Church of Christ Asian Missions
A Work Born from Obedience and Sustained by Faith
When we think about how this ministry all started, it really does take us back. We did not have a roadmap to success beyond God’s Word. We simply believed God meant what He said when He told us to go into all nations, and we went. That kind of faith is rare, and we have watched it up close long enough to know the difference between someone who talks about ministry and someone who bleeds for it.
Guided by Jesus' words, "Go therefore and make disciples of all nations," this mission began over fifteen years ago. With encouragement from fellow brethren and the support of the Church of Christ in Bridgeport, Dev Moktan set out to establish and grow the Lord's church in Nepal. The work started the way most great things do, quietly and without fanfare. Small groups gathered around computer screens, studying God's word together through Skype. No fancy building. No large budget. Just brethren committed to the truth and a man who refused to let distance be an excuse. By God's grace, those early studies produced baptisms and eventually the establishment of the Church of Christ Putalisadak in Kathmandu, led by brother Ramananda Joshi and Meg Moktan. That congregation did not just survive. It became a foundation.
To understand why we gave ourselves to this work so completely, you have to understand where we all came from. Brother Dev Moktan was born in Sarlahi, Nepal in 1965, in a predominantly Hindu nation. Much of his early life was shaped by that environment. He was baptized on June 17, 1993, and from that day forward everything changed. He completed his Christian Theological Development course from the Institute of Biblical Studies in 1996, and during that same period he assisted in planting the Thankot Church of Christ congregation in Nepal, which continues to worship and grow in faith to this day. When Dev and his wife Nisha and their children immigrated to the United States in 2006, he joined the Trumbull Church of Christ and later became one of the founding families of the Church of Christ Bridgeport, which was planted in July of 2009. Dev is an active member of that congregation to this day.
In 2010, Dev connected with Brother Gladwyn Kiddoe, director of the Jamaica School of Preaching Biblical Study International. Together with eight members, the first Theology and Ministry program was launched in Nepal through JSP. Dev himself had graduated from JSP in 2009 through a remote program at Church of Christ Bridgeport, so he was not simply administering a program. He was handing on what had personally been handed to him. In November of 2011, with continued support from the Church of Christ Bridgeport, Dev helped launch an online ministry program, the first of its kind in Nepal, hosting weekly biblical studies through Skype using JSP curriculum. The program grew steadily, and the first graduates completed their studies in 2018. That milestone was celebrated during a special trip to Nepal and India attended by Brother Ellis Stanley, Sr. and Brother Ellis Stanley, II from the Church of Christ Bridgeport, and Brother Joseph Priester from Southwest Church of Christ in Hartford, CT. Standing in a room on the other side of the world watching men and women who studied faithfully come through transformed by the word of God is something that stays with you. That trip changed all of us who were there.
What followed was nothing short of extraordinary. Over 54 new students enrolled and graduated through the program. The online study method spread rapidly. Seven congregations were established across Kathmandu, Pokahara, Chitwan, Makwanpur, and other parts of Nepal, and the work extended into South India including Chennai. Students began joining the weekly Friday night and Saturday morning classes from India, Dubai, Malaysia, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, and Uganda. More than 50 baptisms resulted from this work. In some regions, entire denominational congregations converted to the New Testament pattern. You cannot manufacture that kind of result. You plant the seed and trust God with the harvest.
Out of that growth, Brother Dev and Brother Joe Priester founded the Church of Christ Asian Missions, which operates through COCAsiam.com. During the difficult days of the 2021 pandemic, the organization became an officially registered 501(c)(3). In 2022, Dev and Nisha returned personally to Nepal and India to strengthen the ministry, build working teams on the ground in both countries, and continue expanding the online school. They went back because that is what people do when the work is real to them.
Today, through God's blessing, weekly Bible classes are being held across Nepal, India, Myanmar, and Bangladesh, supporting newly established congregations and leading many souls to Christ. The mission team is active and growing in both India and Nepal.
The primary goal remains exactly what it has always been, which is equipping brethren to spread the gospel of Jesus Christ by establishing and nurturing congregations in all parts of Asia. Looking ahead, a future goal is to provide vocational and skills training so that local congregational members can become self supporting, sustaining both their families and their ministries in the communities where God has placed them.
We invite your prayers, your support, and your personal participation in this work. We are looking for brothers and sisters willing to serve in any capacity, from speaking and teaching to trustee and board membership roles. Financial contributions are deeply appreciated and directly fuel this growing effort. If any of this stirs something in you, please do not sit on it. Visit COCAsiam.com and complete the enclosed application. This is exactly the kind of work that reminds you why we do any of this in the first place.
If you’re moved to assist in any way, please contact:
Dev Moktan
delmoktan@gmail.com
(203) 543-6715
Thank you for your continued support and prayers.
In Christ,
Dev Moktan
