"My name is Sonny Simak, and I pastor Grace Church Southall in West London, UK. I was born in Punjab, India, to a Hindu family and moved to the UK in 2001 with my parents. The Lord saved me in 2007-08 while I was studying Chemistry at University in London. I married Sarita in 2012. Sarita too was born and brought up by a Hindu family in Southall.

I became involved in church planting in Southall in 2010 while I kept my secular job. I was able to leave my full-time job and took the role of an evangelist in 2013. The church plant then was constituted as the local church in late 2015. The church then called me to be their pastor in early 2016.

Southall is known as mini-India and has about twenty-eight thousand residents. It is one of the most religious towns in the UK. People come from various faiths such as Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, Sikhism, and other spiritual groups. There are several other denominational churches in Southall too.

Due to the ‘migrant’ nature of our town, therefore, Christians are often on the move in search of better jobs and living. The church membership is something most folks struggle to grasp.

We would, therefore, appreciate your prayers for the growth in both number and spiritual maturity in the life of the local church. We need mission-minded people who can understand the needs of this dark place and serve the Lord with much passion, love and boldness."

March 2025 Update

Sonny Simak has a number of positive qualities.  Stick-to-itiveness is definitely one of them. Over the years he has demonstrated a remarkable degree of patience and perseverance in life and ministry.

Sonny and his wife Sarita have faced their fair share – perhaps more - of difficulty and disappointment. But, by God’s grace, they have continued. And, in so doing, have become an example to the whole Grace Baptist Partnership family.

There have been times that leaving Southall and serving elsewhere would have been an attractive option. Sonny certainly has the gifts and graces to have done so. But the Lord placed them in Southall and that’s where they have remained.

One of our early larger-scale projects as a Partnership was raising the funds to purchase the building at Southall. Since that time Sonny has been the chief means through which the Lord has been building a people in that place for his praise and glory. It may not have been particularly glamorous or even noteworthy from a human perspective. But it is of eternal significance and calls forth the praises of God’s people. 

More recently a building extension and refurbishment project has been undertaken. As the project nears completion, we are grateful to the Lord that he has again provided the means necessary for the work to go forward.

Will you join us in praising God that after the completion of seminary studies last year, Sonny is now able to devote himself more fully to the work at Southall? Will you thank God that Sarita after surgery and a lengthy recovery period last year has been able to return to work part time?

Will you pause to express gratitude to God for his provision for the ongoing construction work?

Please pray for continuing perseverance midst personal and ministry challenges. Please pray that Sonny and Sarita could move out of their third floor flat to a ground floor property. This is especially important considering Sarita’s ongoing health struggles. Please pray for the successful completion of the building work.