Yemen
Day 1: Coming to Faith Despite the Cost
What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul? – Mark 8:36
About 3,000 years ago, the Queen of Sheba came to visit King Solomon from her kingdom, which was in the southwestern part of present-day Yemen. She brought gifts of spices and gold. When she left, she was in a dilemma, because she was fascinated by what she had heard about Solomon’s God.
Today, the land of Yemen is incredibly impoverished, and the leaders of Yemen face far worse dilemmas. Their country’s essential water table has been drying up. Literacy for women is only 25%. Since 2014, the country has been torn in two by civil war, leaving 82% of the 31 million people dependent on outside aid to survive.
Sickness and starvation have taken a great toll on this once-beautiful country. Yemen is 99% Muslim. It is led by Houthi leaders in the north, the Presidential Leadership Council in the south, and multiple other political, military, and tribal leaders who need God’s wisdom and salvation.
It is very challenging for Yemeni leaders to accept Christ, especially since conversion from Islam is punishable by the death penalty in Yemen. But with God, nothing is impossible.
The story below gives us hope that through the small communities of believers in Yemen, the Spirit of Jesus can be known.
When Amina’s husband was killed in the war between Saudi Arabia and Yemen, she lost everything—her home, her income, and her security. With no one to protect her and her three small children, Amina’s only option as a single mother seemed to be prison, a tragic “solution” in her culture to protect women from abuse.
Instead, Amina fled to a different city, living on the streets and surviving by collecting garbage. There, a Yemeni Christian woman named Farzhana found her. Farzhana welcomed Amina and her children into her home, and cared for them with love and compassion.
Through Farzhana’s witness, Amina came to know Jesus, saying, “He comforts me … He gave me hope… a new family and a new future.”
With the support of the Yemeni church, Amina learned to read and write. Today, she leads a group for other traumatized women—sharing hope, healing, and the love of Jesus.
HOW WE CAN PRAY
- Openness to the gospel: Pray that Muslims in Yemen would encounter Jesus through dreams, visions, Scripture, and the faithful witness of believers.
- Freedom to worship: Pray for the leaders of Yemen to permit their people to live peaceful, godly lives with freedom to follow Christ.
- Peace and stability: Pray for an end to the ongoing war, violence, and humanitarian crisis that has devastated Yemen for years. Pray for the physical and spiritual needs of traumatized widows and orphans in Yemen.
- Strength for the church: Pray for the few Yemeni Christians to stand strong in faith, be wise in sharing, and find fellowship and encouragement despite persecution.