In a quiet village in rural India, a story of divine timing and faithful obedience is unfolding—one that powerfully illustrates how World Impact makes things possible.
Mike Dicke, a long-time World Impact partner, recently traveled to India to explore opportunities for expanding church-based seminaries. What he encountered was nothing short of a sovereign setup. “There are so many moments in ministry where you just happen to meet the right person at the right time,” Mike shared. “But we know it’s not coincidence. It’s God’s orchestration.”
One such moment came when Dicke visited a village church at the request of a friend. The pastor wasn’t interested in starting a seminary at that moment, but Mike’s interpreter, Philemon, was. That moment would become the catalyst for a growing movement of theological training in India.
Philemon’s journey to faith began with a miracle. As a child, he watched his father, once mentally unstable and lost in despair, be miraculously healed after a Christian pastor prayed for him. Though skeptical at first, Philemon eventually encountered Christ personally and committed his life to ministry.
“When I chose to follow Jesus, we were completely cut off by our village,” he recalled. “For five years, we lived in isolation.”
Despite the rejection, Philemon and his parents planted a church in 2009. Today, that church ministers to 35 Hindu families and 10 Muslim families. Yet Philemon’s vision extended beyond his village.
“I began praying for a way to train pastors from impoverished villages. When I saw the TUMI curriculum, I knew it was the answer,” Philemon said.
Through World Impact, Philemon launched a training center in his village. One class has already graduated, and two more are underway, each equipping local leaders with the theological foundation to shepherd their communities.
This is the heart of World Impact’s Church-Based Seminary (CBS) program: to multiply disciples and develop leaders by equipping churches, ministries, and even prisons to become training centers. Using seminary-level curriculum, CBS provides affordable, accessible, and high-quality theological education that empowers leaders in under-resourced communities around the world.
This story is a powerful testament to World Impact’s missional goal: to provide theological training in 40 countries. It’s also a reminder that God is already at work in the places we’re called to serve. Our role is to show up, listen, and equip.
And through your support, World Impact is ready to meet those moments with the tools, training, and trust that make transformation possible.
Thank you for making stories like Philemon’s possible.
Read next: God is Establishing Church-Based Seminaries in Rural India
