I was 10 when my father came to faith

At that time in Romania, there were a lot of consequences to taking such a step, and it meant that you didn’t belong anymore. Every day at school they searched my bag for a Bible. I didn’t get high grades anymore and they wouldn’t let me participate in school activities.

It all began when my father stole a book from his drinking buddy. Back then, he used to drink a lot, and he saw the book at his house. It was about God and Jerusalem. He thought it was interesting and decided he had to have it.  So he put it under his jacket and took it home. My father read the book a lot, until he came to faith.

The whole village knew my father came to faith and the police came to our house to take all the Christian literature away. My father then took the cover of a Ceausescu book and put the book inside that fake cover. It just lay there on the table. The police took all the Christian books but they left that book. Eventually I got the book from my father and I had it bound and restored. The book has a lot of emotional value to me. There are so many Christian books and the Bible is the basis for everything, but for me this book is a symbol of the beginning of something beautiful: a life with Jesus.

Nadia, who has worked in Mission Without Borders Netherlands’ administration department for 11 years

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