A Brother restored

One Thursday morning at 7:00 AM at the Roma discipleship camp, I was surprised by a lot of yelling, wailing and excited voices. I quickly left my room and entered the hallway to find several Roma all trying to tell me at once that Pawel (Paul) had died.

Pawel was not at the Roma camp, but his daughter and grandchildren were. Many of the Roma at camp were also related to Pawel.

Pawel lived only 4 kilometers from where we held the Roma camp. I had seen him just the day before and had talked with Pawel and he seemed fine.

I began talking with the Roma people at the camp about me remembering when Pawel gave his life to Jesus.

Some of the people started saying, "well, Pawel hasn't been going to the prayer meetings or church, so they said he may not be in Heaven now".

I used those comments as a teachable moment about salvation.

While I was talking to the crowd, they got a phone call that Pawel was not dead.

I said to 4 Roma men, "during today's free time right after Bible study we are going to go to talk to Pawel and find out exactly how his relationship is with Jesus".

I told them I do not want to wonder nor should they wonder if a professing brother or sister is in Heaven or not. We are family and we should know each others spiritual conditions because we help and pray for each other.

Since we were given a second chance to talk with a brother who was once "dead" but now is alive, we need to go and speak with him.

We went to the Roma village and found Pawel and shared why we were there. After a long conversation we all joined Pawel as he prayed a prayer of repentance and asked for restoration from God.

Pawel was broken in spirit and reminded of his love for Jesus which he had let drift away the past several months.

Pawel join a group of other Roma who came to the camp each evening for the worship time.

This photo is of Pawel (he is the man standing in front of me) and those of us who went to share God's word and our love to a brother who had gone astray.

Pawel is dyeing of liver cancer, but he has life eternal with God.

Now the next time we get a phone call about his death, we can have peace knowing our brother is in Heaven.

Pray that God's people will have compassion to help lift up and encourage a fallen brother or sister in the Lord.

Praise God for that phone call, Pawel was not physically dead, but spiritually he had died.

Praise God Pawel is both physically and spiritually alive today!!!!!

We are in the Lord's army and we should never shoot our wounded.

Praise and Glory be to our great God!!!!!