SARAH Shiranee Samuel stands as a testimony of a woman who has shaken the dust and risen above her trials to reach out to others through her ministry, Oushadam Ministries. Based in Chennai, Oushadam Ministries was founded in 2000 and  specializes in reaching out to broken homes. Widowed a few years ago, and mother to four girls, she is dedicated to cheering up broken hearts. She is the granddaughter of late Rev G P Vethanayagam Pillai (who served as pastor of Thirumangalam CSI church in  Madurai, Tamil Nadu). Sarah has written several songs in Tamil. ‘Isravelle nee ennal marraka paduvathilalai’, a popular composition, was written, composed and sung by her. THE CHRISTIAN MESSENGER spoke to her about how the Lord has ordained every single step in her life. Excerpts from the interview: 

When did your journey in faith begin? 

I was a radio singer and violinist in church during my youth days in Sri Lanka but I was never much into the Lord.  I was married when I was 19 and it was then that I accepted the Lord. Soon, I had four daughters, one after another. Life was tough as a mother but I could not do much for the Lord at that time except to be a sincere and a dutiful mother and minister to my children. But even during those busy days, the Lord used me to comfort others. I used to take up the telephone directory and send ‘Jesus loves you’ postcards to people at random!

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Did you have a special calling to start this ministry? 

Yes. After all my daughters were married, I was so exhausted with life that I literally begged the Lord to me take away from the earth. But instead of taking my life, the Lord taught me a wonderful lesson. I fell very ill and had to be rushed to the hospital. There I understood the value of life and pleaded with the Lord to give me one more chance. I also promised the Lord to invest in His Kingdom if He would make me well again. In a vision, Jesus Christ told me He will increase my years just so that I will comfort the destitute. I re-dedicated my life and the Lord immediately restored my health. Jesus also gave me the promise as in Isaiah 61:10 that He would use me as stated in the beginning of the chapter. After this, He began to minister to me in a unique way. Every time I read the Bible, the Lord gave me tunes to the verses I read. Soon they became whole songs. Whenever people came to me with a prayer request, the Lord gave them the answers through verses in a song format. Soon, I started regular Friday meetings just to console and deliver people from their bondages.  

Your ministry has a unique name – Oushadam. What does it mean? 

‘Oushadam’ is a Tamil word that comes in the book of Proverbs. It means healing. I believe the Lord has given me the gift of comforting others and reaching out to broken hearts like a mother. My first name Sarah means the mother of all nations and indeed the Lord is using me in this ministry as a mother to comfort and heal the wounded and the neglected in society.  

What kind of outreach work does Oushadam ministries do? 

As I said earlier, a lot of the songs the Lord gave me, ministered to people. We supply most of these freely to people in need through CDs, VCDs and DVDs.  We also publish a monthly magazine named Oushadam in English and Tamil. It is circulated mainly in hospitals, jails and destitute homes. I also engage in telephone ministry where I take time and personally counsel and pray with the person who needs help. I also take up one-to-one counselling sessions on Friday evening with appointments.  We also reply to personal problems through the letter-writing ministry where we pray and then reply individually to people only what the Lord counsels.  The Lord has also opened doors for us in television channels like Win TV, Arulvakku TV and Ark TV where we have a regular weekly session called ‘Kudumba Alosanai Neram’ (Family Counselling Time) for I believe most of today’s problems crop up because of broken homes. 

What are your plans for Oushadam ministries? 

The Lord has been guiding us to open a destitute home. We are waiting for His direction. So far, we have placed a lot of widows, orphans and destitute women in different Christian homes. We have also given them employment according to their abilities and helped them to stand on their own feet. Every month, we visit widows in different areas, conduct prayer meetings and distribute rice, groceries and other household goods that they may require. We hope to start a unit to cater to the same, all under one roof sometime in the future. 

What message would you like to give Christian women today? 

Be sincere and patient in whatever you do. And more than anything, practise holiness as a way of life. Remember, for every tiny holy sacrifice that you do, the Lord will richly reward you. I have seen that in my life and I stand as a testimony for that today.   

Shiranee Samuel can be contacted at: Oushadam Ministries, No 71, Ganapathy Street, West Mambalam, Chennai 600 033. Email: oushadamministries@yahoo.com; Ph: 91-9841566825; 044-24848779. Art Corner

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