David never cared about God until he lost his business to his best friend amid a bitter court battle. All hope seemed lost. He decided to study theology at a Seventh-day Adventist college in the Philippines.

David, who grew up in an affluent family, had no desire to become a minister. He simply wanted to gain a better understanding of God. David moved from his atheist homeland to the Philippines. For his personal safety, Adventist Mission is not identifying David by his full name or providing some other details.

After months of theology classes, David was still wondering whether he had a future when he joined a mandatory, month-long evangelistic cam-paign, part of the requirement for his education. He preached evenings and spoke one-on-one with attendees. One schoolteacher told him that she had longed to be baptized for many years but feared that her husband would kill her if she became a Christian. At her request, David began Bible studies. Finally, she was baptized.

“Aren’t you afraid that your husband will kill you?” David asked afterward.“He may kill me,” the woman replied. “But I still wanted to be baptized.” David was astonished by her faith in the face of death. He had never seen such faith. Her husband did not kill her.

David also befriended a boy who came every night and wanted to be bap-tized. David went to the boy’s house to ask for permission, but the parents, who belonged to another Christian denomination, turned him away. David visited many times, but the parents would not relent.

Six months later, an Adventist pastor sought out David at the college to tell an unusual story. A family of four showed up at his church one Sabbath and asked to be baptized. He quizzed the parents, son, and daughter about their knowledge of the Bible and saw that they understood the church’s beliefs. But he couldn’t figure out how they knew the Bible so well. No local church members knew the family, and no one had given them Bible studies. Finally, the pastor asked, “How did you hear about the Adventist Church?” “Evangelistic meetings were held in our town six months ago,” the father said. “A foreigner came to our house many times to talk about our son, who wanted to be baptized. We strongly opposed his bap-tism. But after six months of consideration, our whole family has decided to join the church.”

David couldn’t believe his ears. He realized that God always has a way, even when everything seems hopeless. He gave his heart to Jesus and became a pastor. “My life has been a journey,” he said. “I have learned to trust God and to work for Him.”