Outside the Sunday service they could hear someone mocking them.
"Hallelujah!" she cried in a taunting voice. The SIM pastor and his
congregation prayed fervently that their persecutor would come to know
Jesus and begin to offer Hallelujah's from a sincere heart.
Not long after that, the woman walked into the church during a
service. She looked like she wanted to say something. When they asked
her to speak, she said, "I have just returned from the hospital. The
doctor says I have throat cancer. I think because I ridiculed you, God
has punished me. Please forgive me and pray for me." The believers
forgave her and began to cry out to God for her healing.
The next day she had an amazing report. She was healed!
She was so excited and thankful that the news spread quickly around the
village. The woman began to witness boldly and brought two of her
friends to the Lord.
And the villagers began to treat the Christians with fear and respect.
But the village chief was concerned. He quickly convened an
elders meeting, and they decided that the woman and her friends should
return to the worship of their native gods, and if not, they each would
have to pay a fine of 20,000 rupees (nearly $500).
They summoned the pastor and warned him of dire consequences
if their ruling was ignored. The little congregation started crying out
to the God of Jehoshaphat. They knew the battle belonged to the Lord.
Eventually the pressure grew to include not only the woman and
her friends, but the entire congregation. The village elders met to
decide their fate. And everyone prayed.
The next morning, the elders' meeting place was strewn with
sandles, torn clothes, and broken clubs. No one knows exactly what
happened, but it appears they had fought among themselves and were
unable to come to a decision about the Christians in their village!
The battle is the Lord's.
Update:
God did another miracle in this village. Nineteen villages in this
area
have recognized the unique lifestyle of the new Christians and have
imposed a ban on consuming liquor because the Christians do not drink
alcohol. And the leaders of these 19 villages are now very supportive
of our SIM pastor, even allowing him to conduct a two-day evangelistic
meeting.
