June 2014, Vol. 10, No. 4
The Gift No One Else Ever Gave
After having three children, Tapti faced sudden tragedy: Her husband died, leaving the four of them alone.
The young widow, a believer, couldn’t provide for her children. The family was destitute.
Neglected by Her Own Children
Laalamani also became a widow before her children were grown. She raised her son and daughter, and eventually they both got married and moved out. Sadly, neither of her children looked after her, and the people in her village didn’t have good relationships with her.
One day, Gospel for Asia pastor Baldev Das shared with Laalamani about Christ’s love for her, and she started attending services at Pastor Baldev’s church.
Touched by God’s Love
On June 23, 2013, Gospel for Asia fellowships across South Asia celebrated International Widows’ Day.
Tapti joined 120 women, 70 of them widows, for a celebration. The local pastor shared from God’s Word, telling the widows how much God loves and cares about them.
That day, through the generosity of believers around the world, Tapti received a piglet! With the profit she makes from the sale of the pig, she will be able to provide for her family and perhaps buy another piglet to continue the income.
“After a few years, [my husband] died,” Tapti shares. “I felt very sad, but through the encouragement from the speaker that God loves us and cares for us as widows . . . I am touched by this program.”
Laalamani also attended a Widows’ Day program. There the speaker distributed saris, the traditional dress of South Asian women, to 14 widows. The sari impressed Laalamani with the genuine concern the Church has for her.
“I was never given a sari anytime, not even by my own children,” she says. “But you people gave me one. I am thankful.”
In addition to the Christian widows at these programs, non-Christian widows also heard, perhaps for the first time, of God’s great love for them.
The Lord is using you to meet the desperate need of some of the most abused and abandoned people in the world. Thank you for showing them His love.