Stitched Back Together: A Journey of Self-Reliance

Swapna and her husband were married for 16 years but had no children. Because of this, her husband left her and married another woman who already had a child. During this time, she went through deep depression and mental pain. In her weak state, she signed the divorce papers without fully understanding what was happening. Even after the separation and her husband’s second marriage, they met again for a short time as she was not willing to walk away from him. During this period, Swapna became pregnant. She later gave birth to a baby boy. Her husband, meanwhile, had two daughters with his second wife. After some time, the second wife took him away completely, and Swapna was forced to return to her parents’ home. For a long time, she lived in isolation at her parents’ house. She did not come out or talk to anyone. She spent most of her time praying and reading the Bible. Her life slowly began to change when she joined WISHALL’s Transformation Group.

Through the group, Swapna earned some loving friends who supported her and taught her to learn to save money. Then she was included in a work project. They also encouraged her to learn tailoring and she started working on her own. Today, she has no contact with her husband and receives no financial support from him. She is raising her son by herself, who is now in second grade. People who know Swapna speak about her amazing transformation. She was once afraid to even speak to others, but today she is confident, emotionally strong, and fully independent.

Beyond Personal Neglect to Professional Success

Sarah, a woman from one of the WISHALL’s Transformation Groups is a standing evidence on how a community could influence the life of a vulnerable woman. She was a home maker and has never been out without her husband. But after the loss of her husband seven years ago, this woman was in isolaton with no support and confidence. But this transitioned from a life of isolation to one of empowered self-reliance through her involvement with the WISHALL’s Transformation Group.

Initially she was confined to her home and hesitant to interact with others, the group’s supportive environment gave her the confidence to learn professional tailoring at WISHALL tailouring institute. Though she struggled at early the stages to find resilience in herself, eventually she raised high and also purchase her own sewing machine through a group-sponsored loan. Her journey toward financial independence reached a significant milestone when a fellow member, helped her secure a job at a Sambrani company, where she now earns a steady daily wage of 450 rupees. This income, totaling approximately 10,800 rupees per month, allows her to provide for her two children and fund their school and college education.

Despite her long working hours at the factory, she continues to utilize her tailoring skills in the evenings by sewing clothes for her neighbors. Today, she credits the intervention, mentorship and prayers of her group members for her transformation into a skilled, hardworking woman who can confidently navigate the world and provide a stable future for her family

Juliet is one of the members of the PALA Transformation Group at Tondiyarpet. She is the president of the group. Though she born as Christian didn’t know to pray and meditate. She felt guilty and sad about it. 

She was invited to the Peace Centre on Fridays by the hub leaders. Peace Centre is a group of women gather on Fridays to worship the Lord, sharing God’s word and pray for each other and for their community people. 

Juliet joined Peace Centre and participated in the gathering on every Fridays, which brought peace to her heart and hope in her life. She is gently prompted to pray during the prayer time and has the opportunity to hear the word of the Lord. And she can freely ask questions and clarify doubts.

She then attended a special prayer meeting. Through these experiences she is able to pray with the word of God and she desired to start a new small prayer group to spread the God’s word. But she doubted and asked God;I have no one to share your word with. In response, she began to pray for members of the PALA Transformation Group. She encourages group members with God’s words as members share their problems. It instills confidence and motivation among group members. The Lord’s words she spoke brought great change and the prayer requests of the group members were fulfilled. So now PALA transformation Group members worship and pray after their regular weekly meeting.

Sharing by Juliet: My name alone indicates that I am a Christian, but I don’t know how to pray. I felt sad about it for many days. I learned that talking to God and sharing our hearts is called prayer when I attended the Peace Center through Sister Mrs. Elizabeth. Now I can pray for myself and others. I am very happy that the members of the PALA Transformation Group sing songs to the Lord after our regular meetings and pray for everyone. My team members share testimonies. 

I am so happy that I can share God’s words with these people and they all listen with interest. I share what I have learned from the Peace Center and church services. Now I am bold and confident to share about the Lord. I praise God for this change and blessing in my life.”