“So friends, the message is clear. Surrender your lives to Jesus! Let him change your darkness into his marvellous light. Come now, and be changed forever”.
Michael looks around in the hall. People stream from everywhere to the stage to give their lives to Jesus. He watches, not knowing what’s going to happen next. First in line is a huge brown skinned man, in his late fifties or early sixties. As he walks up the stage, Michael sees how the evangelists expression suddenly changes as he looks at the man’s face. Michael rises from his seat, slowly as he begins to realise who this huge man is. The evangelist, gaining control of himself, steps up to the man, pointing his finger right into the man’s face.
“I know you.” The whole crowd stands in silence, captured by the weight of the tension between the two men. “I have never seen you in my life, preacher, it’s my first time ever in a church.” The evangelist takes a few steps nearer. His voice is but a whisper.
”What’s your name?” “They call me Dolino.” The evangelist waits a few seconds and says, “They call us Skuzapo.” He staggers back as terror hits the face of the man in front of the evangelist. Huge drops of sweat form on his brow. The two men stand facing each other, and time becomes irrelevant. The place is silent the music has stopped. Then the huge former ‘wanted’ terrorist crumbles to his knees in front of the evangelist, in a heap sobbing. The evangelist just stands there, hands hanging loose from his sides. Michael knows, he just entered another Warzone… A terrifying growl escapes from a tortured soul on the floor. It is Dolino who first finds the strength to speak. He is pleading … “Forgive me, Pastor …Forgive me, oh God …for what I have done …” Michael swallows dryly, tears blurring his vision and wetting his cheeks. He, of all people knows how much it must take from the evangelist to face this man, killer of thousands of innocent people, and killer of some of his teammates in his Unit. Michael whispers to himself as if he would hear him. ”Do you also see what I see? The blood, the fire, the amputated bodies of thousands of innocent villagers? The man that shouted that he would’ve killed Jesus himself if the Jews didn’t? How can God pardon the man’s sin?”
Then the unimaginable happens as the evangelist stretches out his hand to the broken man and helps him to his feet. ”Rise up, brother. Your sins have been forgiven. Long ago.” Dolino stands up, still trembling, tears streaming from his eyes. Turning to face the people with Dolino, he says, “I and this man have been the worst enemies for most of our lives. But today, by the Mercy of a Forgiving God, we are now brothers! We have both been forgiven by God”. At this the crowd breaks loose in worship. Brothers embraces brothers, sisters their mothers, as the music starts, giving God all honour and praise for the absolute impossible, that right in front of their eyes, was made possible. A healing across cultures.