WHAT DOES THIS MOTHER WANT?

MOTHER’S DAY IS QUICKLY APPROACHING. What better gift can you give than to sponsor a child for the mom(s) in your life?

Please help us meet our goal of 250 children sponsored for Mother’s Day!

What does this mother want most for Mother’s Day?

Hope for Her Child
In South Asia, Dalits are considered the lowest class of people. They face intense persecution and hatred. Dalit mothers watch as their children:

• Become beggars or daily wage laborers.
• Grow up without any hope for an education.
• Receive beatings from their employers.
• Live without adequate food or proper clothing.

All the while, they know that they, as mothers, can do nothing to change their children’s fate. They are “untouchable.” But today, you can touch them with the love of Christ.

A Mother’s Desperate Longing
Gayana was only 20 when her husband died, leaving her and their young son, Vikranta, alone in the world. Gayana despaired as she wondered how she would provide for Vikranta. She was no longer welcome at her in-laws home, and her elderly parents were unable to support her. Having nowhere else to go, Gayana moved in with one of her sisters. She was so distressed over her situation that she stopped eating and sank into a deep depression. Then a neighbor told her about a nearby Gospel for Asia Bridge of Hope center, a place that offered help to poor children. Gayana visited the center and shared her desperate story with the director. To Gayana’s great joy and relief, Vikranta was enrolled in Bridge of Hope immediately.

Bridge of Hope Has the Answer
Bridge of Hope provided Vikranta with everything he needed to attend and thrive at school. Although Gayana found work as a daily wage laborer, she earns only about a dollar a day. Without Bridge of Hope, she would never have been able to provide her son with the education he’s receiving. Gayana is happy and grateful that her son has been given a chance — a chance that many Asian mothers only dream of their children having.

Thousands Ready to Receive Joy
20,000 children are still waiting to enroll in a Bridge of Hope center. All they’re waiting for is a sponsor. All they are waiting for is you. For just $35 a month, you can provide a mother with the hope she’s longing for. Her child will receive:

• A daily nutritious meal.
• The message of Jesus’ love.
• A quality education.
• A better life than she had.

To find out how you can sponsor a child today, visit www.gfa.org/bridge.

This Mother’s Day, sponsor a child in your mother’s honor, and bring hope to mothers who have no hope. Visit www.gfa.org/bridge to find out more.

Girl Grows Up in Poverty

RAJI OPENED HER EYES WITH DISAPPOINTMENT as the dark reality set in: Somehow she had survived her latest suicide attempt — and her family would never forgive her for it.

She had made many attempts on her life before. Like a cat with nine lives, though, Raji always managed to raise her mutilated body from the grave. With this latest failure, her family would only despise her more, but what could she do when even death wouldn’t take her?

Danger had followed Raji since childhood. Her father, Ednit, had a nice job in the military, but when he came home every night, he and Raji’s mother would drink and fight.

Listening to the drunken arguments, Raji and her five siblings could be happy only for the fact that when Ednit screamed at their mother, he wasn’t screaming at them. The alcohol was costly, however, and soon the family fell into desperate poverty.

After the sixth grade, Raji dropped out of school to support her family and found work at construction sites. After each day of toil, she came home to her father’s abuse, and as the years went by she could only dream of escape.

Marriage was the most likely route: Her new husband might be kind and her in-laws loving.

But when the time came to arrange a marriage, Raji’s father had none of these things in mind. Soon she was forced to marry a man who was anything but her savior.

Marriage Leads to Greater Oppression

THE ABUSE RAJI RECEIVED FROM HER HUSBAND DROVE HER TO ATTEMPT SUICIDE.

It was as if Ednit had sought for his daughter the worst version of himself.

Like Ednit, Aadesh drank often and his physical abuse was even more brutal. He tormented Raji for no apparent reason, and his family did nothing to stop him because they hated Raji just as much. It soon became clear that the new bride had stepped from misery into torture.

Then one day, she made a decision. Without thinking twice, she doused herself in gasoline and set herself on fire.

Like many desperate young women who light themselves on fire, Raji hoped her death would be instantaneous, but she quickly discovered the horrible truth.

As the flames ripped across her body, Raji couldn’t help screaming in pain. Her terrified neighbors ran to her house and put out the fire, but devastating damage was already done. The woman writhing on the ground was disfigured beyond recognition. And her in-laws’ hatred for her only intensified.

Hated by Family after Failed Suicide Attempt

After the fire, Raji’s life was even worse than the one she’d tried to escape.

WHEN BURNING HERSELF FAILED, RAJI DIDN’T QUIT ON SUICIDE — BUT NOTHING WORKED.

Throughout her painful recovery, her family demonstrated no sympathy or remorse at the way they had treated her.

They felt justified in their animosity.

Isolated from any form of love, Raji grew more desperate. Between her family’s scorn and her self-doubt, she heard a rough voice whisper in her ear, “Commit suicide and finish yourself.”

She tried to obey the voice once, twice — as many times as she could. Whether by the neighbors or bad planning, she was always thwarted as completely as on the day of the fire.

With each failed attempt on her life, her situation became more hopeless, as if she’d been condemned to live forever. And as long as she lived, Raji was certain, misery would follow.

But one day, one of Raji’s neighbors showed her a strategy she hadn’t tried before.

Finally, a Friend

The neighbor told Raji about Jesus, who loved everyone so greatly that He died for their sins. Raji could see for herself in a film the local pastor was going to show in the village.

The pastor explained even more that night about Jesus, and as Raji watched the movie, she could see the goodness of this Man.

As she watched the crucifixion, she realized how deeply Jesus loved her. And after a lifetime of pain, she was eager to embrace Him.

Soon after Raji chose to follow Christ, she began attending prayer meetings and Bible studies. To her surprise, Aadesh not only encouraged her — he went with her, and listened with an open heart!

With a new joy that seemed incomprehensible, Raji began sharing the Good News with her sister-in-law. Within a week, she, too, decided to follow Jesus. Suddenly, Raji’s worst enemies had become dear friends.

Now the trio regularly attends church together, Raji’s home is filled with harmony, and the life she used to dread has become a sweet gift.

“My burden is rolled away,” she says, “and I feel peace in my heart.”


You can bring peace to lives of turmoil by showing them Jesus’ love on film.

JESUS’ LOVE WAS CLEAR TO RAJI AS SHE WATCHED HIS LIFE PLAY OUT ON THE SCREEN.