Richard and Ellen wanted to give up. They’d been serving in a Muslim country for eight years and had seen no visible fruit from their efforts—until they started coaching national Christians to share the Gospel with Muslims.
Once Richard and Ellen and their teammates began helping groups of local believers catch God’s vision for their lost neighbors, they started witnessing significant spiritual breakthroughs among Muslims.
One of these groups reached out to a nearby Muslim village. A few households welcomed the followers of Jesus into their homes and showed openness to hearing the Gospel and receiving prayer.
But some of the villagers harassed the believers and told them to stop coming to their village. One such villager was a man named Yunus.
He refused to stay quiet, even when people reported him to Islamic leaders who ordered the police to beat him up.
Yunus had always struggled with nightmares. But something changed when the believers began visiting the village. Now, when he woke up from a nightmare, he found himself thinking about Jesus. In the middle of the night, he sometimes opened the Quran and discovered passages about Jesus. He started dreaming of Him, too.
These encounters filled Yunus with peace. He decided he needed to learn more about Jesus.
The next time the Christians came to his village, Yunus invited them into his home. They shared the Gospel with him and prayed for him. They also offered to start studying God’s Word with him. Yunus invited them to come every week, and they started working through a series of Bible lessons Richard and Ellen had developed.
Not long after, Yunus put his faith in Christ. But when he invited his neighbors to study God’s Word with him, several villagers got upset. They called the police. And even though they had no legal reason to arrest Yunus, the police officers briefly detained him. Upon his release, Yunus was kicked out of town. His family disowned him, and his wife, Nadjiba, refused to let him see their young son.
Homeless and alone, Yunus spent his nights sleeping under a bridge.
Their circumstances were terrible, but Jesus had given them eternal life.
Still, Yunus kept sharing the Gospel with others. Even when people complained to Islamic leaders who ordered the police to beat him up, Yunus refused to stay quiet.
He also prayed constantly for his family, especially for Nadjiba and their young son. He called his wife as often as he could to tell her how Jesus’ love was transforming him.
After several months, Nadjiba told Yunus she was ready to see him again. She said she wanted to experience the same sort of peace that Jesus had given her husband. Nadjiba welcomed him back and started following Christ.
Reconciled to his wife and son, Yunus returned the village. And he continued sharing the Gospel with the villagers. But this time, they didn’t just expel Yunus. They ordered Nadjiba and their son to leave too.
“And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also.”
— John 14:3
They ended up sleeping under a tarp on the roadside.
And when they woke up every morning, they sang praises to God—because even though their current circumstances were terrible, Jesus had given them eternal life. No matter how bad things got, they knew that a place in heaven with Christ awaited them (Hebrews 11:16, John 14:1–4).
After some time, a believer who had first shared the Gospel in the village found Yunus’ family and welcomed them into his home. Since then, God has continued to provide Yunus, Nadjiba, and their son a place to stay with other believers.
Yunus and Nadjiba often return to their village to share about Jesus. In spite of the threats, over 100 people—including several Islamic leaders—have come to faith through their faithful witness.
- Praise God for saving Yunus and Nadjiba and using them to introduce other Muslims to Jesus.
- Pray that their son will grow to love the Word, treasure the Lord, and share Jesus with others.
- Pray for new believers to endure persecution with faith in Christ, perseverance in the Gospel, and hope in eternity.
- Ask God to continue equipping field workers and national believers to reach Muslims with the Good News of the Kingdom.
Through a simple prayer for transformation, God saved one man’s family and helped him build his house on the Rock.
Click below to read his story of starting a movement to Christ among his people.
This account comes from a long-term worker. Names have been changed for security.