Mongolia Abba:

Abba, a young man living in a village in northern Mongolia, felt powerless to change the downward spiral of his life. Then his friend introduced him to God. Here he shares his personal testimony.

Before I became a Christian I lived a really worldly life. I drank; I smoked; and I stole things from others. I never thought about whether what I did was good or bad; it was just part of me. I did it naturally.

Image © John Baker from GoodSalt.com

One time my friends and I started drinking. I got drunk long before they did, and I lost consciousness. When I awoke I realized I was alone; my friends were gone. I stumbled out of the house in search of my friends.

I found them in one of my friend’s houses. Why did you leave me? I demanded angrily.

You were asleep! one of them said. We couldn’t awaken you. They gave me another drink. I suddenly felt as if I was falling backwards, and everything turned black.

I awoke in the police station, naked and cold. My arm was bloody, and my back was sore. I did not know what had happened. When the police officer returned, he told me that I had been arrested for disturbing the peace. He said that I had been shouting and threatening people, and that I had broken several people’s windows with my fist. That explained the bloody arm.

A man with the police officer said I had banged on his door and threatened him. I did not remember any of this.

The police officer gave me my clothes, and I dressed. But my shoes were missing. When I asked for my shoes, he told me I had not been wearing shoes when I was arrested.

Another woman came into the police station to file a complaint against me. She said that I had broken windows in her house. I apologized and told her I did not know I had done this. I wanted to see the broken windows for myself, so the police officer took me to her home. Under one broken window lay one of my shoes.

I walked into the other house with broken windows, and there I found my other shoe. I knew that I was guilty. The owner of the house told me that I had threatened to kill everyone in the house. I had chased people outside and thrown stones at them.

Someone else told me that I had knocked on a door and saw my own shadow reflected in the glass. I started fighting with my shadow. When a man came out to investigate the noise, I started fighting with him. He escaped and called the police. When the police officer came, I started fighting with him as well. It seemed I was listening to stories of a man possessed with a devil.

I paid my fine and agreed to replace the broken windows. I even promised that I would never drink again. But three days later I was drunk. It seemed that I could not stop drinking. I realized the difficulties I was making for my mother, with whom I lived. I worked, but instead of giving her money for food, I bought alcohol.

My lifelong friend, Daba, had gone to the capital city to work, and there he became a Christian. When he returned to the village, he tried to talk to me about my drinking. Because we were friends, I listened to his advice and nodded my head, but in my heart I was making fun of what he was saying. I thought his belief in God was foolish.

To be continued in next week’s Mission Story.

Produced by the General Conference Office of Adventist Mission
Find more mission stories at www.adventistmission.org

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