P
aulo was a gang member in one of Brazil's largest
cities. Not only was he heavily involved in gang
violence, but he had begun the downward spiral
of drug abuse.
One evening, Paulo happened to walk down the
street where the local Salvation Army corps was holding
a rousing evangelistic meeting--complete with stirring
testimonies, a lively brass band and joyful singing. Paulo
couldn't help himself; out of
curiosity he went inside.
He was spellbound by what
he saw and heard. The sermon
that night spoke deeply to his
heart. Before he could think
twice about it, Paulo was kneel-
ing at the altar, pouring his
teenage heart out to the Lord.
That evening marked the
beginning of a time of healing
for Paulo, and the mark he
would soon bear for the rest of
his life is a glowing iRony for
us to witness.
Now a convert in Christ,
Paulo had much to learn
about his newfound faith. His
corps officer showed infinite
patience with Paulo, lifting
him when he fell and guiding
him with love and counsel.
Paulo came to understand
what being totally surren-
dered to Christ really meant.
He felt a calling to Salvation
Army officership and accept-
ed it gladly, but first the teenager had to be enrolled as
a soldier.
When the big day of his enrollment finally came, Paulo
asked the captain if he could have two of the "S" patches
to wear on his white shirt like the other soldiers wore.
Paulo was undoubtedly aware that wearing the S's out in
the open would identify him as a Christian. This would
be particularly dangerous if he encountered members
of his former gang.
Sure enough, on the first day he wore his uniform in
public complete with S's, he showed up at the captain's
quarters.
"The gang saw me with my S's on," Paulo explained.
"They told me that if they saw me wearing my uniform
again, they'd beat me up. What should I do?"
Breathing a silent prayer,
the captain answered, "You
have three options. First, you
can take the S's off. Second,
you can stand up to them and
fight back.
"Or third, you can do what
Jesus did. He let His enemies
do their worst to Him, and
went on loving them!"
Late that night there was
an knock on the captain's
door. There stood a bloody
and bruised Paulo with his
uniform torn and his face
swollen.
"I did as Jesus would have
done," Paulo proudly said.
"They beat me up, and I told
them I love them just the
same!"
Then the captain looked
closer at the mass of blood on
Paulo's forehead.
"How did you get that ter-
rible slash on your head?" the
captain asked.
"One of the gang took out a knife and said to me, `If
you're going to wear those S's I'll cut an S on your fore-
head that you'll wear until you die!'" Paola said.
And that's exactly what happened. From that day for-
ward, Paulo wore his S proudly, taking every advantage
to tell others how he got it and how Christ can redeem
them, too.
iRony
............
36
The War Cry | FEBRUARY 2016
by
MAJOR FRANK DURACHER
Branded a Christian
e particularly dangerous if he encountered members
f his for
Sure e
orm in
ublic complete with S's, he showed up at the captain's
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"The gang saw me with my S's on," Paulo explained.
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ugh, on the first day he wore his u
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with my S's on," Paulo e
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me up. What should I d
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