as our Savior and chose to accept him.
Covid-19 hit hard
After many years, we faced challenges due to the corona, changes in the weather, and we had financial problems in the last year and the year before that. We lost our income base because of it. This has affected my family tremendously. It created a situation where we couldn't even afford to pay for our children's schooling and cover our family's daily needs. Our service has also suffered a lot.
Danish European Mission's donors help
The financial support we have received has helped us to earn an income from farming. In addition, the training we have received in investment has been a blessing for us and our ministry. We are truly grateful for that help," Premakanthan concludes.
Persecution and help for persecuted Christians in Sri Lanka
After the suicide attacks at three churches in Easter 2019, persecution has continued, but with little violence. There are several examples of threats and discrimination against Christians. In several cases, officials are trying to force churches to register, even though no law requires this. However, the officials insist and there are examples of churches being closed down. Hindu nationalism is on the rise, especially in the north and east of the country, which has led to intimidation and attacks on Christians.
Covid-19 has hit Sri Lanka very hard. In particular, people who were already poor have fallen on hard times. The Danish European Mission's donors are ensuring that they receive emergency aid and self-help assistance so that they can become self-sufficient. Thank you very much for your support.
