José was a very happy young boy growing up in a village high in the Andes Mountains of Chile. The people who lived there were very poor. Most of them made their living growing a few crops and caring for goats. José’s father was the witch doctor of the village; he was very proud of José and the two of them got along very well. His father had high hopes that José would one day be the village witch doctor in his place, so he was training José in that direction. José also had a very loving mother, who he enjoyed spending the evenings with. She cooked well and always had interesting stories to tell at the fireside.
Most of the villagers worshipped the spirits whom they feared to offend. They offered sacrifices and held feasts to make the spirits happy. Whenever José felt afraid of the spirits he would go sit by his mother’s side and she would tell him stories of spirits who were loving and not evil. His mother loved to talk about the loving and comforting spirits that existed, and she encouraged José to pray to them. There were the spirits of the flowers, the butterflies, and the sunshine. They all made José feel a bit better. It was hard though, to ignore the frightening spirits as most villagers were constantly talking about them and emphasizing the need to make great sacrifices to keep them happy. Whenever something bad happened, it was the result of the evil spirits not being satisfied and requesting more sacrifices. Mother did not believe in all those evil spirits and always spoke of the loving spirits. She refused to give any sacrifices to the evil and angry spirits, and she had stopped attending their feasts. This did not always make her friends and neighbours happy. They wanted her to stop being different and to live according to the customs and traditions of the villagers. They tried to turn José away from his mother’s beliefs, but José loved to be with his mother and would not listen to the neighbours.
As time went on, José’s father got angry with his wife for teaching his son about love and not fear. He threatened her and began to speak angrily with José, hoping to turn him against his mother. “Fear is what keeps a person faithful in their sacrifices” is what he always said. Fear is stronger than love. But no, José’s mother always spoke of the spirits of love. His anger got so evil that one day he left José and his mother to be on their own.
It was not easy for José and his mother, but they loved each other, and this love kept them going. She was now free to speak more of the spirits of love and the great spirit in the sky who took care of them and was protecting them. José wanted to know more about this spirit in the sky, and he began to share his mother’s belief about the spirits of love. Although they were poor, they always seemed to have just enough food to eat, and had a warm place to live. And they were always happy. They did not live in fear.
One day José was woken up before daylight. “José! José! Wake up!” his mother was calling. “José, wake up and come.” José was awake now and went to his mother’s bed. He had not been sleeping well because he knew that his mother had been very sick. Now at her bedside, he was wide awake.
“José,” she gasped, “you must go for Grandma! I’m very sick. Go get Grandma to help.” José was only a boy, but he knew the path to Grandma’s house, although it seemed awfully long in the middle of the night. He hurried along the shorter path by the riverside because he knew that they must get back quickly to his mother. Mother was all José had after his father had left. He had no brothers or sisters. Yes, Grandma must come quickly and help mother get better.
He arrived at Grandma’s little hut and called, “Grandma! Wake up! Wake up and come now, because Mother is sick!” Grandma got up and soon they were both hurrying along the path back to the hut where Mother was. Grandma did all she could to help, but, sadly, it was too late. Nothing could help now. Early that morning José stood unbelieving as Grandma told him that his dear mother was dead. Her last words to José the night before were to encourage him, no matter what happened, to remember the spirits of love and the big spirit in the sky who had taken such good care of them for years. This spirit would take care of him.
How could this happen? Who would take care of him now? Would he have to live alone? Where were the loving spirits his mother spoke about? Where was the great spirit in the sky? Maybe his mother was wrong. The neighbours were not very kind to José. They said she had made all the spirits angry by her talk of love and her refusal to take part in the feasts and so the spirits took her life.
Was that true? José was very sad and in disbelief. Grandma took José home to her little hut, but even Grandma could not ease the ache in the small boy’s heart. He felt forsaken. There was no one who loved him like his mother.
Sad to say, José did not know about Jesus who loves little children. He had never heard that God is a loving Father to those who trust in the Lord Jesus. He had never read or even seen God’s precious Word, the Bible, that tells us that the Lord Jesus “took them [children] up in His arms, put His hands upon them, and blessed them.” Mark 10:16. No one had ever told José these things, and his heart was sad and lonely. All he knew was what his mother had told him about the spirits of love. And how he wanted to have them with him now. But, were they real? Were the villagers correct? Did the evil spirits kill his mother?
Some time later, José’s father came back. It was not a happy meeting. Because he had been gone so long, he seemed more like a stranger. He told Grandma, “I want José to come with me. I have married again, and I need José to work in the fields. He’s coming with me.” There was no use for José to fight against it. What could a small boy do?
So, José left with his father to go to a new home, but it did not seem like his home. His new stepmother was not very nice and thought he should work hard. Sometimes he had to work with his father in the fields, and sometimes he had to care for his stepbrothers and stepsisters. His father kept talking to him about the angry spirits, trying to undo the “damage” his mother had done to him.
José was perplexed, and it was not long before more trouble came into the life of poor José. Papa was still working as a witch doctor. Sometimes he was able to cure sick people, and he demanded to be paid in strong drink.
It was a very sad life for José. Through the years he had to work hard, and his heart was sad and lonely. His mother’s belief in the spirits of love kept him going. He could not get himself to believe in the angry spirits as he could see how evil his father had become. He kept his mother’s words in his heart and longed to know more about this big spirit in the sky. He felt all alone and did not know where to turn. He patiently, day by day, went about his duties as best he could. But God was tenderly watching José from heaven and planned one day to reveal to him who this big spirit in the sky was, and to show him how great and how tender God’s love is for poor lost sinners. However, that day was still a long way off. Before José was to learn of the greatness of God’s love, he had another very sad day.
His father was having more success in being a witch doctor. But since his pay was strong drink, he was often drunk. Finally, one day he had a very hard time contacting the evil spirits so that he drank more and more. Poor father had found out that the devil was a hard master, and he died that day from too much drink. José was determined to never worship those angry, evil spirits. He saw the peaceful way his mother died and the angry way his father died. What a difference! He wanted to have the peace his mother had.
Now with both parents gone, José was a real orphan, and his life began to be more difficult. He was the oldest child, and he had to help his stepmother with all the hard work that his father used to do. His stepmother did not love him, and she often beat him.
José endured many long, hard days until finally he could stand it no longer. He had to do something. He would run away! He would find his way back to Grandma’s house. Life would not be so bad there.
José watched for an opportunity to escape, and he left.
He headed for the village to where Grandma lived. He knew he must get away fast before anyone came to look for him. He went quickly over the dusty trails. Sometimes he walked and sometimes he ran.
Suddenly, José heard the sound of a horse coming from behind him. They were coming for him! Where could he hide? There was no place to hide! The horse was coming closer, so José ran, anywhere, as fast as he could! Suddenly the horse was beside him, and strong arms swept him up into the saddle. His stepmother had sent the neighbour on a horse to find him. He could not get to Grandma’s. He was taken back against his will for more beatings and more long days of hard work.
José now felt very forsaken. No one loved him and there was no one for him to love. Yet, it was the thought of his mother and her belief in the loving spirits that kept him going.
But God had a special and loving plan for him. God had not forsaken him in the mountains of Chile. God is a loving Father and desires to have children of His own. He chooses poor lost sinners to be cleansed from their sins and adopted into His family. God sent His only Son, the Lord Jesus, into this world, to save sinners. The Lord Jesus shed His precious blood for sinners so that we might be welcomed into God’s own family. “As many as received Him, to them gave He power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on His name.” John 1:12
José still did not know about God’s wonderful plan. He lived with his stepmother for several more years and waited until he was older and stronger to run away again. This time he got away and felt that he could manage by himself now. José found work in a mining town. Even though the work was hard, José was happy. He was free to believe what he wanted.
He got to know some of his co-workers and there were a few who were always happy and singing nice melodious songs as they worked. José wanted to know the secret of their happiness, so, one day he approached one of them and during their conversation he spoke of his own life. He shared his mother’s belief in the spirits of love and the great loving spirit in the sky. This co-worker happened to be a Christian and invited José to some Bible meetings.
For the first time he heard more about the big spirit in the sky who his mother believed in and spoke often about. He learned the good news, that “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners.” 1 Timothy 1:15. He heard that God loved him, a poor orphan, and that the Lord Jesus had died for his sins. José’s lonely heart easily accepted God’s loving offer, and he was baptized one day. Now he knew he had found a family! And what a family. There were not just a few, but many hundreds of believers who told him that they were all his brothers and sisters in Christ. “We have the same loving God as our Father,” they explained to him. José had joy in his heart that he never thought was possible.
If you were to visit José today, he would tell you that God had done wonderful things for him that he had never dreamed of when he was a poor orphan boy. He knows he has a wonderful home prepared for him in heaven, and he looks forward to the day he will meet his mother again in heaven.
God also loves you very much and wants to be a Father to you, just as He is for José. He has a wonderful plan for your life, and it all begins with the same good news that brought joy to José. “The wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” Romans 6:23. Have you received God’s gift? He is waiting to take you into His family. Trust in the goodness of God and receive His Son, the Lord Jesus by faith today. “Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God.” 1 John 3:1