Brother Andrew has always been one of my heroes of the faith. His book, God's Smuggler, is one of my favorite books. I read it on my own a couple months ago, but my dad is reading a bit of it almost every night to our family.
Although the book was written with John and Elizabeth Sherrill, the story is mind-shattering and faith-grounding. Brother Andrew's story has long touched my heart. His faith truly moved mountains. It moved the mountains of so many customs officers, guards, soldiers, police men, and officials. God always came through for him.
I'll give you a snippet of the book so that you'll understand what I'm saying.
Oddly, as the mood inside the van brightened, the sky overhead darkened. First an overcast hid the sun, then a heavy buildup of clouds spread across the sky, dark and threatening. Lightning flashed in the distance. Thunder answered. And still Rolf and I drove on, singing.
Then the rain began.
In all my travels, I had never seen a rain like this one. It was as if a celestial reservoir had burst, letting a solid sheet of water fall to earth. We had no choice but to pull to the side of the pavement. Other cars too had to abandon the road. The windows steamed up. We could hardly make out our own struggling windshield wipers. . . .
"Say-"
"I know-"
"God has made us invisible!" said Rolf.
Praising Him, we crawled back into the van, unhurriedly dislodged the rest of the Bibles, and packed them into cartons. We settled back into our seats comfortably just as the rain lifted and the skies lightened once again.
At precisely five o'clock, we drove past the Moscow sign. Markov passed us, his headlights still on after the storm. He blinked them once. At ten minutes past five we stopped in front of a sort of shopping center where people all around us were unloading boxes or piling them into trucks. It took five minutes to make the exchange. After three years the first payment had been made on a promise to some pastors.
This story brings faith to life in ways we could never before imagine. Brother Andrew's tale is one of daring, compassion, illegality, hope, light, and above all, faith.
Brother Andrew was from a small family in the small town of Witte in Holland. Serving as a soldier, he didn't find the glory he thought he would and so turned to drinking. After an wound landed him in a hospital, he answered the call of God.
From there, he did everything he could to serve. When the countries behind the Iron Curtain came to his attention, it was only a matter of time before he was smuggling Bibles.
His legacy continues on in an organization called Open Doors, a ministry dedicated to getting Bibles to those who need them most.
This book is one of my all-time favorites and I highly suggest it to anyone looking for a new book to read.
