Captured by a Proverb

Jia’s eyes caught a “wise saying” on the board and for some unknown reason it gripped his heart. He didn’t know it was from the Bible, but he knew it was important.

Jia is from a never reached people group in Southeast Asia that has no known believers. He was raised in a very remote northern province of his country and came to the provincial capital city to study at college to become a teacher.

While working at a restaurant to help pay for his school fees, Jia met a Christian cross-cultural worker and built a friendship with him. Out of that friendship, he became an employee at the worker’s Language and Skills Training Center—the business-as-mission platform in that country.

It was at that language center that Jia saw the “wise sayings” from the book of Proverbs. He had no idea they were the Word of God, but for some reason he felt a need to understand what they meant and began to ask questions about the source and meaning. Jia’s questions led to deeper conversations about the Bible, God as Creator, and His Son Jesus our Savior.

After several months of these questions and conversations concerning the proverbs, Jia decided to follow Jesus—making him the first known believer in the history of his people group! Now as a believer, Jia needs wisdom for how to navigate the tension between growing in his new faith while still honoring his parents when they require him to participate in Buddhist ancestor spirit worship ceremonies.