Many times Ivan held services in open areas away from buildings and preached the gospel to the multitudes. One day on his way to one of these open-air services he saw two lions laying in the bushes by the side of the road. He realized that turning around and running away would not help him. All too well he knew the scripture in Proverbs 28:1 “The wicked flee when no man pursueth: but the righteous are bold as a lion”. (KJV). As he got closer to the lions he got so afraid to the point that his hair raised and his hat nearly fell off, although he knew that the Lord was with him. Even closer, he noticed that they were not lions but the rocks that were naturally formed in the shape of lions. He learnt that while we sometimes fear, there is nothing to be afraid of if the Lord is with you.
A ways down the road, he saw a group of baboons coming down the mountain towards him. Ivan knew all too well that a baboon can shred a man to pieces and he started to pray in earnest. The baboons turned around and left. “And call upon me in the day of trouble: I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify me”. (Psalm 50:15 KJV)
Another time it started raining in the late afternoon and before he arrived at the next village he was soaking wet. As it got dark, he walked into a field, flattened the long grass and lay down to sleep. The next day he noticed that his clothes were full of mud. He didn't have any choice but to continue on. As he was walking he got a craving for chocolate and told this to the Lord.
Not too long after, two men in a Mercedes invited him to ride with them. He stepped in the back and noticed that there was a block of chocolate sitting on the seat between the two men. The one man asked the other if he could give the chocolate to Ivan. He nodded in agreement and Ivan had the whole chocolate bar to himself.
He got out of the car at the next village and while he was walking past a hotel, the Lord told him: “Go inside”, but he replied: “Lord not with these dirty clothes”. But the Lord repeated: “Go inside”. In obedience he went inside but the manager of the hotel began to yell at him: “Get out of here! There's no place for you here!” As he rounded the corner of the street, one of the hotel servants called him and told him that they had a room for him. The servant offered to wash his clothes and to iron them while Ivan was sleeping. The next morning his khaki clothes were nicely washed and ironed and he also had clean socks to put on. The Lord works in exceptional ways to establish His wonders. “He withdraweth not his eyes from the righteous…”(Job 36:7 KJV)
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