See God’s amazing power through GFA’s reports from the mission field. Several field reporters cover multiple countries in South Asia to bring you news, inspirational stories and prayer requests that will enrich your life.
In December 2004, a tsunami struck Navodya and Vimukthi’s village in Sri Lanka, destroying their home and all of their possessions and forcing them to live in a refugee camp for a few years. Eventually they were able to move into a government-owned apartment complex for tsunami survivors. Vimukthi and Navodya rarely left their apartment: Vimukthi was ill much of […] Read more »
Kinnari’s alcoholic and belligerent husband, Mahvandad, had just passed away from liver damage. The couple had no children and no relatives nearby; at 59-years-old, Kinnari was alone. No Love in Their Marriage GFA pastor Brirar had met with Kinnari and Mahvandad several times the three years before Mahvandad passed away, seeking to bring harmony and peace to their marriage, but […] Read more »
Kalyani’s husband died four years ago, leaving her to finish raising their youngest son on her own. Working on a farm, Kalyani struggled to make ends meet. One day, agonizing pain tore through Kalyani’s stomach and she was rushed to the hospital. Doctors diagnosed her with kidney cancer and immediately performed emergency surgery. During her week-long hospital stay, Kalyani’s niece […] Read more »
Talak, 45, operated his own roadside business as a key maker, but for it to be successful, he had to overcome a mound of difficulties. In Asia, making keys can provide a decent income. However, with no guiding regulations in the industry, it is up to each individual key maker to display integrity and discern whether a potential customer is […] Read more »
Cars, rickshaws, and bicycles whizzed by Rajalmati as she made her way home from school. The 16-year-old girl didn’t mind walking through the maze of traffic to and from school every day, even when she saw her friends riding on bicycles or in cars. Rajalmati’s parents tried their best to provide for her education, but they couldn’t afford to give […] Read more »
As a lonely fisherman, it seemed life had little to offer Khanjana besides hard work and the derision of society. Khanjana adopted the worth others had assigned to him, which was diminutive. The rejection and isolation he and his family faced crushed his spirit. Khanjana wanted more for his two sons, but it seemed no one cared about, or even […] Read more »
Light strains of music could be heard outside the building. Inside, dozens of children sang and danced, following their teacher’s, Parbatie, lead. As Parbatie swept her eyes across the singing children, they paused on one boy in particular. Was Satyesh really singing? Surprise mingled with joy filled Parbatie, and she rushed to call Satyesh’s mother and the local GFA pastor. […] Read more »
Imagine for just a moment: The water that flows through your filtered refrigerator to your glass of ice or that pours from your sink faucet to the cooking pan is gone. Instead, you heft a bucket in each hand and walk to the closest river, which is 300 meters (0.19 miles) away. When you return home with the heavy buckets, […] Read more »
Manraj looked out from the walls of his small wine shop to see GFA pastor Dinshah walk past. Just the sight of the pastor made Manraj’s blood boil. “Why are you often fooling the villagers by sharing about your foreign god, whom we never adopted from our forefathers?” Manraj sneered, forcing the pastor to stop in his tracks. The 58-year-old […] Read more »
Pastor Surin noticed a woman sitting among the congregation as he led the Sunday worship service—the same woman who had been wandering around the village for some time. She was crazy, people said. Now, for the second week in a row, she had come to Pastor Surin’s church. He decided he needed to meet her. Unraveling a Painful Story As […] Read more »
Sickness plagued the village. Too many lives had been lost already, and as Jany mourned the loss of her husband, she feared she would also lose her daughter. The villagers did not know the cause or the cure, but they knew something had to be done to fight the mysterious illness. When the doctor was unable to provide a medicinal […] Read more »
Utsang sat atop the bus and ordered the driver to stop. The other passengers stared at Utsang while he shook uncontrollably. Then they jumped to his aid when he tried to kill himself. Something was terribly wrong. Unexplainable Depression One year earlier, Utsang had said goodbye to his wife, Sreva, in their remote village and moved to a large city […] Read more »
Biju loved his peaceful life in the rural farmland of his family. He grew up devoted to the traditional gods of former generations and passed on this heritage to his three children. His family was not rich, but they were happy. Biju’s peaceful life was marred when he started to notice an odd feeling in his fingers. He ignored the […] Read more »
Gayesh stood up and looked around at the people who had gathered to celebrate his decision to follow Christ. Many events in the past few years had paved the way for this day, but even so, this occasion marked just the beginning of his journey with Jesus. Young Boy Talks to God Seven years earlier, Gayesh’s family’s faith was limited […] Read more »
Anisa spent years caring for sick people, helping them in their time of need. Now that it was her turn, she was alone with no one to turn to. Eighty-year-old Anisa spent her youth in the medical field. She trained in a nursing program and worked in a hospital for several years. Now, in her waning years, all her medical […] Read more »