After driving for hours on treacherous roads near the coast of southern India, you’ll arrive at a hilltop with randomly placed mud huts. This small hamlet of 100 people, including children, is not a place most people would go. But God’s Word is changing lives in this remote village because of one passionate believer named Sammy (name changed to protect his identity) – and friends like you.
Like the others who live here, Sammy is part of the indigenous Savara community. The Savara people are suspicious of outsiders and uninterested in speaking to them. Their traditional religion of Hinduism is handed down from generation to generation.
A village transformed
Sammy encountered the Gospel a few years ago when he migrated to a nearby city. He trained as a Project Philip Bible study leader and returned home to share the Good News with his people.
“It was the first time anyone here had ever heard about Jesus or the Bible,” Sammy explains. “The villagers did not object to me preaching about Jesus because I belonged to the Savara community.” Soon about 25 people were gathering in one of the homes for Bible study.
Sammy reads the Bible aloud to people since many don’t know how to read or write. Then they repeat the verses he shares. Each one is a new believer who came to faith after Sammy began engaging people in God’s Word. Project Philip Bible studies have stirred the whole community – drawing one family after another into the presence of the Lord.
“We are thrilled to bring the truth of God’s Word into the lives of the people here,” he smiles. “Today, at least 25 households have Bibles. I’m praying that the rest will soon come to know Jesus too.” Please join with Sammy in this prayer for his village.