Kusumawathie Perera

One morning I was riding a bus to Colombo, the capital city of Sri Lanka. I saw Francis, a long-time family friend, sitting nearby. I hadn’t seen him in a long time, and was surprised to learn that he had become a Seventh-day Adventist. I, too had become a Christian two years earlier.

Image © Krieg Barrie from GoodSalt.com

I was paralyzed and unable to do anything, I told Francis. Then some Christians prayed for me, and God healed me. I attended their church, but some things they do in their worship service make me uncomfortable— jumping around, shouting and rolling on the floor, and talking in strange languages. Lately, I haven’t gone to church.

Francis offered to bring a friend to visit me. We can study the Bible together. I’ll tell you a little about the Adventists and what we believe, he offered.

A few weeks later, Francis came with his pastor. We had a pleasant visit, and the pastor talked about God and Jesus in such simple and easy-to-understand language that I felt very close to Him. Then he prayed for my family and me. His prayer was like a beautiful conversation with a friend.

Francis and the pastor visited often and shared God’s truths with me. I enjoyed the Bible studies, but my husband wanted nothing to do with God.

One day, my husband came home drunk when the pastor and Francis were still there. My husband often got drunk, sometimes becoming violent, breaking up the furniture and terrifying the children and me.

When the pastor saw my husband’s condition, he prayed for him. I knew that my husband would never remember even seeing the pastor, but I was glad that the pastor was willing to pray for him.

The next morning my husband was sober. He remembered almost nothing of the previous day’s drinking binge, but he remembered that the pastor had prayed for him. In some mysterious way that prayer had touched him, and he said he was healed from drinking. I wanted to believe him, but he had promised to stop drinking before, and it never lasted. But from that day on, my husband never touched alcohol again.

When the pastor and Francis visited again, I told them what had happened to my husband, and we rejoiced together. When I completed Bible studies, I was baptized and became a Seventh-day Adventist. Although my husband has not yet given his life to God, I know he believes, and one day he will come to the Savior.

Kusumawathie Perera is a farmer’s wife in north-central Sri Lanka.

Produced by the General Conference Office of Adventist Mission.
Find more mission stories at www.adventistmission.org

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