I Want That Book!

By Laurie Denski-Snyman

Tim was a new missionary, and he was scared. He was selling Christian books on a predominantly non-Christian island in Southeast Asia, and he didn’t want any trouble.

As he made his way down a street, Tim prayed and nervously stepped into the store of a seamstress. Ahead of him, he saw four people waiting in line.

The minutes seemed to drag by.

The wait was taking longer than Tim had expected.

He was tempted to leave, but something stopped him.

He noticed that the seamstress kept glancing over in his direction with an odd expression on her face. From time to time, she even moved over to one side of the counter, close to the wall, so she could peer around the other customers and get a better look at his face.

Finally, the last customer left the store, and it was Tim’s turn in line.

But before he could say a word, the seamstress pointed to the books sticking out of his bag. “I want that book!” she exclaimed. “I want that book, and I want that book!”

“What?” Tim said. “How do you even know that I have books for sale?”

“I had a dream,” the seamstress said. “In the dream, I saw a young man who looked just like you. He had books with him that I needed to read, and one of those books was called The Great Controversy. So, I knew that you were going to come. I knew that I had to purchase The Great Controversy. Do you have that book?”

Tim’s fears about having trouble as a missionary instantly disappeared. He grew excited about selling books. He realized the truth of Deuteronomy 31:8, which says, “And the Lord, He is the One who goes before you. He will be with you, He will not leave you nor forsake you; do not fear nor be dismayed” (NKJV). He knew that God was going ahead of him, paving the way for him to share the good news about Jesus and His soon coming.

Pray for Tim and other missionaries seeking to reach unreached people groups in the Southern Asia-Pacific Division, where this story took place. We are grateful to Adventist Mission for allowing us to publish this story.

World Church Prayer Requests

April 5 - 11, 2024

• Pray for believers and those affected by the recent earthquake in Taiwan.
• Pray for those who are looking heavenward this coming week. Pray that beyond seeing a solar eclipse, they will be drawn to think about the soon coming of Jesus.
• Pray for opportunities to witness and share with others about the truths found in God’s Word.
• Pray for opportunities to share The Great Controversy, or even Glow Tracts.
• Pray for the spread of the “Back to the Altar” initiative. Pray that church members worldwide will learn afresh what it means to rebuild their broken altars and worship God. (To learn more, visit: https://www.backtothealtar.org)

Download this week's testimony and the prayer requests here!