WHILE AT HOME ONE AFTERNOON during the summer of 2016, I felt a strong conviction to visit a house that was only a short distance away. I had seen a family living in that house, but I didn’t know who they were. So I went and knocked on their door.
No one answered at first, so I continued to knock. Eventually a young woman unlocked and opened the door. She was sobbing. I asked if I could come inside. She said, “Please, come in.”
I sat with her in the front room and asked why she was crying. At first she would not answer me, but as I continued to inquire, she finally poured out her story.
She said her name was Jancy. Although born and raised in a Christian family, she was now married to her uncle’s son, who was a drunkard. She had two little children—a girl, 6, and a boy, 3. Her husband was working for a private finance company where he authorized loans. Unfortunately, he authorized a large loan for a woman who didn’t pay it back, and he was unable to locate her. As a result, he lost his job and was being held accountable to pay the finance company the enormous amount due for the loan.
Now Jancy’s family was experiencing a severe financial crisis. They had no income, the whole family was starving, and Jancy didn’t know what to do. She didn’t want to share her problem with her parents and cause them stress. Finally, in despair, she had decided to commit suicide that day. No one was at home at the time. She said, “I was formulating a plan to hang myself. If you had come a few minutes later, you would have found only my body without life.”
I comforted Jancy with verses from Scripture. I spent more than an hour showing her many promises from the Bible. She became convinced that God loved her, and she said that she would never attempt to end her life again; instead, she would pray to Jesus for deliverance in times of struggle. I could see peace in her face. Then I prayed with her and went home.
I continued to visit Jancy and her husband. I told her husband that drinking is evil and showed several verses from Scripture about how to trust God and overcome temptations. He accepted that and promised to give his life to Jesus.
Jancy’s husband has since found a new job and has given up drinking alcohol. Jancy and her children have been faithfully attending our church in Manamadurai, Tamil Nadu, India. After hearing her testimony and seeing her faithfulness, the principal of the Seventh-day Adventist secondary school in Manamadurai gave her a job at the school so her children could attend.
Jancy and her husband are now waiting to be baptized. May the good Lord bless this family!
