TRANSCRIPT

NATHAN JONES

This month, we head to Madagascar to meet Ranja Ramoromanana, who is a teacher dedicated to spreading the gospel among young people, including those who are deaf and hard of hearing.

I'm your host, Nathan Jones, and thank you again for joining me on this episode of the Inspiring Stewards podcast.

Ranja, thank you for joining me. I would love to start with you sharing a little bit about your background. Where are you from? And tell us about your life growing up.

RANJA RAMOROMANANA

My name is Ranja Ramaromanana, and everyone calls me Ranja. I come from Antananarivo, the capital city of Madagascar. I was born into a Christian family. Both of my parents were Christians, deeply converted and actively practicing their faith. This is true real grace that God gave us.

Before my personal encounter with Jesus, from an early age, my parents shared the message of Jesus with us. We had family devotion every evening, attending church every Sunday, and faith was part of our daily life. But I don't understand what does it mean.

But I loved going to church, to do Sunday school and Saturday school, to go to the children camp. I loved worshipping together with my family. Looking back, I believe it was a great blessing from God to grow up in family like this.

When my father was still alive, he often shared with me that having Jesus in one's life is more important than other things. At the time, I did not fully understood what he meant. From my birth until my conversion, my life revolved around family, church, school and also many moments of joy, games, and laughter with my family.

NATHAN

Tell us, how did you come to personal relationship with Jesus, and what difference did that make in your life?

RANJA

My encounter with Jesus was the most beautiful things that have ever happened in my life. I thank the Lord for revealing Himself to me and forgiving me. I shared earlier, I have already spoken about my childhood. I truly thought I was already converted, but the answer was no.

I loved studying. That came as a kind of competition between me and my brothers, and also with my friends at church. I often did very well. But during my teenager years, I began to think that I was the best. Then, my score decreased, and one day I failed an exam. That was actually the moment when I truly met the Lord, because God used that failure for my conversion.

When I failed that exam, I was deeply sad and cried and asked many questions. “Why Lord? Why I'm here?” It was the first time I was no longer the best, and I feared that everyone would mock me. I stayed at home, didn't want to go out, and even talk to my parents.

One afternoon while watching television, God visited me in a very personal way. There was an evangelistic program, and that kept my attention. The speaker said that life itself is also an exam, and without Jesus, you will fail it.

He shared from John 3:36, which says, “But whoever has Jesus has eternal life, but whoever does not (have) Jesus does not have eternal life.” He added that Jesus loves you, and died for you on the cross for your sins, and that He wants to be your greatest reward.

That evening on July 14, 2010, I was alone at home, and those words kept knocking in my mind and in my heart. I understood that without Jesus, I was lost. I had failed an exam at school, but there was another exam: to have eternal life or eternal separation from God.

At that night, I prayed sincerely to Jesus. I asked Him to forgive all my sins, especially my pride and my spirit of competition. But above all, I confessed that I was a sinner. I repented, and I accepted Jesus into my heart. After that prayer, I had a deep desire to follow Jesus and to know Jesus more than anything else, and I wanted to be baptised.

My friends noticed the change and said to me, “You have changed.” I told them about Jesus, and some of them said, “You're going to become a little Jesus.” They mocked me, but I had already decided, and I know that Jesus is most important now.

I followed Jesus, and I finally understood what true conversion means by the grace of God. The change in my heart was radical. I began to understand the Bible when I read it, and I still do today. I know now that I have eternal life with Jesus. I chose to follow Jesus and to share with my friends.

I share Jesus with my friends because this is a mission. It is dangerous to go to church without truly encountering Jesus, and Jesus becomes important to me than my achievements. I understood and discovered the joy of belonging to the family of God.

I was baptised on February 2014, and I have been serving in our church.

NATHAN

Wonderful. Thank you for sharing. Can you catch us up to what does your life in ministry look like today?

RANJA

After my baptism, God began to use me to share the gospel with the children too. From the time of my baptism until today, this has been the ministry God placed in my heart. God gave me the gift of teaching, and I chose to invest that gift in reaching children with the gospel.

When I reflect on my childhood, I see that this is one of the reasons behind that calling. It is also an act of obedience to God's word, which says in Proverbs 22:6, “Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old, he will not depart from it.”

Children are the future, and reaching out for them matters deeply. I teach in Sunday school and Saturday school too, and I'm also involved in the Emmanuel ministry. Emmanuel means God is with us. Through this ministry, we share the gospel to the young and teenagers. We also go to the rural area to share the gospel. We aim to give them hope and a new perspective in life to give them an academic support.

And in 2020, after the death of my father, God began to lead me into another ministry with deaf persons. This was something completely new for me, yet after meeting a deaf person, I felt compelled to share the love of Jesus with them as well. I began organizing prayer cells and helping lead this ministry with joy.

We train people to learn sign language. We share the gospel to the deaf person and translate for the deaf person at church or when he needs it. We also create videos to share with the deaf person about the gospel and Christian life.

NATHAN

Wonderful. Well, this being the Inspiring Stewards podcast, how does the principle of stewardship impact your life?

RANJA

Managing what God has given me is a daily challenge. The way I live is by being faithful in everything God has entrusted to me and by remaining faithful in everyday life. It also means being responsible with my words and striving to be a light in this world. How to do? What do I do in practical ways?

For example, in children's ministry, I take my commitment seriously. I do not take my responsibility lightly. I prepare myself before each time of teaching and faithfully share the Word with children.

In the ministry among the deaf, I serve as a leader. I try to remain faithful to this calling to serve with excellence and with joy in the Lord. I may not have much materially, but I have Jesus and His Word, the life He has given, and even technology as those for this ministry, such as Facebook.

And in my daily life, living according to biblical principles and value, can sometimes feel like a battle among those who are not believers. But it's a pleasure to praise Lord.

I do it for Jesus because bearing witness to Him in our surroundings is more important than my personal comfort. The Bible inspires me to live my life like Christ and become more like Him. I follow Him with joy and peace, knowing that I am only passing through this world, but heaven is eternal.

NATHAN

Wonderful, thank you for sharing. How are you seeing God at work uniquely in our world today?

RANJA

Jesus tell us that we are living in the last day, and the time will be difficult for us as Christians. Yet God is still doing great things and powerful things, and until He returns, His grace remains available.

Today, God's work continues to spread, and I desire to see it grow continually. Even when it is challenging because the human heart can be hard, thanks be to God because He is still working until He returns. 

NATHAN

Ranja, thank you for your time today. Is there any final thought you'd like to leave those listening with?

RANJA

I would like to share this message. If you are a Christian, let us live our daily lives with gratitude to our God, striving each day to become more like Christ and to remain faithful to His calling through our actions and through love.

And if you are not yet a believer, know that God truly loves you. He desires to give you an eternal life through Jesus, to be with Him forever. Life here on the earth is only a journey, but eternity is our greatest test. Only Jesus enables us to pass it, for He alone is the way and the life. No matter your past, Jesus welcomes you and forgives you. The only thing you need to do is repent and accept Him into your heart.

NATHAN

Amen. Thank you, Ranja. I appreciate it. Blessings.

RANJA

Thank you.