A Bicycle Prepares the Way

A Bicycle Prepares the Way

News release from Gospel for Asia (www.gfa.org) – For Immediate Release

WILLS POINT, TX (ANS – Jan. 18, 2016) -- Pastor Gobi knelt on the ground while the sound of his prayers filled the air. Soon he would begin his ministry distributing literature and praying for the sick and needy. On his knees he would find victory. Gobi didn’t know it then, but a long journey of faith and endurance awaited him.

Village Opposes the Good News

Early in the morning, Pastor Gobi felt the Lord’s prompting to share His love in one particular village, so he made his way there. But when he arrived, the pastor faced utter rejection. The villagers were worshiping their traditional deities, trying to find joy and peace in their hearts. They offered sacrifices to them, hoping to receive blessings, and they had no room for Pastor Gobi’s message of hope in Christ.

Some villagers snatched the literature Gobi offered them and tore the booklets. With threatening words, they told him to leave and not return.

A Heart Committed to Prayer

Even though it was difficult, Pastor Gobi prayed and sought God’s face, asking Him to prepare the soil of the villagers’ hearts and minds to know the Lord’s grace. Because this matter burdened his heart, he began to fast and pray every Friday for the village—something he would do for three years.

As time went by, Pastor Gobi felt full of the Lord’s courage, so he once again visited the village that had harshly rejected the Good News. Gobi passed out literature and shared God’s love with the villagers. At the end of the day, he met a man named Tosa.

Meeting a Troubled Man

As Pastor Gobi conversed with Tosa, he heard the man’s story in detail.

Tosa was known as the poorest man in his village. He struggled financially. Though Tosa and his wife both worked as much as they could, they were barely scraping by. If they couldn’t work, they didn’t eat that day.

Tosa knew that if he could get to the city, he would find better work and be able to feed his family. But there was a problem: His family owned only one bicycle, and his children needed it to get to school each day. There was no other means of transportation he could afford. So he stayed in his village—sometimes walking by foot to nearby villages—looking for work so his family could live.

Doors Begin to Open

Whenever Pastor Gobi visited the village, he made it a point to check in with Tosa and his family. As they saw the genuine love and care Gobi shared with them, they decided to learn about Jesus by attending church.

When it came time for Pastor Gobi to organize a Christmas gift distribution, he requested that Tosa be added to the list of recipients. Two months later, Tosa was presented with a bicycle. With this useful gift, Tosa traveled to the city and began to earn a better living. Soon his family could enjoy three meals a day, and he was even able to purchase more clothing for his family, including school uniforms for his children.

As Tosa and his family’s lives began to transform, the villagers watched them closely. Slowly their hearts began to soften. Their ideas about Pastor Gobi and God began to change. The villagers began to take the literature Pastor Gobi offered, and they read it with curiosity. They have begun to ask Pastor Gobi for prayer when they are sick or in need of peace.

As Pastor Gobi faithfully prayed, the Lord listened and answered the cries of his heart. Now Christ’s love is freely shared in a village that once rejected it. The bicycle was just one tool the Lord used to prepare the soil of hardened hearts!

Note: Gospel for Asia (www.gfa.org) is an evangelical mission organization based in Wills Point, Tex