Page 34 - Unseen Hands by Nona Freeman

Unseen Hands
the steward had to insist that he get off.
"Are you an angel or a man?" he asked Tekle, giv
ing him a farewell hug. "Until today, my hope lay with idols and gods who cannot save. As you spoke to me, I heard Jesus say, 'I am the only God and your only savior.'"
Tekle witnessed to the passenger who took the first man's place until they reached Desse, where the bus stopped overnight. "Let us share a room," Tekle sug gested, "so that I can tell you more." They prayed throughout the night.
When they reached Mekele at five o'clock the next afternoon, Tekle felt as though an enormous weight sud denly lifted from his head. He danced like a frisky calf down the street to the chapel where he had led services as a student. The group gathered for prayer welcomed him warmly, and he ministered to them.
He had pleasant memories of the city of his school days, when he had not known financial anxiety. Now he found it a place of liberty to preach in peace. The next day he made a year's contract with a lady to provide him with food, which took most of the money that he had brought with him. She served a piece of bread and a cup of tea for breakfast and a small loaf of enjera with a bowl
of bean soup for both lunch and the evening meal. (En jera is a pancake made from teff, an Ethiopian grain staple.)
The following week he found his friends Amare and Hailu on the point of quitting school because they did not have money for food. "No, no," Tekle said. "You must not leave; I will share my food."
One of them ate breakfast, the other two divided the 32