(robust music)
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- Hello and welcome
to "Jesus for Asia Now."
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I'm Natalie Wood and my husband,
Jon, is joining me today.
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Hello love.
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- Hi darling. How are you?
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- I'm doing fine.
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- That's awesome.
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- I'm excited
about our story today
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because it talks about somebody
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who is finding that Christ is
taking care of her every need.
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- Yes.
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- But, it's a
lot more than that.
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- Oh, yeah.
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The way that the Lord
has led her into this place
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is just a beautiful story.
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- Right.
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But, first let's meet the pastor
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who's been working with her.
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- Okay.
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His name is Pastor Padmanapan.
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And I'm sure that all
of our viewing audience
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will be able to say that
precisely, first time they hear
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it. - No. - [Jon] No.
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- 'Cause we can't either.
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- (laughing) We're not
even sure we're saying it right.
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- [Natalie] Right.
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- But, is a wonderful man
and his wife is just amazing.
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In fact,
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we featured him and
his wife on a previous show
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talking about some of the
miracles that God has done
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in their lives.
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- Right.
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- Very inspiring.
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- Right.
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- When he met Christ,
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he was so in love with Christ
that he started his own church
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and he was teaching all
that he knew from the Bible.
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But, then he met one
of our Bible workers.
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He learned about the Sabbath.
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And he said, I want my
whole church to know about this.
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So, don't baptize me yet
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because I want to introduce
the teachings to my church
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before they have a chance
to put up the prejudice walls,
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you know, walls of prejudice.
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And so he started teaching,
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bringing these
teachings into his church
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and the
congregation was accepting.
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And then he started inviting
some of our Bible workers
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to preach in his church.
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And little by little,
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they started
accepting and more and more
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started being baptized.
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- Right.
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And now from last I heard,
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almost the entire church
has accepted these doctrines
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and these truths
and have been baptized.
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- Yes, when we
were there in 2019,
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we got to visit his church
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and I got to
preach in this church.
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- Okay. So, we
have a few pictures.
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- Yes.
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- [Natalie] So, this is the
exterior picture of the church.
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- [Jon] Yep.
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And this is the
interior of the church.
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This is taken
from about halfway up.
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- [Natalie] Okay.
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- [Jon] And then this is before
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I was getting ready to preach,
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you can see it at
churches packed out.
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- Yeah.
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- And he's a beautiful
man, a very good preacher,
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very on fire for God,
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just really
excited to know about God
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and the truth that he's learning
and that he's growing in.
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- Wow. Awesome.
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- Yeah.
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So, I took a little
clip from a previous video
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that we showed in a previous
episode of "Jesus for Asia Now"
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to show you who
pastor Padmanapan is
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and give you a little glimpse
of who this young lady is.
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- [Natalie] Okay.
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(singing in foreign language)
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- We're here in Southern India.
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We just worshiped,
just finished worship
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in a church right behind me.
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It's a rather large church
for this part of the world,
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for Seventh-day
Adventist Church.
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And it's got a very interesting
story of how it came to be
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a Seventh-day Adventist Church.
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(speaking in foreign language)
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- My name is Pastor Padmanapan.
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I'm working in the
place called Krishnaburam.
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I was working in the
military as a police.
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And after that, I
came to know about Jesus.
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And I became a Christian.
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The place where, right now,
I'm working is full of Hindus.
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When I first started
this work of the ministry
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as a Christian, there
was so many opposition.
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(speaking in foreign language)
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and God told me, "Anything
which comes against you
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"will not affect you.
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"If one comes in one way,
I will split into seven ways.
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"And that will go off from you."
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Since I was a military man,
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and I have the
promise of the Lord,
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I've got this courage
to do the work of the Lord,
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amidst this lot
of problematic areas,
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amidst these Hindus people.
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They said, there is a man
who have come to capture people
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for Christianity.
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Don't allow him
inside this village.
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(speaking in foreign language)
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Wherever I went, there
were devil possessions.
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We prayed and devil
fled from those people.
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God was blessing
my ministry like that.
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(speaking in foreign language)
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In my church, members
were gathering, added up.
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We were worshiping on Sundays,
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but one time, one
lady, called Manogry,
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she came and told us
about this remanent truth,
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about the Sabbath truth.
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(soft piano music)
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- She alerted some
of our JFA Bible workers
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about his openness.
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And so, three of
our Bible workers,
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pastor Thomas, sister
Jennifer and sister Susan came
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and started meeting with
him and conducted Bible studies
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over the course
of several months.
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And he was so
excited about this new truth
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that he was finding.
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He says, I've never heard this
before. This is so wonderful.
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I'm so happy to
know this new truth.
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(speaking in foreign language)
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- The Bible says in Genesis 2:3,
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"If you observe the
Sabbath and keep it holy,
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"God will bless you."
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I was moved by this message,
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which I have not
heard in my life before.
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I accepted that message.
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- And he says, but if I
come and accept the truth,
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then my church, my
members won't understand
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and they'll all leave.
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And so he says,
let's do this wisely.
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And they did Bible
studies for several months.
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And then he and
his wife were baptized.
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And then he kept
preaching in his church.
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and then he started
inviting the Bible workers
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to preach in his
church on Sundays.
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And over the
course of a year or two,
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almost his entire congregation
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has changed over to the
Seventh-day Adventist Church .
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(speaking in foreign language)
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- We, not only me,
even my church members
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accepted this truth
and started to believe.
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And now as a
family, as a whole church,
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we have accepted this
truth and took baptism
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in this remanent church.
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Now, our church is a
Seventh-day Adventist Church.
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Whenever there is a big
revival meeting in our church,
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there are people
always ready for baptism,
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five, six, seven people
are there accepting Jesus.
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And they are coming
forward to take baptism.
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(soft piano music)
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- Okay, You notice the lady
that was before the last man,
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she was standing
in the baptismal tank?
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- Yeah, with the
green and yellow, blue sari.
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- Yeah. She's the one
that this episode is about.
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- Okay.
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So, when I was there,
the Pastor Padmanapan,
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he said, this lady is
interested in becoming baptized,
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but he told me that the
reason why she was nervous
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about being baptized is that
her family would disown her.
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And she was a widow.
Her husband had passed away.
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Her children had gone and
they had their own careers.
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And so, she was afraid
that she was gonna go hungry.
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And so I told her trust in God.
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If God is leading you,
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he will provide for you.
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He'll take care of you.
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- Yeah.
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And so with some
tears, she said, okay.
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And she was baptized that day.
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- Wow.
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And then I found out that
she knows how to do sewing
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because as a widow, you know,
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we have the
Widows Sewing School.
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- Right.
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- I thought, well,
maybe we can teach her.
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- Teach her to sew.
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- [Jon] But, she already knows.
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- Okay.
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- So, I said to Israel
and the people there locally,
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I says, you have to
find a place to set her up
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in a business.
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Please do this for her.
Normally we don't do that.
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We usually baptize
people and then, you know,
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let them fend for themselves.
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But, you know,
that's not what Christ did.
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- Right.
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- And so I says, you know,
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and then over
the next few months,
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I kept inquiring
about how she doing,
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did she have a
business, what's going on?
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- So, before you get into
that part of the story too far,
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we do have a
video from her baptism.
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- Okay.
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(soft piano music)
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(speaking in foreign language)
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- [Female Translator] I
come from a Hindu background
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and I used to have a
lot of mental difficulties.
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I was very depressed because
my husband was a heavy drinker.
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He couldn't go without
drinking for even an hour.
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So, I left him and
went to live with my mother.
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Then I became
even more depressed
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and thought that I
should just kill myself.
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But, the one thing
that kept me from doing it
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was my two daughters.
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They were my only hope.
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And I decided that I should
at least live for their sakes,
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but I was still
having mental problems.
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My relatives and friends said
that I was mentally retarded
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and decided to put me
in a hospital for awhile.
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Then, one of my
older sisters came
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and told me that I
should to to a Christian Church.
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You will find
healing there, she told me.
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So, she took me to a church
and I went there for a while,
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but I still didn't
feel completely healed.
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After a while I moved from
my mother's house to this house.
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And since my church was
a long distance from here,
00:10:02.70\00:10:05.30
I started
looking for a new church.
00:10:05.30\00:10:07.74
I found a church that was close
by and started going to it.
00:10:07.74\00:10:11.44
But, this church was very
different than the other one.
00:10:11.44\00:10:14.18
So, I started asking
Pastor Padmanapan questions.
00:10:14.18\00:10:17.38
I said, why are you
worshiping on Sabbath?
00:10:30.26\00:10:32.79
You're supposed
to worship on Sunday.
00:10:32.79\00:10:34.93
Sunday is the day we
have to worship the Lord.
00:10:34.93\00:10:38.27
Pastor Padmanapan
showed me from the Bible
00:10:38.27\00:10:40.64
that Saturday is
the true Sabbath.
00:10:40.64\00:10:43.00
He encouraged me to keep it
and see how God would bless me.
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He encouraged me to obey God
and trust that he would help me
00:10:46.44\00:10:49.74
with my health
problems and be with me.
00:10:49.74\00:10:52.88
By now, my husband
had passed away also.
00:10:52.88\00:10:55.28
So, I was a complete widow.
00:10:55.28\00:10:57.72
As my two daughters and I
started to keep the Sabbath,
00:10:57.72\00:11:00.42
we began to see
improvements in my health.
00:11:00.42\00:11:03.22
I was recovering and all my
suicidal thoughts were gone.
00:11:03.22\00:11:07.40
Now, I don't think
about killing myself anymore.
00:11:07.40\00:11:10.33
I want to live and be
a witness for the Lord.
00:11:10.33\00:11:12.90
When some of my old friends
saw that I was going to church
00:11:15.64\00:11:18.34
on Saturday, they
started asking me questions.
00:11:18.34\00:11:21.78
So, I shared with them
about the true Sabbath,
00:11:21.78\00:11:24.68
my daughters and I continued
to study the Bible together
00:11:24.68\00:11:27.85
and God taught us many more
things and answered our prayers.
00:11:27.85\00:11:31.95
Then I decided to be baptized
00:11:31.95\00:11:33.69
and was baptized into the
Seventh-day Adventist Church.
00:11:33.69\00:11:36.73
(singing in foreign language)
00:11:36.73\00:11:40.66
- And so that's how
she not only found Jesus,
00:11:50.24\00:11:53.64
but she found
healing through Christ
00:11:53.64\00:11:55.68
and worshiping on
the true Sabbath day.
00:11:55.68\00:11:58.61
- Yeah.
00:11:58.61\00:11:59.68
That's a beautiful story.
00:11:59.68\00:12:01.02
You know, I'd
like to know the story
00:12:01.02\00:12:02.85
of her older sister too,
00:12:02.85\00:12:04.35
that told her, you need
to go to a Christian Church
00:12:04.35\00:12:06.69
to find healing.
00:12:06.69\00:12:07.66
- Yeah.
00:12:07.66\00:12:09.16
- I think we'll have to
get some more information
00:12:09.16\00:12:10.59
about that, I think.
00:12:10.59\00:12:12.19
And the next part of our story
00:12:12.19\00:12:13.70
goes into what God
has done since then.
00:12:13.70\00:12:16.50
- Yes, absolutely.
00:12:16.50\00:12:18.03
- But first, we have a
picture of all the people
00:12:18.03\00:12:20.04
who were baptized
that day with her.
00:12:20.04\00:12:22.87
- [Jon] So, the
person on the far right
00:12:22.87\00:12:25.37
is Pastor Padmanapan and
his wife is on the far left.
00:12:25.37\00:12:29.68
- [Natalie] Okay.
00:12:29.68\00:12:31.18
And standing right
beside his wife is sister Asha.
00:12:31.18\00:12:34.35
- [Natalie] Okay.
00:12:34.35\00:12:35.28
- Her name is kind of unique.
00:12:35.28\00:12:36.52
Sometimes I hear Asha.
Sometimes I hear Ashana.
00:12:36.52\00:12:39.49
Sometimes I hear Usha.
00:12:39.49\00:12:40.96
So, I'm not quite sure
what her actual name is,
00:12:42.56\00:12:43.49
but we'll call her Ashana.
00:12:43.49\00:12:45.06
- Okay.
00:12:45.06\00:12:46.63
But, you know,
00:12:46.63\00:12:47.60
the time between her baptism
00:12:47.60\00:12:49.10
and when she finally got
established in a business
00:12:49.10\00:12:52.87
was quite a number of months.
00:12:52.87\00:12:54.77
And I was a
little bit frustrated,
00:12:54.77\00:12:56.40
but, hearing her testimony,
00:12:56.40\00:12:58.01
this was a time where God
was really working in her life.
00:12:58.01\00:13:00.84
- Right.
00:13:00.84\00:13:01.91
- [Jon] And
establishing her faith.
00:13:01.91\00:13:03.11
- Right.
00:13:03.11\00:13:04.61
- And we have a video talking
about that time in her life.
00:13:04.61\00:13:07.45
(speaking in foreign language)
00:13:07.45\00:13:08.52
(soft piano music)
00:13:08.52\00:13:12.19
- [Female Translator]
After I was baptized,
00:13:12.19\00:13:13.72
my relatives said that they
were not going to support me
00:13:13.72\00:13:16.46
anymore.
00:13:16.46\00:13:17.49
And I didn't have a job.
00:13:17.49\00:13:18.79
So, I got worried.
00:13:18.79\00:13:20.40
I said, oh Lord,
how am I going to live?
00:13:20.40\00:13:22.96
How am I going to
take care of my daughters?
00:13:22.96\00:13:25.37
What am I going to
do? I don't know Lord.
00:13:25.37\00:13:28.60
But, since that day, God
has taken care of my needs.
00:13:28.60\00:13:31.87
Sometimes when I pray for people
and the prayer is answered,
00:13:31.87\00:13:35.24
they want to give me money.
00:13:35.24\00:13:36.78
But, I tell them that
the money belongs to God.
00:13:36.78\00:13:39.58
So, instead they bring
me rice and beans and oil.
00:13:39.58\00:13:43.05
Also, my sister had completely
stopped talking to me,
00:13:43.05\00:13:47.29
but all of a sudden,
she called me last month.
00:13:47.29\00:13:50.19
She wanted to
know how I was doing.
00:13:50.19\00:13:52.53
She wanted to know how I
was able to care for my family.
00:13:52.53\00:13:56.26
So, I told her how
God was providing for us.
00:13:56.26\00:13:59.30
We both cried as I shared.
00:13:59.30\00:14:00.87
And now our
relationship is restored.
00:14:00.87\00:14:03.14
And even though she didn't
help me financially before,
00:14:03.14\00:14:06.14
last month, she came and
gave me 2,000 rupees to use
00:14:06.14\00:14:09.74
to buy food.
00:14:09.74\00:14:11.08
See how God is leading me?
00:14:11.08\00:14:12.98
I am so thankful
00:14:12.98\00:14:14.52
and amazed to see how
He is providing for us.
00:14:14.52\00:14:17.35
(soft guitar music)
00:14:17.35\00:14:20.36
(speaking in foreign language)
00:14:25.93\00:14:29.96
After I was baptized, I couldn't
keep the truth to myself.
00:14:29.96\00:14:33.60
I started sharing what the
Bible teaches with my friends.
00:14:33.60\00:14:36.77
And God has really blessed.
00:14:36.77\00:14:38.94
Now, by God's grace,
00:14:38.94\00:14:40.48
there are 10 people that
I have helped lead to Christ
00:14:40.48\00:14:43.01
that are ready for baptism.
00:14:43.01\00:14:44.51
- One testimony I want to share
just happened the other day.
00:14:50.39\00:14:53.96
I got a call at 10:30
at night from an old man
00:14:53.96\00:14:56.99
who used to be my neighbor.
00:14:56.99\00:14:59.03
He called me and said, I am old.
00:14:59.03\00:15:01.30
And I'm afraid that I might die
00:15:01.30\00:15:02.93
because of this
disease that I have.
00:15:02.93\00:15:05.37
Please pray for me that
I will have peace of mind.
00:15:05.37\00:15:08.77
This man was a strong Hindu.
00:15:08.77\00:15:10.54
And here he was calling
me late at night for prayer.
00:15:10.54\00:15:13.94
I tried to comfort him
00:15:13.94\00:15:15.54
and assured him that
I would pray for him.
00:15:15.54\00:15:17.85
Then I prayed for him
asking the Lord to heal him
00:15:17.85\00:15:20.85
and take away his pain.
00:15:20.85\00:15:22.98
After I prayed,
00:15:22.98\00:15:24.25
I told him that when
he woke up in the morning,
00:15:24.25\00:15:26.42
he would be healed.
00:15:26.42\00:15:28.39
He wouldn't have any
more pain in his body.
00:15:28.39\00:15:31.59
The next morning at nine
o'clock he called me and said,
00:15:31.59\00:15:34.73
thank you so much.
00:15:34.73\00:15:36.36
You prayed and
God gave me healing.
00:15:36.36\00:15:38.90
He took the pain away from me.
00:15:38.90\00:15:40.87
More than the
pleasures of this world,
00:15:41.94\00:15:43.81
I want to keep serving the Lord.
00:15:43.81\00:15:45.84
He has healed me
00:15:45.84\00:15:47.08
and I am excited to be
able to meet more people
00:15:47.08\00:15:49.74
and share the
love of God with them.
00:15:49.74\00:15:51.68
- Isn't that amazing?
00:15:53.72\00:15:54.68
- Yeah.
00:15:54.68\00:15:55.92
- She was
worried about surviving.
00:15:55.92\00:15:57.42
And yet during that time
she was ministering to others.
00:15:57.42\00:16:00.22
- Yeah.
00:16:00.22\00:16:01.46
And that's a lot
of faith to tell him,
00:16:01.46\00:16:03.19
when you wake up in the
morning, you will be well,
00:16:03.19\00:16:05.49
- What an
amazing faith statement.
00:16:05.49\00:16:07.56
I mean, most times we
pray for somebody to get well,
00:16:07.56\00:16:09.83
and then we wait
and see if they get well
00:16:09.83\00:16:12.17
to see if God's worked.
00:16:12.17\00:16:14.04
And then when they're not well
00:16:14.04\00:16:15.97
or when they're not
healed, then we say, well,
00:16:15.97\00:16:18.37
I guess it's not God's
will or something like that.
00:16:18.37\00:16:21.01
But, she made that
statement of faith.
00:16:21.01\00:16:23.41
- Right.
00:16:23.41\00:16:24.91
- And that faith is what
God can use to heal them.
00:16:24.91\00:16:26.92
- Right.
00:16:26.92\00:16:28.35
- That's beautiful.
00:16:28.35\00:16:29.28
- Yeah. That's wonderful.
00:16:29.28\00:16:30.79
So then, after these
months where she was learning
00:16:30.79\00:16:34.96
more faith and God
was providing for her,
00:16:34.96\00:16:37.46
then this business that
you had such a burden for,
00:16:37.46\00:16:40.50
actually they were able to
find a place and get her set up
00:16:40.50\00:16:44.63
to have this business.
00:16:44.63\00:16:46.57
- Yeah.
00:16:46.57\00:16:48.04
It's a little difficult
for Christian people to work
00:16:48.04\00:16:50.11
and survive, even to
rent a house, in India.
00:16:50.11\00:16:53.78
And so to find a
place where she could have,
00:16:53.78\00:16:57.35
and I thought that she
just had a little stand
00:16:57.35\00:16:59.68
on the side of the road,
00:16:59.68\00:17:00.88
but they found
a nice storefront.
00:17:00.88\00:17:02.32
It's like a duplex storefront,
00:17:02.32\00:17:03.75
right on the main busy
highway coming out of Udumalpet.
00:17:03.75\00:17:07.59
And so they
rented this little place.
00:17:07.59\00:17:09.82
It's like $65 a month and
she set up her business there.
00:17:09.82\00:17:14.46
- [Natalie] Wow.
00:17:14.46\00:17:15.40
- And so we can see that video.
00:17:15.40\00:17:16.67
- [Natalie] Okay.
00:17:16.67\00:17:17.77
(happy guitar music)
00:17:17.77\00:17:21.30
(speaking in foreign language)
00:17:21.30\00:17:22.57
- [Female Translator]
After I was baptized,
00:17:22.57\00:17:24.04
one of my requests was that
God would help me to find a job
00:17:24.04\00:17:26.47
where I could be
free to share about Him.
00:17:26.47\00:17:28.74
- I'm standing right now in
the village called Krishnaburam
00:17:40.39\00:17:44.09
and I'm so delighted today
00:17:44.09\00:17:46.29
because we had the grand opening
00:17:46.29\00:17:48.53
of this wonderful shop today.
00:17:48.53\00:17:50.37
We were planning and we
were praying for these things
00:17:50.37\00:17:53.23
because we came to know
that sister Ashana was a widow.
00:17:53.23\00:17:57.97
She didn't have a husband
and she has two daughters.
00:17:57.97\00:18:01.41
And you know, it's really,
really difficult be a widow
00:18:01.41\00:18:05.85
in India.
00:18:05.85\00:18:07.68
Widows are really they're seen
00:18:07.68\00:18:09.35
like a very, very
kind of untouchable.
00:18:09.35\00:18:12.99
Or men, they use
them in a very bad ways.
00:18:12.99\00:18:16.49
And sister Ashana was
having a very terrible time.
00:18:16.49\00:18:19.66
Now she has got
this wonderful business
00:18:38.45\00:18:42.22
where she can be on her own,
00:18:42.22\00:18:44.95
not depending on
anyone for the livelihood
00:18:44.95\00:18:47.79
and she can take
care of her needs.
00:18:47.79\00:18:49.96
And it is a great blessing
00:18:49.96\00:18:51.33
because they deal
with mostly women.
00:18:51.33\00:18:54.36
Men are not involved in this.
00:18:54.36\00:18:56.36
And moreover, more than that,
00:18:56.36\00:18:58.30
it's a great blessing
to have your own business
00:18:58.30\00:19:00.90
because there won't
be any Sabbath issues
00:19:00.90\00:19:03.61
because here in India,
00:19:03.61\00:19:04.87
it is very
difficult to get Sabbath off.
00:19:04.87\00:19:07.94
(tender piano music)
00:19:07.94\00:19:11.05
(speaking in foreign language)
00:19:12.01\00:19:15.05
- [Female Translator] It
is an answer to my prayers
00:19:15.05\00:19:16.89
that I have been
given the opportunity
00:19:16.89\00:19:18.79
to have this sewing shop.
00:19:18.79\00:19:20.76
And one of the blessings is
that I already know how to sew
00:19:20.76\00:19:24.13
because of my niece.
00:19:24.13\00:19:25.96
She used to call me and
ask me to come learn from her.
00:19:25.96\00:19:29.56
So, before I ever had the shop,
00:19:29.56\00:19:31.57
I was able to learn
how to make clothes.
00:19:31.57\00:19:34.57
Also, I have decided
that whenever people come
00:19:34.57\00:19:37.11
to buy something or
to have me sew something,
00:19:37.11\00:19:39.87
I will share
God's word with them.
00:19:39.87\00:19:42.28
My main aim is
not to earn money.
00:19:42.28\00:19:44.48
My main aim is to do God's work.
00:19:44.48\00:19:47.58
I thank the Lord
for opening this door
00:19:47.58\00:19:49.62
that I had never
thought of before.
00:19:49.62\00:19:52.05
I also want to thank
everyone who gave their support
00:19:52.05\00:19:54.79
and prayers to
give me this opportunity
00:19:54.79\00:19:57.06
to have my own business.
00:19:57.06\00:19:59.03
I'm thankful also,
00:20:00.40\00:20:01.83
because here you cannot
directly invite Hindu people
00:20:01.83\00:20:04.37
to come to church.
00:20:04.37\00:20:05.87
But now, since they are
going to come to my shop,
00:20:05.87\00:20:08.30
whenever it is
needed to stitch clothes,
00:20:08.30\00:20:10.27
I am going to
teach them about Jesus.
00:20:10.27\00:20:13.07
The Jesus who loves them.
00:20:13.07\00:20:14.68
- This was the
beginning of her business
00:20:18.58\00:20:20.68
and when I visited last week,
00:20:20.68\00:20:22.78
I was surprised to see
00:20:22.78\00:20:24.42
that they were nearly
about six to seven ladies
00:20:24.42\00:20:28.06
were there in her shop.
00:20:28.06\00:20:30.93
I thought they came
to buy some materials,
00:20:30.93\00:20:33.40
buy some sari dresses for them.
00:20:33.40\00:20:35.66
But, when sister Ashana started
explaining about each lady.
00:20:35.66\00:20:40.17
I was really, really thrilled
because this lady, Ashana,
00:20:40.17\00:20:44.51
she's using this business
as a tool to spread God's word.
00:20:44.51\00:20:49.48
Now she's more focused on
reaching people for heaven
00:20:50.98\00:20:55.42
than earning money for own.
00:20:55.42\00:20:59.55
And these people are really,
00:20:59.55\00:21:01.49
really been
blessed by sister Ashana.
00:21:01.49\00:21:04.66
All those seven ladies
who were waiting there,
00:21:04.66\00:21:07.13
they were all waiting
for her to give Bible study,
00:21:07.13\00:21:09.63
to be prayed for them.
00:21:09.63\00:21:11.30
She told me that
these are the people,
00:21:11.30\00:21:13.44
they are ready for baptism.
00:21:13.44\00:21:15.24
I was really thrilled because
I never thought that this
00:21:15.24\00:21:18.17
would happen in that shop.
00:21:18.17\00:21:20.61
When I asked her, How
is your shop running now?
00:21:20.61\00:21:23.31
How are you able
to pay off your debt
00:21:23.31\00:21:25.18
or pay off your rent
and pay off everything?
00:21:25.18\00:21:28.05
She says, when
I'm doing God's work,
00:21:28.05\00:21:30.35
God is taking
care of all my needs.
00:21:30.35\00:21:33.09
He's giving me the
needed the business.
00:21:33.09\00:21:35.39
He's taking care of
whatever is needed here.
00:21:35.39\00:21:38.49
And by the grace of God, now
she's having a very happy life.
00:21:38.49\00:21:42.86
(speaking in foreign language)
00:21:47.17\00:21:51.14
- That's beautiful.
00:21:53.81\00:21:54.64
- That's so amazing.
00:21:54.64\00:21:55.71
- I love how she said in there,
00:21:55.71\00:21:57.11
she's like, the
business is the business,
00:21:57.11\00:21:59.28
but what is important is
that these people know Jesus.
00:21:59.28\00:22:01.72
- Yes.
00:22:01.72\00:22:03.22
Yeah. She's like, I'm
not worried about the money.
00:22:03.22\00:22:04.75
God will take care of,
00:22:04.75\00:22:05.92
but I want these
people to know about Him.
00:22:05.92\00:22:08.02
- Right.
00:22:08.02\00:22:09.52
And so she's working
like a regular Bible worker.
00:22:09.52\00:22:11.46
- Yeah.
00:22:11.46\00:22:12.33
- When I was there.
00:22:12.33\00:22:13.56
She said that
she works part time
00:22:13.56\00:22:16.16
and I said, you've got a
big rent payment to make.
00:22:16.16\00:22:19.00
She says, Oh, God
takes care of that.
00:22:19.00\00:22:20.90
I focus on his work.
00:22:20.90\00:22:22.40
And he brings in just enough
business that I can take care
00:22:22.40\00:22:25.31
of my rent and
I can live nicely.
00:22:25.31\00:22:27.28
And so, she's
working like a Bible worker
00:22:27.28\00:22:29.64
without Bible worker stipend.
00:22:29.64\00:22:31.21
- Wow.
00:22:31.21\00:22:32.65
- And this was all, you
know, we didn't plan on this.
00:22:32.65\00:22:35.82
We didn't think, well, if
we set her up in business,
00:22:35.82\00:22:38.25
then she will bring
souls to the kingdom.
00:22:38.25\00:22:40.52
- Right.
00:22:40.52\00:22:41.92
- It's just that as we
followed the Lord's prompting
00:22:41.92\00:22:44.53
to help a widow who is in
need, who was following Christ,
00:22:44.53\00:22:48.90
then He started
moving on her heart
00:22:48.90\00:22:50.73
and she stepped out by
faith and is living by faith
00:22:50.73\00:22:53.47
and bringing other people in
and helping them find healing.
00:22:53.47\00:22:56.91
And that's the main focus.
00:22:56.91\00:22:58.87
Like brother Israel
said, this is a tool.
00:22:58.87\00:23:02.28
- Right, right.
00:23:02.28\00:23:03.85
It's wonderful.
00:23:03.85\00:23:05.18
We do have a picture of the shop
00:23:05.18\00:23:07.12
because we had video before,
but we have a picture here.
00:23:07.12\00:23:09.75
- [Jon] Now, this is the
next year. This is in 2020.
00:23:09.75\00:23:12.12
So, a year after her baptism
00:23:12.12\00:23:14.39
and got to
visit her in her shop.
00:23:14.39\00:23:16.12
- Wow.
00:23:16.12\00:23:17.39
- I was
traveling with some friends
00:23:17.39\00:23:18.89
and so they got to witness
and see what was happening.
00:23:18.89\00:23:20.96
And here she is
standing in her shop.
00:23:20.96\00:23:22.50
You can see how decorated
it is and how happy she is
00:23:22.50\00:23:25.90
and established by faith.
00:23:25.90\00:23:28.44
- Wow.
00:23:28.44\00:23:29.97
- In her shop. And here she
is working with her machine.
00:23:29.97\00:23:32.74
And then these are the
ladies that she has now helping.
00:23:32.74\00:23:37.75
They're all widows.
00:23:38.48\00:23:39.95
And she's helping them to
find the healing and the hope
00:23:39.95\00:23:42.95
and the joy in
life that she has found.
00:23:42.95\00:23:45.19
- [Natalie] Awesome.
00:23:45.19\00:23:46.02
- Through Christ.
00:23:46.02\00:23:46.96
- Yeah. That's wonderful.
00:23:46.96\00:23:48.19
- So, this is the
beauty of the Widow Ministry.
00:23:48.19\00:23:50.49
- Right.
00:23:50.49\00:23:51.96
- You know, these ladies,
when they don't have a husband,
00:23:51.96\00:23:54.00
they're like untouchables.
00:23:54.00\00:23:56.16
They become like beggars.
00:23:56.16\00:23:57.57
Many of them
don't have an education.
00:23:57.57\00:23:59.40
So, they're not able to
earn a living for themselves
00:23:59.40\00:24:00.47
and for their children. - Right.
00:24:00.47\00:24:02.44
They're not trained in anything
except household duties.
00:24:02.44\00:24:05.91
- Exactly.
00:24:05.91\00:24:07.04
And even if like
Ashana, she had a skill,
00:24:07.04\00:24:09.18
she didn't have any
funding to start that business,
00:24:09.18\00:24:11.68
to buy a
machine, to set up a shop,
00:24:11.68\00:24:14.25
to buy the
material and the thread
00:24:14.25\00:24:16.08
and everything that's needed
00:24:16.08\00:24:17.35
to start actually
earning from that.
00:24:17.35\00:24:20.22
So, this Widow Ministry
gives opportunities to people
00:24:20.22\00:24:23.69
that are really
looking and motivated to earn.
00:24:23.69\00:24:27.60
And they are very appreciative
00:24:27.60\00:24:29.90
because they're like the outcast
00:24:29.90\00:24:32.17
nobody really wants to help.
00:24:32.17\00:24:33.17
- Right.
00:24:33.17\00:24:34.60
Right. And it opens doors.
00:24:34.60\00:24:36.60
I mean, huge doors
because they, like you said,
00:24:36.60\00:24:39.81
she had no funds,
00:24:39.81\00:24:41.34
no resources with which
to even buy a sewing machine.
00:24:41.34\00:24:44.38
And so, because we
have the widow program,
00:24:44.38\00:24:46.55
we were able to
provide her a sewing machine
00:24:46.55\00:24:49.12
and help her with
the initial costs.
00:24:49.12\00:24:51.35
And then she's taking it
from there and she's taking it
00:24:51.35\00:24:54.29
and dedicated it
to God, obviously.
00:24:54.29\00:24:57.06
From the grand opening,
00:24:57.06\00:24:58.56
she was dedicating it to God
and having the pastors there,
00:24:58.56\00:25:00.96
speaking and sharing God's word.
00:25:00.96\00:25:03.43
And it just, it's so beautiful
to see God's reward for her,
00:25:03.43\00:25:07.07
but also the joy that
he's giving her in this process
00:25:07.07\00:25:11.04
and in this day to day living.
00:25:11.04\00:25:13.27
- Yes.
00:25:13.27\00:25:14.78
And the faith that she
is learning and walking in,
00:25:14.78\00:25:17.11
it is just very
inspiring to us as well.
00:25:17.11\00:25:20.92
And so through her ministry,
00:25:20.92\00:25:22.92
we're going to learn
more about other widows
00:25:22.92\00:25:26.42
that are struggling and
having a hard time as well.
00:25:26.42\00:25:28.86
And we're gonna be able
to see how we can expand
00:25:28.86\00:25:31.43
this ministry in
areas of true need.
00:25:31.43\00:25:34.66
- Right. Right.
00:25:34.66\00:25:36.26
Well, it's such a
blessing to hear her story
00:25:36.26\00:25:38.20
and to know that
we've had a small part
00:25:38.20\00:25:39.67
in being a blessing to
her, but not only to her,
00:25:39.67\00:25:42.70
to the people that
she's been witnessing to
00:25:42.70\00:25:44.74
and bringing to Jesus.
00:25:44.74\00:25:46.04
- Absolutely.
00:25:46.04\00:25:46.88
- It's such a blessing.
00:25:46.88\00:25:47.78
- Yeah.
00:25:47.78\00:25:49.31
And there's many millions
of widows throughout India
00:25:49.31\00:25:52.38
that are struggling
just like Ashana was.
00:25:52.38\00:25:55.22
And so, we need real
prayer that we can find ways
00:25:55.22\00:25:57.99
to reach out and find
them and extend a helping hand.
00:25:57.99\00:26:02.06
Maybe we'll find
more people like Ashana
00:26:02.06\00:26:04.73
that not only received the
help physically, financially,
00:26:04.73\00:26:08.53
food wise, but also
find healing in Christ.
00:26:10.43\00:26:13.80
- Right. Right.
00:26:13.80\00:26:15.47
Well, this has been
a really good story.
00:26:15.47\00:26:17.21
And I'm so thankful we had
the time today to share this.
00:26:17.21\00:26:20.88
The videos are a blessing.
00:26:20.88\00:26:22.78
It almost makes me
feel that I was there.
00:26:22.78\00:26:25.38
Although I wasn't, but anyway,
00:26:25.38\00:26:27.38
I'm just so thankful
to see what God can do
00:26:27.38\00:26:30.32
when people step
by step, follow Him,
00:26:30.32\00:26:32.45
because what would have
happened if she hadn't listened
00:26:32.45\00:26:34.32
to her sister and gone
to that Christian Church?
00:26:34.32\00:26:37.06
And what would have
happened if she hadn't moved
00:26:37.06\00:26:39.93
and gone looking
for another church?
00:26:39.93\00:26:41.90
And if she hadn't
asked the questions,
00:26:41.90\00:26:42.96
why do you keep the Sabbath?
00:26:42.96\00:26:45.53
You know, if she had
just turned away and said,
00:26:45.53\00:26:47.37
this is
unfamiliar to me, you know?
00:26:47.37\00:26:49.57
What would have happened?
00:26:49.57\00:26:51.07
She would still be in
the same type of situation.
00:26:51.07\00:26:53.98
She would still be hurting and-
00:26:53.98\00:26:55.34
- Thinking about
taking her own life.
00:26:55.34\00:26:57.21
- Yeah.
00:26:57.21\00:26:58.48
So, I'm so thankful
and so grateful to the Lord
00:26:58.48\00:27:00.82
that she had the courage
to follow and to be baptized,
00:27:00.82\00:27:05.12
but also just to follow
His leading step by step.
00:27:05.12\00:27:08.26
- Yes. It reminds me of one
of my favorite author's quotes.
00:27:08.26\00:27:11.19
She says, that there are
millions that are looking
00:27:11.19\00:27:15.00
wistfully to heaven,
longing for more light,
00:27:15.00\00:27:18.10
longing for hope
that they can walk in.
00:27:18.10\00:27:21.07
And we found one,
00:27:21.07\00:27:22.54
you know, and there are millions
others out there like that.
00:27:22.54\00:27:25.91
- [Natalie] Right.
00:27:25.91\00:27:27.14
- So, just inspires us
to move forward and say,
00:27:27.14\00:27:29.18
you know, I love
the cause of God.
00:27:29.18\00:27:31.78
I love what he
does in people's lives.
00:27:31.78\00:27:33.88
And I just want to
expose more people to his love.
00:27:33.88\00:27:37.12
- Right.
00:27:37.12\00:27:38.59
And I would like to invite
you to pray for this ministry,
00:27:38.59\00:27:41.29
pray for the widows in
India, pray for Ashana.
00:27:41.29\00:27:44.13
And if you would
like to learn more,
00:27:44.13\00:27:45.83
contact us at Jesus
for Asia, PO box 1221,
00:27:45.83\00:27:50.13
Collegedale, Tennessee, 37315.
00:27:50.13\00:27:53.84
Call us at 423 413-7321
00:27:53.84\00:27:58.11
or visit our
website at jesus4asia.org.
00:27:58.11\00:28:02.21
May God richly bless you
00:28:02.21\00:28:04.15
until we see you next
time on "Jesus for Asia Now."
00:28:04.15\00:28:07.28
(robust music)
00:28:07.28\00:28:09.88