When he is one year old his mother commits suicide. As he tells his story to us, he does not mention his dad.
At age five, he and his older brother arrive at an orphanage in India. Thank God, his struggle-filled life changes during the 16 years he lives there.
At age 14 Nehemiah believes Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord. By age 21 he completes industrial training, leaves the orphanage, and enters the workplace as a respectful, responsible young adult.
But God is not finished developing him.
Nehemiah responds to God’s whispers. He studies diligently, embarking on and completing a Master of Arts in Sociology.
His heart aches for perishing souls and orphaned children. He begins part-time ministry in evangelism and church planting, alongside other young men, in villages scattered among the nearby hills.
But God continues to whisper. And Nehemiah continues to listen.
A few years ago our leadership team was at the Christian Alliance for Orphans Summit at Willow Creek Church. We were at a Mission to Children booth in their exhibition hall. Between summit workshops, a young Indian man approached me at our booth with a beaming smile.
He said, “I am here because of you.” Nehemiah had grown up in one of our sponsored children’s homes in India!
What did Nehemiah mean? Quickly I realized that it had little to do with me. Rather, Mission to Children supporters had helped provide shelter, food, and education for him and his brother during those desperate years. This “home” became the place where he was saved through the gospel.
Later, Nehemiah and his wife began to evangelize unreached people groups, lepers, and children. They launched and managed an orphanage for 68 marginalized children. That’s what brought him to the Christian Alliance for Orphans Summit that year.
Reach a child, transform a community
How I wish that the legacy supporters who had helped ensure Nehemiah was sheltered, fed, and educated in a gospel-centered environment could see him today–and see what God has done!
