“A light in the darkness”- a missionary moment

We went out to a rural area of Madagascar by public transport to do a Theological Education by Extension (TEE) seminar, and only headed back after dark, with a local taxi. The mountainous roads of Madagascar are terrible, and pitch black in the night. Eventually the taxi broke down, and the driver crawled underneath to look, using a candle to see. He got the taxi going again, but the lights were completely non-functioning.

Other vehicles were headed towards us on this road, with steep curves and hills, and would not be able to see us at all in the darkness! My colleague and I were very concerned about what to do, and the only thing we could think of was to light that little candle and hold it up to the window in the back of the taxi, hoping that they would catch a glimpse before any collision. Truly a “light in the darkness”, but in a more physical sense! Somehow, the oncoming vehicles saw us before they hit us.

Miraculously, God brought us home safely that night, and we’ve never forgotten that trip.

-South African missionary to Madagascar