Our friend, Tilda, recently had a dream of an Adventist church that prompted her to begin telling her friends about Jesus. Since then, God has been working through her in amazing ways, and her heart has found hope and joy. Then the trials began, and her new faith was put to the test.

Tilda’s six-year-old son, Richi, began getting sick, and he lost weight. His cough, night sweats, and fatigue were troubling. I was worried he might have tuberculosis—he had all the classic symptoms. We took Tilda and Richi to the ADRA clinic in the capital for testing and were saddened when his TB test came back positive. We called the AFM office to ask for prayer, and Marianne Hollister sent out the message to AFM missionaries all over the world. We began a whirlwind of trips to the state hospital and independent labs for more tests. All the tests showed that Richi definitely had active TB. TB can become inactive, but is not curable. Even if it became inactive, he would always need to guard his health to prevent re-activation.

Throughout the ordeal, Richi showed amazing faith in God. Before submitting to any test or treatment, he insisted on saying a short prayer. He told every doctor and nurse he met that people all over the world were praying for him, and God would take care of him. His primary doctor, Albania’s top pediatric tuberculosis specialist, was an atheist. She was kind-hearted, though, and patiently allowed his prayers. There were no beds available in the TB ward, so Richi stayed at home and made frequent trips to the hospital.

We felt impressed to add fasting to our prayers. On Richi’s next trip to the hospital, a test showed that his TB appeared to have become inactive. He hadn’t yet begun taking medication, yet his symptoms were gone. His recovery was remarkable. On Richi’s next visit, they did a chest x-ray and some other tests. The doctor could not believe what she found. There was no longer any sign that Richi had ever contracted TB! It seemed impossible, but little Richi was not surprised. “I knew God would take care of me!” he grinned at the doctor. “People all over the world were praying for me.” She just shook her head in amazement. She later quietly told another doctor, a relative of Tilda’s husband, that there must have been some mistake in the previous tests because TB does not go away. She couldn’t explain it any other way. We pray this miracle will open her heart to the truth.

When Tilda’s friends and relatives found out about Richi’s miraculous healing, they were amazed. Tilda told them how Richi’s faith had helped her trust God to get them through this. Her friends were touched and wanted to know more about us and our faith. It wasn’t long before we were getting to know many of Tilda’s friends and extended family members. They began to ask questions about our faith, and some asked if they could come and learn more.

Tilda’s Muslim uncle, Agim, was very friendly to us, but when his sons asked to come to our Bible studies, he would not allow them because they are Muslim. He and Sean began to spend time together and soon became friends. One day, Agim’s sons showed up at our Bible study with their father’s blessings. When Agim learned we were going to a special church gathering in the capital, he asked to join us. A large group of people came with us, and almost all could trace the beginning of their interest back to Tilda. Tilda was like the woman at the well. After meeting Jesus, she went back and told everyone, “Come and see!”

Agim and his wife, Leda, recently took Tilda and us on a trip to the sea. Leda was in a lot of pain from a back injury and had difficulty even getting in and out of the car. We bought her a heat pack and offered to visit her in her home and give her some natural treatments. A few days later, they called us. Leda couldn’t work at all because of her pain. We went to their home and prayed, and then we applied the treatment. God blessed, and Leda’s pain went away immediately. She got up, went into the kitchen and made us some freshly-squeezed juice!

Agim’s eyes widened, and he smiled broadly. “Why don’t the doctors know about this?” he asked. Sean replied that it was God who had healed Leda. “Praise God!” Agim exclaimed. Each day we saw Leda, she would flash a big smile and tell us the pain was still gone. Our friendship with her and Agim grew closer.

Shortly after that, our daughter, Moriah, received an anonymous threat. We didn’t go to English class that evening, and the class asked about us. When Tilda explained what had happened, the group decided to do everything they could to support us. Local police are afraid of the crime rings, but these ordinary citizens were stepping in to help us. Agim immediately came to our house to try to help track down the source of the threat. Though the threat disturbed us, our hearts were warmed to see our community of friends pulling together for us.

The next week, Agim called and asked Sean to meet him at his home. When Sean arrived, Agim soon got to the question on his heart. “Tell me, why did you come to Albania?” Sean gave Agim the whole story of how God became real to him and how he had learned many lessons over the years and still had much to learn. He told Agim how God had changed his life and called our family to Albania to help Albanians learn more about how God loves them and wants to save them.

“How did you know God wanted you to come to Albania, and how did you know to come to Berat? Why this city?” Agim pressed. Sean explained how God had made it extremely clear, through divine providence, exactly where He wanted us. Agim thought in silence for a moment, then he looked intently into Sean’s eyes and leaned closer. “Why did it take you four years in Albania to find me?”

It was Sean’s turn to be silent and thoughtful for a moment. “God’s timing is always perfect,” he answered. It hit Sean that Agim felt God had sent Sean to Albania specifically for him.

Agim continued, “I have a lot of friends, but I have only one close, trusted friend outside of relatives. Now I have two. You and Ludi are my brothers.” (Ludi is an English student and also a friend of Sean’s.) Sean was stunned to realize he had entered Agim’s closest circle. The only way to gain trust here is to spend a lot of time with people. It takes patience. Only those in the close circles are really trusted, and the depth of these friendships is astounding.

God is certainly pouring out His blessings on His work here, but the devil is not going to give up without a fight. Our enemy is hard at work, as evidenced by the safety issues for our daughters and Natasha, our student missionary. Also, our Albanian friends who are moving toward Jesus are experiencing severe difficulties. Serious health problems, marriage and family conflicts, loss of jobs, Sabbath issues at work and school and other issues are markedly increasing. This is a spiritual war, and we need to spend more time on our knees. The battle belongs to the Lord.

Please join us, prayer warriors. You are being called into urgent service! And while you are at it, pray for land for a church in Berat. We know God has just the right place picked out, and He will make Tilda’s dream come true when His people pray.

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