Corrie ten Boom, Her Story
Bes
16. Niwanda
I SAW A little paper in my hand. I don't know who put it there, but it was a letter: "Please, come to me. I am in the fifth bed at the right. Niwanda."
I was in Africa and had spoken that morning in a boys' boarding school. I asked the missionary if he could help me find out from whom that letter had come. He smiled and said, "Yes, I know. That boy is very ill. We could not yet take him to the hospital. Fifth bed, that is in room three. I can take you there."
We entered the room where we found Niwanda. Immediately I saw that he was really ill. "I needed some help to find you, boy!"
We both laughed and the missionary said, "I will leave you alone with him." Niwanda and I had a good talk together. "Tell me something of yourself, boy."
"T am very ill. I have been a Christian for a long time and I have served God, but when I look back on my life, I feel so ashamed. I read in the Bible that Paul said, 'I have fought a good fight.' When I look at the past, I know that J, too, have really done my best to fight the good fight. But no, I didn't make a good job of it as Paul did."
"Listen, Niwanda. It is true that Paul wrote, 'I have fought the fight.' We can quite agree because we have such great respect for him. But he did not write, 'I have fought the fight the right way.' He means, 'I have been fighting in the good fight.' You and J also have to do so—we are both in the good fight. We stand on victory ground, because our fight is under King Jesus, and King Jesus is Victor. He makes us more than conquerors."
JESUS IS VICTOR 363
I saw that the boy looked happy when I told him this about fighting while standing on victory ground.
I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith.
2 Timothy 4:7