When Aina heard the gospel for the first time, he felt betrayed. At a Christian camp outside his hometown of Antananarivo, Madagascar, he was suddenly confronted with years of buried pain.
“The man who preached the gospel talked about God as the Father. He introduced God as our Dad, our Daddy, and I didn’t want to hear it. I was so mad. I kept saying, ‘I don’t want that God.’ I was not interested, because the dad I had was terrible. I wanted to say, no thank you. I’m good.”
I kept saying, "I don’t want that God."
But God’s Word pierced Aina’s defenses. After years of being held captive to rage and bitterness, hope began to break through. For the first time, Aina believed that someone could love him.
“I wanted to have a second dad. It was a crucial moment for me. It was not the pastor and not the preaching that touched my heart; it was the Word of God.”
Letting Go of a Broken Past
Aina’s childhood was marked by abuse and heavy responsibility.
“When I was eight years old, I used to wake up at two in the morning to bake all sorts of things to sell. Then at 5 a.m., I would carry heavy bags to sell on the side of the road. After that, I would go to school and just be exhausted. When I would fall asleep in school, my teachers thought I was lazy or stupid. But no one knew how hard my life was at home. I was one of the key people providing for my family.”
“My dad was drunk six days a week and my parents fought constantly. No child should ever have to live like that. I was angry and even my friends were scared of me at times.”
At 19, Aina accepted Christ as his Savior—and everything changed.
“I cried for two days straight. I was just overwhelmed. When I went to spend time with my old friends, I didn’t want to do anything they were doing. I just wanted to learn more about God, so I started reading the Bible.”
That year, he joined BSF.
“For the first time, I felt loved, accepted, and forgiven.”
I realized that I would never get my stolen childhood back. So I released it.
Still, releasing years of hurt was not easy. Bitterness threatened to steal the new joy Aina discovered. Finally, through prayer and God’s Word, Aina found strength to let go.
“I realized that I would never get my stolen childhood back. So I released it. I let my dad go. When you let go of bitterness, it’s for yourself. You give your heart a second chance to recover. And now, it’s like God is telling me that He is my Dad. When I pray, it’s like I’m talking to someone so close to me, like I’m talking to the Dad I always wanted.”
Embracing God’s Call to Build Today
Today, Aina has three daughters who all attend BSF. His wife is a BSF leader, and her father became the earthly father figure Aina prayed for years ago.
But God’s work in Aina extends far beyond his family. The pain that could have kept him from loving others now fuels his compassion.
Aina connects children in abusive situations with safe families. He partners with schools to provide scholarships for kids and young adults who have missed educational opportunities. And when adults wrestle with past wounds, he listens—and helps them reclaim childhood dreams like visiting the beach or learning to ride a bike.
Because Aina discovered that a broken past doesn’t have to define us. Through healing in Christ, we can build lives of faith and share the gospel wherever God calls us.
Adversity is often the very place where God shapes deep faith.
The Bible reminds us that adversity is often the very place where God shapes deep faith. Daniel, torn from his family and carried into exile, could have surrendered to bitterness. Instead, he placed his future in God’s hands. In the face of trials, Daniel remained faithful. God used his obedience to influence kings and impact generations of His people.
For Aina, releasing his past was only the beginning of God’s plan.
“It took a while, but I finally started to ask my dad to share his own story. I started to understand his behavior and to pray for him. It’s still heavy on my heart. I shared the gospel with my dad, and he has yet to be born again. But I have let go of the bitterness. I’m passionate about helping others experience the forgiveness I have discovered in Christ.”