Sand Filters can change lives on many levels (photo courtesy of Gospel for Asia)
Asia (MNN/GFA) — In Chanakya’s part of the country, villagers have a nearly endless need for water filters. Iron levels in the local water are so high, Gospel for Asia missionaries give away 150 filters every month. But for Chanakya, getting a BioSand water filter wasn’t an option.
The people of Chanakya’s village are very strong in their traditional religion, and when it came to missionaries, the rules were strict: Missionaries were forbidden to share the Good News or perform any kind of Christian activity in the village. That included acts of charity. However, when Chanakya heard that GFA workers were distributing filters in other villages, he couldn’t resist the temptation to see if he could get one.
His family had suffered for years from contaminated drinking water. A quality filter would change their lives, but Chanakya was too poor to buy one himself. Rejecting his village’s ban, he decided to search for a GFA missionary.
Tarachand ministered a long distance from Chanakya’s village, but eventually Chanakya’s searching brought him to the GFA pastor. Just as Chanakya had hoped, Pastor Tarachand was happy to help his family–and two others in the village.
Once the filters were installed in their homes, the families were thrilled to see the clean water coming through the filter, and Chanakya asked Pastor Tarachand to have tea at his house. While he visited, Pastor Tarachand shared the Good News with Chanakya’s family and gave them a New Testament and some Gospel literature.
Soon, Pastor Tarachand became good friends with Chanakya’s family. After seeing the effectiveness of the BioSand water filter, no one in the village opposed the pastor, so he was free to visit as often as he pleased.
Within two weeks, Chanakya’s family and a neighbor family decided to follow Christ, and now, Pastor Tarachand leads a small fellowship in Chanakya’s home.
As Pastor Tarachand continues to minister, he prays that many more in Chanakya’s village will come to know the Lord. And now, because of three simple water filters, there is truly hope that they will.
