If anyone should have been confident about his Muslim faith, it was Ousmane. He had long been a faithful defender of Islam and mocker of Christians.

The Christians in Kandi are mostly foreigners. Eleven churches with a total membership of about 1,000 worship each Sunday—a small fraction of Kandi’s population of 45,000 people. Visiting Christians from other provinces make up part of that total. We also have a Nigerian church attended mostly by businessmen from a tribe in east Nigeria. But what are 11 churches in the midst of over 100 mosques? Some of these churches have fewer than 30 members. Eighty percent of the Christians in Kandi are Catholics.

Ousmane liked to talk about how Jesus had been an illegitimate child. For years, he publicly ridiculed Christians and their Savior and Lord. His father was a successful business man, which gave him status and assurance. His large Muslim family was well respected. The townspeople were happy to hear him abuse Christians, who were a tiny minority in Kandi. However, despite Ousmane’s zeal against Christianity, God reached out to him much as He did to Saul, who later became Paul.

Five years ago, Ousmane’s sister became very sick. As good Muslims, the family asked the community to offer prayers for her. Imams and other religious leaders also offered specific prayers and blessings for her, but she did not get well. Animism is rarely far beneath the surface in African culture, and Ousmane’s family inevitably sought help from native spirit doctors, but they could not help either.

His sister’s health crisis affected Ousmane deeply. He was very close to her and couldn’t bear watching her slowly die. Why, he wondered, didn’t either Islam or the spirits offer any help? In the midst of those dark days, a neighbor family—Christians from a different tribe—came to visit. They knew of the girl’s situation, and they offered to pray for her in their church. Because of their standing in the community and their public animosity against Christians, Ousmane’s family rejected the invitation. But Ousmane was desperate, so he secretly brought his sister to the church. In the days following the prayer service, her health rapidly improved.

This miracle marked a U-turn in Ousmane’s life. He was overflowing with new questions. Was he right with God? Was he saved? Was he going to heaven? All of these questions plagued him, and his spirit reached out to Jesus. He began to experience the change God works in the heart through faith in Christ. His heart was strangely warmed. He felt led to trust in Christ alone for salvation. He felt the Holy Spirit whispering assurance to him that his sins were forgiven. Later that year, he publicly accepted Christ as his personal Lord and Savior. Something like this had never happened before in Kandi—a fierce defender of Islam proclaiming Christ and bringing disgrace to his family and a scandal to the whole community. His father disowned him, his family rejected him, and his siblings and former friends isolated and persecuted him. For the past five years, his people have tried all they could to discourage and scare him into abandoning his faith. But Ousmane has remained faithful, and God has blessed him publicly in the community. His mother now visits him secretly, and the other family members have ceased their violent opposition to him.

Just two days before we left for the States, Elmire and I were privileged to invite Ousmane and his wife to our home. Listening to his testimony was so comforting for us. It was God’s answer to our prayers. After all we had been through, we had been seeking a clear sign that God wanted us to remain in Kandi. We had been wrestling with the idea of relocating to another less hostile Dendi village. We spent considerable time praying and asking for God’s specific insight in this dilemma. Parents, donors and friends counseled us to consider relocating.
But God had another agenda. Through Ousmane’s experience, we heard His voice confirming that He sent us into the furnace of Kandi for a purpose. He has protected us, and He still sits on His throne!

As we prepared to leave Kandi for our training program in the States, we felt peace about our future. Thanks for being part of that future. Thanks for your prayers and support. “We want each of you to show this same diligence to the very end, in order to make your hope sure” (Heb. 6:11).

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