Recently, Cher’s and my language tutor found out she was pregnant and started battling intense morning sickness, and the owner of our entire language school, Bao, became our substitute. While my normal teacher was a Christian who helped me learn “spiritual words” in the native language, I knew that Bao was an atheist so I’d have to be a little more guarded.
Over the next week of classes (we met in a bakery/coffee shop) I learned some interesting things about Bao. One was that she was totally surrounded by Christians. Most of her teachers were Christians, many of her students were Christians, and even her husband and his whole family were Christians. But because of the strong anti-God stands she had made, no one really talked to her about spiritual things anymore.
Second, I learned she was no longer a convinced atheist. God had been working on her heart over the last 2 years through the testimony of the believers in her life. She had even started trying to seek God on her own, but just felt lost and confused. She had been reading through the Old Testament and asked me, “Who is this Jehovah guy anyway?” Her heart increasingly knew there was a God and that there was something different about the Christians in her life. But no one had told her how to know Him. So at the end of class, I asked, “Bao, would you like me to tell you the big story of the Bible so that you can understand it better and start a relationship with God?”
“Sure,” she answered.
At our next class, I brought it up again, and she asked me to tell her. So I began to share with her the story of God’s love for us, our sin, and how Jesus rescued us. As I finished, she exclaimed, “I understand! For the first time I see it.”
After sharing what it means to truly make Jesus the Lord of our life, I asked this former hardened atheist if she wanted to follow Jesus. She looked me right in the eye, nodded her head, and with wide eyes said, “Yes.”
“Do you want to start that relationship with Him right now?”
“I can do that?”
“Yep, we can do it right here. Just talk to him and tell him what’s in your heart.”
And in the middle of that bakery, she prayed, “Jesus, I know you’re real, and I want a relationship with you. Please forgive all my sin. I want to let you drive the car of my life. I want to follow you.”
For the rest of our class she was grinning ear to ear and kept saying, “I feel so excited inside!” Then she and Cher celebrated over a piece of cake together in their class.
That night she went home and asked her husband, “Honey, can we go to church together this Sunday?” Her husband almost dropped his tea. “What did you say?”
“I want to go to church with you this Sunday. I’ve decided to follow Jesus.”
Without answering, her husband grabbed his cell phone and dialed a number. “Mom,” he said, “get the whole family together. We’re having a party tonight.” And they did.
And so did the angels.
Thank you for praying for us. God has many more “Bao’s” out there ready to receive!