After the first visit to the village, Amy and Ryan felt there was a heavy blanket laying over the hearts and minds of the Muslims in the area. The villagers practice a type of folk Islam which embraces the animistic spirits over a given territory. “There is a strong Jin (spirit) in our area,” villagers told the couple. “That spirit is the one whom we trust to guide us in our Islamic devotion.”
Amy and Ryan continued to visit the area, endeavoring to bring the light of the gospel to its people. Though hopeful of finding a Person of Peace in an old woman believed to be the village shaman, no fruit came from any encounter with her. She met every peace-filled statement, every offer of care and prayer for her physical and spiritual needs with cantankerous and stubborn rejection.
The Lord, however, was preparing a bystander to become a Person of Peace, receptive to the gospel message. One of the woman’s adult sons and his family were drawn by the Holy Spirit and are discovering the reality of God and His Word. They meet together with one of Amy and Ryan’s national partners to read and study the Bible in a Discovery Bible Study.
Pray that this family would decide to follow Jesus. Pray that the Lord would use them to open up the entire village and its neighbors to a movement of the Holy Spirit. For when the Holy Spirit comes to them, he will guide them into all truth, bearing witness to Christ.