Ismat* had followed Jesus for months now … and he desperately wanted to see his parents receive the gift of grace he had received.
As a teenager, he was supposed to follow their rules and their ways. They weren’t supposed to listen to him. Yet somehow he knew this message would be important.
His parents had noticed the change in him, but they started to wonder why his life was different than before.
One day, Ismat and his parents both got the opportunity they had been looking for.
Ismat and his house church decided to join with other house churches to celebrate one of the national festivals of their country in Southeast Asia. Parents, children, and others all joined together for food and worship.
As Ismat’s parents watched him worship with his friends and listened closely to the words they sang, they began to understand. And as the house church leader got up to teach, they understood even more. It was Jesus that changed him.
As they heard the story of Christ, they both felt tears well up in their eyes. They realized they wanted to change too. They wanted to feel this love and forgiveness that had transformed their son.
And that day, they chose to follow Christ and make their family whole for eternity.
*Name changed for security reasons.