When Tony began to talk with 12-year-old Fostina and her adult sister in Lusaka, Zambia during a recent GO Trip, Fostina appeared closed off and disinterested. Her sister owned a small retail business, and Fostina worked at the mobile hut in front of the store. Despite her reluctance to engage—avoiding eye contact and responding with one-word answers to his endless questions—Tony sensed a flicker of curiosity and even a hunger for what they were discussing.
After Tony spent some time sharing the transformative power of the gospel, explaining how she could receive Christ’s righteousness through faith, he saw a visible change in her demeanor. Tears filled her eyes as she began to confess the struggles she was facing. In that moment, he prayed with her and her sister, witnessing her heartfelt confession of faith and acceptance of Jesus.
Her sister, overwhelmed with gratitude, shared that their parents were absent from their lives, and that Fostina had recently stopped attending school, falling into a troubling path of self-destruction. The GO team connected them with one of the church partners who were on outreach with them that day. Fostina expressed her desire to join the youth program and turn her life around.
Later, as the group walked back down the street, Tony glanced over to see Fostina engrossed in the pages of the Scripture magazine he had left with her and snapped this photo.
Jesus has always been, and will always be, the difference maker for everyone who believes.
