Nithya learned life-changing truths about Christ by reading the words of Scripture.

Nithya’s family had once been whole, her parents and five siblings living in harmony. But that changed when the girl’s parents divorced because of her father’s infidelity, ripping love from their home.

Nithya’s mother remarried one year later, but this did not fulfill any hopes Nithya may have had for a loving father figure. Her stepfather drank heavily, and nothing could shake him from his addiction.

The absence of Nithya’s father and the emotional distance of her mother and stepfather stung Nithya. The girl withdrew within herself, unhappy and alone. Insecurity burrowed its way into her heart.

Soon, Nithya endured the added burden of a health condition. She suffered jaundice, and it prevented her from attending school. While Nithya sat in the sun one day, GFA pastor Hansaraj and two other pastors came along and talked to her. She had no desire to hear what they had to say. Before they left, they prayed for Nithya and offered her a New Testament, which she reluctantly took.

The New Testament sat for several days untouched and ignored. But then, Nithya’s curiosity got the better of her. She began reading it, and one verse caught her attention: “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life” (John 3:16).

This Jesus, sent by His Father, died for her. God was willing to let His Son die for her? She needed answers.

At a Christmas Eve program hosted by Pastor Hansaraj’s church, Nithya listened to the pastor share of the birth of Jesus. As she listened, she realized God truly loved the world so much He sent Jesus to die for her sins.

“I have now found the loving Father who gave His own Son to die on the cross to forgive my sins,” she remarked.

Two weeks later, Nithya opened up her heart, receiving the love she had desperately desired for so long. She knew she was loved, she was cherished, she was wanted.

A significant role of pastors is to counsel the young people in their congregations, helping them see through temptations and remain faithful to the Lord.

Dhona lurched forward in bed. Visions of death faded as the dark room solidified before her. She scrambled out of bed and frantically looked around for the book from her childhood. Leafing through whisper-thin pages, Dhona’s heart slowed at the old, familiar words.

Dhona had learned to pray and read the Bible at a young age from her godly parents, but she never internalized the message of grace. After finishing high school, Dhona shed her religious cloak.

While at college, Dhona’s wild partying swiftly became out of control.

Heartbroken, Dhona’s parents watched their daughter throw her life away. Pastor Linn, a GFA-supported worker, tried for two years to counsel the girl who grew up in his church. But she refused to listen, blind to the terrible consequences ahead.

Eventually Dhona became a drug dealer to support her addictions.

A Nightmare, a Turning Point

One night, after years of debauched living, Dhona had a terrible nightmare about death and judgment. She sought solace in God’s Word. As she read and prayed, the words seemed to come alive, as if God were speaking right to her.

Pastor Linn came to visit Dhona. This time she listened. He prayed for her and visited almost every day. Gradually Dhona recognized the wreck of her life and asked God to help her turn from evil.

Then, at a meeting in Pastor Linn’s home, Dhona realized that despite her constant rejection of the Lord, He loved her deeply.

“I opened my heart to Jesus,” Dhona shares. “Now I understand that I’m not worthless. I’m loved by the Creator of the entire universe, who willingly died on the cross for me.”

God changed Dhona’s life completely. He helped her overcome addictions and end bad relationships.

“God is love,” says Dhona. “He does exist and does miracles. He has transformed my life. He is worthy to be praised and worshipped.”

Dhona’s life is now a testimony of God’s amazing love and grace.

Vedansh (left) finally found enduring peace when he read about Jesus in a New Testament he received from Pastor Vikranta (right)

Faithful and hardworking were two words that could be used to describe Vedansh. Married with two children, Vedansh did all he could to provide for his family. Yet there was something missing from Vedansh’s life.

Vedansh worked as a daily labourer to feed his family—yet despite his efforts and his faithfulness to his beliefs, Vedansh was unhappy. It was as if there were a void dwelling in his heart. Vedansh’s outside appearance was one of happiness, but the turmoil within him grew and grew.

An Encounter with God’s Love

One day, as Vedansh was returning home from work, he happened to meet GFA-supported pastor Vikranta. The two struck up a conversation, and Pastor Vikranta shared of God’s love. As they continued talking, Vedansh explained his struggles and the discontentment roiling in his heart. He detailed the many rites he performed in hopes peace would come.

The pastor listened and offered to pray for Vedansh.

“God is the Peace-giver, and He gives peace which is perennial,” the pastor encouraged. Before he left, Pastor Vikranta offered the troubled man a New Testament and suggested he read the Gospel of John.

The very next day, Vedansh called Pastor Vikranta and said he felt peace he had never felt before. Pastor Vikranta rejoiced with Vedansh and invited him to attend the upcoming worship services at the local church.

Everlasting Peace

Over the next month and a half, Vedansh read the New Testament. One verse stood out to him in particular: “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.”

John 3:16 powerfully touched Vedansh, filling his heart immediately with peace. Over the next months, Vedansh and his entire family attended services, learning more about God and His never-ending love. Vedansh also finished reading the New Testament. And as he did, the peace he felt stayed permanently.

“Once, I lived without peace,” Vedansh says. “But when I found the living God and read His Word, my heart was filled with peace.”

Through reading her Bible, Jenya gained a steadfast faith that Jesus could heal her crippled father—and her faith became sight.

Jenya watched as her mother rushed out of their hut to deliver the breakfast foods she had made that morning. She knew her mother, Parivita, would have another busy day of cooking and selling food to small shops. Parivita was the sole breadwinner because her husband, Himank, was too sick to get out of bed.

Life had not always been like that. Everything had started to go downhill when Himank suffered spinal damage after years of hard labour. The doctors said he would never recover. Jenya watched in sorrow as her hardworking father grew old quickly, and his heavy load was placed on her mother’s shoulders.

A Life-changing Visit

One day, Jenya and her brothers visited their aunt Sajili. Sajili, a believer, attended a GFA-supported church nearby. Whenever they visited her, they would attend church together. Jenya, though not brought up in a Christian home, told GFA-supported pastor Diyan about her father’s condition and their family’s poverty. The pastor prayed for them and went with Jenya and her siblings to their home to encourage Himank and Parivita in the Lord.

Jenya believed Jesus was big enough to solve her family’s problems. When she accepted the love God had offered her freely, Jenya’s heart filled with faith and joy. After that moment, Jenya began to read God’s Word and taste and see that He was good in her life.

Faith continued to grow in her heart as she turned through the pages of her Bible. God blessed her in many ways; she even started to improve in her grades at school.

Jenya believed the God of the Bible was the One who answers prayers, so she prayed earnestly for her father to become well again.

Faith Becoming Sight

One day Jenya’s deepest prayers were answered as she found her father sitting up in bed.

“My Jesus answered my prayer,” Jenya exclaimed.

This miracle deepened the faith of her brothers, and they also have experienced the love of Christ. Soon after that miracle, her father began walking to church every now and then.

Jenya’s faith deepened over time as she continued to seek the Lord and read His Word. Abundant hope fuels her prayers for her family members to know Jesus as she does.

Thank you for giving powerful gifts, like Bibles, that nurture opportunities for faith to grow!

Aahan (man on right) was once bedridden from debilitating diseases. When he began to read a New Testament he received from GFA-supported pastor Dakshi (man on left), his faith grew to believe God would heal him.

Aahan read the promise from God’s Word, “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened to you” (Matthew 7:7). These words went deep into his heart. It was a word from God that Aahan needed as he laid in bed, too sick to get out.

Why Was He Not Getting Better?

Years ago, Aahan had become mysteriously sick and weak in both legs. He couldn’t move out of his bed because he had lost so much strength. Then there was the severe pain in his stomach and chest and the unusual swelling. Aahan’s health was at risk— and so was his family’s survival.

Because Aahan couldn’t work, which meant no money was coming in, his family was on the brink of starvation. Aashi, Aahan’s wife, took up the mantle of family breadwinner and began working in the fields for her family. But it was not easy to look after Aahan and their three young children—the youngest of whom was only 1 year old— and also earn enough to put food on the table.

What Is Wrong with Him?

Aashi took her husband to multiple medical facilities to see if doctors could figure out what had happened to her husband, but the diagnoses had the doctors boggled: They found Aahan had multiple illnesses. Even though the doctors gave him medicine, nothing seemed to bring Aahan healing. Then one villager recommended Aashi take her husband to the church led by GFA-supported pastor Dakshi, which she did.

Will He Ever Find Healing?

Pastor Dakshi started visiting Aahan in his home and praying for his healing. Knowing that God’s Word is powerful and His promises bring encouragement, the pastor offered Aahan a New Testament for him to read. This gift of God’s Word was made possible because of supporters like you.

Aahan (man on right) was once bedridden from debilitating diseases. When he began to read a New Testament he received from GFA-supported pastor Dakshi (man on left), his faith grew to believe God would heal him.

After that day, Aahan read the New Testament and was greatly encouraged by what he read. He determined then to persevere in prayer because he believed God would hear his prayers and grant his request. Seven months later, Aahan was miraculously able to walk again, having been given strength and healing in his legs and body by God.

Aahan also bought complete Bibles for all the members of his family so they could grow in their newfound faith. Because of a New Testament, one family’s life was transformed forever. Aahan was healed of sickness both physically and spiritually.

“I was inspired greatly from the Bible verse, ‘Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened to you’ from Matthew 7:7,” Aahan explained. “I clung to that promise of God, and I experienced the touch of God in my life. Thus I am alive today and able to live a normal life.”

After learning about Jesus, many women, like these two pictured, choose to use their words to bring God glory.

Akhila’s mouth had uttered lies and half-truths. It had passed on things her ears heard, things that weren’t meant to be shared with others. It had spoken with manipulative intent, poking, prodding and provoking others.

But today her mouth did something different: It read aloud the Word of God.

God’s Word in the Mouth of a Whispering Wife

Akhila had spent most of her 23 years as a gossip and busybody, always seeking to get something from people. She wasted her life on the idle, fleeting pleasures offered by the world.

But when she met a GFA-supported pastor, she learned about Jesus, prayer meetings and God’s Word. She took a copy home to read, and her mouth found something new to do.

Reading the Word aloud became a daily habit. The more Akhila read, the more God moved in her heart. She also attended prayer meetings with the pastor and other believers.

‘At the Door’

One day, Akhila’s eyes lingered on the words she had just read aloud: “Behold, I stand at the door and knock.”

Something stirred within her. Her eyes reverently traced the letters, and she continued, “If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me.”

She had never heard anything like it.

As Akhila meditated on the Messiah’s words from Revelation 3:20, passages like John 3:16 came to her heart as well—a verse familiar to many but new to her: “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.”

As God’s Word caressed her soul, Akhila made a decision: She opened the door of her heart to Christ, and she’s never been the same.

Using Her Mouth for God’s Glory

Akhila doesn’t strive to find satisfaction through gossip anymore—she has found that which satisfies her soul. And today, the mouth that once worked to hurt and malign others now seeks to build them up through prayer. Akhila’s life has been transformed, and it’s all by the power of God working through His Word, just as He said He would.

While many impoverished people in Asia seek provision for their physical needs, their hunger for spiritual answers is often even greater. Manal (not pictured) searched for years before finding answers in God’s Word.

Who was this living God? Manal heard of Him through reading literature and by word of mouth, but he never grasped or understood who Christ is and what He has done for us. Manal began his search to find out what the Word of God meant. Though his culture and religious background consider Christians as lowly, Manal never could shake off his deep desire to understand their God.

Driver Finds a Church

One day, as Manal was working as an automobile driver, he learned from his passengers about a local church. Hungry to gain more knowledge, he attended the church.

Gospel for Asia-supported pastor Kalap welcomed him, and after hearing Manal share about his longing to know more about God, Pastor Kalap began to teach Manal through God’s Word. Much like Philip and the eunuch, Kalap guided Manal and answered his questions, helping him understand the uniqueness of Jesus in ways he could understand. Pastor Kalap prayed earnestly for him, asking the Lord to reveal His deep love and truth to the man’s heart.

After that, Manal regularly visited the pastor. Pastor Kalap offered him a New Testament, which Manal gratefully accepted and began reading every day.

Soon Manal’s quest came to an end as he found the love of God for himself through the Scriptures. His face shone with joy. Not only had Manal found what he was searching for, but he found the eternal life his soul longed after!

Serving the One He Sought

Manal is now strong in his faith and determined to follow the Lord regardless of the comments of others or of the persecution that may come along the way.

“Now I know for sure that there is only God who can give eternal life, and I want to serve Him with my life,” Manal says.

Praise God for fulfilling the desire of Manal’s heart!