As a child, Laxmi worshipped the many Hindu gods with her grandmother, but she always wondered whether a true God existed.
“Who is the real God among all the gods?” she asked herself. “If ever I get to know Him, I will become a devout devotee.”
At a young age, Laxmi entered into an arranged marriage with Satish and they soon had children. But marrying Satish meant leaving her loving familial environment. In Satish’s family, she found only verbal abuse and excessive drinking. Despite keeping up her Hindu rituals, Laxmi was deeply unhappy with her life and felt unfulfilled spiritually.
“I was so distraught that one day I decided to end my life,” Laxmi said. “But the Lord, in His mercy, did not let it happen, as I became scared to jump in the river.”
Her life went from bad to worse after her husband began drinking heavily and beating her.
Laxmi and Satish are Brought to Faith in Christ
But one day, after moving away from Satish’s family, Laxmi and her husband were visited by a relative who had previously been abusive. To their amazement, the couple observed that this woman’s life had completely transformed following her conversion to Christianity. Her witness brought Laxmi, Satish and Laxmi’s sister to faith in Christ. They began reading the Bible together and were soon baptized.
“I felt a new energy to live for the Gospel,” Laxmi said. “My family atmosphere changed!” She added that Satish became loving and comforting toward her after choosing to follow Jesus.
The couple started a church with 100 new believers in their house. But as Satish, Laxmi and her sister were leading worship one day, a mob of 50 people invaded, attacking Satish and destroying her family’s property. The police arrived but arrested these three believers instead of the mob.
A Christian Arrested in India Shares Her Faith
Sitting frightened inside a small prison cell with five other women, Laxmi and her sister listened as a bell rang, signaling that it was time to pray. While the other women began chanting prayers, the sisters quietly sang hymns to themselves.
“We became lost in singing,” Laxmi, a Christian arrested in India, recalled. “After a few moments, we realized the chanting had stopped and the five women were advancing towards us. The self-appointed leader of the cell, who was accused of murder, came close to us and asked us to continue singing.”
The other women clapped along to the sisters’ songs. Laxmi and her sister took this opportunity to share the Gospel with these women and other inmates they encountered throughout the five days they spent in jail. They felt that the Lord had brought them to prison for this purpose.
Unfortunately, their church was forced to close following a second attack. Laxmi and Satish’s neighbors became increasingly hostile. Their children were no longer able to attend school due to severe harassment. Satish faced suspension from his job. And because of the ongoing conversion case against them, they were instructed to cease all religious activities. Every month, the trio has to go to the police station and give money to the officers and lawyers to postpone the date of the hearing.
Still, Laxmi remains hopeful and continues to tell others about her faith, even as her church remains closed and she has been banned from visiting her family.
“I have found the true God, so how can I be silent?” she said. “Satish and I visit and encourage other fellowship groups and counsel new believers. I have not seen my family since I became a Christian. But I truly believe God would make a way for them to see the Light.”
Let’s lift up Laxmi, Satish and their families in prayer.
Dear Jesus, we ask for your protection over Satish, Laxmi and other Christians arrested in India. Thank you for the witness that they were able to provide while imprisoned. Please let the case against them be dropped so that they can resume openly worshipping and reopen their church. Keep their children safe and let their families come to faith in You. In Your name, we pray. Amen.
Photo: Laxmi, a Christian arrested in India
About the author
Chandler Peterson is a staff writer and editor for Global Christian Relief where she shares stories of Christian persecution. Read the latest Christian persecution stories on our website and learn more at GlobalChristianRelief.org.
