Smita

Tuesday, May 6, 2014

DSC_8002 (1)

Smita was brought up in the Roman Catholic church with her understanding of religion being very ritualistically based…rosaries, prayers….no concept of a personal relationship with Christ.  When a pastor came to her remote village, she and her family were introduced to the person of Christ and their lives were forever changed.  Almost all of her family came to know the Lord.  Smita graduated, married young and moved to Shevgaon with her husband who was a pastor in ministry.  A few years after the birth of their son, her husband grew ill, became bedridden and eventually died.

Smita describes the subsequent months as unbearable and the biggest test in her life.  Hopelessness struck her.  To be a widow in this society is a sentence to a very difficult life!  Faced with the decision to go back to a secular job to earn a living to provide for herself and her son, God met her in a unique way and reassured her of His plan for her life and that she had not been abandoned.  She took comfort in the promise in Proverbs that “I will guide your way.”  She made up her mind to remain in ministry and carry on her husbands legacy even as a single, widowed female.

When asked at school “where is your dad”, her young 7 year old son Jacob would reply “The Lord in my Father”.  Smita can see that even in such devastation, God has used this loss to strengthen her son’s faith and dependance on God.  Her testimony of strength and calling also ministered to so many other widows and victims of loss in her community.

DSC_8152

Smita explains that her concept of church has evolved as a result of SCP influencing her life.  “Before, it was go to a building and attend a service….intimacy with God was a new concept introduced through SCP” she tells me.  As a result of the SCP values being implemented in her church, they have seen 24 leaders raised up who have planted house churches and taken Christ into their 4 villages and evangelized them.

Donate

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *