The Old and New Testaments

I want to tell you the following incident which occurred to me while I was in England in 1984, which shows how God speaks to those who are far from Him also through dreams to lead them to the knowledge of the truth.

Now, I was working at the C.L.C. (Christian Literature Crusade) Bookshop in London, which was behind the St. Paul Cathedral, in the City.

One day while I was in the basement of the bookshop. The Bookshop had three floors: on the top floor were the Bibles, the Commentaries, Testimonies books, teaching books and others; on the middle floor (the ground floor) were audiotapes, records, Sunday School books and other material; and in the last floor (the basement) was the store where we priced the books, a little kitchen, and a little room where we used to pray and eat lunch.

The top floor was the one which could be seen from the outside of the bookshop, since there was a big shop window, and where people entered.

At the time I worked in the basement. So that day I was called to the top floor, that is, the one where was the entrance of the Bookshop.

It was not the first time I was called to the top floor, but that time was different for I was called because an Italian girl had entered the Bookshop, and since in the Bookshop nobody spoke Italian I was called to speak to her. So I asked her what she wanted, and she told me that she was looking for a novel. I told her that we did not have that kind of books, for that was a Christian Bookshop where Bibles, Christian books, etc. were sold. At that point she told me that she had made a mistake, for she did not think at all that bookshop was a Christian Bookshop. It looked like a normal Bookshop to her. So I began to speak to her about salvation. After a little while, as I was telling her that the Bible is divided into two parts; the first part is called Old Testament while the second part New Testament, she began to speak in a very excited way for she had been struck by what I had just told her. Since I did not understand what was happening, I told her to calm down for people in the bookshop were turning their heads toward us. I asked her to explain to me why she was talking so excitedly. Here is what she told me.

The night before (or anyway a few nights before since I don’t remember very well), she had a dream in which she found herself in the midst of a dark forest, surrounded by big dinosaurs and she was afraid. But beside her, on the ground, she saw a book open; and on the left side it was written VECCHIO TESTAMENTO (OLD TESTAMENT) while on the right side NUOVO TESTAMENTO (NEW TESTAMENT).

When I heard those things, I realized immediately that God had spoken to that young girl and that she had entered into that Bookshop so that she might hear from my lips the Gospel. God had led her in that Bookshop for He wanted to save her. I told these things to her immediately.

So I asked her to follow me in the basement. There I spoke to her about the grace of God, and I told her my personal testimony. She was very happy for I did not speak to her about a religion but about a person, that is, Jesus Christ.

Before she went her way, I promised to her a New Testament, which I sent to her after some time in the hope that she might be saved.

I have not heard from her ever since, however my desire and my prayer for her has always been that she may be saved. I remember that when I told the brothers of the bookshop what had happened, all of them were astonished and we all praised God.

To God be the glory now and forever. Amen.

Giacinto Butindaro

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