By Pastor Terry
Church and pizza are certainly not strangers. If attendance at a church youth group was part of your formative years, it is likely that you ate your share of pizza. As a teen, I didn't attend church or traditional youth groups; however, pizza still managed to play a large role in my spiritual journey.
Shortly after having had an encounter with the living Lord Jesus, and not yet attending church, I acquired an after-school job delivering pizzas. It was a good paying job when you factored in the tips. However, in those days before microwave ovens, there was a lot of pressure to exceed the speed limit when carrying four hot pizzas destined for different addresses!
One night, while waiting for my next delivery, another driver (who was a stranger to me) handed me a book saying, "I think you really need to read this." The book I received was Richard Wurmbrand's autobiography, In God's Underground.
After reading the book, the best words to describe my state of being would be one or more of the following: thunderstruck... gob-smacked... shaken to the core! If this story was true, then two things had to happen. First, I had to step up my game as a Christian, in terms of overcoming my sense of entitlement, by instead acquiring a willingness to suffer for my faith. That meant boldly witnessing about my faith, in spite of the frequent mocking by classmates. Secondly, I needed to support my suffering brethren financially and through prayer.
Within two years, I was assisting VOM Canada founders, Klaas and Nellie Brobbel, organize an Ontario tour for Richard and Sabina Wurmbrand. En route from Kingston to Toronto in my car (without pizzas), Richard had a talk with me that confirmed God's will for my choice of wife. That was an unexpected twist. I had no idea that I would actually meet Richard Wurmbrand -- and that he was to become my spiritual hero -- let alone have him act as a mentor at a crucial moment in my life!
Over the next seven years, we supported VOMC and helped at other speaking events with the Wurmbrands. One of the lasting impacts that time had upon me and my fiancé (who's now my wife) was the combination of true humility and greatness that's found in people like Richard and Sabina. Their unimaginable suffering had not robbed them of their faith, nor their love for people.
Forty years later, my wife and I still recall those days clearly. We also still support our suffering brethren in other parts of the world. In fact, several years ago, I became a field rep for VOMC, living in Canada and travelling to Asia to support and equip brethren in potentially hostile environments. This involves directly overseeing a group of national ministry workers who constantly risk their own safety to bring the life-changing message of the Gospel to people of the Muslim culture. Today, I am amazed at the true humility and greatness of these dedicated workers, as well as those who have come to know Jesus through them.
