I still remember the day a local pastor called me from one of the villages in Malaysia while I was serving there as a missionary.
She said, “Sister Mei, there are many Vietnamese women here — they came after marrying the men from our village. They don’t know the language, and many are struggling. Can you come help them, share the Gospel, and teach them the Word of God?”
That’s where I met Kieu.
Faith in the Fire
She had been born in poverty and longed for a better life. So when a marriage agency offered her family money and promised that marrying a foreigner could change her future, she said yes — believing it was her chance at hope.
But when she arrived, she quickly discovered that her husband was the head of a violent gang and a drug dealer. Her dream of a new beginning vanished overnight.
When we began our weekly Bible gatherings in that little village, Kieu came faithfully— quiet, humble, and deeply hungry for truth. I watched her fall in love with Jesus — the One who saw her, rescued her, and began healing the places no one else could touch.
When Faith Doesn’t Make Sense
We prayed together for years. Every morning at 5 a.m., she would be at the church on her knees — interceding for her husband. There were many days she could have given up. But she didn’t. She would tell me, “I know God can change him.”
And honestly, I remember thinking — she’s still so new in her faith, yet her trust runs deeper than most who have walked with God for years.
I wasn’t sure I could have stayed with a man like him — one who forced her to serve his clients while they were high. But she did. She chose love over fear, and obedience over escape.
She began to see her husband not as her enemy, but as a soul imprisoned by darkness — someone hungry for God’s love.
Kieu told me, the Word of God keeps coming to me:
“If someone is hungry, feed them. If thirsty, give them a drink. If a stranger, invite them in. If naked, clothe them. If sick, care for them. If in prison, visit them.”- (Matthew 25)
Those verses became her compass.
She served her husband, honored him, and spoke life over him — even when he cursed her faith or mocked her hope.
She said to me one day, “I have to protect my home from the spirit of destruction. I want my children to know that Jesus never fails.”
And He didn’t.
A Miracle After Ten Years
Ten years later — after I had already moved to America — I returned to Malaysia to visit the women.
When Kieu saw me, she ran to me with tears streaming down her face.
“Mei!” she cried,
“God changed him! My husband is a believer now! He left his old life, got a good job, and he is such a good father!”
I’ll never forget that moment. We stood there weeping, overwhelmed by the faithfulness of God.
Since then, Kieu has traveled to different churches, sharing her story and encouraging others to keep trusting God — no matter how impossible things look.
Kieu’s life still reminds me again of what the Lord whispered to me not long ago.
“I will be with you, and I will not fail you.”
He didn’t fail her.
And He will not fail you.
Anh (Mei) Powers
Prophetic Teacher & Missionary • Raise the Nations
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