R* is a young man from a remote tribal village. His family were witchcraft doctors for generations in that area. His parents wanted their son to follow the family tradition, but R* really hated what his parents were doing. When his family pressured him, he took his pregnant wife, left his family and moved to the neighboring state, to a town 200 miles away from his home, looking for a new way to earn a living. They could not afford the rent in a nice place, so they moved into a slum area. Soon afterward, his wife got sick with some kind of infection, and one day collapsed in their home. Their neighbor, a woman who was a new believer for only six months, took her to the nearby hospital. R*’s wife was admitted, and since no one from their family was around, and men are not allowed in the hospital ward where she was admitted, the Christian neighbor woman volunteered to stay with his wife and help her.
The Power of Love
The life of the Christian woman, her willingness to serve them, and also her prayers, touched R* and his wife. This was something they had never experienced. R* and his wife began to come for a weekly prayer meeting in the slum, along with the Christian woman and her family, where they heard the Gospel and accepted Jesus into their lives. It was hard for R*, but as he began to grow in faith and in God’s word, his life was transformed. In R*’s own words “We had never experienced joy or peace in our lives. In our home, we never laughed or even smiled—life was always gloomy in my family; there was always tension. Since we received Jesus, our lives have been changed. My wife and I feel that we were set free from great bondage. Now our hearts are filled with joy and laughter.” It was totally different from what he had experienced or seen in his village.
At R*’s request, two years ago some of our brothers visited the area and saw the spiritual and physical starvation in the area. Spiritual darkness is prevailing in the land and in the hearts of the people, but poverty is another major problem in that area. Our brothers decided to send a summer outreach team to R*’s village, and to hundreds of unreached villages in the surrounding area, with the message of the Gospel. The caste system and Hindu radicals were two big hindrances for people to come forward. But God in His mercy moved among the people, and they turned to Him.
The Fruit of Love
Over the past two years, our brothers have started house churches in 19 villages. Recently, our leaders were visiting that area. They conducted 14 meetings in different villages. These were small meetings, around 40-60 people in each, to avoid drawing the attention of the Hindu radicals. It was a great blessing to meet with the people, get close to them, and pray for them. Many have received Jesus into their lives, and 63 people were baptized in the area.
(Continue to the next testimony here…)