Nine-year-old Teodor survives a frightening bicycle accident in Croatia and believes God protected him, strengthening his trust in prayer, Scripture, and God’s care.
Teodor was nine years old when it happened.
He had just finished music lessons and was riding home on his bicycle. On his back was something almost as big as he was—his cello.
The road sloped downhill. His mother was riding ahead of him. The afternoon air felt cool and fresh.
Then the wind came.
A strong gust pushed against the large cello case strapped to Teodor’s back. The cello caught the wind like a sail. Suddenly the heavy instrument pulled him sideways.
“I couldn’t stop it,” Teodor remembers.
The next moment, he was falling.
He landed in the road — right in front of an oncoming car.
The driver did not expect to see a boy with a cello suddenly fall into the street. But somehow, in that split second, the car swerved around him.
It missed him completely.
Teodor lay there for a moment, stunned. His mother turned around in shock.
But something amazing had happened.
Teodor stood up.
He wasn’t hurt.
His cello wasn’t damaged.
There were no broken bones. No cuts. No bruises. Nothing.
“I didn’t even feel anything,” Teodor says. “My guardian angel was there helping.”
Teodor is the son of a pastor in Croatia. His family travels often so his father can preach in different churches. Sometimes it’s tiring. Sometimes they wake up very early. But Teodor loves being part of church life.
He sings in the adult choir with his sister, Anastasia. He helps collect the offering. He loves Pathfinders and studying the Bible. His favorite Bible stories are about David, especially when David trusted God to defeat Goliath.
That day on the road, Teodor felt like David—small, in danger, but protected by Someone bigger.
The Bible says in Psalm 91:11, “For He shall give His angels charge over you, to keep you in all your ways.”
Teodor believes that promise is real.
God doesn’t always remove danger from our lives. But sometimes, in ways we can’t explain, He protects us.
And sometimes we don’t even realize how close we were to being hurt.
Today, Teodor still plays his cello. He still rides his bike. And every time he remembers that afternoon, he thanks God for sending an angel to watch over him.
In Croatia, many children grow up learning about God in their churches and homes. But some churches, like the Zagreb 1 church, were badly damaged by an earthquake. A new church building will give children a safe place to worship, sing, learn mission stories, and grow strong in their faith.
Let’s give our Thirteenth Sabbath Offering so children like Teodor can continue serving and trusting God in a beautiful place.
