Though Basantipaharin’s parents used to attend a Seventh-day Adventist church, they eventually moved to Karipadhi, India, and found it hard to travel the 10 kilometers to church. I told Basantipaharin, 25, that we would come to her and conduct church at her house since her family couldn’t travel. Several members who lived nearby came each Sabbath and held a worship service on her veranda. One Sabbath as we all gathered for church, Basantipaharin’s grandfather told us that his … [Read more...]
Depending on God
SIVARAMPURAM, India—G. Marimma, a poor widow in Andhra Pradesh, India, had stomach cancer. A doctor provided medicine to treat her tumors, but when her money ran out Marimma had to depend solely on God. She went to the Gospel Outreach worker and asked him to pray for her healing. He agreed and, together with Marimma, prayed the cancer would disappear. One night after she prayed, Marimma fell asleep. During the night, she saw a man in white robes carrying a Bible appear and touch her. She … [Read more...]
Saved, body and soul
As the main priest in the village of Balphari, India, Munsa Hembrom, 45, conducted all of the village’s pujas (ritualistic presentations of offerings to deities in order to receive a blessing). He and his family, including his four children, were totally devoted to their pujari work. But for two months, Hembrom felt unwell mentally, and his odd actions troubled his family. He began running away from his home. His wife was worried because they had a lot of land that needed care and … [Read more...]
The Doctor who truly heals us
Ajad Ansary had a small child who was ill from birth. He and his wife were constantly worried about their little girl. Despite countless trips to doctors, she did not improve. One day these parents were worrying, “Who can cure our child? She is very sick and about to die.” Confused and sad, they were sitting on their veranda when I came to ask about their welfare. Ajad poured out his sorrows and sadness. Touched by their sadness, I told them to believe in Jesus and He would restore … [Read more...]
The blind missionary
Beautiful little Suvarthamma was only 7 when smallpox broke out in her village. Though she survived, the disease left her blind. Suddenly, this active, eager student was in constant darkness. She could only tell night from day by the sounds she heard, and she had to feel her way with a stick. When Suvarthamma was about 20, she developed a hemorrhage that wouldn’t stop. She prayed to her gods, but they didn’t help. She went to see doctors, but her condition worsened. Finally she met a … [Read more...]
A miraculous recovery
KUDRA, India—Amid the market some people were struggling to carry a young man. This young man, a baptized lay member, had been bitten by a scorpion but refused to go any witch doctor, so his relatives were forcefully taking him. As Anil Ram came by, the young man asked him to pray for his healing. Anil was nervous because of the young man’s serious condition, but he read Mark 16:17–18 and prayed for him. Then he cut a potato, salted it and put it where the scorpion had bitten. The young … [Read more...]
Papaiah had been driving a government bus for many years,(bold) and he had formed bad habits along the way. He drank, chain-smoked, abused his wife and children, and generally was not a nice man. One day he began to vomit blood. This continued for three years. Finally he went to the doctor, who said Papaiah had a terminal disease. Papaiah was sent home to die. Papaiah’s brother, an Adventist, visited and prayed for him. Suddenly, Papaiah sensed a healing power within him. He promised he … [Read more...]
Sikh couple eagerly accepts the God who heals
PUNJAB, India—On the first day of evangelistic meetings by pastors and Gospel Outreach lay evangelists, Baljinder Kaur and her husband, Tarsem Singh, joined hundreds of other villagers in the tent. Baljinder, who had suffered from a painful sore on her neck for more than 12 years despite consulting medical doctors, visiting shrines and trying traditional charms, reports, “As soon as we sat down, we felt peaceful and received assurance that something good was in store for us.” After a … [Read more...]
Prayer prevents leg amputation
Vijay Kumar and his elderly father had just completed an evangelistic series in one village. They were traveling by a motor rickshaw to the next village when suddenly the rickshaw was smashed in a terrible accident. Vijay lay unconscious on the road, his left leg mangled and broken in a compound fracture. Vijay was taken to a hospital. A doctor told Vijay that his leg was so mangled that an amputation would be needed. Out in the country, no one even thought of a prosthesis. Vijay could only … [Read more...]
Miracle of the 80-year wound
He was a man of high caste, but when young he got a boil on his right ankle. Although he spent lots of money for medicines and treatments, the boil never went away. He kept it bandaged and hobbled around as best he could with a cane or crutch. Friends who had become Adventists came to his home several times and prayed for him. They encouraged him to come with them to church. Finally, he accepted, and they helped him hobble to the little church in the village. Gospel Outreach worker Sanjeva … [Read more...]