Sikol
Getting an attack of malaria is a small price to pay for a fantastic weekend. Not only did I get to take my oldest son Micah down 3,000 feet to a beautiful flowing river closed in by pine trees and thick jungle; but God encouraged my heart greatly that He indeed is alive and working in the heart’s of people around the world.
After a full day of sunshine, spearing for fresh water shrimp, swimming in ice cold water, and just enjoying time with my boy, we went back to the thatched roof hut (with no door) and rested. As we sat around the fire with Tingon, his wife, 2 sons, and one of his relatives, Sikol with his wife and son, we enjoyed a good meal of shrimp, rice, sweet potatoes, and cabbage. After we finished eating we sat by the fire and Sikol asked me, “So what are these literacy classes about and when will one start?” I told him that the classes were designed so that people could read God’s word and understand for themselves God’s road to eternal life. To which he replied, “Tingon, awhile ago, came and told me what you had been teaching him from the Old Testament and the life of Jesus. I heard this and I went to the village church (the other religions that are here) and I heard them talk about how we need to clean up our lives, forsake our sins, follow the ten commandments, and hold on to God really strong and then we can go to heaven. If we do not do these things, we will go to hell, they said. So I thought about what they said and weighed it in my mind, and I knew that it wasn’t correct. There is no one who can follow God’s law and make his own way to heaven. We try, but always fail. So we will all go to hell. I also thought about your talk which Tingon had told me about what Jesus had done; how He washed our sins and took our place so we didn’t have to die and go to hell. He said all we need to do is believe it, and Jesus, through his blood, would save us and take us to heaven. And I knew that this was the truth. Jesus is the only road to heaven, we can’t do it on our own insignificant strength. So I weighed these two different talks and I believed in Jesus.”
This thrilled my heart because here was a second generation Christian led to the Lord by Tingon and I had nothing to do with it. From there we proceeded to talk through the Old Testament through the life of Christ, rehashing the stories of Abraham and Isaac, the brazen serpent, the Bread of Life, and many others for the next 3 hours into the night. In a lull in the conversation, Tingon in classic Tobo fashion said, “Brothers, this is very good talk, let’s go to sleep.” So we laid back and fell asleep to the roar of the river, the warmth of the fire, and the assurance that our God has saved us for all eternity. What a blessed time.
His Clay Pots, Jason, Kellie, Micah, Sophia, Malachi & The Tobo Church
