He does not like to look back at his poverty stricken childhood when hunger, sickness, rejection and isolation were his only companions. He had to beg on the streets for his daily bread which made it impossible for him to pursue education. Although he yearned to be enrolled in school, he had to bury his ambitions as he saw no opportunities before him.
Although his destitute childhood passed, poverty persisted at home. He toiled as a herdsman and collect cattle from houses in his village and feed them from morning till evening. His hard work earned him a one-time meal which was ragi water mixed with old rice or paid five or ten rupees.
He got married according to the culture. His wife was also illiterate and she joined him in feeding the cattle. Their world was limited to cattle and forests. They ate meals from different houses and sometimes had to stay hungry. They had no thoughts or dreams about tomorrow.
Their life changed when an evangelist shared about Jesus with him. He didn’t understand anything at first, but the evangelist met him regularly. As the days passed, the evangelist took him and his wife to a small prayer group. There was no church building for this prayer group to gather, so they sometimes met at someone’s veranda and at other times under any tree. Although he was unaware of what was going on in the prayer group, he began to experience a special joy and peace in his life. Later, both he and his wife accepted Jesus as their personal Savior and Lord and received water baptism. Their personal experience with Jesus took them into another realm of life.
They were overjoyed to share their experience with others, thinking that the people who heard them would also enjoy with them. But the consequences of sharing their new experience were beyond their expectation. They were exiled from their own family, rejected by society. Isolated and jobless, tears became their daily companion, but the joy and peace they found in prayer was inexpressible! As a magnet draws iron ores to it, their Lord held them in His heart while they were going through the tribulations. The couple listened to the voice of their Lord. They had visions and realized that Jesus called them to preach the gospel.
Their pastor gifted them a new Bible. They were unable to read it, though they had the desire to do so. They fasted and prayed to be filled with the Holy Spirit and to be able to read the Bible. The Lord heard their prayers and filled them with His Spirit. Thereafter, they did not turn back to their old labor, but were determined to share the gospel.
Their local pastor sent them for a three-month Bible training where they acquired preliminary training on how to share the gospel and basic knowledge about the Bible. They showed spectacular courage to speak about Jesus in public places and shared the gospel in government offices and hospitals.
They start their day with a tearful prayer at dawn. Then it is time for an early morning prayer with their church during which individuals can approach them for special prayer. After the prayer, they also read the Bible. People also expected them to visit their homes for special prayer.
He starts his daily evangelism with tracts, New Testaments, and other literature in a bag on their shoulder. Occasionally, his wife accompanies him.he leaves home armed with a bible and a tummy full of ragi water and old rice. Reaching villages is a troublesome task. Normally, they go by bicycle but at times, they have to carry their bicycle
Thirty to fifty families live in different houses in a village and each village is separated by a distance of one or more kilometres. He tries to visit each house and share gospel with them. The best way for him to relate with the villagers is to present Jesus as the healer of the sick. This influences the villagers who mainly depends on the witchcraft for healing. They avoid taking the sick to the hospital as they do not have money for treatment. He shares the gospel and prays for the needs of the people.
Sometimes he carries the Ragi water with him for lunch and at times families who are acquainted with him offer him lunch. Most of the villagers have cattle and hens. The hens are kept inside their rooms to lay eggs in a special basket. Normally cattle are tied up in their verandas and people cook and eat food near the cattle without any concern for hygiene
He distributes literatures along the way while returning home. He reaches home around 3 in the evening and by the time he reaches home, he is exhausted from walking and riding the bicycle under the scorching sun for the whole day. He falls asleep for another hour and then he starts preparing for another sphere of his ministry. It is a regular practice for him to organize cottage meeting at his believers’ house so he prepares the bible stories to teach them. There will be two or three songs, intercession and sharing the word during the cottage prayer. He also shows Christian movies during the prayer. It can be done for the entire village or for selected families according to the convenience. He shares the word of God after the movie and leads the people in prayer.
After reaching home, his family joins together for prayer and dinner. Before he rests for the day he records the ministry activities of the day and makes a note of the literatures distributed.
Even though it is easy to sketch out his daily routine, the words fail to express the hurdles he goes through to carry out his ministerial journey. The hut he lived in was swept away in a drastic rain, poverty and sickness persisted for several days. His 10 year old son, eldest of his three children; was sick and soon died as he did not get proper medical care. A group of religious fanatics rushed to his village to demolish his prayer shed, he was beaten by the government officers while he was distributing tracts. He had gone through the valley of shadow of death for the Lord’s ministry. These are some of the challenges he encountered. His life and ministry testify that nothing can hold him back from serving the Lord. People love and honor him as a servant of the Lord. Though he leads the pastors and churches, he still loves to move around to share the gospel with a shoulder bag, armed with gospel packets, a diary and a great smile on his face.