TOGO — In a small, rural village accessible only by foot stands a large voodoo shrine. People come from miles around to worship the spirits by bringing gifts of food and flowers before they make their requests.
 
But there is one man who doesn’t worship at the shrine. “Pastor,” they call him.
 
Pastor grew up in the village but moved to a nearby town for work, where he met Jesus. Rather than move back to his family, he chose to stay outside — a sign that he made a break from the idol worship he grew up in. But he visits his family every week and prays for God to bring a church to his home village.
 
Pastor has prayed this prayer for 38 years.
 
In the meantime, Crossworld worker Kwashie started a church in a city about 40 miles away, where he met and discipled a young boy named Comar. Under Kwashie’s mentorship, Comar grew strong in his faith and decided to serve the Lord when he grew up. He eventually began leading the church, which has grown to over 300 people.
 
But Comar knew there were other communities around his city that still needed the gospel. The village that caught his eye? Pastor’s village 40 miles away.
 
“I think people will soon start moving from the city out to the village,” Comar said to Kwashie. “We should build a church now so it’s there when the people arrive.”
 
Comar and Kwashie went to explore the village and look for a piece of land to purchase. That’s when they met Pastor.
 
“Thirty-eight years you’ve been praying?” Comar asked Pastor.
 
“Yes,” Pastor said. “And today God is answering my prayer.”
 
Crossworld partner Moretti Ministries heard about Comar and Kwashie’s vision for this village and agreed to fund the construction of a church building.
 
When Comar heard this, he told his church, “We must do the rest.”
 
And they have! The Togolese believers have caught the vision to take the gospel to the village. They’ve given sacrificially to pave a road to the village and dig a well on the property. Individuals from the church have traveled there every week to work and do evangelistic outreaches in the village. (In the photo above, Comar shows the road his church members built to the village.)
 
During his regular visits to his family, Pastor greets the believers and helps them with their work. He introduces them to people in the village and gives them space to leave their tools.
 
The church building is not yet complete, but the people of the village are watching with great interest as it takes shape.
 
Soon, a Christian church will stand near the voodoo shrine, and the gates of hell will not prevail against it.