The boy David was summoned from his flock to be anointed, then driven through war, exile, and danger until his crown fit. On a similar line in a different era, Apostle David Devaraj walked a path marked by detours with seasons where the call seemed distant, felt like exile, and battles that forged conviction.

Journey with us through moments from his life story, told across three parts, to witness how each period shaped him into the shepherd he became.

Roots and Reverence

Every childhood has its rhythm. Apostle David’s was the clatter of trains in the distance, the hum of family voices gathered in prayer, and the playful chaos of siblings and cousins. Born in Mysore in 1959, he grew up in a bustling joint family home in Benson Town, Bangalore.

He comes from a family with deep and diverse roots. His paternal grandfather was a converted Brahmin who married the daughter of a Naidu who served in the military police, while his maternal grandparents brought influences from silk farming and Portuguese heritage. Both grandfathers were school headmasters, each raising large families: ten children on his father’s side and six on his mother’s.

At home, festivals, dinners, games, and stories like Aesop's Fables, Tenali Rama and Birbal intermingled with Bible Stories brought everyone together. Meals always began with a shared prayer. The home reflected military discipline, shaped by his father and uncles in the army. Many in the family served in the armed forces, while others chose the path of teaching, creating a blend of values rooted in duty and discipline that left a lasting mark on him.

He began school around age four at Clarence High School in Richards Town, where he studied until 1975. Though it was beyond their means, his parents chose the school for its unique hands-on learning environment, with teachers from India and abroad. Classes were small and lively, filled with experiments, carpentry, cooking, and field visits that turned lessons into experiences.

Scripture was compulsory in school, and his church life was rich with Bible study, quizzes, and Sunday School. These activities offered a strong biblical foundation during the formative years.

He thrived in the outdoors, spending his days playing sports, marbles, flying kites, and having countless rooftop adventures. His father encouraged the adventurous spirit. “My father was my biggest role model. His sense of adventure clearly passed on to me.” Apostle David adds. He also looked up to his mother and his elder sister, Rani, for guidance. When his mother was away for work and study, his sister Rani became his source of care and guidance in his growing years.

Apostle David Devaraj recalls falling seriously ill at age five, when a persistent fever kept him in the hospital for nearly six months. His grandmother, who cared for him in the hospital, fascinated him with stories from the Bible. The warmth, wonder, and life in her stories made God feel near and helped develop a deep reverence and love for His ways. He adds, “Sometimes I would pretend to be asleep, but I would still hear her telling the same stories to the neighbors. It continues to inspire me."

The Furnace of Change

His world changed when he lost his father in tenth grade. Grief was soon followed by pressure and advice from others, which felt suffocating. Simultaneously, India was embroiled in a political emergency upheaval, which pushed him into youth politics.

Around this time, he began to notice the stark difference between what was preached and what was actually practiced in churches. The hypocrisy troubled him deeply, and unable to make sense of it at such a young age, he began to rebel. Eventually, he drifted away from the church altogether.

From 1975 to the mid-1980s, he became increasingly involved in student movements, labour unions, and eventually mainstream politics. All the while, his quest to find Divine Power continued. During this period, the stories of his grandmother where God was tender, loving, and infinitely kind became his holy ground. Even in seasons of rebellion and doubt, he now clearly sees the hand of the ‘Master Planer’ protecting, molding, and steering the young David back according to His will.

The Quiet Hand of God

“How I reconciled my faith is a really complicated question. But in short, I would say, God engineered it. And the way He did it was the only way David Devaraj could ever change. It was the hard way,” he shares with a thoughtful look.

Without his father's guidance, David drifted into risky paths. And was forced to relocate to Mangalore to live with his sister. There he passionately completed his diploma in chemical engineering and secured a coveted position at the “mother of chemical industries” (an ammonia plant), while simultaneously pursuing his engineering degree.

In 1981, nine days into the job, a devastating accident shattered his leg, and he thought his career had ended there. Defeated, he returned to Bangalore to rest and recover. Those two years of bedridden contemplation became a crucial turning point in his life. Towards the end of these two years, two important people entered his life.

The first was his cousin’s husband, Jose Kuthottungal, affectionately called ‘Annaiah’, who sought David’s help in managing his assets. He did not yet know that his Annaiah was also one of the first six Apostles in the New Apostolic Church.

In the meantime, he received an offer from the ammonia plant and prepared to move back to Mangalore. Just a month before the move, he met Lily, a family friend relocating to Bengaluru for work. When Lily couldn’t find a place to stay in Bengaluru, he offered her his room.

During that brief month, a quiet friendship began to grow. She often asked why he no longer went to church and kept inviting him back. He resisted, but their conversations about faith, rebellion, and the past drew them closer, until it was clear this was more than friendship.

Her father strongly disapproved. When they wanted to get married, the church leaders from his former church declined, influenced by her father's stance. So David considered taking a legal route. “But the day I was to file, my Bible fell out of my suitcase and opened to 1 Corinthians 6 - ‘Dare any of you, having a matter against another, go to law …. (KJV)’ It felt like God was speaking directly to me,” he recalls.

He had waited three years for Lily’s parents to come around; now, even the legal path appeared closed by God Himself. So David arranged for a court wedding on 5 May 1986, which was a big taboo at that time. During this period of uncertainty, his grandmother urged him to pray, and they prayed together.

The tide began to turn. At his brother-in-law’s suggestion, David reached out to Jose Annaiah for help in finding someone to officiate the wedding. To his surprise, Jose Annaiah, who had a marriage license, agreed to conduct the ceremony and set the date as May 5! The very day the court wedding was planned.

And so, David married Lily in a ceremony solemnized by Rev. Jose Kuthottungal, an Apostle of Jesus Christ. The full weight of this truth would only dawn on him later, revealing how perfectly God had worked out His plan.

Stay tuned for Part 2!