Jesus is Visible – In Actions and Attitude

Family background

Greetings to you all in the name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. I’m so happy and very much delighted to bring my testimony to Christians. I, Laxman (Raxana Anand), from India, was born and brought up in a fanatic Hindu family. I am the youngest of four brothers and one sister.

During my childhood, my parents never allowed me to indulge in any other religious activities except the Hindu way of life. I was a strict devotee of so many gods and goddesses of Hinduism. I used to worship Hindu gods and goddesses to the highest degree, and I hated Christians the most and all others as well. I used to get angry whenever I saw any activities happening in Christian churches around me. I was full of unbelief, and my eyes were blind. I was not open to listen to anyone regarding the gospel. Instead, I used to argue with believers about their faith, and many times I was even close to beating Christians and pastors as well. I was fully preoccupied by the Hindu beliefs and traditions. I was influenced by and fully indoctrinated in the Hindu way of life.

Salvation experience

As part of my education, my parents applied for me to join the 8th Standard (8th Grade) at one of the government boarding schools. There I met a friend named Gangulu who was a Christian, and I decided to make friends with him. We were both very close, and our friendship became stronger day by day. As time passed and I closely observed the behavior of my friend, his lifestyle really influenced me a lot. Whenever I saw him, I saw Jesus in him. Jesus was very visible through his behavior and attitude. He was an influential role model to me. The entire student body and the heads of the institution respected him. 

I asked my friend the reason for his good conduct, attitude, and decent ethical behavior. He smiled at me and said, “There is a Person living in me. If that Person comes and lives in you, you too will be a better person.” I was very eager to know who that Person was, and I was curious to know the name of that Person. Then my friend said to me, “That Person is none other than Jesus Christ.” The moment I heard the name Jesus, I was very furious and miserable and got so angry at my friend that I felt like beating him. No matter how angry I got at him, he in return would smile at me and tell me one thing: “Brother, I know you are very angry at me, and if you want to beat me, you can beat me, but let me tell you one thing. Jesus is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. You can never become like me unless you accept Jesus into your life.” I told my friend, “We have so many gods and goddesses in Hinduism. Do you think we are all fools to believe in just one Jesus?” Then I continued to talk and told him plainly in anger that I didn’t want to be like him nor accept Jesus, and I said goodbye. Despite this, our friendship continued, but our lives carried on according to our own faiths.

After some days, while my friend and I were walking together, a local pastor met us on our way. That pastor talked to my friend and inquired about me, and my friend introduced me to him. Then that pastor started sharing the good news of the Lord Jesus Christ, which was the second time I heard it. He started sharing his own testimony that he too was once a Hindu but understood the truth and became a Christian. He kept on talking more about heaven and hell and the pure gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. The moment I heard about heaven and hell, I was eager to know if there would be a hell and heaven. As my friend and I went back to the boarding school, a great longing came over me, and I asked my friend to tell me more about Jesus. While my friend was sharing the good news of the Lord Jesus Christ and His crucifixion, my legs automatically bent down, and I began to cry. I told my friend that if that was so, then I wanted that Jesus. My friend earnestly prayed for me, and I accepted Jesus in my life as my personal Savior.

Salvation of family through a miraculous healing

For many years, I was a secret Christian out of fear of my parents. While I was at the boarding school, I went to a Christian church, and my friend helped me a lot and taught me more about the Christian faith, which helped me to grow spiritually. Nevertheless, whenever I went to my hometown, I never dared to attend a church, although I would have loved to go, for fear of my parents. They were very fanatical. If they would have seen a Bible in my hands, they may have torn it and burned it. Not only that, but they would also surely have beaten me. But I prayed to God for the salvation of my family. I spent many hours in prayer for my family’s salvation.

One day, all of a sudden, my dad suffered from stomach pain and severe pain all throughout his body. He wasn’t able to get the pain under control. It lasted for many months, even years. My mom took my dad to many places and hospitals and used many medicines, but there was no use. Day by day, his body became very feeble. Finally, my mom took my dad to one of the very big hospitals near the town. The doctor finally diagnosed him with liver cancer and said that it had reached the final stage. The doctor kept on saying that my dad would die within 3 months. Doctors told us there was no use to keep him in the hospital anymore. It was a big shock to my entire family, and everyone started crying. My dad and mom cried even more. Many others who were near us in the hospital showed us their compassion. We took our dad back home with no hope.

As some days passed by, my mom started thinking, “Why did this happen even though I’m a strict devotee of Hinduism?” She prayed to her faith but to no use. Day by day, Dad’s condition became worse. His entire body became black, his belly bulged, and he had swelling throughout his body, his legs and hands as well. He almost died. There was only a very small breath in his throat. We took our dad outside the home, and it was confirmed by the villagers that he was no more, but yet there was a small breath. 

At that moment, my mom made a decision within her and said, “I heard that Jesus Christ is the real God and that He can heal any disease.” With that great faith in Jesus, she called the local church to pray for my dad. “If Jesus heals, our entire family will accept Jesus as our God and Savior. If not, we will stick to Jesus on our own.” That was my mom’s decision. The local believers began to pray with tears. As they were praying, the other villagers mocked them and said, “Can Jesus raise a dying person? Let us take him to a graveyard because he is no more.” In the midst of such challenges, the local church came regularly to pray for my dad. The doctors had said that he would die within three months. But God heard the cry of His people. Within those three months, my dad was healed completely. His belly returned to normal, swelling disappeared, and the pain was gone. He had previously been unable to move his feet, but now he was out of his bed and jumping like a deer.

Miraculously, Jesus healed my dad. This miracle was seen by the villagers, and they were all astonished and said “How did it happen? In front of our very own eyes, this man died, but now he is alive.” Village people testified that Jesus Christ is the real God. There was great lightning in the sky while my father got healed, and it was seen by the village people, and many of them even believed in Jesus after this miracle. My entire family got saved, and I was very happy because God heard my prayers.

My dedication to the Lord’s ministry

After my entire family was saved, I continued at boarding school in the 10th Standard. I had just written my examinations and was waiting for the results. I came back to my village, and I continued in prayer. In one of the prayer meetings in the church, I heard a testimony from one of the guest speakers. That testimony inspired me a lot. I made a decision to give my life to serve the Almighty God, and decided that at the age of 15, I would go to Bible College. I got good examination results, by the grace of God. Dad and all others encouraged me to study further. So, I joined in the Plus Two/Intermediate studies (two years of higher secondary education past Grade 10). After my Plus Two studies, I passed the examinations. My friends and family encouraged me to go for Graduate studies, so I did. After my graduation, somehow I felt a strong impression to go to Bible College, and God helped me to attend. I did not even have enough money for my trip to reach the Bible College, which is very far away from my native village, almost 2000 kilometers away, but somehow God enabled me to get there.

Struggles at Bible College

When I went to Bible College, I didn’t even have sandals for my feet. One of the Bible College students showed mercy to me and gave me a pair of old sandals which lasted for just two months. I knew neither English nor Hindi. I knew only the Telugu language, which is my mother tongue. When I tried speaking English, my friends used to mock my English and would say, “Why did you come this far? You cannot continue your studies here because you don’t know anything.” But I was not discouraged. I took it positively and challenged myself. I’d go to the upstairs classrooms at night while all my friends slept in their dormitory rooms. I’d spend hours of time, far into the night, comparing the Telugu and English Bibles and learning English grammar. By the grace of God, in just 3 months from my initial days at my Bible College, I could share my testimony in English.

I did not have enough money for my daily basic needs. I even struggled to have toothpaste, and many times I brushed my teeth without toothpaste, but I was very careful that no one noticed me. I hardly had two pairs of clothes. If I wore one pair, then the other pair would be in the wash. I did not even have laundry soap to wash them. This was my situation. When Saturday came, all my friends washed their clothes with joyful hearts, but I lay on my bed and cried because I did not have soap to wash my clothes. I had no money to buy any. After lunch, when everyone would take their rest in their respective rooms, I would go to the washing rooms and collect the leftover soap pieces so that I could wash my clothes, but sometimes I couldn’t even do that.

Present ministry

Finally, after much struggle, I completed my program at the Bible College and am presently ministering in Andhra Pradesh State, India. By the grace of God, I am overseeing three churches. It would take a long time if I explained all the struggles and trials that I face in the ministry. Nevertheless, in the midst of many challenges, the Lord has been gracious and is my refuge. All glory to our Lord Jesus Christ, who is my God and my all!

 In His service,

Raxana Anand 

India