Hey y’all it’s Day 3 here in Lesvos, Greece and it’s awesome! However, I want to share a story with you about a friend and brother I gained this past month in Romania named Mihai.
Toward the beginning of the month, I went out evangelizing with Alex, Madison, Isaiah, and our translator Emma. Our translator took us to a park where we were able to talk to quite a few people. As we were leaving the park, I saw a group of 5 kids (pre-teens and teenagers) sitting on the steps. One of them was smoking a cigarette (He was only 12 or 13 years old). We immediately sparked a conversation with them.
I asked them if they knew who Jesus was. Gabriel, one of the older kids, said that he did, but the other children didn’t. Then he pointed at His friend, Mihai, and told us that He was an atheist. I mentioned to Gabriel how he was being Christ-like because of his interactions with people who lived differently than him.
Isaiah asked Mihai “Is it peaceful or difficult being an atheist?” Mihai responded “Peaceful.” I asked him why he was an atheist. He told us because his father is an atheist, and explained his father’s story. His father used to be a Christian, but he was beaten and persecuted for his faith, and decided that there couldn’t be a loving God who would allow him to be beaten.
I told him that “God promises us as Christians that we will have sufferings, but that God is with us in our sufferings.” He asked me why I was a believer.
I began to tell him part of my testimony where my mom and I struggled financially for some time, and we had to move from place to place. During that time, I remember crying out to my mom “It’s not fair that we are doing our best to live right and do the right thing, and we are struggling. Yet people are doing whatever they want, and they aren’t struggling!” My mom replied with Galatians 6:9.
Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.
I explained to him that during that difficult time, Jesus was right there with me, and I could talk to him. I asked Mihai, “Do you have anyone to talk to when life is hard?” He sadly shook his head and said, “No.”
Mihai ended up saying that He couldn’t believe in Jesus because the Bible only talks about certain years of his life. I asked him: If someone wrote a book about your life and only included certain years from it, but left out other parts, does that mean that you didn’t exist?
Mihai paused and told me that I was correct. I felt like God wanted to speak to him. So, I asked him if God had ever spoken to him before. He had never heard God speak before, so we moved to a bench that was near us and did listening prayer. I told him how God speaks to us in different ways (scripture, visions, thoughts, audibly, feelings or sensations, and through other people). I prayed, and we all listened.
I asked him if he heard anything. He said, “No, but while you were praying I saw something.” I asked him, “What did you see?” He expressed, “I saw Jesus in a church praying.” I could tell that he was confused. He told us that he had never experienced anything like this before. Madison told Mihai how God expressed His love for him.
I told him how I heard, God say that “You don’t have to do this alone, and that He wants to be your friend.” I asked him, “Do you want Jesus to be your friend?” He paused, and with a heavy breath, Mihai said “…Yes.” I then explained the Gospel to him and told him that if he believed, to pray to God expressing his belief and desire for a relationship with Jesus. He prayed in Romanian with sincerity to his new friend and savior. We celebrated with him and gave him a Bible.
Below is a photo we took shortly after Mihai’s decision to follow Jesus. Mihai is wearing the camo hat, and Gabriel is in the middle.
I wasn’t able to see Mihai until our last night in Romania at our Goodbye Party, where we celebrated all that God had done in the past month. I asked him how did he feel. With a smile, he said, “Different.” He told me how when He told his mom, she was excited and wanted to learn more. I asked him, “What about your dad?” Mihai expressed “My dad has started back going to church, and I think He wants to turn back to God.” God is good y’all!
Keep Gabriel, Mihai, and his family in your prayers. Pray that God will continue the work that He is doing in their lives.
P.S. God is doing some great things within the lives of X-Squad, your financial support and prayers will allow me to continue to lead them throughout their World Race Journey. I need your help with fundraising for my time back on the field. I am only at 10% of my goal. Please pray that God will continue to provide funds for this journey. If you would like to donate, click the donate button at the top or leave a comment at the bottom.
P.P.S. If you would like to read what happened with the teenager smoking the cigarette read Isaiah’s blog here!
