FCBH turns fear to hope in Zambia

LUSAKA, Zambia — Hearing the Word of God spoken in your own language for the first time can be a very moving experience. For many people, it gives direct and unprecedented access to the Scriptures, either because they cannot read or because the printed Scriptures are not available in their own language.

The Faith Comes By Hearing (FCBH) program has allowed the Word of God to enter many people’s lives in spoken form on audio cassette. Testimonies from individual participants bear witness to the dramatic changes that can take place as a result.

In Zambia, hearing an FCBH recording in a village church was a turning point in the life of Naomi (not her real name). After the death of her husband, she had become the victim of psychological and physical persecution by his family, in line with the common Zambian practice of blaming the woman for her husband’s death.

Consumed by grief, fear and shame, she turned to the village church for help. It was here that she heard a recording of the New Testament in Chichewa (Chewa), which is spoken by around 200,000 people in western Zambia. She realised that she was still loved by Jesus and that she need no longer feel fearful. Blessing those who cursed her, Naomi proclaimed the day to be a new day. (WR 372/23 - 11.02)