“BOOM!” The dynamite was loud enough and the blast strong enough that it made Wilfredo jump ... but he was getting a lot of fish. He knew that fishing like this was against the law, but most likely no one would ever know what he was doing since he was a long way out in the jungle. He hoped no one would ever find out about his fishing with dynamite.
It seemed so easy and so much faster than any other way to fish. Just light the stick of dynamite, wait until it was almost ready to explode, and then throw it quickly into the river. The explosion underwater killed lots of fish. The dead fish quickly floated to the top, and ... what a catch! His family would eat some and they would sell
the rest.
Wilfredo didn’t know that his whole life was about to change. He had grown up in a Christian home and had gone to Sunday school and many other Bible meetings. He had often been told of God’s wonderful plan of salvation for lost sinners. He had heard many times how the Lord Jesus died on the cross of Calvary, had been buried and rose again the third day. But Wilfredo had not accepted God’s loving offer of the forgiveness of sins. He had heard the warning from Hebrews 2:3,3How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation; which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord, and was confirmed unto us by them that heard him; (Hebrews 2:3) “How shall we escape, if we neglect [pay no attention to] so great salvation?” But Wilfredo had neglected it. He had learned by memory the verse, “Remember now [your] Creator in the days of [your] youth” (Ecclesiastes 12:11Remember now thy Creator in the days of thy youth, while the evil days come not, nor the years draw nigh, when thou shalt say, I have no pleasure in them; (Ecclesiastes 12:1)), but he had not remembered the One who had made him.
Wilfredo’s Christian father had taken him to hear about the way of salvation every Sunday for over 10 years. That meant that he had heard the story of God’s wonderful love over 500 times! His family had read the Bible together every morning each day of the year. Wilfredo had heard the Bible read over 3,000 times! What amazing patience God had shown Wilfredo! A kind teacher might have explained a math lesson to him a second time if he did not understand it the first time, or a really patient teacher might even explain it three or four times. But is there any love and patience so great as God’s — to explain to a sinner his need of the Savior thousands of times?
Even now, as Wilfredo was fishing with dynamite, he was not thinking about God. However, in a powerful way, God was going to show Wilfredo that no one can stay in this world forever — that everyone will leave — everyone will face God.
He put a match to the fuse and watched and waited for the red glow to burn low. Just another few seconds and he would let it go ... “BOOM!” Before he could throw it, the blast went off, and Wilfredo knew he was badly hurt.
The terrible pain confused him and he ran. He could not see where he was going, but he ran deeper and deeper into the jungle. Friends who had seen the accident ran after him until they caught him. They carried him to a hospital. In the hospital, Wilfredo learned how badly he was hurt. He had lost his right hand and his right eye.
Now at last his thoughts turned toward the Savior he had neglected for so long. The devil had shown that he was a hard, unkind master, and Wilfredo no longer wanted to serve him. Wilfredo knew that God had kept him from being killed in order to give him another opportunity to be saved. He was finally willing to accept God’s gift of salvation. “The wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord” (Romans 6:2323For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. (Romans 6:23)).
Wilfredo was so thankful that he had been saved from his sins. He said it was worth losing a hand and an eye. He began reading his Bible, and he soon started teaching a Sunday school class. He told the children how patient God had been with him. The children could see that Wilfredo was happier even without his hand and eye than he had ever been with two hands and two eyes while he still had his heavy load of sin.
Are any of you boys and girls living like Wilfredo did for so long? Perhaps you have Christian parents or friends who have read God’s Word to you many times, and you have been to many Bible meetings, but still you aren’t saved. This is the last day of 2023 and perhaps God is still waiting for you to accept His loving offer of salvation. The time is very close when God’s day of salvation will be forever over. Trust in the Lord Jesus Christ, God’s dear Son, now, before it is too late. The Bible says, “Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation” (2 Corinthians 6:22(For he saith, I have heard thee in a time accepted, and in the day of salvation have I succored thee: behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.) (2 Corinthians 6:2)).
Messages of God’s Love 12/31/2023