Ruth

One of our girls (age 7 or 8) recently told me about her family. *Ruth's the only Christian in her family, and when she goes home, her family asks her to sing and dance for them. Her father, before his death, said that he wanted Ruth to grow up to be a dancer, so her mother and step-father are trying to encourage her to dance. She refuses to go to a dance school, and when they ask her to dance at home, she tells them she cannot, because if she danced, she would make Jesus sad. Ruth has asked me to help her learn "Tell Me the Story of Jesus" in Bengali so she can sing it to her family next time she goes home on break.

Ruth told me that her uncle is an alcoholic, who beats his family. His first wife killed herself to escape his cruelty, leaving her baby girl to his tender mercies. Ruth feels a particular burden for her cousin, telling me that her new auntie hates the girl (now about 4 years old, I think) and her uncle and auntie starve the girl, feeding her only enough to keep her alive, and making her be a slave in her own home. The father wants to sell his daughter to be a slave, but refuses to sell her to Ruth's family, telling them he doesn't want his daughter to go to someone who will love her and take care of her. As a compromise, Ruth's uncle has agreed to let his daughter go to a boarding school, so Ruth (and I!) have been praying that the girl can come to Springs of Life. Please keep this situation in your prayers, as well.

*Not her real name