A Tribute to My Angel Mother

Remembering Mrs. John.

Ramani Kurian has served the church as a teacher, headmistress, and principal of higher secondary school and also associate professor at Spicer College in Pune, India. At present she is the associate director of women’s ministries and Shepherdess International at the Southern Asia Division in Pune, India. She has three sons. Her hobbies are reading, writing, and visiting neighbors and friends along with her pastor-husband to pray for them and encourage them.

Yes, she was my angel mother, not my bio­logical mother. She was a shepherdess—a good shepherdess—who cared not only for the sheep but also for the lambs. To me she was an angel sent by heaven to pull me out from darkness—from hea­then beliefs and practices—to the marvelous light of Jesus, the truth.

She, along with her husband, Pr. C. N. John, came and settled down close to my home after retiring from active service in the mission field. I, the third of five children of an Orthodox Hindu family, was only a school-going girl at the time of their arrival. Though many other Christian families lived near my family, I noticed a difference in the newly-arrived family. The most important factor that caught my attention was that they worshipped God on Saturday, unlike the other Christian families in the area.

Besides, while the other Christians never bothered about the neighbors, Mrs. John tried to be friendly to everyone in the neighborhood, especially the women, irrespective of religion, caste, creed, or financial background. She invited them to her home and entertained them at times. She became “Ammachi” (beloved mother) to both young and old in and around the place. She befriended me, too. Through this friendly relationship with the members of the community, opportunities for Bible study classes developed, which were taken up by her husband during his retirement days.

Her efforts paved the way for spreading the three angels’ message, especially the Sabbath truth, which was very new around the place where she lived. The Bible study classes which started in her home led to several effort meetings which resulted in many baptisms and the establishment of a church near our home.

Mrs. John had a unique way of attracting people to the truth. Her simple, sacrificial living was one of them, which attracted me to the truth. She was a well-disciplined person, neat and clean in her deportment and in her behavior. She worked with her hands—she did all the household chores by herself, saving the money which could have been spent on servants and using it for alleviating the sufferings of the people in the community. She never had a telephone, awashing machine, a television, or any of the gadgets we considered luxury items those days, though she could have afforded to have them all. All the money saved and gathered from her rich relatives and friends was used to meet the needs of the unfortunate ones in the community. She was a Dorcas, stitching clothes with her own hands for the needy ones. That was my angel mother—a wonderful woman, a shepherdess.

She accepted the truth in spite of the objections raised by her rich and elite family; she had a great burden to let the people know the truth. Whenever there was an opportunity, she made use of it to reach out to the downtrodden, poor, and elite alike in her own unique way. Until she became bedridden in the last two years of her life, she kept in contact with society’s elite by sending them tracts and books. The fruit of her tireless labor will be seen in eternity.

For more than six years, she worked patiently with me to convince me of the living God and His plan of salvation for humanity. When I took my stand for the Lord, my family and friends rejected, insulted, and ridiculed me. She took me in and hid me under her protection from all kinds of ridicule and rejection. She has been my mother ever since, my angel mother who was sent by Heaven.

She found a pastor husband for me (which was also my wish), that I would be able to continue learning about the living God. My husband and I have been happily married for 32 years, and God has blessed us with three sons who are grounded in the truth.

Mrs. John was my strength in times of difficulties and trials. As I moved out from her care, serving the Lord in the mission field, she never forgot to write me. I received a letter or two weekly from her with words of encouragement and assurance from the Word of God that strengthened me and my family spiritually through the past 40 years. My angel mother is none other than Mrs. Sosamma John, who passed away on May 18, 2008, at the age of 89 in the residence of Dr. Lissie George, her beloved daughter.

She now rests, waiting for the melodious words of her Master: “Well done, good and faithful servant, enter into the joy of your Father.” I know I must live a holy life to reach eternity to meet my angel mother in the presence of my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. So I pray to the Lord to lead me through His righteous ways that I will be able to be a part of that joyous reunion. Would you like to be there?

 

Ramani Kurian has served the church as a teacher, headmistress, and principal of higher secondary school and also associate professor at Spicer College in Pune, India. At present she is the associate director of women’s ministries and Shepherdess International at the Southern Asia Division in Pune, India. She has three sons. Her hobbies are reading, writing, and visiting neighbors and friends along with her pastor-husband to pray for them and encourage them.