At his Seventh-day Adventist school, Samuel quickly noticed that there were many children who did not come from Adventist families. One of those classmates was 14-year-old Johann.
To Sabbath School teachers: This story is for Sabbath, August 3.
By Andrew McChesney
Samuel had a big dream when he was 7. He dreamed of leading many people to the feet of Jesus. He wanted many people to know Jesus and to love Jesus just like him. But he was afraid because he was only a small child.
So, he prayed, “Lord, please help me to win at least one soul for You.”
He prayed, and he prayed. He prayed the same prayer for four years.
Then, when he was 11 years old, he and his family moved to a new city in Colombia. He thought excitedly, “This may be my opportunity to win souls.” He prayed, “Lord, please help me. I want to win my first soul for you.”
At his Seventh-day Adventist school, Samuel quickly noticed that there were many children who did not come from Adventist families. One of those classmates was 14-year-old Johann. Samuel knew for sure that Johann was not from an Adventist home because he used bad words when he spoke to the other boys. Johann also didn’t know the Bible. When the teacher asked questions in Bible class, Johann didn’t seem to know any of the answers.
Samuel thought to himself, “Johann is my opportunity!”
Samuel started to talk to Johann about the Bible whenever they saw each other. He found out that Johann didn’t own a Bible of his own.
One day, during worship time at school, Johann leaned over and asked Samuel, “May I read from your Bible?”
“Of course,” Samuel replied, and handed over his children’s picture Bible.
Johann opened it up and began to read.
“Oh, this is interesting,” he said.
Samuel looked over to see what Johann was reading. He was reading Jesus’ parable about the shepherd looking for the lost sheep in Luke 15.
At the end of the worship service, the children were invited to pray with each other.
Samuel prayed with Johann.
“Lord, please help Johann to become a better boy,” he prayed. “Give him the chance to choose You.”
Johann liked the prayer. “Thank you,” he said when Samuel finished. He didn’t pray.
The next day, Samuel put two Bibles in his backpack when he went to school, one for himself and one for Johann. The second Bible was a black Bible that his father had given him for his ninth birthday.
His chance to give the Bible to Johann came during recess, when Johann asked, “Can I read your Bible again?”
Samuel was so happy!
He said, “Of course! You can read my Bible whenever you want.”
Reaching into his backpack, he took out the two Bibles and gave the black one to Johann.
Then the two boys opened the Bibles and read a story. Afterward, Samuel prayed, thanking God that they could read together and asking for help in understanding what they had read.
After that, Samuel and Johann read the Bible every day at recess.
Before long, Johann also wanted to pray when they finished reading the Bible. His first prayer was simple.
“Lord, I’m here,” he said. “Help me. Thank You for my family. Thank You for giving me the opportunity to study. Help me to study well.”
After reading the Bible together for two weeks, Samuel invited Johann to give his heart to Jesus in baptism. Johann agreed!
Today, Johann is a new boy. Before, he used bad words and didn’t know the Bible. Now, he uses only kind and pure words, and he is getting to know the Bible — and God —very well.
Samuel is happy that he could lead Johann to Jesus’ feet, and he is praying that he will be able to share Jesus with many more people.
He said, “It doesn’t matter your age or the knowledge that you have, you can talk to people about Jesus.” ⎭
Part of this quarter’s Thirteenth Sabbath Offering will help children learn about Jesus in Colombia. Thank you for planning a generous offering on September 28.
