The Christians Renewal Church is a ministry of Mercy Mission Welfare Society which was started in 1998 by Revd Dr Charly Tom and his wife Liz. CRC is committed to working amongst the rural areas of India and CRC pastors are currently working in more than sixty villages, helping to establish local Christian Churches. CRC is currently developing a witness in three more states; Orissa. Kerala and Karnataka. The ministry of Mercy Mission includes an orphanage, an English speaking day school, a medical centre as well as training workshops for local villagers.

Since 2001, Damascus Trust and The By All Means Gospel Trust, have helped establish and finance the Christian Renewal Bible School. Each year some 15 students graduate and many are now working as pastors and evangelists in the surrounding villages. Damascus Trust has been able to provide equipment, bikes and books for these pastors and continues to support them financially each month through our 'Support A Pastor' programme. A new Bible school campus is currently being built and should be ready later this year.

In 2005 Damascus Trust began working with Plenty To Share Ministry which is directed by Revd Vijaya Raju and based in Vegayammapeta near Kakinada. So far we have been able to provide 35 bikes for pastors working in the villages and some much needed aid following severe flooding in September 2006. All this has helped the message of Christ's love spread through the villages and there are many new groups of believers meeting together regularly as a result. Since 2007 the 'Support A Pastor' programme has been running and we are currently supporting eight pastors working with PTSM. In 2008 we were able to help PTSM establish a children’s home and eight children are now being cared for through our 'Support A Child' programme.

Since 2001 Andy Paine has led annual Bible teaching conferences for pastors and evangelists working in the towns and villages of rural India. Conferences are sponsored by Damascus Trust and BAM Gospel Trust and more than 300 pastors and evangelists attend these three-day conferences for Bible teaching, fellowship, encouragement and prayer.

In 2008 Damascus Trust was invited to run the 'Support A Pastor' programme in partnership with the Episcopalian Diocese of Byumba in the north of Rwanda. The diocese is about an hour's drive north of the capital, Kigali and in a very hilly area extending up to the Ugandan border. Most church buildings are large and basic, and many pastors have houses without electricity. Most pastors walk or cycle everywhere and it is rare for anyone in the villages to own a car or a motorbike. The pastors receive training in the diocesan centre in Byumba but it is costly for them to attend training courses and difficult for some of them to reach the required academic standard.

Pastors have to deal with a variety of issues within their parishes such as poverty, HIV/AIDS orphans, ongoing consequences from the 1994 genocide and a lack of secondary education. Congregations are large with often hundreds of children. The services have lively singing with guitars and drums, challenging sermons and lots of choirs and dancing. Communal feasts at times of celebration are popular.

Pastors receive a very small stipend which is insufficient to meet their basic needs so our extra support enables them to fulfill their ministry without financial worries.

ITM (Romania) is based in Oradea publishing and distributing Christian literature to help the Church in Romania grow. They also provide teaching and training programmes for pastors and church leaders. Since 2007 Damascus Trust has worked in partnership with ITM (Romania) in running teaching conferences for pastors as well as developing other projects. For further information about ITM, go to www.itm-ministries.com.

There are various opportunities for people to share in this aspect of our work and ministry in the following ways: