Saved from death and lifted from the ash heap – a testimony by Santosh Kumar

I was born in a Hindu family at Munnar in Kerala.

My mother was a devout Hindu who used to visit many temples. Back then, we didn’t understand that there was a living God who loved and cared for us deeply.

My childhood was quite miserable and I was always unhappy. My father was a drunkard and he used to come home drunk and beat my mother, brothers and sisters. My mother had to work very hard to bring us up.

Subsequently she came across some Christian prayer groups and found great comfort and joy in their fellowship. Later, she accepted Jesus as her personal Savior and Lord. Her faith in Jesus became very strong and she started leading many to the Lord.  But none of us as children could accept her new faith.  We asked her to give up her faith and her new God. 

But she was uncompromising about her faith and said that even if the whole world stood against her, she wouldn’t give up her Lord. 

She continued to be very strong and active in her prayers, leading multitudes of people to the Lord.

I was the youngest of seven children. All my brothers and sisters were very intelligent and brilliant in their studies, but I was considered quite slow and dull witted.  It was inconceivable for me to pass even a small and simple test. Though I tried really hard, I failed in my class 10 twice.

I developed a huge sense of inferiority and I tried to avoid everyone and everything. I started to think that I was a massive burden to my family and the world; and thoughts of taking my own life began to churn within me.  

At that time I was working in a medical shop. I learnt about each medicine very quickly and one evening, I took 106 very powerful  and potent sleeping pills and without telling anyone, I went into a thick jungle on a high mountain and consumed all of them.

During that time, I was staying with the family of the owners of the medical shop and I used to go to my house once a month or so. They did not know that I was really missing. So both the families did not look for me for three days.  On the third day someone happened to pass by and saw me lying in the jungle near a public cemetery. He informed my brothers and I was rushed to a nearby hospital. 

The doctors said that there was nothing they could do and that I was almost dead. There was no sign of blood pressure, body temperature or pulse. My brothers informed all our dear ones and started making preparations for my burial. 

Hearing this my mother rushed to the hospital, sobbing uncontrollably.

When the doctors said that there was no hope for her son, she started calling out to the Lord. 

She prayed, “Jesus, You raised Lazarus from the dead.  Can’t You save my child?”

Suddenly she heard a voice clearly speaking to her, “Don’t weep, your child will live.”

She knew Jesus had spoken to her. She believed that Jesus had always been faithful to her and that He would fulfill His promise. She wiped her tears and kept praising and thanking the Lord.

While I was in the hospital bed, I saw many visions of hell. I saw a huge, fearsome beast walking towards me. The earth shook as he moved. I knew he would drag me to hell. I wanted to call out for help, but couldn’t.

Suddenly I saw a great fire descend from heaven and burn this beast from head to foot. He stood there, unable to move.  At last he fell down and lay before my eyes like a huge mountain of  black coal.  I saw many other visions of  hell but at that time I did not  understand what they meant because I had never read the Bible. 

My mother kept praying through it all. For the next three days nothing happened and my condition remained the same. But she did not  give up her hope. 

On the fourth day, my condition began to change. The temperature of my body began to rise, blood pressure rose steadily and breathing became normal. I began to recover unbelievably fast. 

On the seventh day, I walked out of the hospital in perfect health, leaving the doctors incredibly surprised. My mother was elated because Jesus had fulfilled His promise to her. But I still had no faith in her God.

I felt rather frustrated and even more unhappy because all I wanted was to die and my attempt had failed.

I had no idea what the future would hold. Being a very slow  person, I had nothing better to expect than doing some odd jobs here and there. However,  my brothers and sisters compelled me to attempt the 10th standard examination once again.

I knew I would never get through the examination, but I submitted to their request. I appeared for the examination for the third time and somehow, I passed with really low marks.

One day my mother asked me if I liked to go for further studies. The idea seemed funny to me because it was out of the question for a person like me to go to college, but I gave in to her request.

There were about 20 students in the class. I was really reluctant to interact with any of them because I felt that I was inferior to them.

But at that point, I began to notice some unbelievable changes in my life.

I was able to understand what the teachers taught. I began to get good marks in all the tests and exams. Most often than not, I stood first in my class.

It was unbelievable. All my teachers and classmates who became friends, began to encourage and appreciate me. Everyone began to treat me with love and care.

I had no idea what was happening to me. I could sense a great power guiding me and working through me especially in my studies. 

When the results of the final exams came, I stood first in the district.

Everything seemed like a wild dream. I thought that they had made some mistake by entering the wrong marks in my mark sheet. It took many more years for me to realize that my mother’s God had already started doing miracles in my life.

Finally in the course of time, I realized that some unknown power was working in my life. For the first time in my life I believed in my mother’s prayers. I felt sure that her God was guiding and helping me all the while even when I did not love Him or believe in Him.

It hit me how ungrateful I had been to Him and how blind I was. I accepted Him into my life as my  Lord and Savior. I surrendered my life completely to Him. I began to read the Bible and started living according to the Scriptures, and God began to shower His blessings in every area of my life.

I completed B.A, M.A. and B.Ed (training for teachers) with high marks. I got the first rank at state level in the test and interview conducted  for the selection of English lecturers.

Today I am working as an English teacher in Oman. In March 2006, I got an  award for being an outstanding English teacher.

Today, Jesus is my best friend. I am not ashamed to proclaim His wonderful name wherever I am. He has used me for His glory by allowing me to share the Good News with others whenever I get an opportunity. I have committed myself to serving the Lord most faithfully until I die.

I wasted many years in my ignorance, but I will remain faithful to the Lord until I breathe my last.

-Santosh Kumar

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