Shubhi, a M.A. student, came into my office with excitement and said, “I really like your class, and wish I had known some of the things you are teaching when I first became a Christian.” This is her story, as story of God’s grace.“My husband and I got married when I was 18. It was a love marriage” (not arranged which is the custom in India), “and my parents were opposed to our marriage. My husband is of a different caste and a rowdy (apparently he was some kind of a hit man, though he didn’t kill anyone, he was contracted to rough people up if they didn’t pay their debts). My parents were so opposed to our marriage they wouldn’t have anything to do with me. I was a practicing Hindu and went to the temple often to pray, especially the first year of our marriage as I became pregnant and our marriage was not going well. My husband drank a lot and the people he hung around were not good people. My family encouraged me to leave my husband, but some Christians I met said I should not leave him and that they would pray for me.”
“Our son was born with an enlarged heart and some other problems. He was in intensive care for 26 days. The sisters (nuns) who worked at the hospital would often pray for my child and me. It was in the hospital that I read the Bible for the first time. One day the doctor called and said that they could do no more for the child and would take him out of the incubator. My husband and I rushed to the hospital and our son was purple. As they were taking our son out of the incubator we left the room, both of us crying and I said to my husband, ‘We must pray to Jesus, for I believe in Him.’ My husband agreed to pray, though he was not a believer. After our prayer we got a call to come back into our son’s room and everyone was excited, for our baby’s color came back and he was fully recovered. We both believed that God heard our prayer and my husband said they will follow no other God but Jesus.”
“My husband is not a highly educated man, but he decided he would leave working as a rowdy and got a job in a textile factory. He did such a good job that he continued to get promotions until one day the owner of the company, who lives in Montreal, flew to India and made my husband one of the main men over all the plants in India. We flew to Canada about five times a year.’
“We joined a church and eventually we started our own business in textiles with plants of our own. As well as working with my husband in the business, I started selling real estate. We made so much money we often told God we didn’t need anymore. My husband told me he wanted me to go to school and so I decided I would join this seminary to learn more about God and how I might serve Him. Since that day in the hospital, 11 years ago, I have been able to witness to my family and my parents, sister and brother are all now believers.”
“I wish I had known some of the things you are now teaching us when I first became a Christian, for now I realize I do not have to disown my culture to be a follower of Christ. I am not sure everything God has for our family, or me, but I want to use my education and the blessings He has given us to help other pastors and churches. I have a love for the lower class people because at one time I was in their place. I can also now talk to the wealthiest people in the community because of God’s blessings on our lives. Like you said in class, the church of India is not poor. We can and should help in telling others that Jesus is the only real God.”
