I want to thank God for each one of you for your prayers and financial support, and I praise the Lord for the Final Frontiers leaders who have helped us in organizing the work and meeting the needs of our ministry here, such as providing Bibles and a location for our meetings.
After one Muslim militia called the Morning of Islam controlled our area, we moved away to another location, which is a little safer for us. Through you, the Lord provided for us to pay the rent six months in advance. Since then, we have been able to meet regularly, although we still meet in small groups several times a day.
Before we left our previous location, I met a 16-year-old young man who was involved with a militia group standing at the checkpoint on the main Street. Every time I left the area, he would search for me and ask me many questions. We developed a friendship and would talk for a few minutes before he would let me go.
One day, he told me, “You are always smiling and thankful to God, don’t you ever have a bad day?” I answered him by telling him that the smile on my face is because I have peace in my heart.
“Of course, I have bad days, but I’m sure God is with me, and He can help me get through those difficult times.”
The next day, he asked another question: “How do you have peace in your heart?” Then I asked him, “Why don’t you come to my place, and we will talk privately?” He told me he would think about it, and after a week, he said he could take off in three hours and visit me. When he arrived, he told me he had only 45 minutes, so we started to talk, and I shared with him how God gives us peace. He listened attentively, then he had to leave.
The last time we moved out of the area, I was passing the checkpoint, and he asked if he could come again and talk to me, and I said, “Of course.” For the next three months, he was coming and listening several times a week, getting his questions answered. Then, the last time we met, he started to cry and told me, “I’m lost. I don’t know what to believe anymore.”
I took the time to listen to him, then I shared with him how one can have a relationship with God, and I asked him if he wanted to accept Jesus Christ as his personal Savior. He asked me if he could pray and accept Christ on his own. Before he left, I asked if I could give him a New Testament. He looked at me and said, “I wish to have one, but I can’t keep it with me. If they found that with me, they’ll kill me.” Then he left, saying he would be back soon.
For a week, I haven’t heard from him. I went back to the checkpoint to see him, and his young squad, who used to stand with him at the same checkpoint, told me that he was killed in crossfire with another group!
I believe he was sincere in wanting to come to Christ; he certainly knew why he needed to and how to do so. I hope I will see him in Heaven. But without the funding you sent, I would never have had the opportunity to pass that checkpoint and meet him. God used you to bring salvation to this young man. Thank you.
