Nominal Faith Made Personal
Chapal’s family considered themselves to be Christians, but from the outside looking in, you wouldn’t have guessed it. They didn’t have Christ-centered lifestyles, and Chapal never attended church or other Christian activities.
It’s too bad Chapal didn’t know Jesus personally in his early teens, because he certainly could have used His guidance. Chapal ignored his parents when they encouraged him to study, so he did quite poorly in school. Life wasn’t all that easy at home, either—Chapal’s dad was hardly around due to his work as a carpenter, and his mom had health problems that confined her to the house. Being illiterate themselves, Chapal’s parents were both discouraged by his lack of effort in school and wanted more for him.
Your support of Year-Long Children’s Bible Clubs made all the difference for this family! Through your prayers and gifts, a woman named Odathi was trained and equipped to launch a Bible Club in Chapal’s neighborhood.
While Chapal wasn’t interested in the Bible Club at first, he couldn’t help but notice how much fun the other local children were having there day after day. Eventually, thanks to a personal invitation from Odathi, Chapal decided to give it a try.
To keep him engaged, Odathi gave Chapal a few responsibilities during his time at the Bible Club, such as leading games for the younger children in attendance. This was incredibly effective! Chapal enjoyed taking on a leadership role, and as he saw how disciplined some of the younger children were, he was inspired to become more disciplined himself, starting with his studies.
Odathi not only encouraged Chapal in his academics, but also in his spiritual life. She taught him how to pray to Jesus and shared inspiring Bible stories that Chapal had never heard before. Little by little, Chapal was growing in Christ—praying and reading the Bible at home, and even attending church on Sundays. This completely changed his outlook on life! He improved in school and even started helping his mom with household responsibilities.
We praise God that Chapal has developed a personal relationship with Christ, changing him from the inside out!
