Rejoice!

Emaan had been ready for a good argument when Pastor Kavith showed up. As planned, Emaan began barraging Kavith with questions. But Emaan’s motivations were different than he had originally intended.

An Unlikely Friendship

When Gospel for Asia-supported pastor Kavith began ministering in Emaan’s village, he faced great opposition. The people of this community adhered to their ancestral faith and viewed Christianity as a dishonorable, “tribal” religion.

“Aren’t you ashamed to forsake your own deity and worship the tribal god?” the elders chastised. “Keep your religion to yourself and stop spreading it here in this village. You are not at all welcome among us.”

Undeterred by their harsh words, Kavith knew God deeply cared for these people and continued sharing Jesus’ love with them. One day, while visiting people’s homes, he met Emaan. Like the other villagers, Emaan ardently worshipped his ancestral deity and thought each community should follow their own religion.

Despite their different beliefs, a friendship blossomed between Kavith and Emaan. As they grew closer, Kavith began to tell Emaan the Good News and give him Christian literature, but Emaan usually just tried changing the subject.

Foiled Plans

Eventually, Emaan decided he’d had enough. He thought that if he read the booklets Kavith had given him, he could argue with Kavith and shut him up once and for all.

But as Emaan started reading the literature, he began to appreciate the teachings of Christ. His heart started opening to God’s Word, and his mind filled with questions about things in the booklets he didn’t understand. Many times his wife noticed he was lost in contemplation.

Sometime later, Emaan saw Kavith again. He started debating with Kavith—but with a different motivation than he had originally planned. Instead of trying to debunk Kavith’s beliefs, Emaan asked questions to understand what he had read in the booklets and find out if it were true.

Pastor Kavith explained God’s Word to him, and Emaan’s mind continued opening to God’s love.

From Film to Transformation

In July 2012, Kavith asked a GFA film team to show a film about Jesus in the village and invited Emaan. As Emaan watched the film, he saw the sacrifice Jesus made, and God softened his heart even further.

“I had been hearing the Word of God, but today was the first time I watched this film on the life of Jesus,” he declared after the show. “I had been thinking that Christ was only for tribal people, but now I realize I was so wrong.”

Emaan made a decision to follow Jesus, and since then, he’s been sharing the Good News with his wife and his co-workers. Even though his friends mock him, he continues to pray that they, too, will embrace Christ’s love.

If Pastor Kavith hadn’t had Gospel literature, Emaan may not be walking with Christ today. Because Kavith did give those booklets to Emaan, though, God transformed Emaan’s heart, and this man now lives as a testimony of the power of God’s Word.

“Right after my mother’s death, I will choose to follow Christ as my Saviour,” Amol once told his wife, Mithi.

Amol wasn’t ready to change, yet his alcoholism made life horrible for Mithi and their two children.

One day Mithi met Janisha and Saujanya, two Gospel for Asia missionaries who were visiting her village. Mithi told the women her story: She had grown up in a Christian family before marrying Amol, a non-Christian. Because he drank heavily and frequently abused her, she ended up turning from her faith.

Hearing this, the missionaries prayed for Mithi’s family and gave her a booklet titled “Man: What Are You?”

Two days later, Janisha received a call from a believer in Mithi’s village reporting a drastic transformation in Mithi’s life.

After reading the booklet, Mithi and Amol had begun thinking deeply about the significance of their lives and realized they needed to put their faith in Christ.

Through a piece of Gospel literature, God convicted Mithi’s and Amol’s hearts, and together they've decided to follow Him today and forever.

Nobody wanted to be around Raza—not on the street or when he was at school.

Because of the low caste of Raza’s family, the boy was considered “untouchable.” His family was not even allowed to visit the local temple.

Raza’s father works cleaning people’s toilets and sewage drains, while his mother stays home to take care of Raza, his three brothers and four sisters. Their father earns very little money to support them, so from a young age, Raza went out to look for odd jobs to help his family. He did everything from herding pigs to going door to door playing a drum.

One day, Raza’s mother heard some children talking about the Gospel for Asia Bridge of Hope centre they attended. She wasn’t sure if Raza would be accepted because they were untouchable, but she decided to try. So she took Raza to the centre and explained their situation to the staff.

To her amazement, Raza was admitted to the centre, and his life began to change for the better. He enjoys memorizing Bible verses, and his studies are important to him.

At the Bridge of Hope centre, Raza and the other students have learned that they are equal in God’s eyes, and this has helped them relate to one another. They are learning not to look down on people because of the societal position they were born into. The staff members teach them to respect others, knowing that the Lord loves each one of us equally.

Without Bridge of Hope, Raza most likely would not have been able to attend school. Not only is he now excelling in his studies, but he and his family also have had the opportunity to hear that Jesus loves them and died for them. God is transforming the lives of children like Raza, and your prayers and support of Bridge of Hope are making that possible.

Harish didn’t know what to do anymore. His son, Abhay, had become ill so suddenly.

Sudden Illness Worries Family

It started when Abhay couldn’t sleep one night. It’s fairly common for people to have sleepless nights every now and again, though. It wouldn’t have seemed like anything to worry about—except that the next morning, while Abhay was getting ready for school, he fell abruptly to the ground, screaming in pain. Harish didn’t know what could be wrong with him, so he and his wife rushed Abhay to the nearest hospital.

When they arrived, the doctor checked Abhay but couldn’t find anything wrong. So Harish took his son to a different hospital. The doctors there didn’t know why Abhay was in pain either, but they decided to keep him and run some tests. Fifteen days later they still couldn’t find the cause of his strange condition, so they discharged him and sent him home.

Harassed by Evil Spirits

The family returned home, and Abhay’s symptoms began to grow worse. Spells of unconsciousness often overtook him, eventually causing him to stop attending school. Fear gripped Abhay because he didn’t know what was happening to him, and he began having panic attacks.

Some relatives suggested that Harish take him to the temple miles from their home. It was the only option the family felt they had, so they made the trip to the temple. They stayed for a week and made many sacrifices, but nothing changed. Finally, Harish realized that Abhay was being attacked by evil spirits.

There Is Freedom in Christ

The family returned home discouraged—they had nowhere else to turn. But one day Harish’s wife, Ramya, met Gospel for Asia pastor Natwar and shared her son’s problem with him. He invited the family to attend church, and that next Sunday, Ramya brought Abhay to the service.

They entered the building and heard the believers already singing and worshipping the Lord. Abhay immediately became restless. He fainted and remained unconscious for 20 minutes.

When he woke up, Pastor Natwar was speaking on trusting in Christ.

“We must believe that God can free us from our sin because He promises us that He will!” he said. Abhay listened closely.

A few days later, he was attacked again by the evil spirits. Harish and Ramya immediately called for the pastor to come pray over their son. When Pastor Natwar prayed, the evil spirit left Abhay.

Ramya realized that they would not be able to travel the long distance to attend church every weekend, so she asked Pastor Natwar to lead weekly prayer meetings in their home. As believers gathered to pray there, the evil spirit gradually stopped attacking Abhay and eventually never came back.

Deliverance Brings New Life

Seeing the deliverance, Abhay’s whole family chose to embrace Christ as their Saviour, and the prayer meeting they held began growing in number. The villagers didn’t like the fact that more people were choosing to follow Christ, so they excommunicated Harish and his family from village society and even refused them access to the village well. But through the trial, the family never stopped following Christ.

Eventually the villagers stopped opposing them, and they continued hosting prayer meetings. Twenty-seven people have come to know Christ through the testimony of Abhay and his family.

“When I was possessed by evil spirits, my heart was filled with pain and hurt. But now I want to give all the glory and honour to the Almighty God, who delivered me out of all those pains,” Abhay says, sharing his story with others.

Abhay participates actively in the local church, even playing the tambourine during services, and he plans to attend the local GFA Bible college this semester.

Nabarun and Adishree Paavan didn’t have a bathroom with a tile floor, vanity and mirror.

They didn’t even have indoor plumbing. Instead, they walked about half a mile from their home to relieve themselves. On her way to the bathroom one day, 48-year-old Adishree fell, injuring herself badly. The fall left her handicapped, and her condition required surgery.

A Missing Necessity

Adishree and Nabarun are one couple out of millions of people in India lacking sanitation facilities. More than 80 percent of rural dwellers and more than 50 percent of city households do not have basic sanitation systems. Especially during the rainy season, people contaminate living spaces by relieving themselves near houses or beside village roads. Out of 1,000 Indian children, 63 die by age 4 or younger, mainly from diseases linked to poor hygiene.

A lack of sanitation facilities affects women’s futures too. Girls in India often cannot attend school unless the institution has a sanitation system. Furthermore, going to solitary places alone after dark can be a safety risk for women. Sanitation and hygiene are grave and widespread issues in India.

Help from the Church

Through local believers, the Paavans found help and hope. After discovering she needed an operation, Adishree asked GFA pastor Falak Sayed to pray for her. Thankfully, the operation was successful. Later, the Paavans began to attend Pastor Falak’s church and responded to the love of Jesus. After taking care of the Paavans’ spiritual needs, the church looked to meet their physical needs as well.

On November 15, 2012, a sanitation and cleanliness project began. Led by GFA-supported workers, it focused on raising hygiene awareness, providing safe drinking water and introducing clean facilities. One newspaper reported that the program planned to reach nearly 1,000 villages with sanitation resources.

The believers held a “Clean and Healthy” awareness meeting on February 2, 2013, to officially inaugurate the sanitation initiative. About 500 children and their parents sat and listened to a medical doctor, a regional church leader and several others speak. The church leader summed up the believers’ reason for the program.

“God is love, and we are motivated by the love of God to serve others,” he said.

As part of the initiative, about 25 families received toilets, among them Nabarun and Adishree. By donating outdoor toilets and other gifts through Gospel for Asia’s Christmas Gift Catalogue, people like you are impacting families like the Paavans. Thankful for convenient and safe sanitation facilities, Adishree and Nabarun now know that Jesus loves them individually and cares about their needs.

One minute he had possessed nearly everything he could want; the next he was undone by tragedy.

Married to a woman he loved and blessed with two children, Hammad enjoyed his life. He faithfully worshipped many gods and goddesses and ran a thriving business, which provided well for him and his family. Like Job, he was prosperous and happy.

But peace did not last. Hammad’s wonderful wife suddenly fell ill and died. He went numb with shock, plunging into depression.

Life seemed meaningless without her. Losing interest in work, Hammad stopped taking care of his business, and it collapsed. He isolated himself from other people and stayed within the four walls of his own house. Ignoring his health, he went days and months without a bath. His hair and beard grew long. One minute he had possessed nearly everything he could want; the next he was undone by tragedy.

Hope Dawns

But hope invaded Hammad’s life when a Gospel for Asia-supported pastor visited his home to share about Christ’s love. When Hammad’s family told Pastor Lomash about the tormented man’s condition, Lomash shared about how God had touched his own life. Hammad sat in the corner, listening. He wept aloud as he remembered his prior life, and Pastor Lomash began to pray for him.

Moved to show God’s love to Hammad, Pastor Lomash visited often. One morning, he convinced Hammad to bathe, and he took him to the barber shop for a haircut. On each visit, Lomash took time to sit with the struggling man and pray for God to heal his heart. Gradually, Hammad’s condition improved. Newfound peace flooded his heart.

Before his wife died, Hammad had worshipped many gods. But as Pastor Lomash shared Jesus’ love with him, Hammad’s heart opened to God’s truth. Instead of isolating himself, Hammad began speaking to everyone in his household! He started believing that the Lord heard and responded to people’s prayers. Excited about the pastor’s message, Hammad asked his children to listen to Lomash’s words.

Abiding in the Light

Soon, Hammad and his children started attending the local fellowship, and he embraced Christ’s love.

“I am happy to have my life back,” Hammad said. “I’m more than glad that my life is in Christ.”

The transformation in Hammad’s life filled him and his family with joy. Like Job, he had new hope in God after a season of testing and darkness. He shared this hope with others—including his younger brother, Achir, who also decided to follow Christ.

On March 23, 2012, Hammad went to be with the Lord, entering into rest and peace. While on earth he had rejoiced that his life was “in Christ.” Now in heaven, he dwells in eternal joy with his Saviour.

Although he passed away, Hammad left an enduring legacy—a brother and children who love Jesus. Both children continue to stand strong in their faith. Under the care of Pastor Lomash, Achir, too, is growing spiritually.

God transformed Hammad’s life through the compassion of a national missionary, and now Hammad’s family can look forward to worshipping Christ with him in heaven.

More than we may realize, very little do we really know God and hear Him. Sometimes when I am in an airport, I find myself turning up the volume on my cell phone as high as I can because the gate announcer is screaming, but still I can’t hear. Unless the noises around us are eliminated, we simply can’t hear the person on the other end.

“Lord, my heart is not haughty, nor my eyes lofty. Neither do I concern myself with great matters, nor with things too profound for me. Surely I have calmed and quieted my soul, like a weaned child with his mother; like a weaned child is my soul within me.”(Psalm 131:1-2)

Recently, I have been studying about knowing God and about prayer, and I’ve come upon this passage. Although I don’t have many regrets in my life, maybe one of the most serious regrets is not always taking the time to quiet myself before the Lord and hear what He has to say. Even when we pray, our minds can be like a drama with multiple voices talking, arguing, thinking, making mental notes—and God stands outside, desperately wanting us to hear His still, small voice.

Silence is the loudest prayer we can offer, because in silence the Holy Spirit reveals Christ’s current burdens to us. We then respond back to Him—sometimes without even fully understanding the prayers we pray.

I encourage you to take the time to be silent before the Lord and to listen for His voice. You will be surprised to hear God speaking things you haven’t heard before. And you will pray for things you never prayed before. For a world that is waiting to hear of Christ’s love, God is saying to us, “I am looking for someone to be still, to be silent.” He is looking for someone who will try to find out what He is saying.

Thank you for standing in the gap through your prayers and support to see God’s kingdom advanced in Asia. I hope that as you continue praying, you will reflect on what He has already done in lives like Raza’s, Hammad’s, Nabarun’s and Adishree’s and on how He will continue to use you for His glory.