“Can I eat here?” Karly asked the cook of a small food stand near her new home. The young Muslim woman, Farah, eagerly responded, “You speak my language?! Please, sit, sit! What do you want to eat?”
As Farah placed a plate of delicious food on the table and sat down next to her, Karly noticed the beautiful henna designs on Farah’s hands and was reminded of something she’d recently heard. A friend had said that Muslim people believe God cannot hear the prayers of a woman who wears nail polish. (Muslims are to wash before their ritual, five-times-daily prayers. This includes washing every part of their hands. A layer of nail polish is said to prevent “wudu,” or purification, from being complete as water cannot reach the actual nail.)
When Karly asked about the nail polish, Farah replied, “Yeah, some people think like that. But I feel God can hear fine. He is God, right? Does He have a hearing problem? Also, people don’t care about henna. It’s clean. It doesn’t block the water. Would you like me to put henna on your hands?” Karly accepted her offer in the spirit of Luke 10:7 (Stay in one place, eating and drinking what they provide. Don’t hesitate to accept hospitality.).
As the henna dried, a few customers came to the food stand, and Farah introduced Karly to them, pointing out that she could speak their language. In a moment of quiet, Karly asked how she could pray for Farah. “Anything you think of about my business or life!” Farah replied. “I will pray for you too.”
Because of Farah’s introductions, Karly has been welcomed into the homes of two other families on the block!
- Please pray for Karly as she extends the light of God to these new friends.
- Pray that God will open Farah’s heart to seeing and accepting Isa al Masih (Jesus the Messiah) as her Lord and Savior.
Read another story about Karly here.
*pseudonyms