“I’m the first theological graduate in my tribe”

OC scholarship student Dilip Kumar Malto was raised in Jharkhand, India. When he was 16 years old, missionaries came to his village and shared the Gospel. He says he was touched by the message. “God showed me the way and pulled me out of darkness,” Dilip says. “I accepted Jesus Christ as my personal Savior and dedicated my life to serve Him.”

Dilip went to OC partner school Allahabad Bible Seminary, India (ABSI), to learn more about ministry and the Word. He graduated with his Bachelor of Theology degree in April 2006. “I am fortunate [to have studied] in this great institution under the guidance of learned and caring professors and teachers,” he says. “I am proud to say that I am the first theological graduate in my tribe.”

Today, he continues to show gratitude to God for bringing missionaries to his tribe years ago. “As a result of missionaries who came to South India to share the Gospel, today, 90 percent of my tribe has found the Lord. We thank God for these missionaries.” The missionaries’ work has made a lasting impact on Dilip’s future ministry as well. “I have a great burden to build my church people, so that they can go out as missionaries to other tribes.” Currently, Dilip is helping to translate the Bible in the Malto language and also involved in starting a small Bible training center.

Dilip also attributes his ministry success to OC and its donors. “My success in ministry is due to the fruit of your labor…I thank God for people like you who stand with me in my ministry and studies through your valuable gifts and prayers…Without your support, I would not have become the first theologically trained pastor [from the Malto tribe]. Thank you very much.”