It felt like she had prayed to everyone. Begging through tears for help from Guru Nanak, Allah, Rama, Jesus, and Sai Baba, a teenage Surinder Kaur was desperate to perform well on her final exams at her new school in Roorkee, a city in the now state of Uttarakhand, India. Despite her pleas, Kaur barely passed the tests. The shame was so thick, Kaur writes at CT, that she considered ending her life.

While she planned and despaired, Kaur’s father determined that Kaur and her older sister should continue their studies in the Western city of Ahmednagar. There, a young woman named Anita shared the gospel with the two girls. Kaur’s sister accepted Christ. Kaur resisted.

But when exams drew closer, Kaur felt that familiar fear begin to grip her. She began to read the Bible. At first, everything she read was confusing. But one day, a single verse appeared magnified while the rest of the page grew dim. It was John 14:6 in which Jesus declares that he is the way, the truth, and the life. Eventually, Kaur came to faith.

While her life would continue to be filled with trials, Kaur, who is now the South Asia editor for Christianity Today, found purpose. When doubt rises within her, God brings verses to mind, encouraging her to persevere.

“My prayer is that he will enable me to walk in his most perfect ways until I finally see him face to face: my Redeemer, my Savior, and my Father,” writes Kaur. May our prayers be the same.