To Thirst With Joy

“Never have we heard news like this!” Khassim said.

He and his wife, Tahira, had been staying with a relative who happened to be our next-door neighbor. From our first introduction, Khassim seemed open to hearing the Good News. We started meeting several times a week to study Bible stories from creation to Christ. When I gave him a solar-powered radio with pre-loaded recordings of the Bible, he and Tahira listened to it constantly.

Through our Bible studies, God began opening Khassim’s eyes to the truth of the Gospel. Everywhere he looked, he started seeing examples of the truth he was learning.

One day he pointed to the wood pole supporting the broken roof beam in his relative’s house. “Jesus is our support,” he said. “Without Him, everything would just crumble apart.”

Everywhere he looked, he started seeing examples of the truth he was learning.

Then, in one of our studies, Khassim discovered that Christ frees us from being lost in our sins. After that, he and his wife both embraced this Good News and committed to following Jesus.

Some nights later, Khassim and I dug a hole into the sandy ground. We lined it with a tarp and filled it with water. And under a star-filled sky, he and Tahira were baptized.

Since then, their thirst for the Word has grown. Khassim and I meet every evening to study the Word and to discuss how to live as followers of Jesus Christ. Tahira studies the same passages with my wife, Sarah.

As a couple, Khassim and Tahira are growing in joy as they listen to the Word, pray together, and learn to trust the Lord.

“WHERE WOULD WE HAVE FOUND THIS GOOD NEWS IF YOU HADN’T SHARED IT WITH US?”

“We’ve never heard anything like this!” Khassim says over and over again. “Where would we have found this good news if you hadn’t shared it with us?”

Sarah has also been helping Tahira learn to sing praise to God using the Psalms.

“Tahira thirsts for the Lord,” Sarah says. “Her joy is apparent on her face.”

The fruit of the Spirit is becoming more evident in both Khassim and Tahira’s lives. “We have found such peace in Jesus Christ,” says Khassim.

Now they’re sharing Christ’s message of joy and peace with others. Khassim’s oldest son and brother-in-law were among the first to begin following Jesus. Since then, two of his childhood friends have also become disciples. Several more are learning about following Jesus.

• Pray for Khassim and Tahira as they grow in faith and boldly share the Gospel.
• Pray that their joy will shine the light of the Gospel to others.
• Ask God to strengthen them for the day when persecution comes.
• Pray for a movement of faith in Christ to spread in their family and to their entire people.