Memories of Charusheela Singha

by Travis Helm, Global Reach Assistant Director

On April 16, 2022, we lost Charusheela Singha to cancer, but we have a treasure of wonderful memories of how she impacted many lives and souls for the Kingdom. I first met Charusheela in September of 2015 when they visited the USA for the CGGC Missionary retreat at Eastern Region Conference Camp YoliJwa in Pennsylvania. I visited them in India the following month to get to know the India Mission staff and spend time with the Singha family. It was a wonderful time seeing the various regions of ministry and what God was accomplishing through Samir, Charusheela and the Mission staff. As I got to know Charusheela over the years and visits to India, I would best describe her as a quiet and meek woman who deeply loved the Lord and wanted to please Him daily with a servant’s heart. She sacrificially lived out her life as a wife, mother, teacher, encourager, counselor, hostess, and many other roles as needed. The short few years I came to know Charusheela, I witnessed her always putting the needs of others first. Her faith was unassuming yet actively demonstrated in every aspect of her life. There was no time that was more evident than when she prayed. It became very obvious to me that she spent much time in conversation with her Savior through prayer. Her confidence and trust in God’s grace and mercy permeated the room when she began to pray among a group. One particular practice of Charusheela and Samir really stood out to my heart. As I traveled throughout India, I would often room with Samir at whatever guest house or hotel we stayed. Samir and Charusheela would connect via cell phone every evening including their daughter Madhumita. They would discuss events of that day, the everyday joys, and the trials. Then they would pray for each other, the Mission staff, friends in the USA and the lost. This would often be an hour or more each evening. This was a discipline they practiced regularly whether traveling or at home. It was a humbling experience for me to witness such testimony and commitment. I believe Charusheela was the primary gatekeeper in protecting that daily evening prayer time. That’s why I am asking those reading to remember to pray for encouragement for Samir and Madhumita as Charusheela’s absence leaves a huge void and loss for them. Although they rejoice that she is with the Lord and no longer in pain, they desperately miss her encouraging words, nurturing spirit, and comforting and assuring prayers. They lost a wife, mother, and best friend and are grieving that loss.

Many of you may have had the opportunity to meet the Singhas in 2018 has they made an extended stay in the USA and visited churches in every CGGC region. I have included numerous pictures on the following pages to provide memories of Charusheela, her family, ministry, and visits to the USA. Samir, Madhumita, and a couple other close friends of the Singhas have shared some thoughts, stories, and memories of Charusheela. May you be blessed as you read and experience them. Lord willing, Samir will be visiting the USA in July for the 2022 CGGC triennial conference. Samir shared the following verse which Charusheela embraced as she passed into eternity. “I fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith” 2 Timothy 4:7. May the Lord be praised!

My Dear Wife

By Samir Singha

Charusheela was born (27 th March 1961) and brought up in a god-fearing Christian family of Free Methodist Church, in Yavatmal District of Maharashtra State, India. Her father was a librarian in a Government College, and mother was a nurse. Her father was also an ordained minister of the Free Methodist Church Conference. There were three children in the family: two brothers and a sister. She was second in number. At present, she has her elder brother only (with whom she stayed till her last). By language and culture, she was Marathi and Hindi.

Education: She was a Bachelor of Science (B.Sc.) graduate with Home Science, and she also completed her Bachelor of Education (B.Ed.) – a qualified school teacher. She studied the two-year program of Bachelor of Religious Education at the Union Biblical Seminary.

Spiritual Formation: Her spiritual formation was progressive. Her family was church-oriented and practicing Christians. She, during her late high school and early college life, came to know about the forgiveness of sin in Christ Jesus, and in a Christian meeting committed her life to serve the Lord but not knowing how it would be.

Marriage and Ministry Involvement: On 27 th December 1988 she married Samir Singha, a teacher at the Calcutta Bible College, Baptist Denomination, from Orissa State. They were from different language and cultural backgrounds. Despite this, Charusheela, through her sacrificial life, adapted to this new situation and church background with Samir in Calcutta. In Calcutta, Charusheela got a teacher’s job in a government added Christian School. But after one year, she resigned her job with a conviction to help her husband, Samir, in the ministry. Her life was much influenced by her father’s pastoral ministry; and she wanted to be in the ministry beside her husband.

To be in the ministry and to support the family needs, Charusheela was willing to do any job. At the Bible College, she worked as an office clerk and accountant; later she got the opportunity to teach English and Bible Geography. She encouraged Samir to go for his master’s degree in theology studies. In God’s provision, Samir got a scholarship to study in the Philippines, for a year. Since support was limited, she took a stitching/needle work job at the campus store to earn money; also, she gave English coaching to college students’ children. When Samir was in Serampur College for studies, there was a similar situation of shortage of funds; Charusheela took a job at the Xerox counter to support the family. In various ways Charusheela stood with Samir for the ministry development.

In 2003, when Charusheela and Samir moved to Uluberia with little Madhumita, Charusheela’s first desire was to start a Sunday school (at that time the local church had no Sunday school) for little children where Madhumita would learn the Bible. She learned Bengali Language to teach in Sunday school. For Madhumita’s education she prayed for an English Medium School; and the Lord opened the first English Medium School in Uluberia, Bharat Academy. As Charusheela came to Uluberia, her heart was burdened to see many children on the street, not going to school. She prayed as to how she could help the children in education, and the Lord gave the Child Development Centre. Along with the CDC, Charusheela prayerfully started an elementary school in the Mission campus, which is the Mission School. The purpose was to build the foundation for children learning.

The other programs initiated and organized by Charusheela are: VBS, Children Rally, Children Camp, Pastors Family Camp, Women Empowerment, and others. For the first fifteen years (2003 – 2019), Charusheela was not a paid employee of the Mission, yet her management skills, love and care were required by all the departments.

Charusheela’s Advice to Samir:

• Prayer and Scripture Reading

• Knowing and Believing in Jesus

• Do good to others

• Do not send your student, Christian worker (minimum paid) empty handed.

• Do not criticize others.

• Always evaluate yourself

She was Samir’s main critique.

Charusheela is no more in this world. She is gone to be with the Lord on 16 th April 2022 where there is no pain, no death, to a better place. She was a loving wife to Samir; a loving mother to Madhumita; and a best friend to both. May the name of the Lord be praised.

My Mother, Charusheela!

By Madhumita Susanna Singha

My mother, Charusheela, was not only my mother but my tutor and my best friend with whom I used to share and laugh together. She looked after my every need like food, clothes, studies, manners, and also my spiritual life. She saw my taste and prepared accordingly. She would make it a point that Papa should bring it from market, and she would cook or prepare for me. Often, she would give a surprise to me about food or clothes. From my childhood she was my teacher, and looked after my studies. She would sit with me till late night to complete lessons and assignments. I remember during my class 10 exams, she would read the lessons in a playful way while sitting or lying down or eating food. About clothes, she thought about me before I would feel the need for the occasion. She did not disappoint me. Her choices were always appropriate for me. She taught me manners and behaviors in relationship to others, though I fail measurably in this area. My mother was my Bible teacher. My bedtime story was David and Goliath. I must listen and sleep. She taught me about Jesus Christ who died for my sins; and I accepted Jesus as my Lord and Savior and took the waters of Baptism. She taught me to pray. My Mom, surely, I miss her; but she is in a better place. I could not do anything for her. I love my Mom.

My Dear “Sister,” a True Woman of God

By Joyce Hornbaker

Not long ago while playing the game “Let’s Taco About It,” I pulled the card, “If you could go to any country where would you go?” I immediately told Gary, “I would go to India to see Charusheela one more time.”

Charusheela was one of the most beautiful women I have ever met. I first met her when my daughter, Beth, and I traveled to India and Bangladesh on an Eyewitness Trip in 2005. We had landed in Kolkata early in the morning and traveled to a guest house. We visited churches all day long and that night boarded a train to Malda. We arrived early in the morning, visited churches all day long, took a return train to Kolkata, and arrived at Uluberia just in time for church. After church and lunch, we traveled three hours to Jiriah for a service. On the way back, we pulled over and Charusheela served us hot coffee, biscuits, and little sandwiches. As we spent time together, it became apparent to me that she truly cared for each person. We were tired from traveling and her kind caring gestures fed our souls and our stomachs.

The next day was filled with visiting the nearby schools. We took turns teaching the Bible lesson. As she moved from class to class, from the town school to the school and Compassion Center on the campus, the children would encircle her and wanted to be near her. Her love for everyone exuded from her.

That evening our daughter Beth became very sick. Charusheela prayed over her and some of the evangelists that lived on the campus came and prayed too. I was praying also, but as Charusheela prayed, I felt as if she had a direct line. I had never heard anyone pray like that before. We needed to take Beth to a nearby infirmary and after some medicines and an IV, they released her early the next morning. Samir made sure we had special biscuits for Beth to eat that would help her recover. As we left India for Bangladesh, I found it difficult to leave Charusheela. She had impacted me mightily in the few days we were together. She was quiet, unassuming, and always so very kind. Her love for Christ was evident in her speech and in her actions.

Several years later I went on another Eyewitness Trip with my husband. We again stayed at Uluberia with Samir and Charusheela. On this trip, the men went to one area on Sunday and the ladies ministered on the campus. From Children’s Sunday School to a Ladies’ Gathering, Charusheela was the glue. Her dependence on God was evident in how she cared for, reached out, and loved others. She modeled His love well, and I was intrigued by that. It was not just that she knew the Lord, she oozed the Lord. When she wasn’t leading formal ministry opportunities, she was mentoring young women by having them in her home. They would work together to prepare a meal and, again, she just had a way to draw others in.

We saw how this couple was loved. We visited Kolkata Bible College where they had previously taught and watched as many came by to connect with them. When we traveled, we also stopped by former students’ homes and churches for tea and fellowship.

One morning she invited me into her kitchen to show me how she made the salads, chapatis, and other foods. As she was cutting up food, she shared with me that while we had been off the campus the day before, the monkeys had come. She was telling me that when the monkeys come, they are quite destructive. They break the tops of the papaya trees, break pots, and do other destruction. Then she said, one morning the monkeys came in my kitchen and destroyed things. She said, “Samir and I were having our morning prayer time and we were only 45 minutes into our prayer time when the monkeys came.” I don’t really remember anything else that the monkeys did, I could only remember, “Samir and I were only 45 minutes into having our prayer time.”

I went to India and Bangladesh one last time in 2011 with my youngest daughter, Denae. We stayed once more on the campus with Samir and Charusheela. We again were so impressed by this couple. My sister had passed away about six weeks before our trip. We were grieving and Charusheela prayed. Hearing her pray to our Heavenly Father took me straight into His presence. This quiet, humble woman of God had blessed us with extreme kindness and care.

We also had the privilege of having Samir, Charusheela, and Madhumita stay with us in our home on several occasions. It was a joy to hear them laugh as a family. They were able to relax and refresh before returning to India. On one of the occasions, they stayed with us, I took them to Camp Joy El to see where Gary worked. After touring the camp and seeing the facilities, we gathered in the dining hall where Charusheela asked if she could pray over the summer. There wasn’t a dry eye in our circle. We had been transcended into the presence of Our Holy God and once again I was completely undone by the words God gave her to share with us.

The last time we were together was at the last Triennial Conference, held in Findlay, Ohio. We enjoyed sweet times of fellowship with her, Samir, and Dr. John Costa. She was a gift and a delight, and we were so thankful for these times with them.

I will forever be grateful for the opportunity to be Charusheela’s sister in the Lord. It was a relationship I needed in my life. She was a teacher, an encourager, a mentor, and a friend. We messaged regularly on WhatsApp, and we were always blessed. In the midst of her journey with cancer, she was continuing to praise Her Lord and had complete confidence He was in control, and He was faithful. After messaging, I often sat and wept over God’s goodness and the ways she continually reflected Him. Travis Helm asked if we would ever want to try to Zoom with Samir and Charusheela and of course we said absolutely. We Zoomed with them on April 2. I took pictures and videoed some of the things she was sharing. I wanted to have some things to tuck away.

We knew she had several big appointments the week of April 10 th . It was that weekend that she began having severe difficulty with mobility due to a buildup of fluid. We messaged back and forth almost daily that week. Late on April 15 th (USA time), we received a message from Samir that “Charusheela is gone to be with the Lord at 6:30 AM, 16 April 2022. Praise be His name.”

There is a 10½-hour time difference between us, so on Saturday morning, our time, Samir called us on a Video Chat. We “watched” her service with her family. We were completely humbled to witness the beautiful service of our sweet friend. The service was filled with Scripture. They placed a cross so others would know she was a Christ follower. They covered the grave with marigolds and then Samir and Madhumita placed roses on the gravesite, they then lit candles. We had no words. After watching the service, I asked my husband, “Who does that? Who, when just saying goodbye to his wife would think to call someone in the US and invite them to be a part of this intimate time?”

We all need people in our lives that continually point us to the Lord through how they live, how they respond, how they think, how they speak, how they pray, and how they reflect their Lord and Savior.

I often felt led to pray Psalm 139 over this precious family, asking God to hold them close and to be their peace. Verse 9 was especially meaningful to me, “If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea, even there your hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me fast.”

Please continue to pray for the ministry in India, for Samir, Madhumita, and the work they have been called to do for His glory. May our Lord continue to be their hope, strength, and peace.

My Indian Mom

By Morgan Kelly

Charusheela Singha was like another mother to me. The first time I visited the Singhas was around 2011 when a planned trip to India started to turn sideways and I reached out for a place to stay. The second time was when I served as a missionary intern in 2015. It was like going back home. I was treated as another member of the family and occasionally introduced as their white daughter. That was always followed by chuckles, but it made my chest swell with pride.

Charusheela taught me how to make chapatis, how to wrap a sari, and how to embody discipleship-on-the-way with strength and humility. Charusheela was not a flashy person, she wasn’t loud. Even when she raised her voice it had a sing-song quality to it rather than a shout. She was a teacher and a missionary, a mother, and a minister. But Charusheela was also a superhero. She shared stories about miracles she had seen, curses she had overcome (a person put a curse on her and she became ill until Christ took it away), demons battled (again real not figurative), provision and obedience… overwhelming stuff for a young person from a sincere Christian background but a spiritually sterile culture. I remember being just gob smacked after one of her stories, lingering in the kitchen on our way to go do something, and asking her how she came to have such faith. She just kind of laughed at me and said that it doesn’t happen quickly, but accumulates over a lifetime of seeing God be faithful. She taught me that faith isn’t something that you have or something that you get, it’s something that you and God build together as you live your life and prove yourself faithful to God and God proves himself faithful to you. And it isn’t easy. All of the best stories have suffering on one side of them. Suffering notwithstanding, I hope to be a superhero like her one day. It would be easy to become puffed up by a superhero-like faith, but I can think of few as humble. Charusheela told me that when they first moved to the mission house in Uluberia, they had a nice couch. When she invited people into her home, they were uncomfortable sitting on this kind of furniture. She chose to forfeit this bit of luxury so that her guests would feel more at ease. She also shared with me about how she and Pastor Samir became engaged and got married. (Of course, I asked! Everyone loves a love story.) Theirs was an arranged marriage, as is the norm in India. Also common in India and much of the world is a dowry or bride gift. However, Charusheela, confident of her own worth, told her parents that she would not be accepting anything from them to bring into her marriage. She was enough. Even though it was a bold and controversial choice, Charusheela married into a new family sure of the conviction that she was the greatest gift her parents could give and that her husband could receive.

Charusheela, Pastor Samir, and Madhumita showed me that family is the greatest gift to give and the greatest to receive. Charusheela also taught me a lot about love. One of the most vivid lessons/stories she shared with me was regarding our work with the families served by the mission school. With compassion and sobriety, Charusheela reminded me that while we share the gospel with the children, they go home every day to parents who love them. Parents who, in their sincere love for their children, will train them away from Christ and toward their own gods. It was a splash of cold water to the face of my missional theology, and I have carried it along with me since. Charusheela also challenged my compassion with a story of a family she had counseled. The family was withdrawing their young daughter from the school and betrothing her to an older man. Charusheela tried to counsel them that more education would give her a better life and a more favorable marriage match in the future. Their response, one of love and desperation, was wrenching. It was the best they could offer. Would the mission take care of their child? Feed their child? Clothe and house their child? Find a marriage partner for their child in the future? They could no longer feed the child, they could no longer financially support the child, they could not hope to find a better match. They loved their child, and this was the best they could offer. This was their love.

With these stories/lessons, Charusheela showed me the pain of love in Christian mission. Our struggle, in every culture and language, is not against people but against spiritual forces of darkness in the heavenly realms. It is fought by love, for love, and with love. I saw Charusheela love like Jesus. I wish I could give my Indian mom one last hug to say thank you for letting me be part of her family and to introduce her to my kids. I will cherish the relationship we had, and I hope the stories she told me will sneak up on my memory as I continue to reflect on her testimony. I remember Charusheela sharing with me her prayer for her dad as he reached the end of his life: that his pain and suffering at the end would not ruin the testimony of Christ from the rest of his life. I can feel that same prayer echoing over the end of Charusheela’s life. May the testimonies of her life shine the goodness of Christ on anyone who would hear them.