Participants:
Series Code: JFAN
Program Code: JFAN000077S
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00:00 (inspirational music)
00:21 - Hello and welcome to "Jesus for Asia Now." 00:24 I'm Natalie Wood and I have a special guest with me today, 00:27 Israel Prasad, he's our director in India, 00:31 and we are going to be talking 00:32 about our evening schools today. 00:34 And this is a ministry that I love, 00:37 I love to go and visit these schools 00:39 and see these beautiful children 00:40 and I know that Israel loves it, as well. 00:42 Welcome to the show, Israel. 00:43 - Oh, thank you, thank you so much. (giggles) 00:46 I'm really very happy to be a part of the show today. 00:50 - All right. 00:51 I know that you love the evening schools. 00:53 - Yes, yes. - So we wanna start out 00:55 by how did the evening schools come to be? 00:58 Because when we first started working together, 01:00 you were a Bible worker-- - Right. 01:02 - And we only had Bible workers. 01:04 - Yes. 01:05 - But then, this evening school thing came to pass. 01:08 How did this happen? 01:09 - When I was a Bible worker, as I was visiting 01:13 door by door in that village, particular village, 01:16 there were so many children, and these children were 01:19 not disciplined, they were so unclean, 01:24 and didn't have proper clothes to wear. 01:27 They were just roaming everywhere without any guidance. 01:32 And so, I was feeling inspired that oh, these children 01:37 need to have some kind of discipline, 01:40 some kind of future because that time it seems to be like 01:44 so many children, just playing around and not-- 01:49 - Running aimlessly - Aimlessly. 01:51 And when I talked with a few of these kids who were playing, 01:55 they were not worried about their future, 01:58 because they have come from families 02:01 which didn't show them that love, 02:04 teach them the discipline, teach them what is education, 02:08 or, anything like, to be clean. 02:11 So as I was talking with them, they said, 02:15 our parents, just leave us like this 02:18 because we don't have proper food, we don't eat... 02:23 Our parents, like father go to work, 02:25 but evening he would come 02:26 and spend the whole money drinking, 02:29 and very much into alcohol 02:32 and the family was completely broken, 02:35 and these children did not have a place 02:37 to where they can really like say 02:40 that oh, they are there for me. 02:43 They are very sad situation. 02:46 So that is when God really inspired in my heart 02:51 to start something for these children. 02:55 That is when I was, after a long prayer about this project, 03:01 I called one day Elder Johnwood 03:05 to talk about these evening programs something to do 03:08 for the children's benefit, 03:10 because they did not have proper education, 03:13 they didn't have even one meal a day. 03:15 They were just roaming around, hunting for food, 03:19 or sometimes they are stealing, so that they get some money, 03:23 they can eat something with that money 03:26 So it was a very terrible time. 03:29 So God had put me in that kind of a desire in my heart 03:34 to really do something and as I was praying, 03:37 and then God answered me. 03:39 Like you talked to Elder Johnwood about this and that was 03:45 when I called him over the phone, 03:47 and I was not able to get a hold of him. 03:49 And then again, I tried calling him and there was no answer. 03:53 And after some time, he called me. 03:56 He called me back, Elder Johnwood called me back, 03:58 and I was so happy to see his call. 04:01 And when I was talking to him, 04:04 he asked me for what you called me. 04:06 And I told him that the desire, 04:07 which was really burning in me. 04:09 The whole night, the previous night I couldn't sleep 04:12 because the Lord was really pressing me-- 04:16 - To help the children. - Help the children, 04:18 so that they can have a bright future. 04:20 And I told him about the dream, and the wishing, 04:25 and what God was really inspiring me to talk to him 04:29 about these children and I was really so happy, 04:33 because he told me (speaks in foreign language) 04:35 means younger brother. - Okay. 04:37 - So that is how he calls me. 04:39 And I call him (speaks in foreign language), 04:40 which is elder brother. 04:42 He said, "You know, (speaks in foreign language), 04:43 "as I was going on a walk, I went for a walk, 04:46 "that's why I couldn't answer your call, 04:49 "and God was inspiring me, also, 04:52 "to do something for the children." 04:55 I was so surprised to hear that. 04:57 The way God works. - Right. 04:59 The same time he gave me that inspiration, 05:06 the desire to do something for these children, 05:07 and he put the same desire in Elder Johnwood's heart. 05:11 So, we found that it's really God's leading. 05:17 - Right. 05:18 - And he said, "Yes, we will." 05:19 And he asked me to get the static report 05:21 about how many children are there, what is their lifestyle, 05:25 and what the parents are doing. 05:27 And we have a government school. 05:30 It is just a namesake school, 05:32 because most of the time, the teachers are not there. 05:36 So they go there, they play among themselves, 05:39 and at the evening, they come, they don't learn anything. 05:43 So he asked me to take all these reports, 05:46 like statistical report, so that what we can do for them. 05:51 And when I went, I was talking to a mother in that village. 05:57 What would you think that would help your child? 06:01 And she said, "You know, my child, if he is disciplined, 06:08 if he is given food, if he's given education, 06:12 that would be really helpful. 06:14 So we took the survey and I send it too Elder Johnwood. 06:19 He prayed a lot, and God helped us to start 06:22 a evening school in that village. 06:25 And when we started, there were nearly 37 to 40 children. 06:29 And as the days were going by, and it was spreading out, 06:34 and there were so many children. 06:36 But when we started this, we had so many problems, also. 06:40 Obstacles. 06:42 Satan was really angry on us. - Right. 06:45 - Because thus far, the children were really-- 06:48 - Just aimless and doing whatever. 06:49 - Yeah! 06:50 They were like his disciplines. 06:53 Just stealing and not using proper language, 06:58 not respecting people. 07:00 So when we started this kind of a program, 07:03 Satan was really, reall, angry. 07:05 And the local people started to rebel against us, 07:09 to somehow to stop this project. 07:13 But, this is how we really started this ministry. (laughs) 07:16 - Wow, but God overcame-- - Yes! 07:19 - All the obstacles that the devil threw up. 07:20 - Oh, yes, yes. 07:21 To talk about the obstacles our God helped us to overcome 07:25 the way he led us, amazing! 07:27 - So, is there a particular story you'd like to share? 07:30 One of the obstacles that the Lord had to overcome 07:33 for this school? 07:34 - Oh yes, yes. 07:35 There was time when young people in the village, 07:39 they got together, they came with weapons 07:41 to threaten the principal and me 07:44 to stop the school functioning. 07:46 And one evening, we were having the regular school, 07:49 and a bunch of young people with weapons, 07:51 they came and they stood in front of the door posts, 07:55 and they said, "Immediately stop the school. 07:58 You cannot function anymore." 08:00 And we were really worried. 08:02 And then we asked why? 08:04 - They said, "No. 08:05 "We think that you people are stealing 08:08 "our children's kidneys." 08:10 Because that is when, in down south in some hospital 08:13 or somewhere, it came on the newspaper, the TV, 08:16 that they were stealing children's kidney 08:20 and they were selling. 08:21 And they said, "You are giving a free education, 08:24 "you're giving free food, how can you do this?" 08:28 So you are doing, you are stealing. 08:29 - There must be something evil about it. 08:31 - Yeah! 08:32 And we said, when they told us that, 08:35 both myself and the principal, 08:37 we started laughing to each other 08:39 because we didn't do those things, 08:42 and we were just teaching those children good things! 08:45 And they threaten us and they went. 08:48 And, that was a time when we were really, really 08:53 praying very hard to the Lord. 08:54 Oh Lord, it's your ministry. 08:57 Now why we see that Satan is really very angry on us. 09:01 And we prayed for those young men. 09:04 And there was another time, the same group of young men, 09:09 they came to threaten us. 09:13 But that time, it was their own young people, 09:19 were not in that group, but from the village. 09:21 They came and stood for us. 09:23 They said, "You can not do things against them, 09:27 "because they are doing such a marvelous favor. 09:30 "They are teaching our children, 09:32 "they are giving free education, free food. 09:34 "We can see there is a lot of changes in our children now. 09:38 "And you cannot threaten them. 09:40 "If you are doing something, 09:42 "we are standing here to protect them". 09:46 - Now, what kind of children come to these programs? 09:47 What kind of villages are these programs held in? 09:51 - Mostly when we start a program like this, 09:54 we do the statistical report and see 09:58 how the village or slum, how their financial, 10:04 and how is their livelihood. 10:05 And these evening schools we have right now, 10:12 they are really in very poor situation, 10:14 where they don't have proper food to eat. 10:18 When the children, when they come in the evening, 10:21 they even come before the school would start, 10:23 because we start the school at 5:30, 10:26 and these children are there waiting for us to start 10:28 the program at four o'clock. 10:30 Because so many of them would not have ate the whole day. 10:36 Waiting for that one meal. 10:38 And little children will go to third grade, second grade, 10:42 they eat so much because they were waiting for that. 10:45 - [Natalie] They're so hungry. 10:47 - I thank the Lord for this wonderful ministry. 10:50 - So I know also that there have been many stories 10:54 that you've shared with us over the years. 10:55 Do you have a story of maybe one of the children that came? 11:00 - Yes, yes! 11:02 There are many stories, but particularly 11:04 I love a very heart touching story that is a mother 11:11 who was a great kind of a problem for our school. 11:17 Wanted to stop the school functioning, 11:19 because she had come to our school a couple of times 11:23 personally to tell us, "Don't have the school here." 11:29 Shut down the school. 11:30 Because she comes from a very strong Hindu background. 11:34 She felt like the children 11:36 are being converted to Christianity, 11:38 because she comes from a very strong Hindu background. 11:41 And she said, "No, you cannot run your school here." 11:45 You have to shut it down. 11:47 And this lady, her son amid a lot of... 11:52 Mother didn't allow him to come to school, 11:54 but he came to school. 11:56 - He came anyway! - Anyway. (laughs) 11:58 He's not worried about what punishment he's going to get, 12:02 but he still came to the school, 12:04 because he saw his friends coming and the changes in them 12:08 really inspired him to come to the school. 12:11 He came. 12:12 And in the beginning, she was really very angry, 12:15 but it was just going like that. 12:18 And one day, she was coming with the rope on her forehead, 12:24 tied and because I don't know what happened. 12:25 She was really dragging the guy, her son. 12:29 - Her son. 12:30 - And bringing them to the school. 12:32 We were really so... 12:35 Like oh, what is going to happen? (laughs) 12:38 And she came and she said, "What are you teaching here?" 12:41 Then we said, "Oh, we teach, good things." 12:44 "That is what? 12:44 "What are you teaching here?" 12:46 Then she said, "You know, I had this terrible headache, 12:49 "and I was just lying on my bed, and my son came. 12:54 "I was crying, he hugs me." 12:56 ""What is happening? 12:57 "Why are you crying?" 12:59 And I told him I'm having this terrible headache. 13:02 He knelt and prayed for me. 13:05 He touched my forehead, he was praying. 13:08 "When I asked him, he said he was praying to Jesus Christ." 13:13 "God answered the prayer." 13:16 And she said, "My headache is completely gone, 13:19 "so teach my son more things!" 13:21 - Oh! 13:23 - We were so happy! 13:26 Enemies became friends. 13:30 - That is-- - God turned it. 13:31 - Yeah, that is how God works. 13:33 - Wow! 13:34 - And I thank the Lord, because this is a ministry, 13:38 which is really going to change the whole generation. 13:42 - Right, right. 13:43 - In the coming days, 13:47 if you see within another 20 or 10 years, 13:50 it's going to be a Christian village 13:53 because those seeds, which was planted 13:55 in those children hearts are going to grow. 13:59 - Right 14:00 - I praise the Lord! 14:01 It's an amazing ministry. 14:03 - Right, God is very good. 14:05 - Yes. - Very very good. 14:07 Wow! 14:08 Well, I know we have pictures, we've had a few already 14:10 probably shown on the show, but let's go 14:13 through a few of these and just talk about them. 14:15 What's this first one? 14:17 - [Israel] This is the school in Madathukulam. 14:20 You can see the guy who is sitting at the last, 14:22 leaning on the door, he was very naughty kid 14:26 when he came to the school. 14:28 He would not sit in one place for five minutes. 14:31 - Wow. 14:32 - And he won't be sitting also, he will be-- 14:35 - [Natalie] Bothering the other children? 14:36 - Bothering the other children. 14:38 But after he came to know about Jesus, 14:42 it is not the school which is changing him, it is the truth, 14:47 it is the that Jesus Christ's love 14:50 is changing these children's character. 14:52 - Right 14:53 - When they hear about the stories, 14:54 when they sing those songs, when they pray, 14:57 God is really changing their hearts. 15:00 When their hearts are changed, 15:02 their character is getting changed. 15:04 - [Natalie] That's wonderful 15:05 - [Israel] And now you see, is so disciplined. 15:07 - [Natalie] Yeah. 15:08 - [Israel] He sits, and these children-- 15:10 - And quietly. - Yeah, they come 15:10 very neat to the school. 15:14 Whatever they have, they dress and-- 15:16 - They do as much as they can. 15:17 - Yeah! 15:18 They are very neat and see the way they're sitting in order, 15:22 and everything is in order in all these schools. 15:26 - Yeah. 15:27 I know when we go and visit, 15:28 it's very hard for them to be orderly, 15:30 'cause they're so excited. 15:32 But they still, they all sit right down-- 15:34 - Exactly. - They listen to the teacher. 15:36 - Yes! 15:37 - It's really amazing to see. 15:39 - Yeah, it's amazing! 15:41 And these children, when some of their fellow friends 15:47 are getting sick, without our permission, 15:50 or without our guidance, they are gathering themselves 15:55 and they are going and praying for that sick friend. 15:57 - Aww. 15:58 - In their homes. - Wow. 16:01 - And I tell you, most of these children, 16:03 as I told in the beginning, 16:05 they come from very strong Hindu background, 16:08 where in their houses, they have all these idols, 16:12 pictures, hanging. 16:15 We cannot go directly with our Bible. 16:18 They would refuse. - That's true. 16:20 - But the children, they come, they learn from here. 16:23 And they're going back to that house, 16:25 which cannot be reached by an usual pastor, or someone. 16:30 The children, their own children are going there 16:33 before food, or before anything, they would pray. 16:39 in that house, which has those idols. 16:43 And friend of their parents and the talent night 16:46 is a very, very interesting thing, 16:49 because they also testify how God was good to them. 16:54 - Oh, nice! 16:55 - And they would come and tell 16:56 in front of the other children, 16:58 "You know, I lost my pencil. 17:00 "I had only one pencil, I lost it, 17:03 "and I needed it very badly. 17:05 "I prayed to Jesus. 17:06 "Jesus gave me that pencil back." 17:10 We have witness like, "You know, I was not feeling well, 17:13 "I prayed, God gave me the strength." 17:17 Amazing! - Wow. 17:20 Okay, so the next picture 17:21 is a picture of the children praying? 17:23 - Yes, you can see the picture. 17:25 The children are praying. 17:29 The first girl to the right, 17:34 you can see the way she is praying. 17:38 She comes from a Hindu background. 17:41 The way she prays, honestly. 17:45 The way she has learned. 17:48 What are the benefits? 17:50 The importance of prayer in that small childhood. 17:55 She's praying there. 17:57 And you can see there, our cook has also joined the prayer. 18:02 This ministry is not only changing the children's life. 18:06 It is changing their parents' lives, 18:08 and also changing the people who are working with us. 18:11 - Because some of the schools, some of the teachers, 18:14 sometimes, we don't have an Adventist teacher available. 18:17 So we've had to hire Hindu teachers? 18:19 - Yes, yes, Hindu teachers. 18:21 - But then we have a principal 18:22 that does the spiritual guidance. 18:24 - Exactly, yes. 18:25 - So is it changing the Hindu teachers? 18:27 - Oh, yes! 18:28 Very much! 18:30 Just two months ago, one of our teachers took baptism. 18:34 - Awesome! 18:35 - Because every day, along with the children, 18:37 she's also hearing this message from the principal 18:41 who's our Bible worker. 18:43 They are teaching from the Bible. 18:44 - Right. 18:45 - And they take baptism and one girl 18:49 in the place called Karetur, her brother was very sick. 18:53 He's still sick. 18:56 She took us to that house to pray for her brother. 19:00 - Aww. 19:01 - She's a Hindu lady, she's a Hindu teacher, 19:03 but now she has accepted Jesus Christ. 19:06 - Wow, that's-- - And one teacher 19:08 in Mararikulam, she took baptism. 19:11 - Wow. 19:12 - And now we see these cooks. 19:14 They come and listen the word of the Lord. 19:16 They pray, they kneel and pray along with the children. 19:21 - So it's changing a lot more lives than just children. 19:23 - Yes, I see that these schools we have in the slums 19:28 are like the light kept on the tower. 19:32 - On the hill. - Hill, you know? 19:34 Very bright, giving out the light. 19:36 - A lighthouse. - A lighthouse 19:38 - Wow. - For the village. 19:40 For the parents. 19:42 - Wow. - Amazing! 19:44 - Yes, wow, what a blessing. 19:46 - Yes. 19:47 - Okay, we have a few more pictures, I think. 19:49 There's more children praying. 19:51 - Yes. 19:52 And I would like to talk about our slide here. 19:57 This is a very, very tribal area. 20:02 We recently started this evening school in this area. 20:05 And these people are very poor. 20:09 We cannot even imagine how poor they are. 20:12 They don't have proper house. 20:14 They just have a house called a namesake house, 20:18 but when it rains, it rains inside. 20:21 When it shines, it shines inside. 20:24 - So it's sort of there, but it's not really there. 20:27 - Not there. 20:28 And these children were without any kind of support. 20:35 No food, no education. 20:37 Because since they come from the tribal area, 20:40 the government has given privileges for them, 20:42 but when they go, the other children, 20:45 they don't want to mingle with them, 20:47 so they don't go to school. 20:49 They just stay back in their place in the village, 20:52 and they just go, roam around and play. 20:57 These children, now you can see, all neat and clean, 21:00 they are after we started this program. 21:04 When the children started coming, 21:05 the village was so happy when we started this program. 21:10 They said please, what all can we help you, 21:13 we want our children to have a bright future. 21:15 - Aww. 21:17 - We don't want our children to be the same how we are. 21:22 They are very dirty. 21:24 Their only incomes, they go into the forest, into the woods, 21:29 They collect the wood and they sell it. 21:32 The little money. - So make firewood. 21:34 - Sell firewood. 21:35 And even that, they drink. 21:37 That is the most painful thing. 21:40 So, there is no kind of help. 21:43 God showed us this village when we started the program 21:46 for the children, they were so happy. 21:49 Now you can see, they are well dressed. 21:51 They are very clean. 21:53 They don't sit on a mat like this 21:55 because they don't have a mat. 21:57 They would play with the mud on the mud, 22:00 and sit and eat, and sleep and do everything there. 22:04 But now, this school has taught them what is cleanliness. 22:09 How to be clean. 22:12 So they come with proper dress, well dressed, neat. 22:16 - Very nice. - Yeah. 22:17 And they come, they wait, they pray. 22:20 The most important thing is I see that these children 22:23 are giving more preference for prayer. 22:27 Because I think that God is really working through them. 22:33 They can feel it, they can taste it. 22:36 - Wow. - When we say prayer, 22:37 they will kneel immediately. 22:39 They will close their eyes. 22:41 Some new children, they don't do that, but as days go by-- 22:46 - They learn. - They learn. 22:47 And they do close their eyes and very honestly they'll pray. 22:53 - Wow. - Right, praise the Lord 22:54 - Yeah. 22:56 Now, you've touched on something a couple of times, 22:58 and I wanna bring it out. 23:00 And that is what the parents' lives are like 23:04 without these schools, or some other source of assistance. 23:07 These children will have the same occupations 23:09 as their parents, usually. 23:11 - Yes, yes. 23:12 - So if their parents collect firewood, 23:13 that's what they're going to end up doing. 23:15 - [Israel] Right, right. 23:16 - And that's one of the reasons the boys at the wedding 23:18 were so focused on the fact that they all have good jobs. 23:22 - Exactly. 23:24 - Because they had education and so they were able 23:26 to do things that their parents weren't able to do. 23:28 - Exactly. 23:30 And that is why now I see that parents are really happy 23:34 to have these schools in their area, 23:36 because it's really helping their children a lot 23:40 in many ways to have a bright future. 23:45 Our teachers are really dedicated. 23:48 They teach them, they go, it's not like a group study. 23:53 Individually they go and talk to them, sit with them, 23:58 and very politely. 23:59 And at the same time, if they're needed a little correction, 24:03 or discipline, they do that, also. 24:06 - Right, right. 24:08 - And this particular slide, picture, if see. 24:12 The girl sitting in the middle, she is 16-years-old. 24:18 And at this time, she was carrying a baby, 24:22 and she had two other children. 24:24 - [Natalie] So it was gonna be her third. 24:25 - Altogether three children. 24:28 - Wow, at 16. - She is 16-years-old. 24:32 Very sad in that tribal village, 24:36 the girls get married very early, even at the age of 13. 24:41 So they don't know, they are a kid, 24:43 and how can they take care of another kid? 24:46 - Yeah. 24:47 - These schools are really helping them. 24:49 - Right. 24:50 Israel, what is the future need or what are the plans 24:54 that you see maybe the Lord will open the door for? 24:58 - Yes, in India, we see that there are so many slums 25:05 are there, so many poor villages out there. 25:10 So many children are dying without proper food. 25:13 That is the statical report of India. 25:16 And having all of this, and when we experience, 25:20 and when we see practically 25:24 what the school is really helping them to be in the future. 25:29 I pray that there are so many villages, 25:32 which are in need of these schools. 25:36 There are so many children who are in need of food. 25:39 There are so many children who are in need of education. 25:42 More than all these things, they are in need of Jesus. 25:47 As I told you, mention to you before. 25:50 These evening schools are a kind of ministry 25:54 to these young children because in future, 25:56 the whole village is going to be a Christian village. 25:59 - (chuckles) Yup. 26:00 - So I pray that God will open many new schools, 26:06 at least 50 schools. 26:08 - Okay! - End of the next year. 26:10 That is 2020, so that those 50 villages 26:15 will be ready when Jesus comes. 26:18 I see in New Testament, how happy Jesus was 26:21 to see those little children. 26:23 When the disciples said when they were just 26:26 not allowing the children, but Jesus said, 26:28 "No, please I love children, little children." 26:33 I see how happy God will be in heaven 26:36 to see these schools functioning because his name, 26:41 because he is really... 26:44 He'll be happy because he loves those children. 26:46 - Right. 26:48 - I pray that God will give us the desire 26:52 to somehow support and be a part of it, 26:56 so that a child can be benefited. 27:00 And his future will be a bright one. 27:04 - Yeah, and not just the future in this world. 27:06 - [Israel] Yes! 27:07 - But the future for eternity. 27:08 - Amen, amen, amen. 27:09 - All right, well, thank you so much, Israel, 27:11 for sharing these stories. 27:13 - You're welcome. - And the pictures. 27:15 And it's such a blessing. 27:17 And we will join you in praying for many more schools. 27:19 - Thank you so much. 27:21 That is also my prayer. (laughs) 27:23 Thank you so much. 27:24 - All right. 27:26 Thank you so much for joining us today. 27:28 And I would like to invite you to pray 27:30 for the 50 more schools that Israel has mentioned. 27:34 There is so much need out there. 27:36 And, you know, it only costs about $7 per month per a child 27:40 at these evening schools. 27:42 And look what God is doing with just $7 a month. 27:45 If you'd like to be a part of this ministry, 27:47 you can contact us at Jesus for Asia, 27:50 PO Box 1221, Collegedale, Tennessee 37315. 27:56 Call us at 423 413-7321, 28:00 or visit our website at Jesus4asia.org. 28:03 - May God richly bless you until we see you next time 28:06 on "Jesus for Asia Now." 28:08 (dramatic music) |
Revised 2019-12-24