A Crusade in Every Living Room

October 1, 2006 - The World Television Project, also known as My Hope, has proclaimed the Gospel to millions of people in 18 countries since 2002. More than 6.4 million people have made decisions for Christ. Following are some stories of God changing lives through the World Television Project.

by Decision staff

Seraswathi sits on a mat in a small shack in southern India, working at her family’s incense-making business. Along with three others, she takes thin sticks from a bundle, rolls them back and forth on a small table with a gum resin dough, and finishes with an outer layer of powder. Seraswathi works quickly; each stick takes only seconds to complete. But the work is dull and repetitive.

These days, however, Seraswathi and co-worker Munirethnam do more than produce incense as they work side by side. They talk about their newfound faith in Jesus. They committed their lives to Christ when a local pastor showed the My Hope program on TV at Christmastime.

Seraswathi’s entire family accepted Christ, and already they have learned that God answers prayer, as one son has been given the opportunity to attend school at no cost. “After seeing the My Hope program, I realized that Jesus is our hope,” Seraswathi says. “That was the happiness that came to my heart.”

In Peru, a man sat alone in his home one evening last October. His wife had left him because he’d had an affair with another woman. Shortly after that, the other woman left him, too. Depressed, he turned on the television and came across a My Hope broadcast. The message moved him and he called the My Hope call center. After praying for forgiveness and salvation with a phone volunteer, he said, “I have a new strength.”

In Russia, a 23-year-old woman named Inna attended a World TV Project video mission for the hearing impaired. Her life was an unhappy one because her family didn’t want to learn sign language and communicate with her. But that evening she accepted Christ and gained a new outlook on life.

“I want to learn about Jesus Christ and have His Spirit inside me,” she said. “I want the Holy Spirit to show me how to live. I want to have eternal life.”

Mary Ganta may not seem like a typical evangelist. The 48-year-old mother of four stands less than 5 feet tall and lives in a small house in southern India, 10 kilometers from the village where she grew up. But her ministry, motivated by love for Jesus and for those who need Him, has reached hundreds.

Shortly before last Christmas, she went door to door and invited the entire village—nearly 500 people—to watch the My Hope broadcasts at the house of her brother, who still lives in the village. “Please come and see a program on the life of Jesus Christ,” Mary would say.

Nearly 100 people came to watch, and 20 committed their lives to Jesus Christ. Now, she returns weekly to the village to meet with the new believers and teaches them more about Jesus. Three people are ready to confess their faith publicly through baptism.

“I accepted Jesus,” Mary says. “Now I am living happily, so I want the same thing to happen in my home village. That’s why I went and told the people.”

Not only do individuals come to Christ through World TV Project; many churches grow as well. Prem Kumar, pastor at a Pentecostal Assembly in India, saw the number of cell groups in his church double from 10 to 20 as a result of My Hope, and about 20 new believers were scheduled to be baptized in September.

New believers in India sometimes face resistance and even persecution for their faith, but God is able to sustain them in spite of human opposition. One woman has been warned by her husband, “If you go to church, when you come home the door will be locked.” Now, in order to attend church, she takes a shopping bag, stays at the church for only half an hour and then, to avoid suspicion, goes to the market and does her shopping. “She loves Jesus, and she is growing,” her pastor says.

In India, a man named Vadivel, who now goes by the Christian name of Jacob, says, “Once, I was sick and was admitted into the hospital. I learned a little bit about Jesus there. I went to the chapel and people prayed for me. I prayed, too, but I didn’t know Jesus. After I saw the My Hope TV program, I came to know that Jesus is the Savior. Previously, I would drink goat blood at the temple. A spirit would come and I would be possessed and get power. Now I know Jesus is the Savior. I no longer worship those idols. I am so happy now.”

World TV Project at a Glance
BGEA has record of more than 6.4 million people in some 2.2 million homes who have made commitments to Christ.

Upcoming Countries:

Mexico — November
More than 20,000 churches are expected to participate. This is the largest number of churches involved in any World TV Project country in Latin America. Church leaders are praying that Christians will host evangelistic house parties.

The Philippines — December
The country consists of 79 provinces spread across more than 7,100 islands. Project leaders hope to recruit and train 20,000 pastors.

Get Involved
Like the Apostle Matthew (Luke 5:27-32), and like millions of believers around the world, consider how you might invite friends and neighbors into your home in order to introduce them to Jesus.