Her death seemed inevitable. Nibun’s mother had been ill with malaria for a long time. Doctors, priests and sorcerers were unable to find a cure.
But Nibun (pictured on right) had a seed of hope in his heart—God’s Word. Bible stories were a regular part of the curriculum at the Bridge of Hope school he attended, where teachers worked diligently to give children the best education while also showing them the love of Christ. Like many other children, Nibun would come home and relate to his family the stories he heard.
One night, as Nibun and his family sat together at his mother’s bedside, he told them how Jesus raised a widow’s son from the dead. That moment became a turning point in their lives.
That night, after hearing the story, Nibun’s father later shared, “I could not sleep. This story was burning in my heart again and again.”
Nibun’s father sought out Pastor Samuel the next morning. After hearing more about Jesus and His offer of salvation, the man asked the pastor to come and pray for his wife. “I believe Jesus will heal my wife just as He did the widow’s son,” he affirmed.
Though weak in her body, Nibun’s mother shared the same confidence: “My son talks about Jesus many times in our home. I believe Jesus will heal me.”
Pastor Samuel laid hands on the dying woman and prayed for the Lord to raise her up. Then he returned to his home.
The next day he saw Nibun and asked how his mother was doing.
“My mommy is walking around,” he reported happily, “and this morning she prepared breakfast for us!”
When Samuel arrived at Nibun’s house, he found a family transformed both physically and spiritually. They had each made a decision to follow Christ.
It has been a joyful surprise for Samuel to realize the incredible potential within his little school that started out with 35 children. “I never thought that through the school, a family would be added to my local church,” he comments. “I pray God will use many students like Nibun as His tools to bring families to the saving knowledge of Jesus Christ. I am fully confident that this school is a good means to not only share the love of Jesus in our region, but spread His hope through the entire nation.”
Through GFA Bridge of Hope schools, God is using children like Nibun to touch many lives. In one region, 50 schools that were started resulted in 37 new churches being planted in less than a year. Praise God for His mighty work among the unreached.