1
00:00:02,099 --> 00:00:06,989
Yulian could barely feed himself
from the money he earned shining shoes.

2
00:00:06,989 --> 00:00:09,693
He set up every day
along a busy walking street

3
00:00:09,693 --> 00:00:12,081
in Nicosia, Cyprus.

4
00:00:12,081 --> 00:00:15,853
Most of his money
went to buy cigarettes and alcohol.

5
00:00:15,853 --> 00:00:22,081
A decade earlier, Yulian had immigrated
to Cyprus from Bulgaria to look for a job.

6
00:00:22,081 --> 00:00:26,757
One day, Filip, a Global Mission pioneer,
also from Bulgaria,

7
00:00:26,757 --> 00:00:31,397
walked by and greeted Yulian,
asking if he needed any help.

8
00:00:31,397 --> 00:00:33,684
Yulian was surprised.

9
00:00:33,684 --> 00:00:37,489
No one had asked him
such a question in a long time.

10
00:00:37,489 --> 00:00:40,194
It was nice to hear someone
taking an interest in him

11
00:00:40,194 --> 00:00:42,181
and speaking his native language,

12
00:00:42,181 --> 00:00:46,922
but Yulian didn’t answer the question
and just offered him a shoe shine.

13
00:00:46,922 --> 00:00:49,264
While Yulian shined his shoes,

14
00:00:49,264 --> 00:00:52,164
Filip told him
that Jesus loves each one of us

15
00:00:52,164 --> 00:00:54,952
no matter what situation we’re in.

16
00:00:54,952 --> 00:00:58,273
The mention of Jesus
grabbed Yulian’s attention.

17
00:00:58,273 --> 00:00:59,843
The next day,

18
00:00:59,843 --> 00:01:03,315
Filip returned and asked again
if Yulian needed any help.

19
00:01:03,315 --> 00:01:06,937
Yulian was surprised the stranger had returned.

20
00:01:06,937 --> 00:01:09,307
This time Filip didn’t need a shoe shine

21
00:01:09,307 --> 00:01:11,128
so they just talked for a while

22
00:01:11,128 --> 00:01:13,548
and looked through
the books that he brought.

23
00:01:13,548 --> 00:01:16,019
This became a routine.

24
00:01:16,019 --> 00:01:18,574
Sometimes Filip read the Bible to Yulian,

25
00:01:18,574 --> 00:01:21,628
and eventually the shoeshiner
eventually opened up

26
00:01:21,628 --> 00:01:25,218
about how he’d worked in construction
after arriving with his family in Cyprus.

27
00:01:25,218 --> 00:01:28,972
He lost his job and was kicked out
of his home for drinking.

28
00:01:28,972 --> 00:01:32,396
His family and friends had rejected him.

29
00:01:32,396 --> 00:01:36,886
One day, Yulian led his new friend
to the abandoned building where he slept.

30
00:01:36,886 --> 00:01:39,624
His bed was a hard floor.

31
00:01:39,624 --> 00:01:45,650
The sight brought tears to Filip’s eyes,
and they prayed together on the street.

32
00:01:45,650 --> 00:01:51,093
Yulian felt valued and felt God’s love
through the pioneer’s actions.

33
00:01:51,093 --> 00:01:54,683
It was at that point
that he gave his life to God.

34
00:01:54,683 --> 00:01:58,804
Although he’d drunk
and smoked heavily for 35 years,

35
00:01:58,804 --> 00:02:03,496
Yulian decided to give up alcohol
and tobacco that day.

36
00:02:03,496 --> 00:02:06,468
And although he had
smoked heavily as well,

37
00:02:06,468 --> 00:02:06,851
he quit a week later.

38
00:02:06,851 --> 00:02:07,920
His family welcomed him back home

39
00:02:07,920 --> 00:02:10,341
and now he tells everyone
who will listen about his love for God.

40
00:02:10,341 --> 00:02:13,897
Filip regularly leads
a Bulgarian-language Bible study.

41
00:02:13,897 --> 00:02:18,277
Over three years, eight people
had been baptized through Filip’s work,

42
00:02:18,277 --> 00:02:20,008
a significant number for a country

43
00:02:20,008 --> 00:02:23,246
where the Adventist Church
has only about 100 members

44
00:02:23,246 --> 00:02:26,150
in a population of more than one million.

45
00:02:26,150 --> 00:02:28,736
He often spends his time
mingling with people,

46
00:02:28,736 --> 00:02:31,476
getting to know them where they are.

47
00:02:31,476 --> 00:02:33,729
Please pray for pioneers like Filip,

48
00:02:33,729 --> 00:02:36,534
who are sharing a message of hope
with their communities.

49
00:02:36,534 --> 00:02:39,122
Thank you for supporting Global Mission.