Our Experience in India

Last June we had the privilege of being in India together with others, participating in a Total Member Involvement (TMI) event.

It was a unique experience. We enjoyed our time with the people there. Both my wife, Leticia, and I had opportunity to share a series of presentations over a period of two weeks. She was assigned to speak at a church that has approximately 200 members. Meanwhile, I was assigned to another nearby church, with about 400 members, many of them young people.

The attendance at both sites was very good every night. Many friends joined the Adventist members and enjoyed the message. We are sure that, although English is not our first language, God helped us to express His message in an understandable way. As a result, a group of people decided to accept Jesus as their personal Saviour.

On one of the nights, as Leticia was finishing a presentation, several women came and asked her for a prayer of intercession. She began to pray for each one individually. During the last prayer something strange happened. They heard a terrible scream. When Leticia opened her eyes, she saw that one of the women had fallen to the ground.

All the people there stopped speaking. Something terrible was happening. A woman who was possessed by an evil spirit was moving on the ground, like a handkerchief moved by the wind. She tried to take off her clothes. Immediately the pastor of the church began to pray. Leticia did the same. She remembered Psalms 23, 91, 121, and repeated them.

Every person in the room prayed. Meanwhile, the pastor prayed
in a loud voice. It was like a war between good and evil. You could see the woman—pale, sweaty, and exhausted. Leticia started to sing “I Surrender All,” and others joined her. The evil spirit left the woman. Satan’s opposition when the gospel message is shared was evident. But it was also clearly evident that “Satan trembles and flees before the weakest soul who finds refuge in that mighty name”* of Jesus.

Before Leticia began to speak during the second week, the pastor told her: “Sister Leticia, make an appeal; it’s time to do it.” She made it. As her interpreter was speaking, she prayed: “Please Lord, let at least one person decide to follow You, just one.”

She invited the people, and saw one person stand up. She praised God. God did what she asked for. The next night she prayed again, but this time she asked, “Lord, You know who is ready to follow You.” A group of people responded to the appeal.

By the end of the series, 12 people had decided to become disciples of Jesus.

At my location, I had experiences similar to Leticia’s. Many young people decided to accept Jesus. It was amazing to see them surrender their lives to God.

To be a disciple of Christ in a country dominated by other cultures and religions is not easy. But praise God for those who are ready to open their hearts to Jesus.

The promise of the Holy Spirit is real for us today. When we believe, we will see more miracles everywhere.

The church in India has challenges, but God is in control and will care for His people. He promises, “So shall My word be that goes forth from my mouth; it shall not return to me void, but it shall accomplish what I please and it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it” (Isa. 55:11).

*Ellen G. White, The Desire of Ages (Mountain View, Calif.: Pacific Press Pub. Assn., 1898, 1940), p. 131.