She stood outside the
doorway of the church intrigued by the love and
joy displayed by those inside. The American
missionary had asked her to come in, but she had
politely declined. It wasn't because she didn't
want to accept the kind of offer. Quite the
opposite; her heart was beckoning her to join in
their singing and worship. They seemed so happy,
and the fellowship was so spontaneous and
natural. But this was a hostile area in the
Philippines, and her father had strictly
forbidden her to have anything to do with those
Christians.
Unknown to the little Filipino girl, the
missionary was praying fervently for her soul,
longing to see the day when she would accompany
her inside the village church and learn of Jesus
and how He shed
His
blood on a cross so that her sins could be
washed away. The girl knew something was
happening because each week she found it harder
and harder to say no to the missionary.
Finally one Sunday morning, she accepted. She
accepted the invitation to attend the Sunday
school class, but also opened her heart to Jesus
and became a child of God. The missionary,
overjoyed with the new believer, soon presented
her with a beautiful white dress, representing
the fact that Jesus had
washed all her sins away.
Eager to see her new disciple, the missionary
rushed to the next service. But the girl was
nowhere to be found. No one had seen or heard of
her whereabouts. Concerned for the girl, the
missionary traveled to her home village.
Upon arriving at her home, she found the young,
new believer lying in the dirt. Her white dress
was torn, filthy, and soaked in blood. The
girl's father hadn't shared the missionary's joy
in his daughter's newfound faith. In a drunken
rage he had beaten her, repeatedly kicked her,
and left her to die.
The missionary gently lifted the fragile girl
and carried her back to the church where a
doctor rushed in to help her. But there was
nothing he could do. He removed the ragged dress
and cleaned her up, but her injuries were too
severe. The young Filipino girl would soon die.
The missionary and other friends stayed with
her, trying to comfort her during her final
hour. Upon regaining consciousness she made an
unusual request. Despite the pain and trauma of
her father's beating, she was insistent on
holding the white dress the missionary had given
her. They explained that it was torn and soaked
with blood and dirt, but she insisted on having
it in her hands. With the simple faith of a
ten-year-old she whispered,
"I just want Jesus to know I was willing to
bleed for Him."
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