Ordinary People Extraordinary Things
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Ordinary People Extraordinary Things
99. From Hindu to Jesus: A Miraculous Transformation with Sunny Kapoor
Sunny's journey from the brink of suicide to becoming a missionary in America will leave you breathless. Born into a broken Hindu family in India, he witnessed his mother's crippling depression, his father's alcoholism and financial ruin, and his sister's suicide attempts – all before he turned 18.
When his mother finally left as she had long threatened, Sunny found himself on a rooftop ready to end his life. In that desperate moment, he made one last plea: "Jesus, if you are alive, save me and my family." What happened next defies explanation – his childhood friend, with whom he'd had no contact for six years, suddenly appeared, explaining he felt inexplicably compelled to find Sunny at that exact moment.
This divine appointment led to a 40-minute encounter with Jesus that completely transformed Sunny without changing any of his external circumstances. The depression, hatred, and hopelessness that had defined his existence vanished, replaced by supernatural joy. Even more remarkably, his entire family eventually came to Christ – his mother emerged from depression, his parents reconciled, and his sister and brother-in-law (from a high-caste Brahmin family) embraced faith.
By 23, Sunny had planted his first church, beginning a ministry that would grow to include multiple congregations across India and South Africa. Now, following a vivid dream where he saw America bleeding and Jesus calling for healing, Sunny has brought his ministry to Denver, Colorado – arriving with nothing but faith and a conviction that "the comfortable church is more at risk than the persecuted church."
Don't miss our 100th episode next week on Easter Sunday featuring a special conversation with my husband Chris, my brother, and my brother-in-law. Then in two weeks, Sunny returns to share more about his mission to bring spiritual revival to America.
Watch the entire episode👇
https://youtu.be/-ZlsJ1nKoZw
Connect with Sunny @ https://vaibhavkapoor.com/
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We all have a story, all of us, share your story. You don't have to have the perfect answer or the perfect life - share what Jesus is doing in your life. This is an easy, real way to witness & share your testimony.
This is episode 99 for Ordinary People, Extraordinary Things. I'm so glad that you found us. I'm your host, Nancy Brucher, and I'm so glad that you've come on this journey with us. I can't wait for you to listen to this episode. It's going to be a two-part episode with Sunny. This one drops today, then on Easter Sunday, we will have our 100th episode. Stay tuned all the way through this episode and I will share who our special guests are for our 100th episode. Then, the week after that, we're going to have Sonny's second part, so you won't want to miss that. If you listened to his first part, you can't wait to listen to the second part. So we are going to go back to back for a couple of weeks to celebrate our 100th episode, going over 100 episodes. I'm so glad you are on this journey with us. Welcome to Ordinary People, Extraordinary Things. I'm here with Sonny. Sonny, thanks for being on the podcast.
Sunny Kapoor:Well, thank you for having me. It's my honor to be here.
Nancy Bruscher:I'm so excited to chat with you. If someone doesn't know who you are, can you give three words or phrases to describe yourself?
Sunny Kapoor:I'm Sunny, born in India, got saved at 18, and I'm a bondservant of Christ. I'm a church planter and right now based out of Denver, colorado.
Nancy Bruscher:Awesome. You say you're a bondservant of Jesus.
Sunny Kapoor:Christ.
Nancy Bruscher:Christ, yeah Can you explain those words.
Sunny Kapoor:Sure. Well, this comes from the writings of Apostle Paul, and this always fascinated me, that why would he call himself a bondservant when he's the one who brought the revelation to the church and he wrote it in the letter of Galatians that we are no more servants but we are the sons of God? And yet he's calling himself bondservant. Because in the Eastern culture there were two kinds of servants. One would just come and do the work on that day and take the wage and go away. But there were some who were bought by the master and their whole life belonged to the master. They didn't have itinerary of their own or schedules of their own, they couldn't leave the master in the evening, so they totally belonged to him, without choice. So I believe that the call of God over my life leaves me with no other option. And you know, we are chained by the gospel and I believe that I'm purchased by the Lord and I'm just called to do his work and I'm totally his. So that's the revelation behind being a bondservant of Christ.
Nancy Bruscher:Yeah, yeah, thanks for mentioning that. So, at 18, you became a Christ follower. What was? Your life like before that and what? What made you turn to Jesus?
Sunny Kapoor:yeah, well, I was seven years old and one night I figured out that my parents were fighting. I was sleeping at night and I heard a loud noise and I came out to you know, to see what's going on in my house and and my heart broke to see that my parents were fighting and it was a very chaotic situation and that broke my heart that night and I realized from that day that they're not going well with each other and they're stressing the house and they realized that they want to probably separate and so that broke my heart in my young age. And from that day I figured out and realized that it was a constant battle and that led my mother into major depression. And my dad was pretty rich back then. He was the general manager for Pepsi and he started losing everything in life and a lot of bondages, if that's the correct word, came into our house and my mother was really battling inside and she had multiple accidents in which she broke her hand four times on four different occasions the same hand and she got operated every time.
Sunny Kapoor:So, yeah, it was a mess. And then I was around, I think eight or nine years old, when she was in real major depression, that she used to sleep sometimes a whole day, sometimes two days at a stretch. She would just get up and be kind of normal for a few hours and then she would be attacked again with all those emotions and all those anxiety and panic attacks and she would again have a sleeping pill and sleep back again and she would sometimes sleep like four or five days in a week. And I saw her like that for almost nine or ten years of my life.
Sunny Kapoor:Oh my goodness, for almost a decade she was like that. So no great happy days, no joyful moments. Then my dad lost everything his job, his 1989, I mean he had two cars in India. That was big. No one hardly had a motorbike or a scooter, you know, in those times in our neighborhood. So he lost everything and so it was like a big situation for us. And so we kind of grew up in a lot of depressive environment where we didn't get parents, love as we desired or needed. And I have one sister she's four years elder to me and it really affected both of us as, as Long story cut short, when I got to my teenage I developed depression inside of me and a lot of anxiety because I had so many fears I didn't get the proper love that I needed in my life.
Sunny Kapoor:Even my sister, she was always depressed. She also had suicidal spirit in her and all those feelings of finishing life. If I'm not wrong she was 16 and I was 12 when she attempted her first suicide. So that was a big thing in our house. Mom was on the bed depression. Dad is in alcohol. A lot of debts came over him. Dad is in alcohol. A lot of debts came over him and from being a very successful guy in the city he lost everything and with that he lost his dignity, his honor. It hit him hard so he was in anxiety. It was a very broken family, very broken environment, no proper care. And the following year my sister attended the suicide the second time and that was very hard again and she almost lost her life but somehow survived. She had poison and it kind of affected her, kind of destroyed her intestines, and so now she's on the bed and I'm like 13 and mom is, you know, on bed and there's no one to take care of us, no proper timing for meals and no one doing the laundry and dad doesn't have enough. Now all of a sudden, from being a rich guy in the communities, he's broke, he's lost everything. You're living in one small room with shared bathroom and toilet. So it was a total flip over of our lives and that kind of gripped my heart in teenage and I was totally lost.
Sunny Kapoor:I had no hope and, being in a Hindu family, I tried everything possible because I was so desperate. And, being in a Hindu family, I tried everything possible because, you know, I was so desperate and I always have this question in my teenage who can fix this or who can help us? Or is there anything that can be done to you know, heal my family or bring them to a place of breakthrough? So in my teenage I became very religious because of the desperation that I had. That led me to do everything that my religion taught me.
Sunny Kapoor:I did sacrifices, I climbed up the mountains barefoot, I went to the rivers to take dips and I even tried Islam. In those times I went to a couple of very popular mosques in India, a thousand miles away, 700 miles away. So in my teenage I did a lot of religious things because I was desperate for someone to show up and fix us and help us. But things got worse. Nothing helped. So around 15, 15, 16, all those anxiety and in my heart led me to a very destructive way of now getting anger attacks, you know panic attacks, and I started cutting my body.
Sunny Kapoor:I used to cut my hands with blades and I would just stop. Those things became my stress busters and living a very depressed life. I I was attacked by, you know, these emotions of hatred for my parents and, yeah, my heart was spoiled and I was really in pain during that time. And so my mother used to say in those times that you know, when you turn 18, I'll leave. Your sister is above 18. You guys, you know she's an adult and I stayed in this house just for you guys. I wanted to just leave and go, but what she didn't realize was that her staying back in the house was also not a help. It was so horrible because all our lives, you know, we saw her crying and depressed and fights.
Sunny Kapoor:And so it really affected us as kids of the house. And so my last phase of my teenage was I was an angry boy. I was full of hatred, I hated the whole world. I hated my parents. I blamed them for, you know, giving us this kind of life. And so she used to say that when you turn 18, I'll leave. So that kind of became a huge fear in me that when I'll turn 18, she leaves, leaves. So I started blaming myself that it's because of me she's gonna leave. So this question, who can fix this? And this fear that, oh, she's gonna leave because I'll turn 18 that collided and became such a deadly combination in me that I just couldn't have grip over life.
Sunny Kapoor:I lived in constant fear, constant pain, constant anxiety and constant voices in my head that our family is made for destruction, this is how it's going to end one day. We're all going to die, we're all going to have poison one day, and all these voices of hopelessness from 15, 16, and 17. So it was a very horrible life, painful. I lived in isolation. I want to jump to the Jesus part of the story because I think that's more important. I turned 18 and she decided to leave. Her parents were not alive, but her brother lived in the same neighborhood so she moved there, she left there and that night it was a very heartbreaking night for me. The whole day was just I felt it's the end of my life. So my dad was in alcohol and death and totally a guy who lost in life. My sister is in depression and she's you know kind of she has no clue what she's gonna do. And now mom left. So I felt that moment is like it's over. I can't take it anymore.
Sunny Kapoor:So we used to live on the third floor of an apartment and in India we have flat roofs so you can go up there for a walk or whatever. So I went up there and I looked down from the roof and I just felt that this is it. I need to jump and, just, you know, end my life. I can't take it anymore.
Sunny Kapoor:So this whole sense of committing suicide came upon me and I was so much in pain from the age of eight or seven till 18 that I was so depressed and suppressed from all sides I thought I can't take it anymore. But then, as I'm crying, I'm broken, I'm shattered to pieces like I'm depressed on the roof and I'm like cursing myself, my life, my family and some God in the air. You know, like there's no God, like no one could help us, and I'm disappointed, I am full of hatred, I want to end my life. And as I'm contemplating all that, I looked at a house in the neighborhood, so we used to. It was a neighborhood that was kind of a square, like houses on all four sides.
Sunny Kapoor:There was a little park in the middle of all the houses and we lived in block D and I looked at a house in block E which is on the right side and that house is the only Christian house, was the only Christian house, was only Christian house in the neighborhood and their son was my best friend from kindergarten till grade seven and then he changed his school. I'm in college, for a fear. He's in college first year, but from grade seven. So college first year like six years of gap, there's no conversation. Years of gap, there's no conversation, there's no connection, there's no friendship.
Sunny Kapoor:And as I looked at that house, I got reminded of something that happened in that house when I was in grade two and what happened was we were supposed to make craft for our school, like some painting or something. We all students were supposed to make something and take it to the school. And his name is Mickey. And he said why don't you come over to my house and you know, a few more kids are joining in from the neighborhood and we'll all sit on the floor and make the craft together. And I still remember I chose to make Hello Kitty. I don't know why I did that, so I was making Hello Kitty as a boy and grade two.
Sunny Kapoor:We are all there, kids and a missionary from south of India comes to that house that day in the evening, knocks the door and says hey, I'm here just to pray for you. And my friend's mother invited him in and said sure, you can pray for us. And this is what she said and I'm reminded of all of this as I'm about to come to suicide that she looked at all of us, all of us, the kids, and she said as you're praying for us, why don't you pray for these kids of our neighborhood as well? And he started praying for all of us and as he was praying, I started crying I don't know why in that young age and he located me. He came to me, he laid his hand upon me, he brought a little bottle of oil from his pocket and he kind of put the oil on my head and he started praying for me. I didn't understand anything, what he's praying, but all I could feel in that young age was that I felt peace.
Sunny Kapoor:And I was crying and by the end of it this is the line that I remembered that night he pointed towards me and told my friend's mother keep an eye on this child. He's special and as.
Sunny Kapoor:I'm about to jump. This whole thing is coming to me about this guy and his face and this statement of his that this boy is special and I'm like it doesn't look like I'm special and my life is. So it's a mess and I'm like battling between these two voices now and all of a sudden I realized you know what? I've tried my 33 million gods and goddesses. I've tried some more religion. I didn't try Jesus. Maybe I need to try him and maybe see that if he's the answer.
Sunny Kapoor:And I'm like thinking about all this and I literally looked up to the sky and with tears rolling down my cheek and I said I'm still amazed how I made this very Christian prayer, which was so astonishing for me that how come I said this? But this is what I said on the rooftop I said Jesus, if you are alive, save me and my family. And I didn't even say an amen in the end, because I didn't know that you have to say an amen in the end. You know it was just a broken prayer of a broken Hindu boy. And I said Jesus, if you're alive, save me and my family. And I'm just saying it constantly and I'm like sobbing and I'm shattered and I'm desperate. And in the middle of it I heard a noise at the back of my roof, like I heard footsteps, and I thought my father came up to see that if I'm okay or not. So I turned to see who is coming up on the roof and it was my same friend from the same house no yes, no contact for six years.
Sunny Kapoor:Um, you know, we didn't have phones or whatsapp or I messages, no, nothing, no friendship. And I was shell-shocked and I was like how come you are here? And this is what he told me. He said this morning and I know that he's not a very spiritual guy, I don't know even. I think even now, like I know, he's not a guy who's like very prophetic or so, he was just a, you know, rugged young boy, just born in a Christian family. You know, and this is what he said, man, that this morning I heard this voice go find your friend's son. You got to meet him, you got to find him and he said that I kept battling the whole day because he was a shy guy, he didn't want to just abruptly appear. But he said but I just couldn't resist. And it was 8 pm, it was about you know time to sleep. And he couldn't resist. And, and it was 8 pm, it was about you know time to sleep. And he said I, I just felt that if I don't do this, my heart will come out of my chest, like there's this. I just felt so uncomfortable if I don't do this. So I right away knew that something is happening. And um, yeah, he heard my story that night and he couldn't help me much. He's not the best counselor in the city, I know, but that's all he said. He said you know what, get ready, tomorrow I'll take you to the church and maybe the pastor can help you. And I was like no man. I've tried so many things. And I still remember my statement to him. I said you know, I've tried so, shoes and it, it looks like every shoe cuts me and nothing is comfortable. Oh well, you are saying to try this, jesus, the british god, or whatever, and I also felt the same. Well, let's give it a try. And very half-heartedly I said yes. And he said I'll pick you at 11 30 tomorrow. And I was like half-hearted, but next day, 7 am, I'm ready, I'm done with my shower, I've put on my shoes already, like I'm pumped up, like I want to go. And he picked me up and I went there.
Sunny Kapoor:21st October, year 2000, tuesday. It's not a church service. Noontime we get to the pastor's house, knocks the door, no appointment taken. You know the Eastern culture. Sometimes you don't need to have an appointment, you just get into people's zone, which is surprising at times. So we just kind of knocked the door and the pastor's wife opened the door and said he's not at home, you can just wait for him. I waited for four hours.
Nancy Bruscher:Wow.
Sunny Kapoor:Came at 4 pm and why I'm sharing these details? Because you are part of this journey For four hours. These voices, this battle between these voices that, oh, there is no God, oh, you're wasting your time, get up and go. And then this voice that I never heard before in 18 years, that kept telling me boy, you're not moving an inch, you're not leaving. Today you are sitting here. And I'm glad that voice won and I kept sitting there for four hours.
Sunny Kapoor:And he came in and he was busy with the kids and he had hands full of bags. He went for shopping and he's not interested in me. And he had hands full of bags. He went for shopping and he's not interested in me. And I'm offended already because I've lived an offensive life, I'm full of hatred already and I'm like not liking that he's not focused on me. And then a few minutes later he came, sat in front of me and all my friend said was he's my friend, sonny, Can you please pray for him? That's it. And he said alright, let's pray. I'm like what? You're not even asking me. I want to share my pain. So I said, fine, I came in the posture of prayer, I closed my eyes and joined my hands, because that's what we are taught in India and all the religion that you have to bow down, you have to get your head down. So I did that. But then he asked me a question. He said look at me, I want to ask you one thing. That question changed the trajectory of my life and that was a turning point and I call it my first miracle. And his question was before I pray for you, I want to ask you do you believe in Jesus? Before I pray for you, I want to ask you do you believe in Jesus?
Sunny Kapoor:Now, living a life like that and you know such hopeless life, so much of pain, I just wanted to be very rude and honest and tell him that I don't. And I was such a bad person. I've beaten my teachers in my teenage, like 17, 16. I've taken up fights in the city. So I'm I'm very rude, very brutal, very, uh, rude in my, in my talk. I'm not a soft guy anymore. So I just wanted to be rude and tell him sir, I don't believe in Jesus, I don't even believe in you. Show me if your Jesus is real, I'll do something, something Like be the magician here. I was that kind of a rowdy guy, you know, rough guy.
Sunny Kapoor:But my first miracle happened when I opened my mouth and I wanted to be rude and say I don't believe in Jesus. I opened my mouth and I said yes, I do. I was like what? No, I didn't want to say that, you know. And the moment I said yes, I do, as if something in me was waiting to respond to this call.
Sunny Kapoor:The moment I said yes, I do, something happened. Like I was just unleashed, like I bursted in tears and as if, like, the damn door was open, the gate was open and I started crying and I cried and I cried and I'm thinking deep down, like why am I crying? But then, few minutes later, I realized that this is not the crying that I've been doing for last 10 years. This is a different crying. This is beautiful, this is so joyful. This is amazing, because every tear rolling down my cheek, I felt light, I felt joy and I forgot what's happening, why he's praying his words. I couldn't hear him. That just moment became between me and this some kind of power which I'm still trying to figure out, as if, you know, this whole wind is just blowing on me and I'm, like you know, feeling light and my bondages are melting. And I cried for like 40 minutes and in that moment I call it my vision moment. I call it my vision that I saw a beautiful room and there's a beautiful chair in that room and this man with white robe, with long hair, is sitting on this chair and I'm sitting on the floor next to him and my head is in his lap and he's patting my hair. And this is what he's saying, and he said it in Hindi, but this is what it meant in English. He said now, since you have come to me, it's going to be alright.
Sunny Kapoor:And I got out of that encounter and after 40 minutes, I felt that I'm the most joyful person on the face of this earth. There's nothing wrong in my life, there's nothing broken in my life, there's nothing missing in my life. What problem I'm talking about? What am I talking about? There's nothing wrong. There's nothing that is missing. I felt complete. I felt just that joy that came in me, which cannot come if it is not supernatural right, because life was still broken, family was still broken, parents were still separated, my sister was still in depression, everything was just the same on the outside, but I was changed in 40 minutes from the inside, the Lord appeared and healed me completely in one moment. His one encounter fixed it Like he made it clear to me that I'm real, I'm able and I can do all things. I couldn't tell this to the pastor, I couldn't share anything.
Sunny Kapoor:I was so much lost and consumed in that encounter that I just said bye and I left the house. But I told myself that I'm leaving this house as a Christian. I am saved. Jesus is my Lord, he's my King. I belong to Him because if he can change my heart without, without changing external factors, and give me joy, which people try to get after, they get the results. Man, this God, is real. So that was he convinced me and I left as a Christian. I was joyful. Depression left me, my, my heart changed. I had compassion on my parents. I forgive them. That day everything in me changed and I got new lens to look at the world like it was just washed and everything became new. So that's how I got saved at the age.
Nancy Bruscher:Yeah, I have a couple questions.
Sunny Kapoor:Sure.
Nancy Bruscher:Was your family a practicing Hindu family, or was it just yes, we're Hindu, but we're not practicing?
Sunny Kapoor:Strong, Like they were deeply into that. We had idols at home. We had a whole shelf that was dedicated for the gods. We had a temple inside of the house. It was strong.
Nancy Bruscher:Could you explain? I think everyone who listens has heard of Hinduism. Could you briefly explain what it is?
Sunny Kapoor:Well, it's definitely a mythology. It is based on myths and imaginary stories. Not every story mentioned there is part of the history. And Hinduism is a mythology and it's more of a lifestyle which is based on a fear. So Tuesday you can't eat non-veg. On Thursday you can't go for a haircut. On Saturday you can't buy anything that is made of iron. So because you do that, the God of Tuesday will get upset, or God of Thursday will get upset. So it's all fear based control and don't do this.
Sunny Kapoor:A lot of laws and legalism. If you do this, god will be upset. So you'll have to do this. A lot of laws and legalism. And if you do this, god will be upset. So you'll have to do this kind of sacrifice. So it's more lifestyle and fear rather than relationship. Well, there can't be a relationship because relationship requires two people living. So that's Hinduism. It's all based off oh, you're going through this, so you've got to do this kind of sacrifice. Or you are going through financial stress, so you've got to please this god. Or you want strength in your life, so you've got to do this on Monday for this goddess. So it's all need-based and fear-based.
Nancy Bruscher:Does Hinduism have reincarnation?
Sunny Kapoor:Yes, they believe in reincarnation and that's why they believe in karma, that if you do the right thing, you're paid accordingly in your next life, and that kind of also was one of my puzzle in me that if reincarnation is the truth, then what good it is for me to be get saved in this life.
Nancy Bruscher:If I have to get saved in every life, okay so you said that on the roof you, you said the name jesus, you said that you someone prayed for you, which I think is a beautiful. We've heard two things of prayer already, one that took years to be answered and then a prayer over you with, uh, the pastor. That was immediate, which is just so neat to see those two dynamics way. But did you hear of jesus beforehand? You called it a like a british god. It was that you heard. Can you kind of Jesus beforehand? You called it like a British god, was it that you heard? Can you kind of explain that?
Nancy Bruscher:you had that name to say.
Sunny Kapoor:Well, it's not a coincidence that I studied in a Catholic school.
Sunny Kapoor:Okay, and the name of the school was St Paul's. Oh, okay, but as, growing up as a Hindu boy, I would go in the school and in the lobby of the school there's a statue of Paul with a sword downwards and Bible upwards, and I always was curious, not knowing that one day God would call me and make me a church planter. You know, it's like. It just amazes me. So we heard about Jesus, we heard about Mary. We heard about you know, father, because we had Christian prayers every morning in the assembly. About Jesus, we heard about Mary. We heard about you know, father, because we were, we had Christian prayers every morning in the assembly. So I knew about this.
Sunny Kapoor:But then, growing up in that culture, we were made, our hearts were made hard for Christians so that we don't fall into that trap, or they, you know, do the mind-washing, the brainwas. So we were injected with hatred. Oh, this is a God from Britain. Oh, england brought it. This is the God of Britishers. He's not our God, he's the God of foreigners. So a lot of communities in India even now think that Jesus is the God of white skin, but they don't even know that he's the god who's born in the east and he's from israel. They don't know it. So, yeah, it was that kind of a prejudice that I had in my, in my mind okay, yeah, thank you, yeah.
Nancy Bruscher:So then you said that you became a church planter. How so? You had this amazing conversion, and then what happened?
Sunny Kapoor:Yeah, so initially I faced a lot of persecution at home. My parents didn't like it. Well, let me complete the testimony. Okay, I started praying in my house. The only prayer that I knew was Jesus, you are the king of my life. Jesus, you are the king of this house. So I would spend 8 to 10 hours at church, not anybody being there. I would just go walk five miles, take the keys from my pastor. Small church, a hundred people next door, so I would just go there, sit there for eight hours, 10 hours, and try to understand the word.
Sunny Kapoor:Couldn't understand anything, but the first scripture that ministered to me was romans, chapter 8, verse number 1 now therefore, there is no condemnation on those who are christ jesus, and that was the first scripture god spoke to me from in my walk with him and I took hold of faith. I came back with joy and I stood in my small house and I started praying in all the rooms. Like we had a small house, like two rooms, kitchen, toilet, the same rooftop, every corner. I would just go and speak these words there's no condemnation over this house because I'm in Christ Jesus. Jesus is the Lord, jesus is the King. These are the declarations I started doing and I saw the result of it.
Sunny Kapoor:I'm not saying this doctrine is speak and believe or claim it. I'm not saying all that. I'm saying I've declared the word of God as it is written, in the atmosphere of my house and because I just felt this walls, these lights, has to hear that this place now belongs to genes and not knowing that I was all also speaking to the demonic world and the bondage is. These words were like a war that I was doing without knowing that this is a war and that's how you win a spiritual battle. My mom came back very few days. I started praying for them, gave them the gospel and their marriage got united.
Sunny Kapoor:They're still living together, happily married, and God blessed them. My mother came out of depression. She came to the church after initial some time of persecution. They couldn't understand because they were socially. They were like, oh, what the community will say? Or you got converted, oh, how are we gonna face this that? I think they were in social bondage. But when the lord touched them, my mother gave her heart to the lord. She got baptized and she's a born again believer now. My dad loves the lord. My sister gave her heart to jesus, got baptized, came out of depression, and her husband, who is from a Brahman family, he gave his heart to the Lord. He got baptized and they all are serving the Lord.
Sunny Kapoor:And you know, the Lord just invaded our house and salvation came. Debts were paid, jobs came back, businesses came back. The Lord honored came back. The Lord honored us in the community among our relatives who kind of left us in my teenage because we didn't have money and good gifts to give them. They all started lining up for prayers and our house just became a lighthouse from being a dark house and Jesus just showed the community that I am alive. And we were blessed financially. We were blessed emotionally health relationships. Every area of our life was restored, like resurrected, by Jesus.
Sunny Kapoor:So three years in that I was sitting in the same church and I was just crying in gratitude, in worship. I was like Lord you, gratitude and worship. I was like Lord, you've done so much for me. Like I had this question all my life. Who can do this? And you told me you're the one who can do this. And I was 21 that day when I was crying Sunday morning service and I'm just grateful, I'm crying at his feet. I'm like that woman with the alabaster jar and I'm just thanking him and I'm like Lord, you've done so much for for me. How can I pay this? Like, what can I do for you? Cause I can. Like, even if I live thousand lives, I can't repay what you have done for us. Like you came to us.
Sunny Kapoor:We didn't go to church, we didn't have a Bible. You came to me like you heard a prayer of a Hindu boy, like how can I pay this? And and I said, lord, I'll die for you. And in that beautiful moment I had another encounter with Jesus where he said I don't want you to die for me, I want you to live for me. Can you go to the whole world and tell them I'm alive and what I've done for you, I can do it for them and I can heal them in one encounter. I can fix things if they open their hearts and believe that all things are possible with their father in heaven.
Sunny Kapoor:And I said yes to the call at 21. And I came to my passion, said I'll serve, and I was doing a pretty decent job. My last job was IBM. I was a software sales manager. I was earning big amount. I said I'm gonna leave everything and just serve my God. It took me two years for that transition to prepare. About 23 I planted the first church as a very young guy. I was not married, I was very young and didn't have all the resources that I needed. But yeah, I said yes to the call of God at just 23 and planted the first church in a city called Noida, near New Delhi in India.
Nancy Bruscher:You said there was a Brahmin family.
Sunny Kapoor:Yes, my brother-in-law, my sister's husband, comes from a Brahmin family. So Hinduism is divided into four. It's a caste system, so Brahmins are the top notch, like they are the supreme ones.
Nancy Bruscher:Okay, all right. I knew that that word must have meant something, so I wanted to clarify that. So you planted your first church In 2007. I can't even imagine that.
Sunny Kapoor:At the age of 23,. No one opened the door because just a young boy wants to start a church. Nobody gave us a place, so we got a school which was kind of abandoned and they had a veranda with no roof. And yeah, we took that place and started the church with no roof. Okay, yeah.
Nancy Bruscher:And people came.
Sunny Kapoor:People came and I was scared, I was not willing to take it and I prayed, I cried, I said Lord to take it. And I prayed, I cried, I said Lord. So church already started in October 2007, but it started in a hotel basement. But that guy belonged to a Hindu activist party and his brother pressurized him that how come you can hold, you can't host a church in your property. We are against these people. So they kicked us out after three months and we were like 12 or 15 people already in three months and so we were.
Sunny Kapoor:We were kicked out and on friday he told me no. On sunday he told me that you know, you can't come back next sunday and till friday I got nothing and I was like lord, where do I take these 12 people? And on Friday I got this place, but I was not happy about it because we had no roof and we had extreme weather conditions. In New Delhi it goes to 120 degrees in summers and it's bad and it's monsoon city. It rains for two months. But I prayed on Friday night and the Lord said I'll come, and when.
Sunny Kapoor:I heard that, I knew that he's going to do something great. So we stayed there for five years. We tried covering it up with different things, with fiber sheets and this and that, but nothing worked. It kept leaking. It kept making it hot. So we were there for five years, but the Lord taught us how to worship in those five years. He taught us that it's not about the comfort, it's not about how many resources you have, it's about your heart's condition.
Nancy Bruscher:And.
Sunny Kapoor:I think that has made the Indian church very strong, because some nations didn't have proper resources or comfort. All they had was Jesus. Some nations didn't have proper sources or comfort. All they had was Jesus. And I tell you, because of that they are mightier soldiers, they are strong believers, because they have gone through persecution. And persecution is not something that we have to fear of, because it produces great, great, great faith and produces a lot of fruit in us. Anytime the persecution came to the church in the Bible, the church grew and became more powerful. So, yeah, that was a beautiful start in the journey of five years in that church.
Nancy Bruscher:So you had five years at this church, and then, where did God move you?
Sunny Kapoor:Yeah. So church was growing pretty fast. It became the fastest growing church in the city. 90 plus percentage of our congregants were Hindu people that came to the Lord and His saving grace and the church exploded very fast and we had countless baptisms happening very fast. And we had countless baptisms happening and by 2011, in four years of this church, the Lord started ministering to me personally and he said don't make it a mega church, because India particularly doesn't need a mega church. They need more churches because not everybody has transport and there are unreached places. And so God kind of started giving me this wisdom of planting more churches and branching out, because india needed more pastors, india needed more worship leaders, more prayer warriors, more people who could come and volunteer in serving the lord. So so if we'll have more churches, we'll have multiple worship leaders, multiple elders and treasurers and you know, so many people will be engaged rather than having a lot of people in one place. So I'm not saying that's the wrong thing to do. It was tailor-made for India in that season. That's what I'm trying to say. So the Lord gave me those eyes of a father to locate people in our church who can be released and prepared. You know, because God started see is showing me that they have destinies in them given to them by the Lord. So, 2011, we knew that we have to get into church planting and he started preparing a couple and the first church we planted from that church was 30 miles away, with 17 people that we released with their you know, their giving, their generosity, and we released them and we planted a second church and that was a beautiful moment. And then it became a movement. The Lord would keep showing me more people and I would keep mentoring them, preparing them, and we would just release them. And until 2018, we planted six churches in northern India like that, and that became a beautiful group of churches. They're still thriving there.
Sunny Kapoor:Then, 2018, when we completed 10 years of our ministry, I was already a guest speaker in many nations. In those 10 years. I was going to South Africa, mauritius, england, germany. I even came to US in 2014 and 15 to minister in a few churches in Texas and California and Arizona. I was preaching in South Africa in 2018, and that's where the Lord spoke to me and said I'm going, gonna use you not just for your nation, but the nations of the world, and now I want you to be like Apostle Paul and hand over the ministry like hand over, as in like not an exit, but just give the church to one of your spiritual son, still oversee all those churches and go to South Africa and plant a church there. So, by faith, we moved in 2019. We walked out of the house and we just gave that pastor the entire house and handed over the ministry to him.
Sunny Kapoor:And while I was still taking care of all these churches and covering them and feeding them, you know, and taking care of the pastors, we went to South Africa, stayed there, lived there for two years and planted a couple of churches there and moved back to India in 2021. So that's till 2021. If you want me to carry on till the whole, journey.
Nancy Bruscher:Yeah, you got to tell us how you got to Denver.
Sunny Kapoor:Yes, yeah you got to tell us how you got to Denver. Yes, that's a very special story and very close to our hearts. So when we came back to India in 2021, I was very happy. I was like, wow, this is good. So by 2021, we had eight churches and outreaches in India and two in South Africa. So we had 10 churches.
Sunny Kapoor:And I said you know, this is amazing fruit, and probably the Lord will tell me to now plant another church in India, because I'm a pastor by DNA from 23 of my age. I'm just being for the people of God and I love this. But in that season he told me no, I don't want you to start a church, because I wanted to start a church near the Parliament House in New Delhi. That's our White House. I really wanted to have a sort of church like in the vicinity of the Capitol and you know, just be the voice there. But he told me not to do that. And he said I'm taking you into an apostolic role of taking care of these churches that you have planted and feed them and be there for them. And you know, like if?
Nancy Bruscher:you have your own congregation.
Sunny Kapoor:You'll be busy, but I want you to take some time or a few years and just feed them and help them. So every Sunday, I started going to different churches and helping them and doing conferences for them. So that was my role from 2021 January to 2023 January. For two years I did that and lived a life of faith and just an apostle, just an overseer of churches.
Sunny Kapoor:2023, I heard the story starts for US. We were praying and fasting and I said Lord, what's next for me? Will you just tell me to do this all my life, or will you tell me another assignment? Give me an assignment? And so in those days, as we were praying and fasting, I saw this dream one night, and in my dream I saw that I'm standing in a room and I'm looking at a wall and that wall has like a painting. I saw the entire map of the US and I'm looking at it, the entire map of the United States.
Sunny Kapoor:And then in my dream, I saw that that whole map is scarred, as if someone took a knife or a blade and scarred the whole map. All the states are scarred. And then I saw blood oozing out of the map. I started seeing the blood is coming out, but the whole map is bleeding and I could feel the emotions in that dream. I could feel the agony, the pain, the emotions in that dream. I actually feel the agony, the pain, and you know how the dream world or the dream realm works. There are random scenes that change doesn't make sense, doesn't connect and all of a sudden I'm having an eagle view over this map. Now, first I'm looking at it on the wall and now I'm looking at it as an eagle view and it's bleeding, it's it's, it's red, it's painful, and I'm just feeling that. In my dream I'm feeling that emotion. And as I'm looking at it from the eagle view, I I saw the Lord standing in the middle of the map. And as I saw Jesus standing in the middle of the map, and as I saw Jesus standing in the middle of the map, the whole trajectory of the dream changed. Now I'm feeling joy, I'm feeling peace, I'm feeling celebration, I'm feeling excitement, I'm feeling freedom. The whole environment of the dream changed.
Sunny Kapoor:And when I saw him standing in the middle of the map, next thing he whistled, which is so unusual, which is not heard of. But then, when I landed there, I realized that Isaiah 5.26 says I'll whistle and bring them from all the sites like east, west, north and south. I didn't know that when I'm seeing this dream, he whistled. And when he whistled, in my dream I saw people from all four sides. They came into the United States, they came from all four sides and they were carrying medical kits and first aid kits in their hands and they gathered around Jesus. And this is what he said and the dream ended. He just looked at all these people as if the commander whistled and a team gathered and now he's giving a command. This is what he said and the dream was over. He said go, heal the land. And my dream got over.
Sunny Kapoor:I woke up. I I was sweating. I knew like this is intense, this is not me, this is from God, and that inspired everything for us. We started praying about it. We got confirmations from our mentors people that love us and you know we are accountable to and started searching in the world and praying, and I knew that God wants me to do this.
Sunny Kapoor:And in 15 days I booked my flights, came to California to one of my friends that's the only guy I knew and came just on my cost to pray for America and go back because I didn't know what to do. And in those 15 days I met this guy, this organization. They have missionaries on board and he heard my story and journey and, miraculously, they just agreed in one meeting to get me the visas. No money involved, no dollar involved. I had to spend my own money, but they became the sponsors. Why I'm telling you this? Because there is a huge testimony attached to it. The visas take nine to six months because this is a huge testimony attached to it. The visas take nine to six months because this is a religious work, because I can come and do anything for the kingdom that I want to. Legally, it takes like six to nine months. Visas came in 16 hours what the attorney was shocked.
Sunny Kapoor:She called me from los angeles and she said I've not seen this in 27 years of my practice. Your visas are in my inbox in 16 hours. So I knew that God is bringing us to the world of healing and that's our mission, that's our vision to bring healing to the land. And there's so much more attached to it. But I think we're running out of time. So, yeah, that's where we are 2023, september. I landed here, didn't know where to go. The Lord led us to Colorado.
Sunny Kapoor:I didn't even know what Colorado is. When I looked at the map, when I saw CO, I thought it's like carbon monoxide or I don't know what this is. I was blank where to go. The Lord told us to go to come to Colorado, come to Denver.
Sunny Kapoor:I came alone with my bags, came out of the Denver International Airport and I didn't know where to go. I had no connection, so I just booked a hotel and started staying there. That's how, by faith, we started our lives in Denver. I didn't know one human being here. I just came because I heard the Lord say go and take the word of healing to the land.
Nancy Bruscher:Well, we will for sure unpack this another time, but I do want to kind of say a few things before we. Just now we're done. I love that, and my husband and I have been feeling for a really long time that the united states obviously you see the numbers decreasing in christianity right and afraid that it's going to become like europe, where they used to have a vibrant christian community and now the beautiful cathedral sit empty on on sunday and, uh, the funny thing is is that I got to go to india on a mission trip. I should have been here when my daughter she's so, she's eight, and I went when she was one, so seven years ago, and it was amazing and that might be another topic for another time, but in the past always kind of had westerners go to all these countries to be missionaries and I have felt like for a long time that we need a missionary to come to us and that, um, that we really need help, if that's as blunt as.
Nancy Bruscher:I can be.
Sunny Kapoor:Yeah, I mean, that was a shock for me as well. When the Lord said I'll take you as a missionary to Atlanta. I was like Lord, they have said missionaries Like who will accept me? And for many months I kept thinking what's bleeding Like? Is it the government that is bleeding? Well, every government is bleeding. Is it the community that is bleeding? Well, every government is bleeding. Is it the community that is bleeding? Well, every community is bleeding. Is it the economy? Like what is it? But now, 18 months in the land, my heart aches and I'm not being judgmental at all. I think I'm just being discernmentful, if that's the right word. My conclusion, my discernment, says what I saw in the dream it is the church that is bleeding. And, yeah, what went?
Nancy Bruscher:wrong where went wrong.
Sunny Kapoor:I don't know. We still have to figure it out, but for sure one of the enemies of American church has been comfort yes so it's the comfortable church which is more at risk than the persecuted church.
Nancy Bruscher:I have shivers, oh my goodness so true right. So, true, okay, so I'm going to leave that as a. Hey, that's one from Sunny. Okay, I mean that's, but I that's one from Sonny Okay. I mean that's, but I think that's so true and we need to dive into that, and I'd love to dive a little bit more into your missionary work here, but I do want to wrap up for today. Sure, what is your favorite?
Sunny Kapoor:Bible verse or story my favorite Bible verse or story. There are two of my favorite ones. One is Luke, chapter 10, where Jesus talks about when 70 disciples returned with joy and said Woohoo, we cast the demons out in your name and all that kind of stuff. And Jesus says I saw Satan falling from heaven like lightning and I've given you authority over scorpions and serpents and nothing will hurt you, nothing will harm you. But then he laid such a beautiful foundation that is my number one favorite. And he said but I say to you, do not rejoice that spirits are subjected to you, but rejoice that your names are written in the book of life in heaven. And I think that is the foundation of my life.
Sunny Kapoor:No matter what happens, I'm successful. If I'm not, whatever season I go through, my joy doesn't fluctuate because it's not dependent on the fruit or the success or whatever the world want to call it. It's based on just one thing that I belong to Jesus and my name is written in heaven. So I keep that as my whole focus of being joyful in life. That's my favorite part. Second one is Isaiah 43, where he talks about you are mine and I'm yours. I love that intimacy that is mentioned in Isaiah 43 and then he talks about you are mine and I'm yours. I love that intimacy that is mentioned in Isaiah 43. And then it talks about you go through the rivers and you'll not be drowned, and you go through the fires and fires will not be able to burn you, and I am with you and I'm giving ransom for you. So the Lord is just talking about his intimacy with his son and in his son for us. So these two are my favorite passages.
Sunny Kapoor:That's good, yeah, yeah.
Nancy Bruscher:What kindness have you seen, or what kindness have you shown in the last week?
Sunny Kapoor:The kindness that I've seen man, a lot of kindness. People just show kindness to us every day. Yeah, I've got good friends in Denver. Now I can say I'm not alone and they keep checking on us. The care that people show, the friends that the Lord has given us, that's very kind of them, because last 18 months we've been living here by faith. No one called us here. There's no, you know, like we just live here by the word of the Lord. So, yeah, a lot of kindness that people show. The care, the love Are the kindness that.
Sunny Kapoor:I've shown. I don't know man. Oh, I think I'm kind. Every person I talk to, strangers try to live a life of kindness. Just take care of people. Okay, this is the kindness that I show One of my friends. He got stuck in his office I don't know if you'll call it kindness and his dog was struggling alone at home and he couldn't leave office to take care of him for his walk or for his pee and all that dog stuff. And he called me in desperation and I think it's also kindness. I drove 20 miles and just went to his house, took his dog for a ride, for a walk, and just took care of his dog for an hour. So I think it was kindness, yeah.
Sunny Kapoor:Yeah that is yeah.
Nancy Bruscher:Yeah. Well thank you for being on, sonny, thank you for sharing your story, thank you for sharing about how you're a missionary here in the United States, and I'm excited to see what God does through this and excited to chat with you again yes, thank you, nancy, appreciate it.
Sunny Kapoor:Thank you for honoring me and just inviting me on your channel. Really appreciate it, thank you thank you so much.
Nancy Bruscher:Yeah, alrighty, on Ordinary People, extraordinary Things. Your story is his glory. Thank you for listening. I am sure you are going to want to hear part two, where Sonny shares more about his life and his ministry and his mission here in the United States. That will be in two weeks, but next week, easter Sunday, we are dropping our 100th episode. Oh, my goodness, I am so thankful, I'm so grateful for all of you who have listened. It is going to be a very special episode as my husband, chris, will be the host and he is talking to my brother and my brother-in-law, so the three of them will be on and I can't wait for you to hear. We will see you next week.