[Note: The Southeastern team has returned home but their stories continue pouring in. -mReport]

*Pratima’s husband beats her because she is a believer. If she goes to church, he beats her when she returns. Once, he beat her about the head to the point that she cried out in the name of Jesus. When she collapsed under the attack, he stopped.

Autumn, a member of the Southeastern team, listened intently as Pratima shared her story. As she listened, she sympathized with Pratima and with her daughter, *Lavanya, a young girl with a beautiful smile, pretty pigtails, and crippled legs.

Autumn and her translators shared stories from the Bible to encourage and comfort Pratima and Lavanya. As the team prepared to leave, Pratima asked them to wait.

“I want you to share these stories with my husband,” Pratima explained. “If he could just hear the stories and see that other people are believing this, he might believe. I want him to hear these stories. I want you to share with him.”

Autumn and her translators agreed to wait. As they waited, they prayed that Pratima’s husband would return.

“For whatever reason he didn’t [come back] that day,” Autumn said. “That was a little discouraging.”

As the team prepared to leave, they led Pratima and Lavanya in prayer. Although Pratima had not asked for prayer for her daughter, Autumn felt compelled to pray for healing.

“It didn’t happen,” Autumn said. “I really wanted it to happen, but that’s not what God wanted to happen.”

Although healing did not come to Lavanya, Pratima was encouraged and thankful that the team had come.

“She is not able to meet with other believers,” Autumn said, “To have us come into her home – that was her church.”

*Names changed