Audio Bible India

God's Word in Audio - Testimonies

Faith Comes By Hearing associates gather information and testimonies about what God is doing in and through Audio Bible listening programs around the world.

Listening to Audio Bible Changes Church

In one Sora-speaking village, a church secretary objected to conducting FCBH Audio Bible listening programs.   Per a report from the field, Mr. Bhuyan feared that the “unity and sanctity of the church would be lost.”   But the pastor and the FCBH field staff played John 1 for the entire church and the Holy Spirit touched their hearts.   Hearing the Word of God in their own language, God spoke “so closely and so dearly, especially to Mr. Bhuyan.  Mr. Bhuyan was convicted and asked to be forgiven.   Now he is the one who holds the responsibility of administering the program!  Mr. Bhuyan told FCBH workers in India, “I am the happiest man in the world, because facilitating God’s Word for my own people in their heart language is something inexpressible.”

 Testimony of Widow & Healing of Crippled Son

“Before coming to the FCBH program, I had many problems in my life.  I’m a widow, and I have an 18-year old son who was severely disabled.  At age two, he became very sick.  He spent two months in many different hospitals, both government and private.  I lost everything pursuing treatment for him, including all hope of his healing. As a result of his illness, he became profoundly mentally retarded; lost his memory, lost his appetite, and lost his desire to live. His life was basically empty. I made sacrifices to all the gods, hoping for a cure for my son. I did my best to care for him and make him comfortable, but the situation was hopeless for so many years. 

“My brother is a Christian and he invited me to the Faith Comes By Hearing program.  This program helped me believe in Jesus, and then things started happening in my son’s life.  After the people in the church prayed for him, his condition improved dramatically.  Now he can walk and eat, and seems to enjoy life.  He still can’t talk, and he’s still mentally disabled, but Jesus has changed his heart.  He’s always excited to go to church and listen to the Audio Bible.  Now I know there is one true God who can heal the sick.  I am with Jesus all the time.”

Mr. Ashok’s Testimony

“From my childhood days drinking was a weakness in my life. My parents use to drink alcohol and gave it to us to drink. I stopped my studies after 9th grade due to falling into bad company: I became a street vagabond.  During this period I came across a village pastor who later told me about the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.  After that I went for Bible training and joined in a ministry serving God. Again I started my backsliding life, as I was not so mature in my faith. At that time the same pastor came to rescue me and gave me words of encouragement and I was able to complete 10th grade. By God’s grace I am studying my second year in college, but have been far away from the Lord and living a worldly life. I happened to meet the pastor as he was going to conduct the Banjara listening program and he invited me to go with him.

“When I heard Matthew chapter 1 - the genealogy of the Lord - a question arose in my heart and mind: ‘Am I the person from the genealogy of the Lord?’  As I thought of my present life I found a great barrier between the Lord and me and that was my sin.  I gave all my sins to the Lord.  I left the habit of drinking alcohol and I have made a decision before the Lord to live a life according to the will of God.

“Now I am guiding the youth who have bad habits and I tell them about the Lord. This Faith Comes By Hearing listening session was very useful for me. Now I have confidence that I can live a good moral life for my Lord.  I help our pastor to conduct listening sessions. I am thankful to Beulah Ministries of India for giving us this Audio Bible for listening to the Word of God, to grow in our faith in Jesus.”

Transforming Worlds

The Bhojpuri live in the heartland of the Ganges Valley in the State of Uttar Pradesh, located in the northeast area of India, and along the international border of Nepal. Much of the travel is done by bicycle or on foot. A powerful icon, the legendary Ganga River (aka Ganga Ma or Mother Ganga) is considered by Hindu believers as a savior-goddess whose purity cleanses the sins of the faithful and aids the dead on their path toward heaven. After Hindi, Bhojpuri is the most widely spoken language in the state.

Families and communities gather in a house church where they sit on the floor or on a family mat. Men sit separately from the women and children. They must remain cautious, however, as Hindu militant leaders send young men to watch over the villages with specific orders to prevent any prayer group or religious meeting ,other than Hindu, from taking place. Depending on the safety in the village, the listening group meets on the veranda or inside the house. They pray, listen to the Audio Bible, and share what God has done for them. They always share a lot, and discuss problems with money, illness, and situations connected with demonic influences. They also pray a lot, more than we are accustomed to in the U.S. churches. In spite of the danger, believers who are leading the way for the Gospel are persistent and persevere.

From January to April 2007, 155 listening groups, averaging 15 – 20 people each, were established among the Bhojpuri people. So far, 600 new believers have come to the Lord, and from this group, 200 were baptized. This is an extraordinary achievement for the Bhojpuri, as it is a tremendous struggle to make the transition from Hinduism to Christianity, knowing they may face persecution. Of the 24.5 million Bhojpuri people, a small percentage has been touched by the Word of God.  One of the leaders is enthusiastic when he says, “The door is still wide open!”

100,000 Plus Hear the Word of God in Orissa, India

In August 2006, an estimated 100,000 people living in the state of Orissa had heard the Audio Word of God through Faith Comes By Hearing listening programs. Since that time, another 159 listening groups were established. This means that an additional 8,500 people in Orissa have now heard the Word of God in their own language.

Reports from the field tell how people in churches and villages have been transformed. Hundreds of people are walking away from traditional religious practices. such as witchcraft, and turning to Jesus Christ. Many are delivered from alcoholism, illness, and the bondages of sin. In impoverished oral cultures, the Audio Word of God is having a very powerful effect on those who hear it.

A pastor from Orissa shared about how the Oriya Audio Bible was changing the members in his church: 

"With the introduction of the Audio Bible listening program, the church has a deeper understanding of the truths of God," he said. "The attitude and behaviors of church members has changed.  Twelve new members have been added to the church after they believed in the Lord through hearing His Word in a language they can understand.  We've had 26 members share testimonies and confess sin in their lives.  Our leadership now walks in humility and submission to one another!  We praise God for this program and for hearing His Word!"

English Audio Bible Project in India

During 2006, a total of 178 Audio Bibles were distributed among Christian-run English schools, children's homes, orphanages, and Sunday school groups for Faith Comes By Hearing listening groups. Children are participating in Audio Bible listening programs in schools that include Cambridge School, Saint Joseph Convent, Mother Teresa English Medium School, Saint George English Medium, Good Shepard, Trinity English Medium School, Joy English Medium, Xavier English Medium Schools, Hebron and Mount Carmel School, and schools run by Christian charitable institutions and compassion ministries. Audio Bible listening programs are conducted in the provinces of Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Orissa, West Bengal, Manipur, and Karnataka state.
     
The listening programs are conducted once a week in a number of schools and nearly 25,000 children are able to listen to God’s Word. Many of them are, for the first time, coming to know the Lord Jesus. A number of testimonies are telling about children who, after listening to God’s Word, started believing in Him. By listening to God’s Word and putting it into practice in their lives, their attitudes, behaviors, and characters are accordingly shaped. The children experience the fear of the Lord through listening and believing in God’s Word.
             
School principals, headmasters, and teaching staff shared that after the introduction of the Faith Comes By Hearing listening program, the children became strengthened morally and self-disciplined. They are learning the meaning of God’s Word and God’s qualities, like meekness and humbleness, are increasingly found in their lives.

This listening program really improved the spiritual well-being of all children, and truly they confess that the Lord Jesus is the true Son of God. The impact of hearing God’s Word brought great change in the children’s social lives, for which the kith and kin of children are very happy and convey their heartfelt thanks to the principal, headmaster, and teachers of their respective schools. Now, since the start of the Audio Bible listening program, there is a general remark from parents, the public, and the institutions that something has happened in the children’s lives and they are changed.

Pastor Gunashekharan, the chaplain of the school who looks after the spiritual well-being of students, said that he never thought that the children would easily memorize the story of the Lord Jesus because. he noticed previously that the students had easily forgotten the Scripture portions read in church within a moment when spiritual class was over. 

To his amazement, after the listening sessions, the children were able to keep the Word of God in their minds and hearts. They memorized the key verses easily and also were able to tell the summary of the chapter that they heard through the Audio Bible. He believed that children’s moral lives will be improved as they memorize stories from the Bible. Just one of the many children, Kalabati, a 10th standard girl, said

“After participating in the Audio Bible listening program I came to know the truth and [the] true God.  As I have many Christian friends I want to follow Lord Jesus in my life and I feel very happy in taking Lord Jesus’ name in my heart.”

Yes, the Faith Comes By Hearing Bible listening programs are continuing in different regions of the country by bringing life-changing results and testimonies as students are experiencing the love of  the Lord Jesus Christ in their lives. Now God’s Word started speaking into children's lives by which one day our nation will witness that truly God’s kingdom is going to be established in this country.